Roma’s reported pursuit of Giacomo Raspadori and the sudden change of management at Manchester United have increased the chances Joshua Zirkzee stays at Old Trafford this month. The 24-year-old forward struggled for game time in the first half of the season and had been widely tipped to move to find the consistent minutes required to push for a place in the Netherlands squad ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

Roma director Ricky Massara admitted the club’s interest in Zirkzee cooled after United’s managerial change. “[Zirkzee] is a Manchester United  centre forward liked by many clubs, not just us,” Massara told Sky Sport Italia earlier this week. “Naturally, the situation is different after this change of management, there are no contacts in progress, but I wouldn’t focus on individual names.” He added: “It’s true there are negotiations in progress with both Atlético Madrid and Raspadori.”

Sky Sport Italia subsequently reported Roma have quickly reached agreement with Atlético to sign Raspadori on loan with an option to buy. The move requires the player’s acceptance, and any pursuit of Zirkzee would be abandoned if the Raspadori deal proceeds.

Zirkzee’s involvement for United has risen since the November international break, after barely featuring in the first three months of the season. He was called upon by Darren Fletcher in the first game after Amorim’s sudden departure and has played some part in each of the last 10 Premier League fixtures, registering direct goal involvements in two of the last three. He is still typically used from the bench.

Another factor working against an immediate exit is the expectation no new signings will be made in January. Amorim made the club’s stance clear in December and his departure has not altered that position: “It’s going to be hard for someone to leave the club if we don’t get a substitution. We are short. Even with the full squad, we are short for something that can happen.”

United were believed to have been keen on Antoine Semenyo because of his £65 million release clause, but after the goalscoring winger chose Manchester City the Red Devils withdrew and decided against spending on an alternative. Funds are intended to be held for the summer window, when a central midfielder is the priority target.

Manchester United left Turf Moor with a draw after a 2-2 result against Burnley, a game in which they dominated possession but failed to turn control into three points. The match swung wildly: an Ayden Heaven own goal put Burnley ahead at half-time, Benjamin Šeško struck twice after the interval to put United in front, and substitute Jaidon Anthony levelled to deny the visitors victory.

United began well and the away support were audible as they sang Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s name amid talk of a possible interim return. Early openings arrived but were not taken, and Burnley capitalised against the run of play when Bashir Humphries’ cross took a deflection off Heaven and looped over Senne Lammens.

After half-time Šeško changed the game. Fernandes slipped him in for an instinctive finish six minutes after the restart, and a second followed from Patrick Dorgu’s precise cross, Šeško guiding the volley into the net. United looked to have done enough, but Lisandro Martínez failed to close down Jaidon Anthony, who turned and fired the home side’s first shot on target into the corner.

Player contributions were mixed. Bruno Fernandes returned to the starting XI and set up the first Šeško goal before being substituted at 61 minutes. Patrick Dorgu impressed on the left, and Šeško converted two instinctive finishes to double his season tally. Ayden Heaven was unfortunate to be credited with the own goal and had a glaring chance to make amends later.

Substitutes included Mason Mount (61’), Leny Yoro (61’), Joshua Zirkzee (74’), Kobbie Mainoo (74’) and Shea Lacey (84’), with Lacey coming close to a late breakthrough. Unused subs were Altay Bayındır, Harry Maguire, Tyrell Malacia and Jack Fletcher.

Key match statistics underlined United’s control: possession 68% to 32%, expected goals 0.85 to 0.06, total shots 12 to 2 and shots on target 6 to 0. In the end United will view this as two points lost after a performance that produced control but not the result.

This week’s departures of Enzo Maresca and Ruben Amorim after clashes with their clubs over power have reopened a debate about the meaning of job titles in English football. Mikel Arteta, who moved from head coach to manager early in his Arsenal tenure, said that the change in name carried little real weight for him.

The distinction has grown sharper as clubs adopt structures modelled on director of football or general manager-led approaches. The era when the “manager” ran the entire sporting operation, answering only to a chairman, is associated with figures such as Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsène Wenger, who were described in the past as the last of that omnipotent breed.

Amorim declared himself a “manager” not a “head coach” in what proved to be his final press conference with Manchester United on Sunday, having previously hinted at being denied new signings in January that he believed necessary to make his 3-4-3 system work. He was announced as Manchester United’s “head coach” when he was appointed in November 2024, a different formulation from the club’s historical appointments, which in its 148-year history were exclusively the “manager” aside from Wilf McGuinness in 1969.

Arteta was appointed Arsenal “head coach” in December 2019 but was formally promoted to “manager” within nine months. At the time Arsenal said “there is so much more that he can bring” than simply coaching the first-team squad, affording Arteta more influence and a closer working relationship with then-director of football Edu Gaspar and then-CEO Vinai Venkatesham.

Speaking ahead of Arsenal’s match against Liverpool, Arteta stressed the practical realities behind titles. “It was different at the time when they proposed to change the role and what they thought about in the areas that I could help probably more than they expected at the beginning,” he said. “At the end it’s about the relationships and the people, because we have formed great teams with very different qualities and some that have been more on certain things and when there is somebody that is much better than me on that, I let them do it. For me the title doesn’t really reflect the way we operate daily. I think it’s more important the people and the morale to really understand that let’s give each other the things that we can master and make us much better and the rest we just support that idea.”

When asked whether the promotion increased his confidence he replied, “Yes, [it gave a confidence boost], because I didn’t demand it,” underlining his view that relationships and responsibilities matter more than the label attached to the role.