Two Manchester United transfer choices revealed by merciless Nottingham Forest after baffling £90m decisions

By Damerex -
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Manchester United’s decision to sell Anthony Elanga for £15m while rating Alejandro Garnacho at £70m illustrates the kind of errors that define their transfer missteps.  Manchester United are terrible at signings. That is no surprise. Their terrible history of post-Ferguson acquisitions is painfully familiar. However, they are arguably inferior in every facet of player sales, and insufficient emphasis is placed on how that disastrous failure has been more persistently harmful than subpar recruitment to their prospects for a significant rebuild.  They have never earned over £100m in a single season from player sales (four Premier League teams achieved this in just one season). They are the sole Premier League club whose highest sale happened prior to 2011. They still consider David Beckham's transfer to Real Madrid in 2003 as their fourth-biggest sale ever, and two players ahead of him – Angel Di Maria and Romelu Lukaku – were sold at a loss compared to their initial signing fe...
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Why William Saliba did not play for Arsenal against Aston Villa

By Damerex -

William Saliba's absence from Arsenal's Premier League match against Aston Villa at the Emirates Stadium had supporters anxious about the star center-back's whereabouts.

Due to a one-match suspension he received for his red card during the team's 2-0 loss to Bournemouth in October of last year, Saliba has only missed one game this season.

The Frenchman was a surprise exclusion when the lineups were revealed, but it was believed that he would start with Gabriel for the visit of Villa, who are still improving under the leadership of former Arsenal manager Unai Emery. 

"He felt something before the match, something muscular," Mikel Arteta, the manager, attested. He was unable to workout [on Friday], but I don't think that's excessive. We need to evaluate the situation because he wasn't feeling well enough to play.

There will undoubtedly be worries about Saliba ahead of a crucial run of games given Arteta's scant information. Liverpool scored a late goal at Brentford earlier on Saturday to clinch a decisive 2-0 victory, and Arsenal is trying to catch up to them in the Premier League title race. They also have Champions League matches against Girona and Dinamo Zagreb coming up.

In the second leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final matchup with Newcastle, the Gunners must also overcome a 2-0 deficit. Arteta's injury woes are made worse by Saliba joining many other first-team regulars on the sidelines. 

Saliba's defensive teammates Riccardo Calafiori and Ben White are also absent, and England winger Bukayo Saka will be out for at least a few more weeks due to a ruptured hamstring. 

After tearing his ACL in the recent FA Cup third-round loss to Manchester United, Gabriel Jesus will miss the rest of the season.

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