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What Man Utd can expect from Marcel Sabitzer
One of the shock deadline day deals this January could be Marcel Sabitzer to Manchester United as the club seeks to replace Christian Eriksen.
The Dane has been ruled out until late April at the earliest after he suffered an ankle injury during the FA Cup win over Reading. Andy Carroll’s scissor tackle left its mark on the former Tottenham man and he is set for a long spell on the sidelines.
Eriksen has started all but two of United’s Premier League games so far this season and has been instrumental in their rise up the table and successful cup runs.
A loan deal for Sabitzer from Bayern Munich is now being pursued and there is a lot of confidence that it will get done before the window slams shut. What can watching fans expect from the Austrian?
The 28-year-old midfielder began his career in various different youth teams before getting into the Admira Wacker senior team. A move to Rapid Vienna followed and then 18 months later, he became one of the major parts of Red Bull’s Rasenballsport Leipzig project.
He joined the club in 2014 and eventually became one of the most important elements of the side after a loan to RB Salzburg, and one that seemed destined for a move to a bigger club in the near future along with the likes of Timo Werner and Naby Keita.
He returned from his loan in Austria in 2015 and spent the next six years with Leipzig, showing his versatility and technical ability. He then joined Bayern Munich in 2021 for just €15 million despite clearly being worth much more than that.
One of his crowning moments during his time with Leipzig was this gorgeous strike against Zenit St. Petersburg in the Champions League.
No, we’re still not over it 💁♂️
One more time for your #UCL Goal of the Week 👏
🔴⚪ #DieRotenBullen pic.twitter.com/aNpzmPwcC5
— RB Leipzig English (@RBLeipzig_EN) October 25, 2019
Sabitzer has had a very healthy goals and assists record almost everywhere he has been, with Bayern Munich being the only real exception. The move south to Bavaria cannot really be called a success as whilst he has provided very useful depth, he hasn’t been able to produce the same sorts of numbers.
The Leipzig stats are the best indication of what he can bring to United, as if he really is a direct Eriksen replacement, he could go straight into the team alongside Casemiro. The fact that his goals and assists are almost the same shows he is a real dual threat.
Central midfield is where Sabitzer has been placed for the majority of his career but he does have the ability to play out on the right wing, as well as in a more attacking role down the middle.
He is quick on his feet and fairly nomadic in how he plays, much like Eriksen, He is technically very good, as shown by the goal above and this incredible effort against Hertha Berlin.
Marcel Sabitzer did this once pic.twitter.com/8PLr4sqlZ1
— Scott Saunders (@_scottsaunders) January 31, 2023
It is not hard to imagine United feeling as if they have landed on their feet after the Eriksen injury should the deal get over the line, so long as Sabitzer’s confidence has not taken too much of a knock at Bayern.
He tends to move a little higher up the pitch than Eriksen but he has more pace than the Dane, meaning he can track back more effectively. He doesn’t shirk a tackle and he can take the ball under pressure in a crowded midfield.
90min rounds up the latest transfer news, rumours and gossip circulating around the world…
Manchester United CEO Richard Arnold is ready to sanction a move for Harry Kane, with the Red Devils set to offer £80m for the Tottenham striker. (Daily Star)
However, Manchester United are no closer to agreeing a new contract with Marcus Rashford, whose deal expires in 2024. (The Athletic)
Arsenal are one of several clubs vying to sign Denmark international Jesper Lindstrom, with Eintracht Frankfurt ready to sell for a fee of €30m. (Sport1)
Real Madrid are hoping to sign Leroy Sane from Bayern Munich this summer amid speculation that his future at the Allianz Arena is uncertain. (Fichajes)
Following Thomas Tuchel’s arrival, Bayern Munich are prepared to reunite their new manager with Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount. (The Times)
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Barcelona are willing to re-sign Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Chelsea on loan this summer. The Gabon striker only made the switch from Camp Nou to Stamford Bridge back in August. (Sport)
Liverpool have joined Arsenal and Tottenham in the race to sign Evan Ndicka on a free transfer from Eintracht Frankfurt. (Daily Mirror)
Another centre-back target for Liverpool is Napoli’s Kim Min-jae, who is also wanted by Manchester United. (Rai)
Manchester City are ready to replace Ilkay Gundogan with either Jude Bellingham or Florian Wirtz in the event he departs for Barcelona on a free transfer. (Football Insider)
The father of Barcelona winger Ansu Fati has hit out at the club for their treatment of the winger, though insisted he wants to stay at the club. (COPE)
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On this edition of Talking Transfers, part of the 90min podcast network, Scott Saunders, Graeme Bailey & Toby Cudworth discuss Julian Nagelsmann’s future and links to the vacant Tottenham head coach role, Barcelona’s ambition to bring Lionel Messi ‘home’, Brighton teenager Evan Ferguson, Florian Wirtz, Kalvin Phillips and more!
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Chelsea have registered an interest in Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Manu Kone, 90min understands.
The Blues are looking to bolster in midfield this summer and have added plenty of names to their shortlist, at the top of which is West Ham United’s Declan Rice.
There are plenty of suitors for Rice, however, and so Chelsea are exploring all their options. 90min reported in January that Southampton’s Romeo Lavia was once again of interest to the London side, who failed with a bid to sign the Belgian last summer.
Now, sources have confirmed that Gladbach starlet Kone has played his way onto Chelsea’s radar.
The 21-year-old defensive midfielder has been sensational for Gladbach and has attracted significant interest from across Europe, with Napoli and Paris Saint-Germain both known admirers of Kone.
In the Premier League, Liverpool and Newcastle have both scouted Kone this year ahead of a summer departure from Gladbach which is becoming increasingly likely.
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Chelsea are now firmly in the fight for Kone who, at 21, fits the profile for the Blues’ new owners as a young star with plenty of top-flight potential.
Kone was recently asked about the interest in him, admitting to Le Parisien that he is honoured to see so many big clubs watching him.
“I live well with rumours, I don’t pay attention to everything that is said. It’s more my entourage and my friends who send me the articles,” he explained. “It’s a source of pride for them to see my name associated with big clubs, but it doesn’t make me hot or cold. I prefer to finish my season quietly. Afterward, what must happen will happen.”
Asked specifically about the interest of PSG and a possible return to the city of his birth, Paris, Kone insisted the only deciding factor for him when it comes to a transfer would be the game time on offer.
“It’s true that I’m Parisian,” he acknowledged. “I was born and trained here. There is a logical link.
“But whether it’s Paris or another club, I don’t care. I just want to play football. In Monchengladbach, I play. So if I have to leave, I’ll think about playing first.”
RB Leipzig centre-back Josko Gvardiol has confessed the club have no interest in selling him this summer, despite widespread interest from across Europe.
The likes of Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City and Real Madrid have all expressed an interest in the 21-year-old, who penned a contract extension last summer to tie him to the Bundesliga side until 2027.
90min understands Gvardiol’s contract includes a release clause of €100m which becomes active in 2024, so any sale this year will have to be negotiated directly with Leipzig – something Gvardiol does not believe his current employers are prepared to do.
“The club is not interested in selling me this summer, so there is no point in talking about anything else,” Gvardiol told a press conference.
“The most important thing is to end this season in Leipzig in the best possible way.”
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Among Gvardiol’s suitors are Manchester City and Pep Guardiola, after whom the Leipzig defender is nicknamed due to the similarities in their surnames.
The due were seen speaking after City’s Champions League last-16 victory over Leipzig earlier this month, but Gvardiol declined to reveal what was said.
“I extended my hand to Guardiola and congratulated him on advancing in the Champions League,” the defender said. “Guardiola, a great coach, threw a few words at me, but I will keep them to myself.”
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