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Just in: Finally, Manchester Utd fires manager Ten Hag

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Manchester United have fied manager Erik ten Hag following the club’s poor start to the season.

Ten Hag’s final game was Sunday’s 2-1 defeat by West Ham that left the club 14th in the Premier League with just three wins from their opening nine matches.

United are also 21st of 36 teams in the Europa League table, having drawn their three opening fixtures.

Ruud van Nistelrooy, who joined the club as Ten Hag’s assistant last summer, has been named as interim manager.

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The club said Van Nistelrooy would be in charge “while a permanent head coach is recruited”.

Ten Hag was informed of the decision by the club’s board on Monday morning, following the club’s defeat by West Ham at the London Stadium.

The club triggered a one-year extension in Ten Hag’s contract following May’s FA Cup final victory over Manchester City but just over three months later he has been dismissed after overseeing United’s second worst start to a Premier League campaign.

United are now seeking their sixth permanent manager since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013.

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Former Ajax boss Ten Hag, 54, took charge in the summer of 2022 and led the club to third place in the Premier League in his first season.

He also guided United to their first piece of silverware in six seasons with a 2-0 win against Newcastle United in the 2023 Carabao Cup final and finished runners-up in the FA Cup final, losing 2-1 to Manchester City.

His second season in charge started poorly, with United finishing bottom of their Champions League group in the autumn but they picked up a trophy, beating Manchester City in the FA Cup final.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos group bought a 27.7% stake in the club in December 2023 and the British billionaire told BBC Sport in February the club’s problems extended far beyond the role of the manager.

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“In the past 11 years, Manchester United have had a lot of coaches and nobody has been successful in that environment,” said Ratcliffe. “That says to me there is something wrong with the environment.”

But a poor start to the campaign, which has seen United win just one of their past eight matches in all competitions, has forced the board to act.

More to follow.

BBC

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Just in: Aston Villa trounce Newcastle 4-1

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Aston Villa on Saturday dealt terrible blow on Newcastle thrashing the strong side 4-1.

Details shortly…

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Watch highlights of Manchester United’s 5-4 ‘comeback’ win over Lyon in Europa League

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Manchester United staged a remarkable comeback against French side Lyon, securing a thrilling 5-4 victory in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday, April 17, 2025.

Midfielder Manuel Ugarte opened the scoring for United in the 10th minute, calmly slotting home a pull-back from a teammate. Before the end of the first half, defender Diogo Dalot netted a second goal to extend their lead.

However, Lyon mounted a strong second-half response. Corentin Tolisso capitalised on a spilled save from Andre Onana to pull one back, and Nicolás Tagliafico leveled the score with a composed finish past the goalkeeper.

In extra time, Ryan Cherki scored in the 104th minute to give Lyon the lead, followed by Alexandre Lacazette, who made it 4-2 with a well-placed effort.

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United responded with renewed intensity. Bruno Fernandes converted a penalty to narrow the gap, Kobbie Mainoo equalized in the 120th minute, and a dramatic header from Harry Maguire sealed a stunning 5-4 victory at Old Trafford.

The Premier League side advanced to the semi-finals of the Europa League with a 7-6 aggregate scoreline.

Manchester United will face Athletic Bilbao in the semi-finals, scheduled for May 1 and May 8, 2025.

The other semi-final tie will feature Bodo/Glimt against Tottenham Hotspur.

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Watch highlights of the match below:

 

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Champions League: Arsenal cut Real Madrid to size with 5-1 aggregate win

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Arsenal staved off Champions League holders Real Madrid’s superstars and rich history of unlikely comebacks to snatch a 2-1 victory on Wednesday and reach the semi-finals with a superb 5-1 aggregate triumph.

The Gunners’ 3-0 quarter-final first leg triumph last week gave them a vital cushion in the Spanish capital as they made the final four for the first time since 2009, where they will face Paris Saint-Germain.

Bukayo Saka, who missed a first-half penalty, sent Arsenal ahead and although Vinicius Junior levelled the 15-time winners were never close to making up the deficit.

Gabriel Martinelli rubbed salt in their wounds with a stoppage-time winner for Arsenal, who have never lifted the Champions League trophy.

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“We knew we were going to suffer but we knew we were going to win,” Declan Rice, who netted two stunning free-kicks in the first leg, told TNT Sports.

“It’s such a special night for this club, it’s a historic night for this club… we want to win this competition.”

Los Blancos, far more brittle than when they won a Champions League and La Liga double last season, were convinced they could turn the game around but created too little against Arsenal’s tight defence.

The Premier League side held their nerve to reach the semi-finals for only the third time in their history.

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“It’s a difficult moment… it was a difficult game, we didn’t have all the chances we would have liked,” Madrid’s Lucas Vazquez told Movistar.

“We needed a bit more with the ball, maybe a bit more patience to be able to break through a very well organised defence — they did their job.”

Kylian Mbappe chested home in the opening stages but was clearly offside, with the forward gesturing to the crowd to turn up the volume to create the fabled aura which helps Madrid pull off near-impossible feats at the Santiago Bernabeu.

David Alaba was booked for hacking down Saka as Madrid tried to add the grit they badly lacked in their first leg demolition in London, and the Arsenal winger also had a drive fielded well by Thibaut Courtois.

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Arsenal were awarded a penalty seemingly out of the blue when the VAR booth instructed French referee Francois Letexier to review an incident from an earlier corner.

Raul Asencio pulled back Arsenal forward Mikel Merino in the area and Letexier pointed to the spot, to the bemusement of the home crowd.

– Saka penalty saved –

Saka stepped up to take it but his poorly-executed Panenka, skewing off to the left, was saved by Courtois.

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It spurred Real Madrid on and soon they had a penalty of their own, when Mbappe hit the turf after Rice tussled with him.

However after a lengthy VAR review Letexier was called to take a second look and he then decided Arsenal’s two-goal first leg hero Rice had not fouled the French superstar.

The breaks in play, along with Arsenal’s dallying at every opportunity, disrupted Madrid’s momentum and they struggled to threaten Gunners stopper David Raya.

For all of Madrid’s bluster the goalkeeper did not need to make a save in the first half.

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Martin Odegaard, facing his former employers whom he joined as a ‘wonderkid’ a decade ago, helped forge Arsenal’s opening goal after 65 minutes.

The Norwegian linked with Merino, who slipped Saka in behind and the Englishman made amends for his penalty blunder with an ice-cool dinked finish.

Four goals ahead in the tie Arsenal thought their work was done, with defender William Saliba not concentrating on the edge of his box in possession.

Vinicius stole the ball away from him and beat the out-of-position Raya to level, two minutes after Saka’s opener.

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Madrid’s increasingly slim hopes were dashed when Mbappe limped off with an ankle problem with 15 minutes remaining, and Martinelli made sure with a cool finish after Merino set him up.

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