TOUGH CHOICES’: SHEARER SELECTS ONLY ONE MAN UTD STANDOUT VS LIVERPOOL
Alan Shearer snubs Bruno Fernandes, naming only one Man Utd player in a combined XI with Liverpool. The Premier League legend's damning selection highlights the gulf between the rivals ahead of their Anfield clash.
Alan Shearer claims that only one Manchester United player is included in a combined XI with Liverpool.
The Premier League's all-time leading scorer has created a dream squad that does not include even its captain and star, Bruno Fernandes.
As the Red Devils get ready to head to Anfield on Sunday for what used to be a stressful watch, it is a damning indication of how far they have fallen.
Even if the great rivalry is still a blockbuster, Liverpool has a clear advantage in recent years; they have won five of the last ten meetings across all competitions and only lost two, with an overall record of 33–11.
Even Liverpool's poor performance does not mitigate Shearer's harsh decision.
Even though Ruben Amorim's team has won two of their past three games and Arne Slot's team has lost three, they are still the overwhelming favourites.
One Red Devil is included in Alan Shearer's combined Liverpool-Man United starting lineup.
Shearer ignores Bruno Fernandes, the captain of Manchester United.
However, who is the lone standout player from Manchester United to make an appearance in Shearer's squad?
First, let us listen to his thoughts on the fixture.
"Liverpool vs. Man United is always significant because of the size of both clubs, and past players will always tell you that the fixture is huge and one they look out for, which means so much to both sets of fans and players," he told Betfair.
There is definitely more spice to this game because of Man United's personality and Liverpool's recent three straight losses, which nobody expected coming. For various reasons, both teams must go and win this game.
"As a manager and club, you want to sit and work or go on the training pitch and concentrate on what has gone wrong, but it is difficult when you have so many international players away." This makes international breaks challenging.
"Slot and Amorim's two weeks would have been difficult."
Unbelievably, Shearer chooses Luke Shaw to sneak into the Liverpool starting lineup to support Milos Kerkez.
Shaw has mostly been used as a left centre-back in Amorim's back three this season; thus, it is obvious that Shearer wants a defensive left-back.
The only Manchester United player to appear in Shearer's combined XI is Luke Shaw.
Following his £40 million move to Anfield, Milos Kerkez has not done enough to win Shearer over.
Since moving from Bournemouth for £40 million, Kerkez has not had the fastest of beginnings, and Shearer prefers the 30-year-old Shaw's experience.
He supports the defending champions, though, aside from that.
Conor Bradley, Ibrahima Konate, Virgil van Dijk, and Alisson round up his defensive group.
Shearer chooses a strong midfield trio of Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister, and Dominik Szoboszlai above Florian Wirtz, who costs £116 million.
However, other mega-money stars have missed out besides Wirtz. Shearer, who scored 260 Premier League goals, replaces Alexander Isak, who cost Liverpool £125 million.
Hugo Ekitike is his preferred striker, with Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah providing wing assistance.
"There is no question that Man United would snap your hand off for a point," Shearer said.
However, as we have stated, there will be a fantastic atmosphere at Anfield and a lot of noise surrounding this fixture, so it is easier said than done. There is always
AWONIYI DOUBLE LEAVES NOTTINGHAM FOREST ON THE VERGE OF PREMIER LEAGUE SAFETY
Nottingham Forest moved closer to safety with a 3-1 win over Chelsea, while West Ham fell into the relegation zone after Spurs won.
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Nottingham Forest came out of the weekend looking pretty safe after pulling off an impressive 3-1 win at Chelsea. They’re almost clear of the relegation mess. Tottenham’s big away win at Aston Villa shook things up too, and now West Ham are back in the bottom three, running out of time faster than ever.
Forest have stepped up just when they needed to, leaving West Ham and Tottenham behind with a string of solid performances. Honestly, no one saw this coming, especially since Vitor Pereira shuffled his lineup with eight changes, fresh off a Europa League win against Aston Villa.
Even so, Forest were ahead within 90 seconds, thanks to Taiwo Awoniyi’s quick strike. By the 15th minute, Igor Jesus calmly buried a penalty after Malo Gusto’s reckless foul in the box. Chelsea had a chance to get back in it, but Cole Palmer wasted a penalty right before the break after a scary head collision involving Jesse Derry.
Awoniyi doubled down and scored again early in the second half, pushing Forest six points ahead of West Ham with just three games left.
West Ham’s weekend started badly; they looked flat and lost to Brentford. Things got worse Sunday night when Tottenham pulled off their first back-to-back Premier League wins since August 2025, beating a heavily rotated Aston Villa side 2-1.
Forest is now out of West Ham’s reach, or almost. Tottenham’s still close enough for Nuno Espirito Santo’s team to worry, but with three tough games coming up, Spurs could stay up even without another win, unless West Ham digs deep and pulls off something unexpected before their home finale against Leeds.
Right now, Forest can practically taste safety. Spurs finally see a way out after weeks of struggle. As for West Ham, they’re left hoping for a miracle, a last-minute twist to dodge the drop.
CESC FABREGAS CONFIRMS INTEREST IN PREMIER LEAGUE RETURN AMID CHELSEA'S MANAGER SEARCH
As Chelsea searches for a new manager, Cesc Fabregas breaks his silence on his future at Como and his Premier League ambitions.
Cesc Fabregas recalls exactly how a conversation with Jose Mourinho prompted him to join Chelsea, despite having the opportunity to return to Arsenal.
After winning six trophies in just three seasons, the Spanish World Cup winner left Barcelona for the second time in 2014. That summer, Fabregas made a move back to the Premier League, signing with Chelsea for about €33 million.
He already knew English football well. Fabregas had arrived at Arsenal as a 16-year-old from Barcelona in 2003 and made 212 Premier League appearances for them. When he decided to leave Barcelona, Manchester City also wanted him, but Chelsea convinced him, mostly thanks to Mourinho.
Talking with talkSPORT’s Rory Jennings on YouTube, Fabregas laid out how it all happened. “Honestly, when I made up my mind to leave Barcelona, my first thought was just to go back to Arsenal. They had this buyback clause; they had two weeks to use it after I told them I was leaving. They knew about it but didn’t take it. That surprised me a little, but in the end, I had to think about my career. I was 27, at the peak of my career, and I wanted to continue performing and winning trophies. City and Chelsea were both options.
“But when Mourinho spoke to me, that was it. He showed me his plans for the team and told me about Diego Costa, Courtois, and Filipe Luis and how, with those guys, we’d win the league. He was right, by the way. We won both the Premier League and the Carling Cup.”
Fabregas wasted no time winning over Chelsea fans. On his debut at Burnley, he set up two goals, including a stunning assist for Andre Schurrle. He finished his first season at Chelsea with five goals and 24 assists, along with Premier League and League Cup medals.
Things dipped the next season. Fabregas got just 15 goal contributions, and Chelsea slipped all the way to tenth. But when Antonio Conte took charge in 2016-17, they bounced back, and Fabregas picked up another league title.
He added an FA Cup win in 2018, his second, after his earlier one with Arsenal, and left for Monaco a few months later. His last Chelsea match came in the FA Cup against Nottingham Forest. When he got subbed off, he couldn’t hold back tears.
Chelsea supporters still sing about him; that “Oh, Fabregas is magic...” chant sticks around. And with his name in the conversation for a possible return, maybe they haven’t seen the last of him yet.
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