In his 12th exclusive column for CaughtOffside, super-agent Rob Segal lifts the lid on what’s really going on in British football.

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Man United won’t fall for Marcus Rashford’s PR tactics…

They would sell him to Arsenal. There was a time when Danny Welbeck was in a similar position and he ended up going to Arsenal.

It could be a PR stunt though, and if it is, United won’t fall for it. From a footballing perspective though, I am not even sure where he would fit in at Arsenal at the moment.

I think what Man United will do, knowing he has up to two years left on his contract, is monitor his situation closely but they won’t panic.

Gone are the days of clubs offering five or six-year deals when a player still has two left and that’s because clubs used to use that as a kind of insurance, whereby if another club came in and said ‘we want to sign him’, they could demand a fee that reflected the player’s bumper contract, but nowadays, clubs aren’t so keen to be left with players on massively long contracts.

If James Maddison goes to the World Cup, Mason Mount won’t…

If Gareth Southgate takes James Maddison to Qatar, then he won’t take Mason Mount.

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I know FIFA have increased country’s maximum squad from 23 to 26, but I still believe Southgate will choose between the two instead of taking both. He’ll prioritise other positions, such as full-back and centre-back over the attacking midfield, number 10 role.

I really believe it’s one or the other, and with just 11 days left before he announces his squad, players basically have one more game to impress.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s legacy is being tainted…

This is not how Cristiano Ronaldo wanted to go out. Don’t get me wrong, he can still do a job at a very high level, but what is happening at the moment is not what he would have envisioned.

Maybe he has rolled his eyes and shrugged his shoulders just one too many times because he is running the risk of his legacy being tainted.

One thing I am sure of though is that he won’t renew with United and if he gets an offer in January to go and play for another club, the Red Devils will let him go.

I think in terms of where he could go next, it’ll all depend on how Portugal does in the winter but the speculation surrounding his future will ramp up once the World Cup starts. It’ll turn into a media circus and it’ll all be ‘what is Ronaldo going to do? Where is he going to go?’, and if that does happen, United will want to part ways sooner rather than later.

The post Rashford to Arsenal could be PR stunt, Southgate’s number 10 problem and Ronaldo has to go appeared first on CaughtOffside.

In his 11th exclusive column for CaughtOffside, super-agent Rob Segal lifts the lid on what’s really going on in British football.

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What next for Thomas Tuchel?

I was shocked, but not surprised. Shocked because when Chelsea’s takeover was going through, Tuchel was the one who was forced to face the media and their barrage of questions. He was put in a really tough spot and I thought he conducted himself and represented the club superbly. I didn’t see Bruce Buck coming out and saying anything. It was all left to Tuchel – he was literally the club’s last man standing.

However, as we all know – football is a results business and unfortunately, nowadays, the clock starts ticking from a club’s first pre-season friendly. There is no denying it though – aside from Chelsea’s poor form so far this season, something has definitely happened behind the scenes between Tuchel and the owner.

Nevertheless, Tuchel is now a thing of the past and it looks like Brighton’s Graham Potter is going to get the job, and if that does happen, Chelsea fans are in for a real treat because he will get them playing some breathtaking football – I am sure of that.

With regards to where Tuchel could go next, I definitely don’t see his next job being in the Premier League. I expect him to return to Europe and in fact, RB Leipzig, who have just sacked Domenico Tedesco, could be a really good fit but of course, if Tuchel were to return to the Bundesliga, the most interesting narrative would be his reunion with Timo Werner.

Jurgen Klopp will turn Liverpool’s poor form around…

Some fans would argue that if Tuchel got the boot off the back of an underwhelming start to the season, as well as an opening group game defeat in the Champions League, how close is Jurgen Klopp to the same fate? – Well, I think the big difference is that everybody can see the pattern Liverpool operates to.

The club’s policy is that they only look to bring in one or two big players at a time and then they work to integrate them. That’s what we’re seeing happening at the moment.

FSG will not deviate away from their policies and Klopp has been integral in forming them. Not only that but Liverpool’s owners will sit there and ask themselves ‘if we part ways with Jurgen, who is actually out there who could do a better job? – No one’, and I would also agree with that. I am a firm believer that if there is any manager in the world who can turn Liverpool’s early form around, it is Klopp.

Trent Alexander-Arnold needs a rest…

Liverpool have major injury problems which haven’t helped either and a player like Trent Alexander-Arnold probably needs a prolonged rest.

However, because of his standing within the club, you can almost feel his arrogance when he is slowly running back to goal. Alexander-Arnold knows that no matter what he does, right or wrong, he is likely to start week in, week out.

It is no secret that Alexander-Arnold is a lot better going forward than he is defensively, so his weaknesses need to be covered and unfortunately for Klopp, at the moment, none of his side’s backline are playing particularly well. The timing of their drop-off in form has been really unfortunate.

Nottingham Forest owners only have themselves to blame…

I feel so sorry for Steve Cooper. He has been absolutely swamped with new players that the owners wanted to sign.

Forest is such a good club, full of history with an amazing fanbase and being back in the Premier League is where they belong, but what are the owners thinking?

You cannot just buy 20 or more players in one window and expect the team to click. It is never going to happen. It doesn’t matter how big the club is or how good the players are, it will take time, but unfortunately, unless Forest get it right in a season, they could be starring right back at the Championship.

The post Shame for Tuchel but Potter will get Chelsea playing well, Klopp under no pressure but Liverpool defender does need resting appeared first on CaughtOffside.

In his tenth exclusive column for CaughtOffside, super-agent Rob Segal lifts the lid on what’s really going on in British football.

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Erik ten Hag is under pressure at Manchester United already…

Erik ten Hag’s body language on Sunday looked like a rabbit caught in headlights.

What Saturday has shown is that Manchester United are not a quick fix. You just cannot fix the biggest football club in the world in the space of two months. Everybody, when talking about Manchester United, needs to reel it in a little bit.

In my opinion, they do have some really good individuals in place. John Murtough for example is a really good guy who has a lot of experience. Darren Fletcher is another that understands Manchester United inside out. However, although I don’t know too much about him, when it comes to CEO Richard Arnold meeting up with the fans for a pint in the pub, I don’t understand that. At the end of the day, he has a really important job to do, so go and do it, go and make those important decisions instead of sitting with fans in a boozer because they aren’t the ones who have been tasked with running the club and their opinions are purely based on results.

As for this rebuild, for all the managers that are out there, if Man United are going to persist with ten Hag, it makes you wonder if, during times of dramatic change, they’d have been better off going with a proven pair of safe hands.

The thing that really bothers me with ten Hag is how he keeps going back to look at players from his old club Ajax. Of course managers like former players, but to be linked with virtually all of Ajax’s first-team squad is just too much and shows a real lack of planning.

Just because you’re a football club, it doesn’t automatically mean there is a long-term strategy in place and I think out of all the clubs, Manchester United are proving that more than anyone else.

Right not to start Cristiano Ronaldo against Brighton…

There is a lot of talk and criticism about ten Hag opting against starting Cristiano Ronaldo against Brighton and Hove Albion on Sunday, but in all fairness, the manager didn’t have a choice.

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Even if Ronaldo wasn’t 37 years old, he has still missed the vast majority of his team’s pre-season, so to then start him in the first game of the new campaign was never going to happen. The same would be said for any player, not just Ronaldo.

Manchester United’s Marko Arnautovic bid stinks of desperation…

I could not believe it when I saw recent reports suggesting Manchester United have made a bid for Marko Arnautovic.

If any club does that kind of business, there is no way they can then come out and say ‘we have a long-term plan in place’.

I just cannot work this one out and it’s hard not to feel sorry for the fans. One of their biggest rivals has just signed Erling Haaland and here Manchester United are, in the running for an average 33-year-old former Stoke City player. He is also proven to be a problematic player.

It just stinks of desperation.

The post Ten Hag right not to start Ronaldo but Dutchman’s body language is a worry and Arnautovic bid stinks of desperation appeared first on CaughtOffside.

In his eighth exclusive column for CaughtOffside, super-agent Rob Segal lifts the lid on what’s really going on in British football.

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Cristiano Ronaldo would only go to Chelsea for commercial reasons…

At the age of 37, with his 500m followers on social media, London, from a commercial point of view is a much more inviting place to be. Obviously, to be in London, would be commercially more central for him. That must be where all this talk is coming from.

I think if he does leave Old Trafford, instead of being a hero and leaving a hero, United fans might see him differently…That would be a shame because he is an unbelievable athlete. One of the very best to play the game.

Let’s not forget either – he did agree to a contract. He knew the risks involved when he signed on the dotted line, no other clubs were prepared to commit like United.

Don’t get me wrong, I know the Red Devils aren’t in next season’s Champions League and that will factor into his decision a bit too, but although Chelsea are going well in this summer’s transfer window, it isn’t like they’re going to run away with the Premier League next season, or be odds on favourites to go on a deep run in Europe. It would be such a shame, his legacy will be massively dented if he goes through with it.

So for him to go after just one year when they’ve just bought a new manager in, would not be good for United at all. Ronaldo scored 24 goals last season, if he does that, or gets close to that again next season, who wouldn’t want that? – Erik ten Hag definitely will.

I do believe he will eventually leave at some point this summer and unfortunately for the United faithful, I can’t see anywhere for him other than Chelsea.

Thomas Tuchel is so good Real Madrid would take him over Carlo Ancelotti…

On the subject of Chelsea – owner Todd Boehly is taking on a lot of responsibility and he is going to learn the hard way how things work.

It is brilliant for the fans though because it appears it is a bit like ‘The King is dead, long live the King’. Boehly is really prepared to go for it and sign some serious talent this summer.

Thomas Tuchel is brilliant too. The way he dealt with the Romelu Lukaku crisis last season was better than how Boris Johnson dealt with Parliament!

Quite often, new owners come in and have their own management ideas, but this isn’t the case with Boehly and Chelsea. It is very obvious that one thing that is not under scrutiny there is the manager and his staff.

I remember reading a quote from Harry Redknapp openly saying that there is no evidence that Tuchel is a great manager… Rubbish!

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Tuchel is one of the best I have ever seen. The way he conducts himself on the touchline, on the training pitch and in press conferences is top-class. His skill set is so versatile that he could almost be the CEO of a city bank.

Don’t think for one second that Real Madrid aren’t watching Tuchel. He could really end up there. If Tuchel ever hinted at a change of scenery, Real Madrid would jump at the chance to sign him, even after all Carlo Ancelotti did last season. They would look at it like ‘we are Real Madrid, we are the best so we want the best’.

I’m not saying it is going to happen now, but at some point in the future, I believe, if there is an opportunity, we’ll see Real Madrid make a move for Tuchel. That is why Chelsea are so willing to back him. They know they need to keep hold of him for as long as they can.

It’s important to point out that it isn’t just Tuchel though. There are another three guys in his close team at Chelsea. Benny Weber, for example, he’s their first-team coach and analyst, and he is phenomenal. Webber is a brilliant addition to the club and the players love him.

Mason Mount made decision that could cost him thousands…

I think Mason Mount will end up renewing his deal at Chelsea soon but he doesn’t get professional advice and it is no coincidence that he has found himself in this situation. Mount is represented by his family after leaving the agency that helped create him.

If a player wants to be treated as a professional, you need to put yourself among professional people. Parents don’t always know what is best. Some parents who represent their children get starry-eyed and it doesn’t always work in their favour.

Put it this way – whatever Mount’s next contract is, he’d have got more if he’d stuck with the agency that would know the real numbers, as opposed to parents talking on the touchline thinking they know the right levels.

Juan Mata will go to a top Spanish club…

Mount’s situation aside – one of the few instances, where family representation has paid off, is Juan Mata and his father. Having said that, being Mata’s agent is like being Ken Barlow’s agent. It’s easy!

Interestingly, Mata is a free agent this summer and even at the age of 34, I think he’ll go to a big club. I think he’ll end up moving to a Spanish side. For example, he could fit into Atletico Madrid’s system with no problem at all.

Even Real Madrid may fancy it – I can definitely see Mata going to a top-top Spanish club this summer.

The post Ronaldo wants Chelsea for commercial reasons, Real Madrid will be monitoring Tuchel and Mount’s poor judgement could see him lose thousands of pounds appeared first on CaughtOffside.

In his seventh exclusive column for CaughtOffside, super-agent Rob Segal lifts the lid on what’s really going on in British football.

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The biggest change the English FA need to make is not Gareth Southgate…

Gareth Southgate is a company man. He isn’t going to make any waves for the FA, he is also a problem solver and the FA love that about him. But with regards to the Nations League, regardless of whether it is a friendly tournament, or not, Southgate and England were beaten twice by Hungary.

Bad results they may be, I do still think Southgate survives, but I think his first-team coach, Steve Holland, should go because he’s definitely been one of the luckier coaches in the game. He very much landed on his feet with Jose Mourinho at Chelsea and then Carlo Ancelotti.

All you have to do is go back to the Euros 2020 final against Italy. England waited and waited to make changes and then it was too late. The whole stadium, apart from the Italians, was frustrated. You could clearly see that the tactic was ‘if we do not concede a goal, we can’t lose’. Well, that mentality must come from the coach… That’s Holland’s job!

As it turned out, they did concede and the game ended up going to penalties – the rest is history but it felt to me like the players who should have taken spot-kicks, didn’t and that is all part of the negative effect.

What really bothers me is the style of the country’s football. Defending deep and then launching the ball forward for Harry Kane to try and feed off scraps. It is atrocious entertainment. Watching England is one of the most boring experiences. You watch the Three Lions for 90-minutes and you’ll never get that time back.

In terms of what may happen after the winter’s World Cup, anything less than reaching the semi-finals should be considered a big disappointment. If England do underwhelm and the time comes for Southgate to move on, Brighton’s Graham Potter would be a superb candidate to succeed, as would Sean Dyche. Can you imagine what kind of a job Dyche would do with the country’s very best talent? – He’d be fantastic.

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Chelsea’s Todd Boehly could be in for a shock…

Recent news has confirmed that Chelsea’s Marina Granovskaia and Bruce Buck will depart the club. There is of course, still some uncertainty surrounding Granovskaia’s exact departure date.

When you take over a business, especially a football club, you need to slowly assess what you have and what you do not have. It wouldn’t surprise me to see Granovskaia stay until the end of the window so that the process of recruiting a sporting director can take place properly.

But if Todd Boehly is going to continue working on the ‘shop floor’, so to speak, then, unfortunately, he is going to be in for a major shock.

Leeds United close to losing their two best players…

Leeds United need to sell – that much is obvious.

Offloading Raphinha might be enough, but Kalvin Phillips is a strong candidate to go too. He is close to joining Manchester City, I hear.

They see him as a long-term replacement for Fernandinho and he’s a player they really like and he has definitely come on leaps and bounds in the last two years.

The post Big decisions await the FA, Todd Boehly concerns and Leeds United close to losing Phillips appeared first on CaughtOffside.

In his sixth exclusive column for CaughtOffside, super-agent Rob Segal lifts the lid on what’s really going on in British football.

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Heavy-handed French police and UEFA acted poorly last weekend…

Last weekend’s Champions League final signalled the end of the 2021-22 domestic season and many congratulations to Real Madrid for lifting the prestigious trophy.

Although the game itself was an enthralling watch, the scenes outside of the Stade de France prior to kick-off were a cause for major concern.

Hardline tactics are usually used by the police to keep people in check before there is any need to. I don’t think Liverpool fans are interested in causing trouble, their team is flying and they’ve been so successful that there is almost a party atmosphere with them wherever they go.

When I saw those pictures on Saturday night, there were literally more families with children than gangs of older people. I think the French police were trying to prove a point when there was no point to be proven.

It is also typical of UEFA to come up with a load of nonsense to try and save face. I have to read emails from them all the time which baffle me to the point of making my stomach turn so I wasn’t surprised that the first thing UEFA did, with no evidence, was to say that there was a mass of forged tickets – what a load of rubbish!

Sadio Mane’s decision to leave Liverpool must be personal…

Moving onto another Liverpool-related talking point. One of this summer transfer window’s biggest stories, so far, appears to be Sadio Mane leaving Anfield and moving to Bayern Munich.

It’s illogical. I just cannot understand why Mane would leave the best league in the world and a club where he would probably get more money than at Bayern Munich – I can only think something personal has happened there. Why, when you’re at a club that continually achieves great things, would you want to leave?

I am sure the news that Mane is leaving has come as no surprise to Liverpool. If fans have just found out, then you can guarantee the club has known for a few months.

In terms of a potential replacement, I have no idea who they may end up pursuing, if anyone, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Liverpool turned around and said ‘get on with it, you can go for free next summer’. They definitely won’t make it easy for him to leave for a cut-price.

Harry Winks needs more first-team football…

Spurs agree that Harry Winks should be playing more games than he is. Playing 20 games when your club is playing 40 games a season isn’t a good enough return for a player who has international aspirations. He is at a good age and just wants to play, but it is really hard for Winks because he’s been at the club for 20-years – it’s a very long time.

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But, on the other hand, it is difficult because after a while, like anybody in any job, you do get a little bit tired of it – the same wallpaper every day. It is one of those situations where you don’t necessarily want to leave, but you know you have to.

At this stage, they will have to wait and see what develops over the course of the transfer window. I would imagine it would be preferable for everybody if Winks leaves on a permanent deal. There will be clubs wanting him who aren’t in a position to sign him. Newly-promoted clubs, for example. Those clubs probably aren’t going to be able to spend fortunes during their first season back in the Premier League, they’re likely to be looking for loans.

Spurs are unlikely to sign a replacement midfielder…

Should Winks end up leaving Spurs, I don’t think a replacement central midfielder is that high up on their list. I think they will go after a centre-back and a striker first. I am not totally convinced they need another midfielder next season, especially when they still have Oliver Skipp to come back. I don’t think this Spurs team is a particularly ‘Conte-esque’ team, certainly not at the moment anyway, but you can’t go out and replace them all in a window or two. It is going to take time.

Manchester United will listen to offers for Brandon Williams…

Brandon Williams left Manchester United to go and play regular Premier League football with Norwich City, which he has done really successfully. It wasn’t easy for him either. He is a young lad and had to move to the other end of the country, but what he doesn’t want to do now is go back to Old Trafford and just wipe off all this season’s hard work by sitting back on the bench. Manchester United know and appreciate this, so for Williams, it is more probable for him to go out on another loan, but Manchester United aren’t ruling out any eventuality.

If a situation were to arise where Williams was wanted by another club and his valuation was met, that is something that would then have to be considered by the player and the club, but Manchester United would probably take that money and reinvest it. But what I will say is, I think Erik ten Hag prefers his players to play on their strong side. I am not sure he will want a right-footed right-back playing at left-back, so there is a lot to work out still.

It is now the job of the representative to take any offers for Williams back to Manchester United to consider, and I am informed that assurances to do so have been made by the club.

Negotiating with clubs is a changing game…

It is all about relationships but the relationships are changing as more and more get taken over by foreign owners.

You cannot just go in and start talking. You really have to do your background research. As an example, when Birmingham City was first taken over by Chinese owners, I went to meet an international banking friend in the city and asked him ‘what is the best way to negotiate with Chinese businesspeople?’ so that I was in a position to understand their mindset when negotiating. It is less the club and more the individual person. Every situation is very different and ultimately, it is about finding mutual respect for each other and appreciating that you’re both just doing your jobs. The end goal is to be able to shake hands and go for a coffee.

The post Spurs unlikely to sign central midfielder, Williams wants first-team Man United football and Mane leaving Liverpool is illogical appeared first on CaughtOffside.

In his fifth Exclusive Column for caughtoffside, super-agent Rob Segal lifts the lid on what’s really going on in British football.

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Marina Granovskaia’s Chelsea future is out of her hands…

American businessman Todd Boehly appears close to finally taking over Chelsea.

Understandably, fans are wondering what may happen to some of the club’s most influential employees and when it comes to Roman Abramovich’s staff force at Chelsea, there is perhaps none more influential than director Marina Granovskaia.

From a buyer’s perspective, when you’re paying that sort of money to take over a business, you’re going to want your own people in there. Maybe not immediately because only people who don’t know what they’re doing make immediate changes, you do it slowly while you assess your personnel.

They’ll see how experienced she is. She is probably one of the longest-serving people there and very good, but the new American owners will want their own in and Granovskaia is Abramovich’s right-hand lady and part of his inner workings for many years even before Chelsea, so they’ll definitely be looking to put their own mechanisms in place.

When it comes to the possibility of her leaving Chelsea and staying in football, I don’t think from a global standpoint, that anybody is willing to employ Russians at the moment. I certainly can’t see her staying in the English game.

In my opinion, I think American owners will take what information they can from Granovskaia and the likes and then part ways and bring in their own people, top to bottom.

Eddie Howe is the Premier League’s ‘Manager of the Season’

I thought when Eddie Howe first went in there, it was a tricky decision but the way he has settled down it is clear that his success at Bournemouth wasn’t a coincidence.

If he gets the backing, which I am sure he will, added to the fact he has very good people around him, England coach Graeme Jones, for example, then he’ll continue to go from strength to strength and certainly head towards the European spots.

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When it comes to ‘Manger of the Season’ candidates, it’s easy to say Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola, but Howe for me is the one.

When he came in, they looked dead and buried and sure, he made some very good signings in January but he’s also got the absolute maximum out of the players that were already there.

It is time more was done to stop pitch invasions…

Things need to be done. We don’t want to go back to the 1970s – the days of electric fences.

At Wembley, they have a fence horizontally set so to get onto the pitch definitely makes it harder and takes a lot longer.

There are all sorts of problems. Whenever I see a pitch invasion, the first thing I think of is claustrophobia. The players just disappear among a mountain of supporters. But of course, it isn’t just that, it’s the violence that happens too.

Billy Sharp got head-butted recently and then there is what happened with Patrick Vieira at Goodison Park on Thursday night. I deplore anybody to walk through a tunnel of hate.

When it comes to Vieira, he had to walk the gauntlet, all the way over to the far side and he was taking a few digs along the way – the man who got kicked must have said something that was well below the belt. Nobody else in the world is expected to say ‘because of the job I do, I am allowed to be verbally and physically abused’ – so why is it not the same for those who work in football? – Airlines prosecute abusive behaviour against staff, what makes football employees any different? – Nothing. Do something the football association for goodness sake, someone will get seriously hurt or worse if you don’t act NOW!

If Vieira gets any kind of punishment for what happened, I think it would be a total disgrace. If anything, Everton needs to be punished for not policing the event properly. What makes it even more laughable is they were celebrating avoiding relegation after wasting half a billion pounds.

Everton would have known if they won the fans would have invaded the pitch and they would have known that if they lost the fans would have invaded the pitch. It was always going to happen and I do wonder just how much worse it would have been if the final result was the same as it was at half-time.

Fans need to enjoy the game and stay on the terraces, or take the ban and accept a massive fine. It isn’t the player’s fault so they shouldn’t be penalised.

The post New Chelsea owners won’t want Granovskaia, Howe’s flying Magpies and Vieira shouldn’t be punished appeared first on CaughtOffside.

In his fourth Exclusive Column for caughtoffside, super-agent Rob Segal lifts the lid on what’s really going on in British football.

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The season’s conclusion is fast approaching and naturally, attention is beginning to turn to the summer transfer window. Although there are many clubs who are still competing for something, Manchester United’s season is well over and one player who is seeing his future speculated is Cristiano Ronaldo

When it comes to the possibility of seeing him leave Old Trafford this summer – it won’t happen. He’ll stay. He’s Man United’s best player. His body is like a vintage Rolls Royce. He did it the right way round – he didn’t start looking at himself at 35-years-old, he was looking after his body at 18-years-old. A role model for all. Who is to say that he doesn’t stay at United beyond next season as well?

He’s got to stay because he’s the benchmark. Come the age of 37, what will the likes of Marcus Rashford be doing? – not at Man United, that is for sure.

The difference is, Ronaldo is consistently good. Yes, he’ll be substituted more next season than he ever has been before in his career, but if he gets the same amount of starts as Rashford, he’ll deliver more, I guarantee it.

One player who is certain to leave though is midfielder Jesse Lingard. No surprises there, but he’s in limbo. Where will he go? West Ham doesn’t need him. They’ve moved on. The club won’t want to be lumbered with his wages, even if he is going to be available on a free transfer – they won’t spend what is required to bring him back to London.

Interestingly, another club that could soon have multiple players available is Everton. If the Toffees go down, there will be an absolute fire sale. The value of their players, who have massively underperformed this season, will plummet and they’ll basically be given away just to get them off the club’s books. There will be a huge re-think from the very top – lots will have to go.

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If Frank Lampard goes, that could very well be him done in the Premier League. It hasn’t been an inspiring relegation fight from Everton. But with Leeds United struggling too, this relegation battle could be decided on the final day and even right up until the final whistle. It’s going to be very interesting to watch how it plays out – fantastic for the neutral.

From Everton’s point-of-view, there are players who went there in the winter, who were free transfers, but are on big contracts. Dele is a player who, since being at Goodison Park, just has not delivered, so I would be surprised if any of the top clubs are considering him even if Everton does end up going down. Dele didn’t go in there as an £80m player – he was a free transfer. To add insult to injury, to turn up on his first day in a Rolls Royce was really rubbing it in the fans’ faces, well documented and ill-advised, so the boy has to be careful because Everton’s fans are some of the most loyal in the world and they deserve so much more.

When it comes to the likes of Jordan Pickford – England’s number one, surely the world would be his oyster when it comes to potential suitors? – but That isn’t the case.

Money is still really tight and there is a winter World Cup coming up, so who knows if there is even going to be much of a summer transfer window.

I also don’t know what clubs are desperately in need of a goalkeeper. Tottenham Hotspur is fine in that area, Arsenal is certainly fine, Chelsea is sorted too, as are City and United – so where would Pickford go? There aren’t going to be many top opportunities for him.

On the subject of Spurs – manager wise, I think a lot will depend on assurances from Daniel Levy. Whether they’re in the Champions League or not probably won’t matter too much. The Champions League isn’t really enough on its own for Conte anyway – he lives for winning leagues.

Levy really isn’t stupid though – when he hired Conte at the end of last year, he knew exactly what he was taking on. He knew the Italian’s temperament. He knew the good and the bad points. I think this is going to be all about what Spurs can deliver this summer.

What the club may have to do is put it all in the hands of Fabio Paratici and let him try and do some dealings both in and out and make sure it all gets reinvested back into the team. I suspect Spurs will be one of the busiest clubs this summer. Levy will know the club needs to be sensible though.

Although Conte’s future could be considered a bit up in the air, when it comes to Harry Kane – he will stay this summer. I believe Spurs will support him but other players will go. They’ve got to get rid of five or six players and if they were able to offload that many, everyone will benefit. The players will benefit and so will the club. But the same problem comes back again, finding homes for these players isn’t easy.

Lastly, with the Champions League semi-finals set to conclude tonight, now is a good time to give my winner’s predictions.

I think the Premier League is Man City’s and I think the Champions League is also Man City’s.

They have enough experience of big defeats now and that will set them straight this time around – so I am going to go for a Pep Guardiola double.

The post Vintage Ronaldo will stay at Man United, West Ham don’t want Lingard and why Dele needs to be careful appeared first on CaughtOffside.

In his third Exclusive Column for caughtoffside, super-agent Rob Segal lifts the lid on what’s really going on in British football.

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Firstly, what an FA Cup we have on our hands now we know that Chelsea and Liverpool are both in next month’s final.

However, I think it’s diabolical that Conor Gallagher couldn’t play for Crystal Palace against Chelsea in last weekend’s semi-final. It’s okay for them to ask for a loan fee because they’ve made a business out of loaning their players, but here we are, they’ve loaned this player out who has done really well, Crystal Palace is lumbered with his wages every week and their most recent fixture was an FA Cup tie – it’s not like it was a title decider. Why not let him play? – What harm would it do? If they didn’t rate him enough to keep him, what were they worried about? – For him to play at Wembley on that occasion would only have given him more experience if Chelsea does decide to keep hold of him next season. It’s just another flaw in these silly regulations.

If you look at Mason Mount – he went out on loan to Derby County and had a great season there. But every player on Chelsea’s books at that level is a good player so then the manager of Derby County comes back to Chelsea and of course, he had a season’s worth of knowledge and takes Mount back to London with him and plays him. But it makes me wonder if Frank Lampard hadn’t gone back to Chelsea would Mount had got his chance?

Let’s say Gallagher had gone to Derby County instead and had a good season there which undoubtedly he would have done, Lampard then goes back to Chelsea, Gallagher probably would have been given the chance and probably would have played on Sunday but for Chelsea.

One club that is nowhere near a final of any kind though, is Manchester United.

Their problems are endless – Old Trafford is falling down. The last time I went there, unfortunately, it was a real big shock what a terrible state the stadium is in. Instead of taking millions out in dividends, what the Glazer family needs to do is start pumping it back into the club and its facilities. I know they’ve just said they’re going to invest £200m into renovation work but that isn’t going to be enough, especially when you consider that Spurs’ stadium cost £1bn. £200m is barely going to put new guttering around the Sir Alex Ferguson Stand.

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On the field though, it’s going to take at least double that on new transfers. Interim boss Ralf Rangnick has just come out and said excluding the goalkeeping area, the club need to reinforce every other area of the squad.

This proposed squad rebuild is long, long overdue. The only thing I think they have got right in recent times is appointing John Murtough as their football director. He is a really good operator and understands and knows so many people. Darren Fletcher is great too, so between those two and Erik ten Hag, who isn’t one to mess about either, Man United now have to give them the money, give them time and let them get on with it.

The way Liverpool has done it has been the right way. They’ve gone out and bought maybe one or two key players a year and slowly integrated them – players who were exactly what they were looking for too.

I think Man United need to be wary of buying six or seven players this summer because massive and immediate overhauls like those seldom work. In terms of what position they should prioritise, it has to be signing a new centre-back. They need one really outstanding centre-back.

For example, Cristian Romero at Spurs – what a player he is.

Everyone in the industry, including coaches at Spurs, speaks so highly of him. He is nowhere near his full potential yet either – He is a top, top player.

The club’s coaches have all said he is solid, reliable, doesn’t get flustered, is good at recovering and is up there with the likes of Toby Alderweireld.

Another player who is almost certainly heading for the top is Erling Haaland and with him looking like he’s agreed terms with Manchester City, the question really needs to be asked – How many clubs in the world can actually afford him? – Not many.

Aside from Manchester City and Real Madrid, Paris-Saint Germain, of course, needs to be in that conversation, but from purely a footballing perspective, he won’t go there. His dad, Alf-Inge Haaland, is an ex-player and he will know that the only decent football he’ll get if he went to Paris is Champions League football. The domestic league is no good.

If you’re a top player and you’re going to get serious money, there is only one place to play your football and that is in England.

The post Loan rules should change, Spurs’ coaches are raving about new signing and Man United rebuild a major worry appeared first on CaughtOffside.

In his second Exclusive Column for caughtoffside, super-agent Rob Segal lifts the lid on what’s really going on in British football.

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The football world has finally realised why Roman Abramovich bought Chelsea in the first place, which was to get his name out there so he couldn’t just ‘disappear’. You cannot make billions from millions in such a short space of time. But football took the money and now it’s in this mess.

It would be good if Nick Candy and other British businessmen and women started buying back football clubs because what is happening now is that a foreign owner comes in, with new foreign money coming in, but in fact, all that money is doing is going out.

I think when it comes to British managers, they’re every bit as good as foreign candidates but because the clubs are foreign-owned, they bring in a foreign director of football who in turn bring in foreign coaches. For instance, if Nick Candy does buy Chelsea, I think he would be thinking more of an English infrastructure.

Just look at them now – Chelsea has brought in Bruce Buck. Who is Bruce Buck? He’s almost just a cardboard cutout that they bring out and stand up when the teams come out.

Everton for example, let’s make no bones about this – The reason Everton is in such a mess is because of their owner. Everton had people, well-respected footballing people, like Marcel Brands, who took the blame for poor signings, but they were the owner’s signings who listened to a Brazilian agent and the club started buying players he recommended and everyone in football knew it.

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To a certain degree, the same thing has happened at Arsenal with the same Brazilian connection at director level. When are these clubs going to learn? In fact, the only people who truly care about the clubs are the fans!

But going back to Chelsea and any potential transfer business they may look to do. I think Declan Rice is slightly snookered now. He was going to go back to Chelsea – that was the worst kept secret in the industry but Chelsea isn’t in the same position now, obviously. Rice still has a good while left on his contract, two years with West Ham having an option for another, so he is in a bit of a tricky spot now.

Manchester City don’t need him because they’re well served in that position, at least for another season, and are Manchester United up for it? – With Paul Pogba going for nothing will they end up paying West Ham, on a good day, £80m for Rice? – That would be amazing business by the Glazers, wouldn’t it?

I know Rice’s valuation is well over £150m, but there is a valuation and then there is what the market is willing to pay. However, in any case, when you include everything else, such as wages, a club is still looking at a good £100m, and I don’t know who is going to pay that. Football, financially, isn’t back to what it was.

If a club is going to be paying that much for a player and paying him £150,000-per week, maybe more, and they’ve got him for a couple of months before the players leave for the World Cup in Qatar in November, potentially a club is going to be paying a player’s wage for eight weeks and not even have the player.

I wonder whether or not the traditional big signings we usually see in the summer window will actually happen during the January window instead.

And on the subject of internationals – Harry Maguire was the big talking point this week after he got booed by large sections of England fans at Wembley.

I think he got booed because fans realise that if you’re not playing well, you shouldn’t be playing for England and just because you play for Manchester United shouldn’t automatically entitle you to a cap.

Maguire has played poorly all season. He’s always played well for England but I thought the checklist was that you had to play well for your club before being called up to represent your country but that appears not to be the case if you’re Harry Maguire.

He never seems to take the game by the scruff of the neck, so why did he get booed? – Well, I honestly think fans are fed up with averaging players keeping their place in the England team.

The post Fans are fed up with Maguire, Rice is snookered and Everton owner Farhad Moshiri only has himself to blame appeared first on CaughtOffside.