184: DON'T! Amorim's BIG Mistake?

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0:39At National Lewis University, our business programs are designed to fit your goals, your schedule, and your future with flexible options, expert faculty, and career-focused learning. Join us at an upcoming open house and discover where a business degree can take you. NLU means business. Visit nl.edu to learn more and register today. Hello everybody, welcome to the United Stands. I'm Mark Goldbridge and this is your latest Manchester United news. Lots to get into today. New contracts, controversial decisions, players potentially up for sale, more injuries, big mistakes. Lots to get into, like I say.

1:18And obviously I haven't been live since yesterday morning with you, Beth and Terry, filling in fantastically well yesterday. So I've not reacted to what Amirim said in the press conference around certain things as well. So a busy morning and the Premier League is back. And hopefully we're all excited because this international break rubbish. Let's just be honest, it's not proper football, is it? Just before we get into everything, by the way, chart show this week, De Ligt was voted number one. Man United have just announced player of the month, Embermo. So well done to Embermo for winning it. I don't know how it's voted.

1:53I think De Ligt has been robbed in a sense because Mbamo didn't play well in every one of our games he started off a little bit slow actually so I don't know how they allocate that I don't know whether it's voted for by fans but I think attackers always get voted for so well done to Mbamo right stories for this morning Xerxi could be heading to Italy again Lissandro Martinez new contract injury updates and also Biinder will be in goal for the Manchester derby and a few comments from Amrim about the preparation for this game. So lots and lots and lots to get into. Peter says you hate Embermo. Yeah, Peter, I'll just block you, actually.

2:31Let's all cheer me blocking Peter because I cannot, Peter, be bothered. There's plenty of outlets that you can go and read and watch and listen to that focus on that sort of analysis. I don't hate anybody. I like Embermo. I just would have given Delit a player of the month. It's really that simple. So bye-bye, Peter. Fly away with Paul. Right, let's get into it. I'm loving it. I'm loving it. We're pumped up this weekend. Lots to get into. I think we're going to get something out of the Manchester derby as well. I really do. I was listening to the show with Terry last night. I really think we're going to get something out of it.

3:05Okay, let's start off with something a little bit topical then. Effectively, Ruben Amirim has said that we're going to see the Inder in goal tomorrow in the Manchester derby. What are your thoughts on this. We're going to be quite forthright in this this morning. We've got lots and lots of things to get into. Personally, our loveless Andro Martinez, I wouldn't give him a post-it note at the moment, let alone a new contract. I do want to talk about that as well. But this is what he had to say about Le Mende. We're pleased. He's a goalkeeper with a lot of potential. We're in a moment that the goalkeeper needs to be really strong and have a lot of experience.

3:41But we also have to look at the present with a focus on the future. So it's a bit of both. he will be ready. He said that sometimes as a club, you have to try different options, one or another. We have an option that can give us something different in the moment, but also has a great potential to be our goalkeeper for a number of years. He said, on Biinder starting against Man City, it is the same thing I do with different positions, but with Alti is going to continue. It is different league, different country, different training, different ball. So they will fight for the position. I think he's alluding to Le Mén's inexperienced there.

4:13And he said, on showing faith with Biinder, I think sometimes to connect with Andre, Andre Inanna did a very good season in Inter. The quality is there. But in the club, sometimes things is getting harder and harder. But in this club, the pressure is so hard in every detail. Sometimes you need to change. I believe in Alti and he is ready to play. So effectively, what we got yesterday was Ruben Amrum basically saying that Biinder is his number one. How is it a big mistake, says Kiyaki, because it's my opinion and you have a different opinion. And most important of all, Amrim has an opinion and we back that opinion.

4:47But I'm not just going to sit here and not say what I want to say about it. I'm not reacting to it tomorrow on the game day when the team news comes out and all I can see is free lamens and all this stuff. You know, if you want to wait till tomorrow to do it, that's fine. I'm just going to say what I want to say now and then tomorrow I'll get on with it. I think it's a mistake putting Biender in goal. I don't think he's good enough. This is my opinion and I hope to get proved wrong. I think it was a mistake not to take£90 million for Bruno if you're going to play him in the midfield. I hope it'll get proved wrong.

5:15I backhammer him. I want him to do well. I want him to be right about Bruno and I want him to be right about Biinder. But in life, if you don't express your opinion, don't moan about it later and say, well, I always thought it was a mistake because nobody heard you. You know, what's that saying in life? Good people do nothing. Evil prospers when good people sit back and do nothing. Now, I'm not saying Amrim's decision to pick Biinder is evil and I'm not saying I'm good. What I'm saying is I'm just like when we signed Lukaku, like when we signed Matic. I said I don't really like the signings. I'll back them, but I don't really like them.

5:49I don't like Biinder in goal for Manchester United. I think he's had his chances. I think he's been here a long time and he's never been able to establish himself as the number one. I think that shows you a lot about what he is in training. I don't think he's good enough. I think Biinder, if you want an analogy, is a little bit like, you know, when you're at a pub and the table is wobbly and somebody gets a beer mat or two and sticks it underneath it. It's a temporary fix to stabilize the table, but it's not permanent. And at some point that's going to need changing. And that's what I see Biinder as.

6:24I think he's a temporary fix to stabilize the team, but it is not long-term. So the way I look at it is, okay, let's go with Biinder tomorrow. I hope it works. I understand why he's doing it, but I'm not looking at him as the long-term number one. I'm looking at this as a stopgap. And therefore, what happens with a stopgap? At some point, they make a mistake. It's the Casemiro effect. It's when we signed Casemiro and Ten Hag kept picking McTominay. I said at the time, Casemiro will get in the team. We're just going to have to wait to lose a game before it happens. And that's what we're doing with Bienda.

7:02In my opinion, I understand why he's doing it. Manchester City away. Players never played in the league before. It's a different ball. It's a different league and all that. I get all that. I completely get it. It's a good case to say, yeah, I understand that. But I don't rate Bienda. So I look at it and I go, this guy cost us the game against Arsenal. He's already cost us points in the first three games. I think he was very shaky against Fulham and we were very lucky not to concede corners there. Burnley was okay, but it's a problem. So goalkeeper for me is a problem. It's a mistake. Would I start Le Mans?

7:40Yes, because I'd rather he made the mistake than be in there because it's something to build with. So that's my stance on it. But I'll say that, I would have said it yesterday. If I'd been live with you last night, I would have said it last night. I'll say it this morning and I'll park it there because tomorrow when the team news comes out, I won't say anything. I'll be behind the team. I'll be behind the manager. But I just want to say I don't rate Biender. I don't. I don't think this solves a problem. I prefer him over Inanna. Yeah, but I don't rate him. I don't think he's good enough. And I think it's a risk.

8:10And I think that, you know, how many risks can you have in a team and expect to be successful? I liked what Amrim said about how many chances we're creating and how we're analysing things from last season. And we absolutely are. But, you know, as we know, the midfield is a risk. The goalkeeper is a risk. You know, how many more risks can you do? So I totally am behind Biinder and I'm totally behind the manager. And I'm not ranting and raving. I'm just saying I'm not confident in that decision. I think it's a mistake. I also think as well, just before we move on to the next one, at what point does Le Mans get his chance then?

8:46Is Biinder now the number one for the season and we're waiting till next year for Biinder, in which case he's just another Thomas Kushek. He's just a Ben Foster. He's just a backup. Or do we wait for that mistake from Biinder and then he comes in next week or Sunderland? So that's going to be interesting. Are we literally just waiting for him to settle and then he'll be the number one, in which case that's fine. Maybe he's not quite ready yet. Or is it going to be, you might be our goalkeeper in the future? In which case, Bienda could be the goalkeeper all season. And then we might buy an experienced goalkeeper in the summer.

9:18And Le Mans always might be a reserve goalkeeper. We don't know. So we'll have to wait and see. Rajaf says, I've seen the light. Liveramento is too cold and has his insane aura. Would excel as a wingback, says Rajaf. I don't think we're going to get Liveramento out of Newcastle. But just to go topical, for anybody who's been watching the Bundesliga on a Friday night on That's Football, it's just brilliant. The atmosphere, the football, the referee letting the games flow. Grimaldo, how did he get missed? How has Grimaldo been missed by the Premier League? I mean, one double left foot on free kicks, scored two last night, basically.

9:54Man of the match anyway, without the free kicks. I mean, you talk about the left-hand side and you talk about Man United. How have we missed? I completely agree with Rory. He's too old now. He's 29. But how has he been missed over the last few years? I've known about Grimaldo for years. I just don't know why nobody's gone for him. But look, that's by the by. Would I take Grimaldo now? I think he'd be bloody brilliant for Man United with a bit of experience ahead of Dorgou. But yeah, obviously we went for Tellez, didn't we? Tellez is definitely a poundland Grimaldo. Henry says, why is Man United giving Martinez a new contract?

10:34This feels like giving a player a new contract and then it will stay longer than expected. Yeah, thanks for everyone who's tuning in this morning. We've got some big topics. We've spoken about being there. Get your comments in if you're not watching live. So I wasn't going to go to Martinez next because I've got quite a few things to talk about. I wanted to talk about Xerxes leaving potentially. But okay, let's do Martinez. So again, it always happens. I steady the ship through the international break. We have loads of conversation. And then on the Friday where I can't really stream much, loads of stuff comes out.

11:03I mean, I did the morning show, obviously, but then it was from lunchtime until last night. I was like, I want to go live. I want to go live. And I was like, I can't go live because I've got to do other things. So I saw the story from Romano that once Martinez, Lissandro Martinez is back, we want to talk about a new contract with him because his contract is up in 2027 and we don't want to fall into the trap of a player going into the last year of their contract. We're not bloody Liverpool, right? It's not Trent Alexander-Arnold and Real Madrid. This is Man United. We really, really should not be worrying about contracts running down with two years left on them.

11:39I like Lissandro Martinez and I think if he stays fit and does the job I think he can do, you would absolutely be trying to pin him down to a contract because there'd be a lot of big clubs looking at Lissandro Martinez. Now, people are going to say that's ridiculous. That's ridiculous. You know, that's totally and utterly speculative. if he's not that player, he's not that guy. He's 27. He'd be 28 in January. He'd be 29 when his contract is up for renewal. Just hold that thought. Now, what I see with Lissandro Martinez is, as the left-sided centre-back, he is the only player that can step into the midfield intelligently and make the midfield have the numbers it needs whilst leaving two centre-backs to deal with the striker.

12:26Kitchen and bathroom professionals know what goes behind the tile matters. That's why trade pros trust fiber cement, hardy backer board to keep tile firmly in place, resist cracking and help block moisture. Chosen in over 40 million kitchens and bathrooms, hardy backer board, what the best build on. Shop now at participating Home Depot, Lowe's and floor and decor stores. For more information, visit jameshardy.com slash hardy backer. I think Lissandro Martinez is massively transformative for this team if we can get him fit because he naturally wanders into the midfield. And when you've got Bruno in the midfield, you need one of your centre-backs to step in.

13:07He could be really, really important to this system. So if Martinez comes back and does what I think he can do, then you obviously want him to stay beyond his contract when he's 29 in two years time. But as Quinton said, he's a walk-in hospital, Mark. I don't know why Fabrizio Romano is putting a story out about Man United wanting to renew Lissandro Martinez's contract when Lissandro Martinez has been out for basically the last two years with two very severe serious injuries. I don't know who's told him that. I don't know whether it's coming from Martinez's side. I don't know whether it's coming from the club.

13:44I don't understand it. That's all I'm going to say. I do not understand why that is a story. I don't understand why that's a story. Because to me, I am not negotiating anything with you until you're back and you play until next May. I don't want to renegotiate your contract until next summer. I'm quite comfortable to go into the final year because I don't know how fit you are going to be because you are a combative player who's had two very significant injuries. And if it's three strikes, you're out. Like if you have another long-term injury, you basically missed your mid-20s to your 30s. You know, it's incredible how long that would be.

14:31So I think you can have it in the back burner if everything goes well, but he's had two major injuries. And have we not learnt anything from Luke Shaw, Phil Jones, Mason Mount. It doesn't matter how good the player is. Luke Shaw, at his best, is one of the best left backs in the world. Mason Mount, at his fit best, is one of the best number 10s in the Premier League. Phil Jones, if he'd stayed fit, was a decent centre-back. But they're not worth a slice of bread if they're not fit. And the same with Martinez. We can't be thinking about new contracts with players that have had two major injuries in the last two years.

15:07He's got to get back, stay fit. We shouldn't be talking about a contract at the moment. So that's how I feel about it. I think if he can get back and stay fit, you start having a contract talk in March, February, but you don't start talking about it in September when he hasn't played. Liam says, he's one of our best centre-backs, but he's injury prone. Is it time to sell him? No, no, no, no, no, no, no. It's not time to sell him because who would buy him? You'd be selling him because he's injury prone. If he stays fit, I think he's a huge part of what we need. And then you give him a new contract.

15:39But look, my concern with Martinez is get him back for the end of October. If he's still fit in January, let's start talking about contracts, but let's not start talking about it before Christmas. It's too risky. G-Man says, I think he's highly overrated. Sell him. I think it's just how you look at football, mate. I think if you want Martinez to play as a left-sided centre-back in a back four who never pushes forward, there are limitations to his game. If you want him to step into the midfield and join the midfield in a back three, I think he becomes one of the best at it in the league. So I think that's how you look at it, in my opinion.

16:19Let's talk about Xerxes. So more Italian reports this morning, Tuto Sport talking about Juventus. There's a few others as well. We need to just like, I feel like I want to do this on behalf of Amrim and Man United. We need to just shut up about Xerxes, right? Because we absolutely cannot be... Look, there's always going to be Italian interest in Xerxes. The way it works in Italy is if you've done well in that league, they will always take you back. They appreciate you. And also in the Italian league, they appreciate Premier League players and they will take you. So look at Scott McTominay, Ashley Young, Mkhitaryan, you know players that didn't particularly do you know weren't players that you know i'd wanted anymore and they they will always take them so they they will remember xerxi at bologna and they will want him back and they will they remembered rasmus at atalanta and he's now playing for the champions so they will always take these types of players and there will always be interest in xerxi but we need to stamp this out because we can't lose xerxi like i wasn't comfortable with Rasmus going, we definitely can't let Xerxes go.

17:24So we need to shut this down because from basically last September to Christmas, Xerxes was leaving. And in January, it looked like he might go and then he decided to stay. And it was being fed by agents and everything like that. We need to stop this now. We cannot have conversations about Xerxes in Italy. We do not have the depth up front or in number 10 at the moment for that to be happening. I think what we need to see is that Xerxes missed most of preseason we've now got injuries to Kunia and Mount he is going to get game time so I just don't want to talk about it and it cannot become a thing and if United think oh there might be a bit of money here there might be a bit of profit shut up sit down morning sneeze shut up sit down and stop it we do not need to be talking about Xerxes we are talking about it this morning because it's out there But in my opinion Correct me if I'm wrong This is not a deal we're doing at all Maybe in the summer If he doesn't play a lot And he's a bit unsettled after two years Maybe in the summer But not for now Not for now Not for me Excited for the Ganacho hate watch today Marks is Rajaf I ain't watching it I ain't watching it I'm doing Arsenal against Forest And I'm doing the three o 'clocks Because I want to watch Volta Meda play for Newcastle I'm not doing the R5 or the 8 o 'clock I'm having a Saturday evening, thank you I've got my football sorted And I couldn't give a shit about Brentford against Chelsea And he probably bloody will score as well Only because Brentford is shit Honestly, I'd hate to see Zexy leave So slow sports news, hope you're doing well I know his score ratio isn't great But he makes such a difference on the field And I'd keep him as a false nine Thank you very much for you there So I spoke about that Okay, injuries Now, there was a significant injury update yesterday when it came to um kunya um just somebody said what was the actual update from romano and martinez i've got it here man united want to discuss a new contract with lassandro martinez his current deal expires in 2027 and united don't want him going into late 2026 with a new one united will try and discuss a new deal before summer 2026 after he returns from his injury which you know i think that's what we all agree with don't we we don't want we don't want to be starting talks anywhere any time before that.

19:46There was something about Kunja I wanted to say. Here it is. Okay. This is what Ruben Amrim had to say about Kunja Mount and Deleu. They are out for this game. I don't know how long it's going to take. We need these guys to be a competitive team. We have very good players who are eager to play. So we will be competitive on Sunday, but they are out. He also said that But with regards to Kunya, I don't want to say on how long he'll be out. But if you talk to Kunya outside, he will say he can play this game. They are pushing really hard. So, you know, it's one of those, isn't it? And I was actually very grateful to...

20:24Grateful sounds a bit stupid, doesn't it? I think it's good that Ruben Amrim said that. Because as I said, last week, we sort of gave the first update on these injuries from our source. And the update was that Kunja could, at that point, a week and a half ago, could have been in contention for the Man City game. Mason Mount never. And can I just say apologies to Deleuze. I've never spoke about Deleuze, which is concerning because we knew Deleuze came back from Portugal. We knew he was injured. I've never mentioned him once until now. I've never even considered the injury of Deleuze at all. And I apologise for that because he did leave Portugal and that could be a significant injury again.

21:07So Deleuze has started picking up injuries, hasn't he? I'm sure he was injured at the end of last season. Anyway, back to Kunja. I think he is close to being fit. But as we know, with our medical department, they are very, very health and safety orientated. They will not risk a player. And it's interesting that the player themselves would say they're fit to play on Sunday because they want to play. But obviously the advice from the medical people is don't do it. So, yeah, it's one of those, isn't it? So how long could you could be out till after the next international break? Because we might go really precautionary.

21:53I mean, I think he's just such an important player for us. I mean, I'm not saying he should be playing tomorrow, by the way. What the player knows isn't necessarily right. But I don't think Cunha is particularly that far off. I just think we're being precautionary. And I think there's a frustration from Amarim there. You know, he basically said what we were saying a couple of days ago. We need to treat every game like a cup final. We need to scrutinise every minute of every game. And, you know, if we're going to be competitive, we need our best players available. there's no point not being in Europe and being on the training ground all week but the players that are going to make the difference aren't on the training ground and I think that um I do think that he's a very very important player for us but he won't be there tomorrow Mason Mount all I'll say about Mason Mount is the same thing as always like we sometimes you know Mason Mount goes off with a knock you think he's going to be back in a week and he's not back for four months so I don't know They never seem to say They never seem to say When it comes to him really But Deleu as well I don't know But we have got Masraoui back And I think in my preview I had Man City Sorry I had Masraoui playing as the right wing back anyway Against Man City I think Masraoui is a Massively important player for us by the way I don't know about you But I think he is A very very very good player and I think we have we've certainly well we've not seen him this season and I think he's going to be a big a big player to have back for us certainly it seems the iOS says it seems the medical team just always play it safe since Ten Hag had called them out a while back doesn't help the team when they always play it safe no I think that it's almost like it's like in essence it's a bit like the way you approach football isn't it you look at Arsenal Old Trafford it was very defensive and counter-attack and conservative and then you like you look at some teams and they're on the front foot taking risks um i think our medical team is very reserved and conservative and it has been like it for a while i mean it started in the ten hagg era you're absolutely right this laptop computer um it's funny because my daughter plays at an academy and you speak to people around their injuries and you know it's not man united level it's not Liverpool level, but they do, you know, if you get a slight knock, you're out for two weeks.

24:24That's just, there is this risk aversion. And I've always find it funny because when I used to play football 90 years ago, I mean, I'm joking. So when I was playing football 30 years ago, so like 15, we had a really good team. Like we were the best school in the district. We won four trophies, we won everything. My Sunday team won a trophy as well. I played for a Saturday team, but we were a bit shit. But I was playing Saturday, Sunday, Wednesday, and training every day with the same set of lads at 15, 16. It was our final year at GCSE. Nobody got injured the whole year. All that training, all those games on horrible pitches, you know, and referees used to let things go in them days, no one ever got injured.

25:14And nowadays, everyone's injured. And how can that be? You've got sports science, you've got better pitches, you've got better boots, you've got stricter refereeing. Nobody used to get injured at all. The truth is you did. You just used to play with it. Somebody always had a knee strap on or an ankle protector and stuff like that. You did have injuries. You just played with them. And I think that's the difference now. And I was having this chat with somebody and I'll come to the point really. What I was having, I was, I was on a chat with, um, with one of the managers, um, and talking about like, why is it when like my daughter's had a bad ankle injury, she's been out for about five weeks.

26:00then it's like all the bloody conditioning and then you come back and non-contact contact so it's you know very similar to what happens at the highest level obviously um but then it's only you can only play 45 minutes and then it's you can only play 60 minutes and they bring them off at half time and they bring them off at 60 minutes and i was saying what about so if they if they can only play 60 minutes, what happens if they play 65? What happens if you play 70? And they can't answer you because it's the same as if I eat a burger and you eat a burger, the impact on my body will be different to yours.

26:41I could eat, it's like my stepdad smoked 40 cigarettes a day, right? And he died in his mid-70s. You could smoke 40 cigarettes a day, I advise you don't, and die of cancer in your 40s. Nobody's the same. And I don't like laptop stuff that managers get told to do. Amarim's being told to do it. Ten Hag was told to do it. If I'm a manager and I'm playing a game and I've been told I've got to take off Kunya on the 60th minute and it's 1-1 and I'm playing Liverpool at Anfield and we're doing really well and Kunya's the best player on the pitch, I ain't fucking taking him off. I'll push it for another 10.

27:28I won't play him for 90, but I ain't taking him off on 60. Tell me why it has to be 60. I'll take him off on 70. And in fact, if he's still doing well, I might push another five. I might not do it for 90, but I might push it to 75. You're telling me that 15 minutes is going to make a massive amount of difference. I don't think it, I don't, I don't think it, I don't think it does really, to be honest with you. But look, I personally, I'm not, Obviously, I'm not on the board at Manchester United, but we get injuries anyway. I was saying this to Terry last night when he was prepping for his show.

28:02We've had Anana, Xerxi, Masraoui, Deleu, Mount and Kunya. Six injuries, significant injuries. Is there any more? Any more? Any more for any more? We've had six significant injuries in basically two months. In fact, exactly two months. two months ago we started pre-season and we've had six significant injuries

28:30so and that's being conservative that's not taking risks that's following the model of laptops and 60 minutes so and we're not even in europe yet and we're not going to play in europe says warren and and that's my problem it's like this risk averse shit basically is to cover up the fact that we're crap at fitness and conditioning we're doing all this risk averse stuff and we're still getting as many injuries as Chelsea who played in a bloody club world cup and have Europe. We're still getting as many injuries as Man City who played in a club world cup and have got Europe. So I'm a little bit concerned just off the cuff here, just as we're having the conversation, I'm a little bit concerned that there's a lot of our fan base going, we're not playing in Europe.

29:12We're going to be really, really good. And it's this unreal expectation that will ultimately put pressure onto the manager and the team. We're not playing in Europe, so we should be smashing it. Well, how are we going to smash it if we've always got three or four big players missing? And this is it. We should be taking risks because these games are cup finals. And I'm not saying that Kunja should be playing tomorrow, but if I've got a fitness department that behaves like this, and I'm Amrim, I'm speaking to Wilcox and Barada and I'm saying, hold on a minute. You didn't get me a midfielder. You didn't get me an experienced goalkeeper.

29:47you desperately need Europe and I've got a fitness and conditioning department that's risk averse how do you expect me to really take advantage of having a whole week off in between Premier League games if when I come to pick my team I'm being told he can't play he can only play 45 minutes I need I need I need I need I need this loosening like because these games are really important so it's gonna be very interesting to monitor that over the season I think uh Rupp says football Paul is back. Let's go. Let's go. Let's go. The American Gangster, thank you very much for joining the Members Club. Chip says, if we bought a backup goalkeeper and promoted Biinder, I'm extremely disappointed.

30:27How is the security risk? Just as an honour, he's already cost us points this season. Well, I think that's the big question, isn't it, Chip? It's whether Biinder is now number one and Le Mans is going to be the number two for the rest of the season, or it's whether Biinder is the number one for now and Le Mans will take his place very soon. We'll have to wait and see. I hope it's the latter. Yeah. Seth says, I know Man City is bad right now, but never expected that a lot of people would be doing United for the win. This is the first time people edges over them since Sir Alex, says Seth. Yeah, I think it's very dangerous I went 2-2, I've gone with a draw Man City are a good side And we're not favourites I think it's, you know what I think it is?

31:09Naivety And the media I think the media are building us up as favourites So that they can cut our legs off On Sunday night when we lose How the fuck are we favourites? We apparently struggled against Burnley We got beat by Grimsby And we drew with Fulham How are we favourites for this game? So just hold that thought for a minute. I know Man City have lost two games, but it's not like we're coming in like Liverpool, three wins from three. We're not actually that good, apparently. So I don't know why we're being pinned as favourites. I think we've got a chance, but I don't think we're favourites.

31:45And also, I think we're missing two of our best players. I mean, it's interesting what Amrim said about Man City. He said it's a top team with the best coach in the league, a team that is really hard to imagine how they're going to play. We're prepared for that and we believe in our team. It will be a very good game. We know what to do. We have more training and the table at the moment doesn't matter in relation to Man United being above Man City. He says, I think we are a better team. If you see any aspects of the data, we're a better team. We're ready to play the game, but we need to show it on Sunday.

32:14And he also said that over the international break, I've been watching the games again. I tried to watch the last games against City. I tried to imagine some positions for the players, especially when you have some injuries, you have to prepare for the future to be comfortable in many situations. So it was a normal break, enjoying the weekend with the kids, bringing the kids to school, but also always thinking about the next match. So, yeah, look, I think that, yeah, we've got to go into it with confidence. Obviously, he beat them at the Etihad last year as well. But look, if you look at it from Pep Guardiola's point of view, they've lost two of the first three, which puts an immense pressure on them needing to win this game and it's Manchester United and Amarin beat him twice last season didn't he I mean he absolutely hammered him with sporting as well so I think that there will be a reaction from Manchester City tomorrow they've got their own injury issues but I think it'll be look you never know what's going to happen in football there could be an early red card there could be a really shit performance I mean I watched Frankfurt play Leverkusen last night at Leverkusen and without promoting the Bundesliga again on that's football because that's great obviously but the point being remember how I always say after the first international break it's so important to be at home because you have your pre-season and then you start the season and then you stop for two weeks and every team loses momentum you'll see it this weekend there'll be loads of teams looking rusty again because three games is not enough to get your rhythm going and then you're off to the international break.

33:52Frankfurt had won two from two. Leverkusen had started badly under Ten Hag. They lose 3-1 last night, Frankfurt, and they were playing against 10 men for most of the second half, nine for the last five minutes. And they were awful. The rhythm had gone completely. Now Leverkusen weren't great, but they got the job done and they're at home. So I do worry about that aspect as well. Like, can we be intense can we have patterns of play when we've just had two weeks off um so but but my feeling is it will be a um quite a close game that's my reading of the game i think it will be quite close i think defensively we've looked very good so we should be able to keep harland quiet midfield obviously concerns me and we don't know who the number 10s are going to be but i think I think M.

34:43Bermot could be key in this game because he suits this type of a game, really. Heard Shaw deliberately dropped a kebab on his foot because he's jealous of everyone else's injuries, says One Inch Wonder. He's joking. He's joking. It's called banter. City's bench can be a starting 11 while United are still filling gaps in the first team. Hope we win, but realistically, it will be tough, says Dellen. Here's what happened when one journalist reported on DEI programs. I decided to just focus on the University of Michigan. I obtained internal documents that showed that the school had spent about a quarter of a billion dollars on DEI programs.

35:19I spent two weeks in Ann Arbor talking to everybody I could find. The unintended consequences of these programs, they had sort of left everybody dissatisfied. And this expensive machinery the school had built just imploded. If you're a journalist, you are not on anyone's team. All you're trying to do is figure out as many of the facts as you can gather. The facts are going to guide you to where the story lands. You're not taking sides. I'm Nick Confessori. I'm an investigations reporter for The New York Times. Journalists like Nick follow the facts wherever they lead. They go where news breaks, get answers firsthand, and publish what they find.

35:59That's fact-based reporting. Seek it out if you don't already.

36:07Llegado McDonald's. Incluye un sausage McMuffin o sausage biscuit, hash brown y un café caliente. Llévate más por tu dinero con tu meal deal. Solo por tiempo limitado. Precios y participación pueden variar. Precios con entrega pueden ser más altos. Hair is looking sharp today, says American Gangster. I seriously think that that shirt might be too heavy for him ends to start. If he fucks up, he's another Inanna. Yeah, as I say, I can sort of understand why Amarin may have done it, but I don't know whether that's a lack of faith in the fan base. and maybe he's right. I mean, I sit here and I know a lot of you sit there and go, if you made a mistake tomorrow, I wouldn't judge him.

36:43I know he's here for the long term. It's what Sir Alex did with David De Gea. The difference is Sir Alex Ferguson had strength in his own conviction and trust in his fan base that we could throw a young goalkeeper in and back him. Do we have that capability now? And maybe Amarin's right. You know, you look at Dorgou last year. some people were calling him horse shit after two games. And that's our own fans. So maybe, maybe, maybe to reflect, Al, maybe to reflect, if he doesn't pick Le Mans tomorrow, it's because of some of you who just don't have any patience. And look, I would sit there. If he made a mistake tomorrow, I would say he's our goalkeeper for the next few years.

37:26We stick with him. But some people would say, what a load of shit. And they're our fans. And I don't know why they do it, but they will. Because my thing is, if Le Mans makes a mistake tomorrow and that ruins his career, he was never the right guy anyway. If you don't have the personality to be able to deal with mistakes, then you're never going to be a Man United goalkeeper. So I don't buy into the whole pressure thing because the pressure will be there whether he starts against Sunderland or Man City. In many ways, it's worse to do it against Sunderland because the pressure's even more on because we would expect to win that and you might cost us the win.

38:02So I don't buy into the whole he's not ready. It's too much pressure. What have we bought him for then? When does he get the experience if you don't throw him in? But, you know, obviously Amarim is the manager and he must be, you know, I believe he must be backed. This was interesting what he said as well. On the academy player in the squad record, he was asked about that. He says, we want to maintain that. I don't want to be the guy to break that record, that idea. If you see the pass to Manchester United, that should be our goal in the future. So we should try to maintain that for sure. I mean, he's not going to say anything different, is he?

38:40He also went on to say about the academy, we need to prepare them to come into the team and show them the intensity of what is required, which is quite interesting when in the academy, they're not actually playing a 3-4-3, they're playing a 4-3-3, which is something Wayne Rooney mentioned last season. So look, I believe there is an abundance of talent coming through at Manchester United. Some names you'll know, some names you won't. Those opportunities are there. I don't see that record changing. But what I would say is, you know, we can't be in a position where if Manu's not good enough, we keep him around to put him on the bench to maintain the record.

39:21I believe Maynud can be good enough and will be good enough but we don't ever want to have a token youth player on the bench just to keep the record going the record should go in the legacy of what the Busby Babes are which is legends of the football club for their footballing ability and that's what we should do we shouldn't have a young player on the bench just because they're from the youth that defeats the purpose we should have young players in the first team because they're good enough And hopefully that's something that we can maintain. I want to take you to Dream World. We finished fourth place, says Chicken, this season.

39:57Then next summer's owners by Belaba, Jumland and Zeno, the Bast. There we go. Do you see Cesco on the bench again, says Seth? I would start Cesco tomorrow, especially with Cunha and Mount out. But there is a scenario where he doesn't start, where you could play Ahmad, Mbamo and Sesko as a front three. You could play Bruno and Mbamo and Zerksi as a front three. Sorry, not Sesko. So you could do Ahmad, Mbamo, Zerksi. You could do Bruno, Mbamo, Zerksi. So he could do that. But I think if you've watched Manchester City this season, do you need to play a false nine? I don't think you do. I think you need to play a nine.

40:47I think you will get opportunities. I don't see United needing to have to sit back and have 30 % possession and work hard. I think that there will be opportunities to score goals. I actually wouldn't be surprised if this game got resolved on set pieces, which worries me a little bit about our goalkeeper. But yeah, I think so.

41:13Thank you very much for that. Um, did you, somebody just said, did you see what Amrim said about Inanna? I did. Um, he basically said, um, as a club, we understood it needed a change. Sometimes it's hard to point why the performance is the moment, the bad luck in some moments was hard on him. Our thinking was to have a change with goalkeepers, but I wish the best to Inanna. He was really good at working and helping the players, but sometimes you need to change the environment. I mean, it's almost word for word what we said back in March. if you listen to what Amrim's saying there is, we needed a change.

41:51He's a nice guy. We wish him all the best. Exactly the information we put out there in the March international break. Amrim and Wilcox want Anana gone. He's a really popular guy. Everybody really likes him, but there's no confidence in the team or in the manager and they want to change. And that's basically what the story's been since March. It just got a little bit confused because Inanna was refusing to go and United didn't have the money to replace him until he left. And obviously then when he... Sorry, just getting rid of an idiot in the chat. Then when he was dropped for Biinder, I think he realised he had to go.

42:45GG says GG says Remember to remove United players on FPL I don't play FPL Gman says The academy record Should not break regardless Invest in the youth Of programmes To improve the quality Absolutely Dan says Bienda playing Is protecting a young keeper Against the tough teams Downside is When he does get a game Against the lower level team And he gets spanked He will suffer more well what what what game was it that taiby made those mistakes that cost him his career it wasn't a big game um if he doesn't pick seshko again i'll be fuming says warren jr um and i think the argument that the men's will be facing more quality shots in the premier league is lame he had a worse defense and still conceded less shots than anana says mayan if you want my honest answer i don't think i don't think le mans is going to be our first choice goalkeeper this side of Christmas.

43:33It looks to me like he's been brought for the future and it might be a little bit of spin to make us all think we bought a goalkeeper, but we didn't. Man City have gone and got Donnarumma. We have gone and got a guy from the Belgian league that apparently isn't going to start. Who needed the experienced goalkeeper more? They had fucking Edison and Ortega, and then they go and get Donnarumma. And that to me, in a sentence, is why we are where we are. Man City had Edison and Ortega and they go and buy Donnarumma. We had Inanna and Beinda and we go and buy a backup kid. Like if he's not going to be a starting goalkeeper, then have we solved the problem?

44:13Now we have to wait and see. I would urge calmness. We have to wait and see. There could be a shock tomorrow. He might start against Chelsea. But ultimately, when you start the summer, if I said to you, Man City are going to get Donnarumma and we're going to get a guy from Belgium who won't even start, I think you'd go, what the hell are we doing? Like we need the experienced starting goalkeeper. We don't need a backup to be in there. So let's wait and see what happens with it. Um, with no midfield signing, surely Kone will get his chances, Jim. I would love to see Kone get involved. Yeah. Um, I mean, but the thing about Kone is, and in some ways we have to be very careful about the um stories we write as fans there are many stories that you write that never come true like oh Le Mans is going to be the goalkeeper you know that's why we didn't go for Martinez well no if we'd got Martinez the interesting thing for me is right you go back to the last 24 hours of the transfer window we go to Villa where Martinez gets dropped, everyone thinks we're going to get Martinez and we go for Le Mans.

45:23We play Man City, Biender's in goal. Le Mans is on the bench. If we'd got Martinez, Martinez would be in goal. So you're sort of, United are sort of confusing us all with facts. If we had gone for Martinez, he'd be in goal. We go for Le Mans and he's on the bench. And I'm like, this was the whole argument that last 24 hours. I want a goalkeeper to play now. If Le Mans is in goal tomorrow, happy days. If he's not ready to be in goal tomorrow, I wish we'd got Martinez because I don't trust Bienda. And I suppose that's, you know, we need a Martinez or a Donnarumma. We need an experienced goalkeeper.

46:07We need a new number one goalkeeper. And if Le Mans isn't that and it's Binder, again, I think it's a potential mistake. Vinnie X says, I think we should be aggressive. Start Bruno and Mbamo as tens, Ahmad as right wing back and Maynou Kazimir in the midfield. I would love to see, I wouldn't start Ahmad as a right wing back. I'd put Ahmad on the bench. Impact sub, second half. I'd play Masrawi right wing back, just to cover off the fact that they'll probably have a good left winger. And also, Ahmad on the back post for crosses isn't great. I'd use him as an impact sub but I would definitely play Bruno as a 10 and put Menuh next to Casemiro I would love to see that Martínez would have been good with Vitek coming back after loans says IQ thank you very much okay thank you for everybody this morning really appreciate you for tuning in if you didn't watch live get your comments in I am back with you at 8 o 'clock tonight I have an 8 o 'clock show for you tonight fantastic little preview with a Man City fan that Beth did which is on the homepage now check that out has a combined 11 in there too.

47:10And also, if you're up for some watch-alongs today, busy day. I'm doing Eng, bit of Eng. Back in hell, mate. Got to go bloody Arsenal first game, you know. I've gone a bit farmer there and all, you know. Yeah, Arsenal, Forest at 12.30 and then 3 p.m. All on bats football. So I will see you over there in a couple of hours. Well, less than that, an hour and a half. Thanks for watching. Back here at 8. Have a great day. Stay safe. Thank you.