Manchester United want Kyle Walker and Danny Rose in double transfer raid on Tottenham

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho is reportedly pushing for his club to splash out a whopping £60million to sign both Kyle Walker and Danny Rose from Tottenham in a shock double transfer swoop.
The Red Devils could do with improvements in defence after a stop-start season, and the England pair are widely regarded as the best two full-backs in the Premier League at the moment.
United, meanwhile, have had a slightly unsettled back line with Antonio Valencia playing out of position at right-back, and the likes of Matteo Darmian, Daley Blind and Luke Shaw all rotating for the left-back slot.

Danny Rose would be an upgrade on the likes of Luke Shaw (Picture: Getty)

Walker and Rose both recently signed new contracts at White Hart Lane and will not come cheap, while Manchester City are also long-time admirers of both players.
However, The Sun report that United are ready to do battle for their signatures in an ambitious double raid on one of their main rivals in the chase for a top four spot.
It is thought that while Spurs are highly unlikely to consider selling both players, they may be ready to let one of them go in the summer if a good enough offer comes in.
The north Londoners do, however, have something of a track record when it comes to losing their stars when bigger clubs come calling.

Kane is destined to wear Man Utd's no.9 jersey

Liverpool legend Jamie Redknapp believes that Tottenham forward Harry Kane is destined to wear the number nine jersey at Manchester United in the nearest feature.

The 23-year-old finished as topscorer in the premier league last season with 25 goals and after a spell on the sidelines due to injury at the start of the current campaign, he has resumed what he knows best with seven goals from 10 matches.

However, the England forward has failed to register a goal against Manchester United in six matches including last Sunday where Spurs lost 1-0 away at Old Trafford but Redknaap is convinced that Kane will in the nearest future play for the Red Devils.

“He is a player in a few years you could see wearing a number nine shirt for United, or any other top team.”

Tottenham have lost just twice in 15 matches this season and are currently placed fifth with 27 points, three above Manchester United in sixth position.

Mkhitaryan will be out until Boxing Day: Mourinho

Henrikh Mkhitaryan

Henrikh Mkhitaryan faces weeks rather than months on the sidelines with an ankle injury.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan left the field on a stretcher after scoring in Manchester United’s 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur, but Jose Mourinho has, thankfully, played down the severity of the injury.

The Armenian beat Hugo Lloris with a superb effort to register his first-ever Old Trafford goal, just days after netting his maiden Reds strike in the Europa League win at Zorya Luhansk. His match ended with disappointment, though, when he suffered an injury following a challenge by Danny Rose on 81 minutes. 

The England international was booked and Mkhitaryan was carried off to a standing ovation from the appreciative United fans. After the final whistle, his manager Jose Mourinho gave a positive update on the summer signing when talking to MUTV.

“It looks like the next match [at Crystal Palace] is a ‘no’, but it looks like it is nothing that is really dangerous or that needs surgery,” the manager told Stewart Gardner. “So hopefully we will probably have Micki on Boxing Day [against Sunderland at Old Trafford].”

The early assessment would also mean Mkhitaryan missing next Saturday’s trip to West Brom.

Tottenham won't play Jose Mourinho's mind games - Jan Vertonghen

Jose Mourinho is renowned for playing mind game ahead of big matches.

Tottenham will not be drawn into any mind games with "colourful character" Jose Mourinho ahead of Sunday's match at Old Trafford, according to Jan Vertonghen.

A win would put Tottenham nine points clear of United and further damage Mourinho's hopes of the title, or even a top-four finish, in his first season in Manchester.

The outspoken Portuguese is renowned for playing mind games before big matches, and he has previous described Vertonghen as "a disgrace" and "a cheat" after the Belgian clashed with Chelsea's Fernando Torres in 2013, when Mourinho managed the Blues.

The Spurs defender, who is expected to start alongside his international teammate Toby Alderweireld for the first time in two months, shrugged off suggestions Mourinho could have an effect on Spurs.

"He is a good manager ... he says things in the media but it doesn't really affect us. It's part of the job and he plays it the way he wants to," Vertonghen said.

"He is a great coach first of all, done great things with different teams. He has shown he is a very good coach and a colourful character, but football needs that."

Asked if he would play for Mourinho, Vertonghen said: "He's not my manager so I'm not going to talk about this."

Vertonghen thought he had scored his first goal for Spurs at Old Trafford in a remarkable 3-2 win in September 2013 -- Spurs' first victory at United in 23 years.

But the effort went down as Jonny Evans' own goal after taking a deflection off the defender on the way in, something Vertonghen has not forgotten.

"They took it off me in the end!" he laughed. "But still I celebrated it as my goal."

Champions League as it happened last night

Tottenham Hotspur crashed out of the Champions League as Monaco qualified from Group E with a 2-1 win at the Stade Louis II.

Spurs could have taken the lead after only seven minutes when Son Heung-Min evaded the offside trap but was denied by keeper Danijel Subasic, and within moments they were grateful to Hugo Lloris as he saved a Radamel Falcao penalty after Eric Dier had fouled Fabinho.

Monaco broke through in style just three minutes into the second half as Djibril Sidibe powered home a header, only for the Londoners to respond moments later when Dele Alli was fouled by Kamil Glik in the area.

Harry Kane smashed home the equaliser from the spot despite Subasic getting a touch, but within seconds the home side regained their lead as Djibril Sidibe played the ball across the area and Thomas Lemar found space to steer a low finish past Lloris.

Real Madrid won 2-1 at Sporting Lisbon to seal qualification from Group F thanks to a late Karim Benzema goal.

The Spanish side took the lead when Raphael Varane fired home after the Sporting defence had failed to deal with a free kick and Cristiano Ronaldo's deflected effort fell to him.

The home side were down to 10 men when defender Joao Pereira was shown a straight red card for a foul but levelled when Adrien Silva struck from the penalty spot with 10 minutes remaining after Fabio Coentrao was adjudged to have handled.

Benzema had the last word with time running out, heading home powerfully to wrap up the victory.

Borussia Dortmund and Legia Warsaw scored 12 goals between them to set a new Champions League record as the Bundesliga side won 8-4 in an astonishing game at the Westfalenstadion.

The visitors went in front when Aleksandar Prijovic produced an outstanding finish, but Shinji Kagawa quickly nodded an equaliser and then found space to fire the home team 2-1 in front.

It was 3-1 after only 20 minutes when goalkeeper Radoslaw Cierzniak punched a free kick straight at Nuri Sahin and saw the ball ricochet into the net, but the unmarked Prijovic restored hope with a low finish.

With half an hour gone, Dortmund regained their two-goal advantage when Ousmane Dembele struck, and moments later it was 5-2 when Marco Reus tapped home at the end of another slick attack.

The goals continued to flow after the break as Reus made it 6-2, Michal Kucharczyk made it 6-3, Felix Passlack struck again for the home side and then Nemanja Nikolic got the visitors' fourth. Reus completed his hat trick to provide the final flourish.

Leicester City sealed their place in the round of 16 and won Group G thanks to a 2-1 home victory over Club Brugge.

The Foxes went in front after five minutes with a superb goal made by Jamie Vardy and Christian Fuchs, who combined down the left for the latter to cross for Shinji Okazaki to produce a brilliant volleyed finish into the roof of the net.

They made it 2-0 before the break when Albrighton was tripped in the area and Riyad Mahrez fired home from the spot, but a superb solo goal by Jose Izquierdo halved the deficit early in the second half as he powered a finish past Ron-Robert Zieler.

Juventus came from a goal down to win 3-1 at Sevilla as they moved top of Group H and confirmed their place in the knockout stages.

Sevilla took an early lead, striking with nine minutes on the clock when defender Nicolas Pareja fired home a low volley from the edge of the area.

Juan Cuadrado saw his shot from an angle pushed away as Juventus tried to respond, with the Serie A champions struggling to create good chances against high-pressing opponents denying them time and space.

But Franco Vazquez was sent off after collecting two bookings before the break and Juventus then equalised from the penalty spot through Claudio Marchisio, whose effort went in despite goalkeeper Sergio Rico getting a hand to it.

With six minutes remaining Leonardo Bonucci put the visitors into the lead, and Mario Mandzukic sealed the victory when he fired home in stoppage time.

Lyon won 1-0 at Dinamo Zagreb after a game in which they had enjoyed the lion's share of chances.

The visitors dominated possession and threatened an early goal when Jordan Ferri's deflected effort came back off the crossbar and Mathieu Valbuena came close to breaking the deadlock shortly before half-time when his curling effort was well saved by Dominik Livakovic.

Zagreb hit back and were close to a leveller when Amer Gojak flicked a header wide of the target, but Lyon got the goal they deserved when Alexandre Lacazette found himself alone at the far post to tap home.

Porto missed the chance to get the win that would have confirmed their qualification when they were held to a 0-0 draw at Copenhagen in Group G.

The home side had the better of a goalless first period as their visitors lacked attacking ideas but were unable to take their opportunities, with Erik Johansson failing to convert two headed chances.

Andre Silva had a chance for Porto but, after cutting inside a defender, fired his effort wide, and the same player came close in the early stages of the second half when his shot after a goalmouth scramble was well saved by Robin Olsen as the visitors upped the tempo.

Bayer Leverkusen are through to the knockout stages after a 1-1 draw at CSKA Moscow in Group E.

Kevin Volland gave Leverkusen the lead in the 17th minute from close range after he was left unmarked at a free kick.

Leverkusen gave away a needless penalty when Benjamin Henrichs made a clumsy challenge on Mario Fernandes, but Bibras Natcho's 76th-minute goal wasn't enough to keep the fourth-placed Russian team's hopes of qualifying alive.

Jose Mourinho needs time to succeed at Manchester United - Pochettino

Mauricio Pochettino has thrown his support behind Jose Mouirnho to succeed at Old Trafford given the proper amount of time.

Under-pressure Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho needs "time to put his ideas in place" at Old Trafford, Mauricio Pochettino has told ESPN Argentina.
Mourinho has had a difficult start at United, who are sixth in the table and eight points behind leaders Liverpool ahead of Saturday's match against Arsenal.
The outspoken Portuguese, who has also suffered two defeats in the Europa League, has already publicly criticised his players and fallen foul of the Football Association (FA) -- signs suggesting his tenure at United is already unravelling.
But Tottenham manager Pochettino, who endured a transitional maiden season in North London before transforming the club, called for Mourinho to be given time.
"It's clear that when you are with a great club, as I am with Tottenham, the pressure to win is always greater," Pochettino told ESPN Argentina. "And there are always voices of criticism when the results are not what everyone anticipates.
"Definitely, whenever one starts a new project, it requires time. In this case, even though Jose is one of the best coaches in the world, he needs more time to put his ideas in place and so that the team can function as he wants them to. It is too early to pass judgment regarding things that are happening with the teams just yet."
Mourinho is United's third permanent manager since Sir Alex Ferguson stepped down after 26 years in charge in 2013, and Pochettino has previously made the bold claim that he would like to build a legacy at Spurs to match Ferguson's at Old Trafford.
Pochettino met Ferguson for lunch in May last year and he admitted that only a "special talent" like the Scot, or Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, have the capacity to be successful for so long.
Mauricio Pochettino has thrown his support behind Jose Mouirnho to succeed at Old Trafford given the proper amount of time.
"I would like to have another chance to have dinner with Sir. Alex Ferguson because he is very hard to understand, especially because of my English," laughed Pochettino.
"Those were two very enriching hours, especially because of who he is and what he transmits, such as his energy, his personality and his character. These are things I also saw when he was on the sideline or at a news conference. To have met with him for me is a dream come true.
"To be that successful, have ups and downs and yet know how to reinvent oneself season after season only can be done by people who have enormous talent and mental capacity as is also the case with Arsene Wenger. Beyond the fact that Arsenal are our arch-rivals, you have to recognise that to be in charge over 20 years, you have to have some special talent. Without that, it is impossible."
Pochettino has admirers of his own, including Manchester City's Pep Guardiola, who described the former Espanyol boss as one of the best managers in the world last month.
"Guardiola doesn't need to praise my work. At this level, if he makes a comment like that, he does it in all honesty and that is very nice," Pochettino said. "If he said it and he meant it, logically, that is a great accomplishment for me."

Mark Clattenburg to referee Arsenal vs. Tottenham

Mark Clattenburg will referee Sunday's North London derby despite criticism of his performance in last weekend's 0-0 draw between Manchester United and Burnley.

Clattenburg has been put in charge of the meeting between Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur at the Emirates Stadium for his first Premier League appointment since sending off Jose Mourinho and Ander Herrera at Old Trafford.

Mourinho, who has been charged with misconduct by the Football Association after allegedly using abusive and/or insulting words toward an official in the tunnel at half-time, appeared to be frustrated at Clattenburg's decision not to award Matteo Darmian a penalty.

Herrera was later shown a second yellow card in controversial circumstances as he was deemed to have brought down Dean Marney but appeared to have slipped.

Herrera sent off by referee Mark Clttenburg, after receiving a second yellow

Clattenburg regularly takes charge of high-profile fixtures and refereed the FA Cup final, Champions League final and European Championship final in 2016.