STUDY SPORTS

 Manchester United midfielder, Bruno Fernandes, took the penalty in their 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa despite being instructed to leave it for Cristiano Ronaldo, according to The Transfer Window podcast. It was United’s first loss of the new Premier League campaign. Fernandes placed the ball on the spot with Villa a goal up and blazed his effort over the bar. Following Ronaldo’s return to United, many expected the 36-year-old to take over penalty duty from his compatriot. Solskjaer had instructed that Ronaldo take any penalty ahead of their clash with Villa, but Fernandes took it upon himself to step up.

 Marcus Rashford is closing in on a comeback to first-team football, having trained with the team since the start of the international break.  The 23-year-old has missed all of United’s games so far after having surgery on his shoulder ahead of the campaign. Rashford struggled with the injury for the majority of last season but managed it throughout the campaign and into this summer’s European Championship. He is now finally close to putting those worries behind him but there are now reports that Manchester United want Rashford to gain more muscle in order to prevent further injuries.  That’s according to the Daily Mail, who say that the club is pushing the idea in a bid to limit further spells on the sidelines.

 Cristiano Ronaldo has completed his hat-trick for Portugal against Luxembourg as he continues to defy the odds in his sparkling career, with no end of it in sight. The 36-year-old completed a sensational return to Manchester United over the summer and has scored five goals in just six games for Manchester United – a remarkable record. He has now scored yet another hat-trick in his career, this time for his nation against European minnows Luxembourg in their World Cup qualifier. Ronaldo scored twice in the first half, with both goals coming from the penalty spot.

 West Brom goalkeeper Sam Johnstone unleashed a defence-splitting throw against Andorra during England’s World Cup qualifier on Saturday night. The Baggies’ number one clocked Manchester City’s Jack Grealish on the move before executing a pinpoint throwBritan’s most expensive player then went on a mazy run that saw him turn several Andorra defenders inside out before firing a low shot past his opposition. England has now cruised to a convincing 5-0 victory and is well en route to next summer’s World Cup finals.

  England has gone into the half-time break 2-0 up against Andorra during their World Cup qualifier on Saturday night. Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions got off to an excellent start after Jadon Sancho perfectly set up Chelsea’s Ben Chilwell to tuck home the game’s opener after just 17-minutes. However, with just minutes left of the match’s first-half, the Three Lions have doubled their lead thanks to an excellent strike from Gunners’ ace Bukayo Saka. Credit to Manchester City’s Phil Foden though, who played a stunning looped pass.

  England have scored their third goal of the game against Andorra in their World Cup qualifier, with Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho registering his second assist of the game. The 21-year-old made an impressive cameo against Everton in his last appearance for Manchester United and seems to have built on that performance with an eyecatching outing against Andorra. Sancho registered his first assist of the game in the first half, latching onto a pass from Phil Foden before laying it off to Chelsea’s Ben Chilwell.

  Surprise surprise – Manchester United and Portugal megastar Cristiano Ronaldo is back on the scoreboard once again. Currently in action for his country during a friendly match against Qatar, the sporting superstar has once again come up with the goods when his side needed him most. Having fallen victim to age, Ronaldo has recently been forced to reinvent himself from a devastating winger to a fox-in-the-box. However, proving he is still capable of scoring goals regardless of where he plays, Ronaldo popped up just yards from his opponent’s goal line before poking home his first of the game.

Chelsea and Belgium star striker Romelu Lukaku has fired his country into a 2-0 lead during Thursday evening’s Nations League semi-final. The Red Devils, who were leading 1-0 thanks to a Yannick Carasco opening, have since seen their lead doubled through Lukaku.  Lukaku combined with Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne before perfectly timing a superb dummy that saw Lucas Hernandez wrong-footed. The powerful Chelsea striker then unleashed a strike that comfortably beat Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.

 Ronaldo stormed down the tunnel and Khabib was probably a little disappointed too, but the two iconic sportsmen were quick to restore each other’s spirits after the game. The Russian fighter took to Instagram to share a face off with the Portugal star, while the pair were also pictured play fighting. Both Khabib and Ronaldo can claim to be the greatest of all time in their respective sports, although some may argue.

Despite the game being level at two-a-piece now, Liverpool had taken the lead against Manchester City for the second time during Sunday afternoon’s heavyweight Premier League clash.   Having gone one nill up, thanks to a second-half Sadio Mane opener, the Citizens did well to draw level through young English attacker Phil Foden. However, the back pages were almost stolen by club legend Mo Salah, who has once again reminded footballing fans all around the world why he is to be considered one of the best, ever.

Sadio Mane gives Liverpool lead over Man City with fine finish after great work from Mohamed Salah. Liverpool have taken the lead over Manchester City at Anfield through Sadio Mane. Liverpool were up against it in the first-half of the contest, with Man City purring and looking to pull off a second consecutive victory away to a direct Premier League title rival. Unfortunately for Man City, they’ve paid the price for their inability to find a breakthrough during a period of dominance, with Sadio Mane having put Liverpool ahead just before the hour mark.

 Tottenham midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg has scored with a well-taken finish to make it 1-0 against Aston Villa. The Denmark international isn’t known for his scoring ability, but this was a truly great take from the edge of the area to give Spurs the crucial breakthrough in this challenging fixture… Tottenham have made a disappointing start to the season so could do with recovering in this game today.

  Southampton is level against Chelsea thanks to a clinical penalty from midfielder James Ward-Prowse. The Blues, who were looking to claim all three points against a struggling Saints side, have been left trying to get the better of Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side. Despite taking the lead through a Trevoh Chalobah first-half effort, the away team have dragged themselves level in the second half thanks to a penalty kick following a clear foul from full-back Ben Chilwell.

  Cristiano Ronaldo was NOT a happy man at the full-time whistle of Manchester United vs Everton. Ronaldo was left among the substitutes after playing 95 minutes of football against Villarreal on Wednesday night. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made the decision to bring Ronaldo into the action on the hour mark, fresh and ready to make the difference for Man United in the contest.

 Chelsea have taken the lead over Southampton through a Trevoh Chalobah header. Chalobah was not in the first-team picture prior to pre-season, but seized his opportunity as the more esteemed defenders within the squad returned late after competing in Euro 2020 or Copa America. The young Englishman was given the opportunity to start in the UEFA Super Cup against Villarreal and on the opening day of the Premier League season. Once again, Chalobah took his chance by scoring a long-range strike into the bottom corner. He has successfully established himself as a fully-fledged first-teamer.

  It wasn’t the result we wanted at Old Trafford — drawing 1-1 with Everton and missing the chance to spend a few hours at least at the top of the table. Of course, Everton will be delighted with the point, but it sends us into the international break on a complete downer on top of recent results in all competitions. Excluding Anthony Martial’s first-half opener, you would be hard pushed to think of any highlights from the game from a United perspective. It doesn’t surprise me that players are getting frustrated and Paul Pogba can be seen in the video below picking up Yerry Mina and slamming the defender to the ground. The match was broadcasted live via BT Sport:

 Andros Townsend has scored to draw Everton level with Manchester United at Old Trafford – and he’s only gone and done the trademark Cristiano Ronaldo celebration. Everton trailed in the contest after a first-half goal from Anthony Martial, who was only starting in the game as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer gave Cristiano Ronaldo the opportunity to rest. As we headed towards the hour mark, Ronaldo was introduced and Martial hauled off, which set the stage for Andros Townsend to have his moment in front of THE big man at Old Trafford. After some quite superb work from Demarai Gray, Abdoulaye Doucouré threaded a smart ball to send Townsend one-on-one with David De Gea.

 Manchester United’s early kick-off on Saturday afternoon against Everton saw both sides involved in a fierce exchange during the game’s first half. Midfielder Scott McTominay tried to pick up full-back Lucas Digne after the Frenchman appeared to be injured on the floor, which sparked outrage among both sides. Although the scenes that proceeded appeared to be blown out of proportion, upon closer inspection, it has become clear that Toffees’ midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure threw more than one punch at United’s Fred. Despite VAR taking a look at the events, the officiating system failed to detect any wrongdoing. Lucky – very lucky indeed.

  The build-up play was top class to give Anthony Martial the space needed to finish. There might have been a slight deflection but Martial has been given his first goal of the season. Many questioned the decision to start the Frenchman against Everton, but it has gone in manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s favour with Martial scoring the game’s opening goal. The touch from Bruno Fernandes, who assists the goal wonderfully, is second to none. Footage courtesy of BT Sport