When Ole Gunnar Solskjaer assumed managerial duties at Manchester United last month, the team was eight points behind Arsenal in the Premier League table. Today, they’re level on points with the Gunners sitting fifth and United sixth due to a +2 advantage in goal differential.
The two sides will meet in a different competition, the FA Cup, a week from Friday. The fourth round clash is in the news today as United supporters are irate over a decision announced by the north London club on Tuesday.
Arsenal have decided to reduce their ticket allocation for the away fans in this match by almost half. According to the Daily Express:
“United should have been allocated 9,000 tickets, but the Manchester United Supporters’ Trust (MUST) have been told that Arsenal are offering only 5,000 tickets. The Gunners are said to be citing ‘safety reasons’ as the reason why.”
“What makes the FA Cup special is the larger away allocations than you get in league games,” a MUST spokesman said. For Arsenal to offer little over half the proper allocation is a joke.
“The game is just 10 days away and at present United are unable to sell tickets to their fans. Supporters need to make arrangements for a fixture which has already been shifted to an inconvenient Friday night kick-off time.”
Next we turn to some transfer talk. According to ESPN, United are supposedly in the race to acquire AS Roma winger Cengiz Under; joining the likes of Arsenal, Tottenham and Bayern Munich.
Of course, this is the absolute last position United should be beefing up at as they have a plethora of players on the wing as it is. So a move to acquire another one makes no sense, and that money should instead go towards fixing that creaky central defense.
Elsewhere in transfer gossip, Marouane Fellaini could be on the way out this January. The Belgian was a key player during the Jose Mourinho era, but he just doesn’t fit the Solskjaer system and approach at all. Various tabloids are talking about his jettisoning, which could come at a price of £13 million or £15 million, depending on the outlet you’re looking at.
Potential suitors include Porto, AC Milan as well as clubs in Turkey and China according to the Daily Mail.
Finally, David de Gea reportedly wants a massive contract in order to stay put at Old Trafford. He wants a deal that puts him on par with the club’s top earners. Given his form, value, talent and importance to the team, we just couldn’t agree more.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, regularly appears as a guest pundit on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
He also contributes sociopolitical essays to Chicago Now. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram. The content of his cat’s Instagram account is unquestionably superior to his.