Premier League
Mbappé’s Real Madrid Rift and the Six Clubs Linked as Potential Options
Mbappé says he is “fourth-choice”, deepening a Real Madrid rift and prompting transfer speculation..
Kylian Mbappé’s recent public comments have intensified speculation about his future at Real Madrid. The forward declared he is “fourth-choice” at the club and suggested the team lost its playing style and structure in the second half of the season. He also referred to his “great relationship” with Xabi Alonso.
After two seasons at the Bernabéu, Mbappé remains a complex figure at a club that long pursued him under Florentino Pérez. He is on course for back-to-back Pichichi trophies as La Liga’s top scorer, but he has yet to secure a major team honor for Madrid. The player’s goals have not erased questions around chemistry with the other attacking stars.
Tensions escalated this month following a controversial trip to Italy with his girlfriend Ester Expósito and reports of a training-ground bust-up with a member of Arbeloa’s coaching staff. On Thursday night he was substituted on in the second half to boos and whistles, and an online petition demanding his sale has gathered millions of signatures.
If Real Madrid were to consider a departure, six clubs have been suggested as plausible destinations in recent coverage. Paris Saint-Germain featured in that list after a previous long pursuit and a contract episode that made him the world’s highest-paid player. He left PSG two years later; PSG have since reached back-to-back Champions League finals and that era appears closed.
Liverpool was long touted as an option. The club will need attacking reinforcement with Mohamed Salah departing, and Hugo Ekitiké is unavailable while recovering from an Achilles injury. The finances required for Mbappé would likely be prohibitive for the 2024–25 Premier League champions, who spent heavily last summer and have other areas to address.
Manchester City could potentially absorb the wages but would need to break their transfer record and may prioritise midfield options. A swap involving Erling Haaland was mentioned as one possible structure. Chelsea could become more attractive should they appoint Xabi Alonso as manager; Mbappé and Alonso had a good relationship at the Bernabéu and Mbappé stayed ‘Team Xabi’ in the locker-room split. Chelsea’s finances are described as precarious, although co-owner Todd Boehly is viewed as opportunistic. London life may appeal more to Mbappé, but a lack of Champions League football would be a deterrent.
Manchester United
Carrick welcomes uncertainty as United search for clearer rhythm
Carrick says United’s lack of identity can make them harder to read, not easier to stop.
Michael Carrick has brushed off criticism over Manchester United’s supposed lack of identity, arguing that it can actually work in the team’s favour if opponents cannot work them out.
United have made a mixed start to the new season. They failed to score in two of their opening four Premier League matches, have not kept a clean sheet in the division, and have taken only two wins from six games in all competitions. Their recent Carabao Cup exit has only intensified the discussion around what Carrick is trying to build.
But the manager is not troubled by the debate. Speaking to Sky Sports ahead of Sunday’s meeting with Fulham, he made clear that unpredictability is part of the plan.
“I quite like the fact that someone can’t work out our identity, to be honest. That means you’re unpredictable. From an attacking sense, we want to be unpredictable,” the manager told Sky Sports in the buildup to Sunday’s important encounter against Fulham.
“We don’t want people to be able to read what we are going to do next or what our main strength is. If we can do a good number of things well and attack from a number of areas, I’d rather have a team that does that. We’ve attacked well since January, scored a good number of goals and being unpredictable is a good thing.”
United remain in a period of development, with the club still aiming for the Premier League title by next season as part of a wider ambition to reclaim the trophy during, or before, its 150th anniversary year in 2027-28.
That sense of growth was also reflected in Carrick’s comments on Leny Yoro and Ayden Heaven, both of whom started the Carabao Cup defeat against Brighton & Hove Albion. Yoro is 20, Heaven is 19, and Carrick said he would not make any rushed judgments after that result at Old Trafford.
“I think they’ll learn from different experiences and they’ve done particularly well and they’re in a really good spot, two young players that have got really good futures,” the manager told reporters.
“So unfortunately you go through times in football and you have some good spells and sometimes you learn a lot from the things that didn’t go so well. But I wouldn’t isolate them at all from the other night.”
He added of Yoro: “Leny is 20, and again in context, he’s got a fantastic future ahead of him and a lot of potential. He’s learning, he’s developing,” Carrick stressed. “To be at this club and play as a center back at such a young age is a challenging position. It’s one that he can do for sure, it’s one that Ayden can do for sure.
Fulham
Šeško ruled out as United wait on injury assessment
Šeško missed United’s visit to Fulham while Carrick waits on an injury assessment.
Benjamin Šeško was absent from Manchester United’s squad for the trip to Fulham after Michael Carrick confirmed the striker is being assessed over an unspecified injury.
Carrick had managed Šeško carefully at the start of the season, using him as a substitute in United’s first four Premier League matches. The 23-year-old was then fit to start the club’s opening Champions League game of the campaign, where he scored in the win over Sabah FK, and he also featured in Wednesday’s Carabao Cup meeting with Brighton & Hove Albion.
Earlier this month, Šeško had sounded upbeat about his recovery, saying: “I think waiting a little bit longer was a great decision, and now it’s healed, so it’s perfect,” Šeško insisted earlier this month.
Carrick’s latest update offered little clarity on the situation. Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: “He pulled up after the game the other day with a little bit of pain, so we’ll have to see how he is,” was all the Manchester United manager would offer.
In Šeško’s absence, Matheus Cunha kept his place through the middle. That decision left some fans frustrated, particularly with Amad Diallo unavailable on the right and Bryan Mbeumo regularly deployed there instead of being used as a central option.
Cunha brings link play and combines neatly with Bruno Fernandes, but he does not offer the same direct running that Mbeumo provides. Even so, Fulham’s tendency to leave space for opponents this season means United may still find openings without Šeško.
There is also anticipation around Carlos Baleba, who has still not made his Manchester United debut. Signed for $93.7 million (£70 million) and unveiled almost a month ago, he arrived from Brighton with an ankle injury. His first appearance could be confirmed at Craven Cottage.
International
Townsend escapes serious harm after Thailand pitch roller incident
Townsend was run over by a pitch roller in Thailand, but escaped with minor injuries.
Former Premier League winger Andros Townsend was involved in an unusual accident in Thailand on Saturday after being run over by an out of control pitch roller.
The 35-year-old escaped relatively lightly, and he was well enough to make light of the incident on social media afterwards. “It turns out Stoke away wasn’t so bad after all,” he wrote on Instagram.
Townsend was struck and briefly trapped when the roller rode up onto his left leg. What could have been a far worse situation ended with only minor cuts and bruises on his left thigh, with luck clearly on his side.
He did go on to feature in the match, although only as a substitute in the final minute. Before that, he had started both of Prachuap’s matches in Thai League 1 in 2026/27. His late appearance did not affect the outcome, as three goals and a clean sheet were enough to see off Pattani.
Townsend has now been based in Thailand for a little over a year. He left England in 2024 after 12 straight seasons in the Premier League, having played for Everton and Luton Town. His move abroad began with Antalyaspor in Türkiye before he headed to Thailand and joined Kanchanaburi Power at the start of 2025/26.
That club had only just been promoted, but later went down from the top division, prompting Townsend’s switch to Prachuap.
