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MANCHESTER: Paul Pogba is expected to return to Manchester United after his contract was terminated by Juventus following a doping scandal, former Red Devils striker Louis Saha has said.

The 31-year-old left Old Trafford to join Juventus in 2022 after scoring 39 goals in 233 appearances for United.

He arrived at Old Trafford in 2016 for a then world record transfer fee, but failed to live up to expectations.

After a year in Turin, Pogba failed a doping test and was given a four-year ban, which was later reduced to 18 months when his appeal was upheld.

This means the World Cup winner with France could resume his career in March, but he is currently without a club.

Former United star Saha said his compatriot would return to Old Trafford to join a training session with Ruben Amorim’s squad.

“I’ve heard rumours that Paul Pogba will be offered the chance to come back and train with Man United in the New Year, and I think it’s the best opportunity for Paul.

“He needs to get back to his best as soon as possible, and training with great players will help him. I think he will be excited to be back at the club.”

“I also think Paul Pogba is still a special player. When you think about midfielders, Pogba has unique qualities.

“I think United’s squad lacks strength in midfield, and they don’t have the skilled players who can dominate from box to box, so he will add strength to United,” said Saha.

Last month it was reported that clubs from Major League Soccer, the Saudi Pro League and the English Premier League were interested in Pogba’s services.

MANCHESTER, England: Improving Manchester United’s defensive weaknesses, especially when it comes to set-pieces, has become a priority for new head coach Ruben Amorim, whose meticulous planning has been hampered by his team’s failure to deal with corner kick dangers.

Nottingham Forest needed just 90 seconds to score from a corner at Old Trafford late on Wednesday night as United suffered a 3-2 defeat and showed Amorim’s side had learned little from their 2-0 midweek defeat at Arsenal when both goals came from the spot.

“When this happened it was my fault, because I was responsible. We tried to do it in the best way, we worked a lot in this area because we saw it at Arsenal and it was really difficult,” Amorim told a news conference.

“At the beginning of the game (against Forest), you suffered with the first movement, it was really difficult to inject energy into the team, but then we managed to equalise and finally in the second half the same thing happened.”

United’s lack of height and strength at the back was exposed at free kicks and corners and Amorim reshuffled his team in the second half, bringing on centre-back Harry Maguire at 3-2 when he feared he would concede again.

“We put Harry Maguire on because of the set-pieces, to have more control over who wins the first ball. The only way to attack Nottingham is on the counter-attack, to try and win the first and second balls. When Harry is in the middle of the pitch he wins all the first balls,” said Amorim.

However, by then the damage had already been done.

United’s defence were careless in allowing Forest defender Nikola Milenkovic space, who rose above Lisandro Martinez to head home.

Martinez and goalkeeper Andre Onana were then at fault for Forest’s third goal in the 54th minute, a header from Chris Wood that should have been dealt with.

“Everyone is aware of the importance of set-pieces today, they are huge, a way to make a difference for you and your opponent. We did well today,” said New Zealand forward Wood.

Amorim insists he will stick to his principles, despite his shaky start at Old Trafford.

“This is happening to a lot of clubs and we need to keep trying to do the same thing in order to improve the team, because all this will change,” he said.

MADRID: Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti was delighted with Kylian Mbappe’s performance during their 2-0 La Liga win over Getafe at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The 25-year-old France captain scored Real’s second goal eight minutes after Jude Bellingham converted a penalty in the 30th minute.

Mbappe is now the club’s top scorer in the league this season along with Vinicius Jr who also scored eight goals.

After a lackluster performance in Wednesday’s 2-0 Champions League defeat at the hands of Liverpool, which included a second-half penalty miss, Mbappe came into full force against Getafe to score his 10th goal of the season in all competitions.

“He’s active, dangerous and scores great goals which is very important to control the game. That’s what we want from him.

“The fans understand more about the team and the players. They continue to support Mbappe after Anfield because it’s the right thing to do,” said Ancelotti.

The defending La Liga champions are now just one point behind leaders Barcelona with one more game to play.

LIVERPOOL, England: Liverpool can go one step closer to winning the English Premier League title for the second time in 35 years against fragile Manchester City on Sunday as Ruben Amorim eyes a chance to win his first Premier League (EPL) game as Manchester United manager.

The clash between the top two sides at Anfield offers Arsenal, who face West Ham, and Chelsea, who host Aston Villa, the chance to close the gap.

Arne Slot’s Reds head into the weekend full of confidence after beating Real Madrid 2-0 to go top of the Champions League table.

Liverpool have also rarely made mistakes in the EPL, jumping eight points clear after just 12 games.

All three teams enjoying a lead of eight points or more at this stage in the EPL season ended the campaign as champions.

City is in a critical position.

Winless in their last six games, the English champions are physically and mentally “fragile”, according to manager Pep Guardiola, who is having the worst spell of his career on the sidelines.

“It has been, is and will be a difficult season for us. We had to accept it in many circumstances,” he said.

Even at their best in a glorious era under the Catalan, City have failed to conquer Anfield, with their last victory in front of home fans coming in 2003.

Amorim did not give up after watching Manchester United struggle to a 1-1 draw at bottom side Ipswich in his debut in charge last weekend.

“We will suffer for a long time,” said the Portuguese coach. “It will take time, but I know we have to win the game.”

Troubled club Everton’s visit to Old Trafford offers the Red Devils the perfect opportunity to reinject the challenge under their new boss.

The Toffees (10) are one of three teams to have scored less than United’s 13 goals in the EPL this season.

Sean Dyche’s men are just two points above the relegation zone and have not beaten United away from home since 2013.

United, who are 12th, will need to make the most of their home advantage to move up the table a bit with tough visits to Arsenal and City awaiting in two of their next three league games.

Aston Villa another team struggling with form. A 0-0 draw with Juventus in midweek extended their winless streak to seven games in all competitions.

Unai Emery’s men remain well placed to qualify for the knockout stages of the Champions League in their first campaign in Europe’s elite club competition in four decades.

But their fatigue in Europe began to affect their challenge at the domestic level. Villa have only picked up seven points from their last seven league games to drop to eighth place.

Ahead of them is a tough visit to Chelsea, who have excelled in Enzo Maresca’s debut season.

The Blues sit third, ahead of Arsenal on goal difference and could end the weekend as Liverpool’s closest challengers if City fail to end their losing streak at Anfield.

Arsenal bounced back with comprehensive wins over Nottingham Forest and Sporting Lisbon and will move into second place for at least 24 hours if they win at West Ham tomorrow night.

LONDON: Henrique Hilario is set to end his 18-year career with Chelsea by leaving the club to join Thomas Tuchel in the England national team.

The goalkeeper joined the Blues in 2006 as a reserve goalkeeper behind Petr Cech and Carlo Cudicini.

He spent almost a decade as a reserve goalkeeper before retiring in 2014 after being part of Premier League and Champions League winning squads.

Two years after hanging up his gloves, Hilario returned to Chelsea under Antonio Conte as assistant goalkeeping coach.

He was then promoted two years later by Maurizio Sarri and remained in that role including under Tuchel.

But the German manager – who replaces Gareth Southgate as Three Lions boss – will take Hilario with him to Wembley.

Tuchel, 51, who will start his job on January 1 after signing an 18-month contract, is using the free time to organize his coaching staff.

He also convinced current Chelsea performance analyst James Melbourne to join him.

Hilario and Melbourne will welcome former Blues coach Anthony Barry, who will be number two behind Tuchel.

PORTO: Cristiano Ronaldo once again signaled his retirement after scoring twice for Portugal.

Ronaldo, 39, one of the greatest players in football history, has scored more than 900 goals in his career.

The Portuguese forward, who has represented Sporting Lisbon, Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus, is now with Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner took his international tally to 135 goals in 215 appearances after netting twice in Portugal’s 5-1 win over Poland in the UEFA Nations League yesterday.

After the match he insisted that his focus remains on football, with retirement depending on his level of motivation by the age of 40.

“I just want to enjoy it. Plans for retirement? If it’s in another year or two, I don’t know. I’ll be 40 soon.

“I still want to enjoy it as long as I feel motivated to continue. When the day comes when I no longer have the motivation, I will retire,” Ronaldo said.

According to Ronaldo, he has no intention of becoming a coach once his playing career is over.

“I don’t see myself as a team manager, it’s not in my plans. My future is outside of football, but only time will tell,” he said.

LONDON: Bruno Fernandes hopes new manager Ruben Amorim can “inject energy” at Manchester United’s troubled club after the Portuguese coach arrived at the English Premier League (EPL) club.

Amorim arrived at the Carrington training center last Monday for a meeting but cannot begin training until his work permit is confirmed.

The 39-year-old coach, the successor to the sacked Erik ten Hag, steered Sporting Lisbon to two titles in four seasons and left them with 11 wins in 11 league games this season.

“Sometimes someone can change the energy of a place, if it’s at the right time,” Fernandes, who left Sporting shortly before Amorim took over, told MUTV.

“We hope he can come and this is the right moment for him to come and inject his energy, bringing with him his quality and knowledge in football, because he has done something really special at Sporting.

“If anyone doubts it, it’s about looking at the past. Sporting didn’t win the league for about 20 years and he helped them win the league again and he won it twice in four years with a young team in a moment of change.”

Captain Fernandes said managing United, who have not won the EPL since 2013, would be a bigger challenge than the job at Sporting.

“Obviously you can’t bring or change what he did at Sporting here, because you have different players, you have a different way of playing and everything,” he said.

“I am quite confident that the idea of ​​football that he has, independent of the way he wants to play, will be a good idea and it will lead to success for us.”

Amorim is the sixth permanent manager appointed since Alex Ferguson’s 27-year reign ended in 2013.

United sit 13th in the EPL after a poor start to the season but are only four points behind the top four.

Amorim’s first action will be at Ipswich on November 24 right after the international match.

MANCHESTER: Ruud van Nistelrooy is interested in becoming Manchester United manager in the future, but for now he is happy to remain as assistant to new manager Ruben Amorim.

Van Nistelrooy will complete his fourth game as interim manager when he takes on Leicester City at Old Trafford tomorrow, before handing over the squad to Amorim, who starts on Monday.

The former United striker, who had several coaching opportunities when he returned to the club as Erik ten Hag’s assistant last summer, was asked if he would be interested in filling the hot seat at Old Trafford.

“Of course, I thought about it a lot when I decided to become United’s assistant coach.

“I know coming back to Manchester United is something special and I want to be part of this journey, even as an assistant coach.

“I aspired to be a manager, but I decided to sign a two-year contract as an assistant coach,” said Van Nistelrooy.

However, Van Nistelrooy is not sure if his role is still the same under Amorim who is expected to bring his coaching line from Sporting Lisbon.

Nistelrooy’s focus now is to hand the team over to the new manager without a single defeat in four games under his charge.

So far United have won two and drawn once under Nistelrooy, and they need to get a positive result against Leicester tomorrow.

MANCHESTER: Moises Caicedo’s second-half strike cancelled out Bruno Fernandes’ penalty as Chelsea came from behind to draw 1-1 with Manchester United at Old Trafford.

It was Man United’s first Premier League game at home since manager Erik ten Hag was sacked.

Chelsea are currently fourth in the league on 18 points while United, coached temporarily by Ruud van Nistelrooy, are 13th on 12 points after 10 games.

United captain Fernandes completed the penalty kick in the 70th minute after Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez fouled Rasmus Hojlund while trying to catch the ball.

Sanchez failed to guess the direction of Fernandes’ kick and Nistelrooy jumped for joy in celebration of the goal.

But the home crowd’s joy was short-lived as Casemiro failed to clear a Chelsea corner, allowing Caicedo to fire past Andre Onana for the visitors’ equaliser.

Ten Hag was sacked on Monday as United sat 14th in the league. Ruben Amorim was appointed as his replacement last Friday and will arrive at the club on November 11.

LONDON: Arne Slot says he is getting to know his Liverpool squad better every day as they chase four trophies in his first season as manager.

Liverpool, who will face Brighton tomorrow, are just one point behind Premier League leaders Manchester City.

They have started the Champions League campaign brilliantly and managed to reach the quarter-finals of the League Cup.

Overall, the Reds’ squad won 12 out of 14 matches in all competitions, with just one defeat.

Slott, who replaced Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool manager, was asked in his pre-match press conference today what he had learned about his squad’s ability to compete for four trophies this season.

“You learn every day, especially if you haven’t been with the team long like I have,” he said.

“You learn every day from new situations, and as I said before, the Chelsea game (winning 2-1) was something I learned from them, that they can defend well and defend their advantage.

“The way they bounced back against Arsenal (2-2 draw) was pretty positive, and the number of games we had to play, and they were still able to turn up and play good football, that’s also something you can see.”

Slot, said his reserve players created a positive impact in the 3-2 victory over Brighton in the fourth round of the League Cup, yesterday.

“We will need them all season,” he said.

“So it’s good to see that they’re at the level it takes to play for us.”