Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
OLE HINTS REDS READY TO BATTLE CITY FOR HAALAND
Man Utd (4) v R Sociedad JEREMY CROSS
(0) Europa Lge rd of 32, 2nd leg, KO 8pm BY
OLE GUNNAR SOLSKJAER has refused to rule out a swoop for Borussia Dortmund star Erling Haaland in the summer.
The 20-year-old has become a hot property after plundering 27 goals in 25 appearances for Dortmund this season.
The Norway international has a £70million release clause in his contract that will be activated in June 2022. The Bundesliga outfit could sell him in the next transfer window – if the price is right – and are expected to demand up to £150m.
Manchester City have also targeted Haaland but Solskjaer has dropped the biggest hint yet that Manchester United will take on their bitter rivals to secure his compatriot’s services.
Solskjaer, whose Red Devils host Real Sociedad tonight, said: “I keep in touch with Erling – and it’s great to see him become the player he has become.
“I know he’ll work to improve all the time. He’s a Dortmund player and we just wish him well there and let’s see what life will bring later on.
“I can’t speak about Erling, because he’s at Dortmund, and it’s disrespectful to talk too much about it, apart from that I know him and speak to him. Who wasn’t interested in him a year ago? Everybody would say you’d take the best players in the world and Erling is a top player.” PROBABLE TEAMS:
MAN UNITED: Henderson, Wan-bissaka, Bailly, Maguire, Telles, Fred, Matic, Greenwood, Mata, Traore, Rashford
REAL SOCIEDAD: Remiro, Gorosabel, Zubeldia, Sagnan, Munoz, Guevara, Merino, Silva, Januzaj, Isak, Oyarzabal
ECO-WARRIORS Forest Green Rovers will strike another blow for saving the planet on Saturday – by wearing shirts made out of recycled ground coffee.
Rovers became Britain’s first carbon-neutral club in 2017 and will now test kit suppliers Playerlayer’s shirts made from recycled plastic and 35 per cent waste coffee grind at their home game with Colchester.
Chairman Dale Vince said: “It’s time football wakes up and smells the coffee about the future of the planet. This prototype kit will bring new flavour to that old cliche of grinding out a result!”
NEIL LENNON had a higher win rate as Celtic manager than Jock Stein.
Only Martin O’neill can beat Lennon’s 70.33 per cent wins from his two spells in charge.
The top five win rates of Celtic manager are: 1. Martin O’neill: 75.53 (213 from 282 games); 2. Neil Lennon: 70.33 (236, 337); 3. Jock Stein: 70.06 (503, 718); 4. Brendan Rodgers: 68.82 (118, 169); 5. John Barnes: 65.52 (19, 29).