The Manchester United players were reportedly given two weeks off after their 2-1 defeat to Sevilla in the Europa Leagud semifinals on Sunday. They expected to report back for training in early September.
Manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is hoping get a two week preseason in before the 20/21 season kicks off, and it’s going to be jam-packed. Get ready, because once the 20/21 season gets going, it will be non-stop. Until we get there however, it’s the silly season, so let’s talk transfers.
For part one of United transfer talk go here.
Solskjaer openly discussed the good problem he has with three quality goalkeeper options for selection on the roster. The Norwegian has also said that Dean Henderson is the United keeper of the future.
Is the future right now? Not according to current No. 1 David de Gea, who says he’s confident he’ll retain the gig this upcoming season. So where does that leave Henderson? According to The Sun, the club is set to offer him a new four year Old Trafford deal worth £100,000 a week.
The Sun also points out that: “United would be splashing out £575k a week just on their goalkeepers, with Spaniard De Gea earning £350k, Sergio Romero (£70k) and Lee Grant (£30k).” That’s a very big payroll for just one position group there.
And according to the Mirror, Solskjaer wants to send Henderson out on loan for the third consecutive season to Sheffield United. If it doesn’t work out, Chelsea are ready to provide him a new home, claims the Express.
Elsewhere Bayern Munich defender David Alaba has rejected a €15 million per offer from his current club. According to Sky Sports, Bayern and Alaba remain poles apart in negotiations, with United and Chelsea monitoring the situation.
He’s expected to start the UCL semifinal against Lyon tonight, so you might want to pay special attention to him, if you’re tuning in. Finally, we cover a long time former player- defender Antonio Valencia.
A media outlet in his native Ecuador reports that three Major League Soccer clubs are keen on him- D.C. United, Inter Miami and LA Galaxy. All three of these MLS clubs have United connections. D.C. was Wayne Rooney’s last stop before he moved to Derby County.
Miami is owned by David Beckham, and LA is a place where both Becks and Zlatan Ibrahimovic played for a little while. Indeed MLS has been red in recent years and perhaps Valencia will continue that trend. He was released by the club last year and spent the last two years with LDU Quito.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly contributes to WGN TV, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Now and SB Nation.
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