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Christian Falk drops exciting morning Manchester United transfer story

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By:Mark Brus

German football journalist Christian Falk has dropped an intriguing Manchester United transfer update this morning as the Red Devils remain interested in Alphonso Davies.

Writing in his latest CF Bayern Insider column, Falk stated that Man Utd are interested in Davies and that Bayern Munich could be open to listening to big enough offers.

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The Canada international was also previously eyed by United and other big clubs when his contract situation was uncertain, though he ended up signing a new deal.

Still, even if Davies is one of the best left-backs in the world on his day, he hasn’t been as convincing in recent times, partly due to ongoing injury issues.

Christian Falk on Manchester United’s Alphonso Davies interest

Discussing the Davies to United links in today’s column, Falk said: “It is TRUE: Manchester United are interested in Alphonso Davies.

“They were at the table when questions were being asked as to whether he would sign a new contract at Bayern Munich. They’re still monitoring this player, but he’s, of course, since signed a new contract at the Allianz Arena, so it will be difficult to get him at the moment.

“But there are also discussions going on at the club as to whether they need a new backup player, given all the injuries Davies keeps picking up. Before, they thought they didn’t need a player on the left-hand side because Hiroki Itō can play there as well.

“However, if there were an offer on the table (and don’t forget it cost Bayern a lot of money to extend Davies), there would be a discussion. But I can say right now that there has yet to be a concrete offer from Manchester United. If there’s an offer, perhaps Bayern will consider it, as the injuries keep coming.”

Is Alphonso Davies still good enough for Manchester United?

United fans will likely be divided over whether or not a move for Davies is the right thing, but what does our Transfer Fit rating show?

See below as we scored Davies on key metrics and gave him a fairly medium overall rating of 15/25…

Alphonso Davies TOTAL SCORE: 15/25
Transfer fee **
Performance **
Achievements *****
Career phase **
Squad need ****

Even if Davies has had a fine career as one of the top players in the world in his position, his recent form is less convincing and he probably wouldn’t come cheap.

Still, there are worse options out there, and MUFC do look like they need a new left-back as an upgrade on the ageing and injury-prone Luke Shaw.

The post Christian Falk drops exciting morning Manchester United transfer story appeared first on CaughtOffside.

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Champions League quarter-finals in full: Can Arsenal or Liverpool go all the way?

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By:Mark Brus

Arsenal and Liverpool are the only two Premier League clubs to make it as far as this season’s Champions League quarter-finals.

The Gunners are set to take on Sporting Lisbon in their next game on the 7th of April, with the return fixture at the Emirates Stadium set to take place eight days later on the 15th of April.

Liverpool, meanwhile, have been drawn on the other side of the bracket as they take on reigning European champions Paris Saint-Germain.

If the Reds get past PSG they’d take on either Real Madrid or Bayern Munich, while success for Arsenal against Sporting will set them up for a semi-final against either Barcelona or Atletico Madrid.

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So, in theory, we’re looking at a possible Arsenal vs Liverpool final, but how likely is that?

Champions League quarter-finals in full and predictions

Arsenal vs Sporting Lisbon

Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid

Liverpool vs Paris Saint-Germain

Real Madrid vs Bayern Munich

Arsenal are one of the best teams in Europe this season and were arguably a little unlucky when they were beaten by eventual winners PSG in last season’s Champions League semi-finals.

Mikel Arteta’s side will now be big favourites to beat Sporting, but Liverpool are having a difficult season and also face a far tougher tie, with PSG surely the favourites to progress to the semis again.

Here’s our best effort at predicting the outcome of these Champions League quarter-finals…

Arsenal to beat Sporting

Provided Arsenal don’t get complacent or suffer an injury crisis, this is surely the best tie the north Londoners could have hoped for. They beat Sporting 5-1 away from home in the league phase of the competition last season, and should be too good for them again here.

Prediction: Arsenal to go through.

Arsenal CL record Played Wins Draws Losses
2025/26 10 9 1 0

Barcelona should get past Atletico

These games really can go either way, but Barcelona look the real deal at the moment after the way they absolutely dismantled Newcastle. Of course, Atletico did a pretty good job in that first leg win over Spurs, but were somewhat less convincing in the second fixture against what is a far weaker team.

Prediction: Barcelona to go through.

PSG too strong for Liverpool

Liverpool came back well against Galatasaray, winning their second leg 4-0 after a surprise 1-0 defeat in the away leg. Perhaps Arne Slot’s men will find that extra level in Europe after a disappointing domestic campaign, but the reality is that they’ve fallen some way behind with the changes to their squad this season. PSG beat them last term and they’re more than good enough to do so again.

Prediction: PSG to go through.

Bayern to edge it against Real

Vincent Kompany’s Bayern Munich have been outstanding this season and probably the best team in Europe alongside Arsenal. Harry Kane is on fire, Michael Olise has taken his game up a level, and they’re really well-rounded in every department. While it’s unwise to ever bet against Real Madrid in this competition, they’ve not quite been at their best this season, so we can see Bayern just about getting through a close tie.

Prediction: Bayern to go through.

Will we see a Premier League winner in the Champions League?

All four other English clubs, Manchester City, Chelsea, Tottenham, and Newcastle, exited the Champions League this week.

We’re currently predicting Liverpool to go out at the next stage of the tournament, but Arsenal should reach the semi-finals for the second year in a row.

Beyond that, however, the gruelling Premier League schedule and tough opponents each week make it harder for English sides in Europe.

We’ve seen that illustrated clearly by both Chelsea and Newcastle in particular, as they both fell apart rapidly in the latter stages of their respective away fixtures against PSG and Barcelona.

PSG in particular have a real edge from the fact that Ligue 1 really isn’t that competitive, meaning Luis Enrique can quite conceivably rest players for domestic games in order to keep them in peak condition for their European matches.

So, if you want a really early prediction for the final, don’t be too surprised if it’s Barcelona against either one of PSG or Bayern.

Who do you see as Champions League favourites? Let us know your predictions in the comments!

The post Champions League quarter-finals in full: Can Arsenal or Liverpool go all the way? appeared first on CaughtOffside.

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Sources: Arsenal among clubs who “love” this “near-flawless” wonderkid

✇CaughtOffside
By:Mark Brus

Arsenal are among the clubs interested in an ambitious potential transfer for Barcelona wonderkid central defender Pau Cubarsi.

As first reported here for the Daily Briefing, it’s important to start by saying that Barcelona are obviously very keen to keep their star centre-back, who at 19 years of age is already one of the best in Europe in his position.

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Cubarsi is protected by a €500m release clause in his Barca contract, which runs until 2029, so this would not be an easy deal for suitors to do this summer, even if eyes are very much on his situation as no new deal in the next year or two could change things dramatically.

Arsenal, City, Chelsea & Bayern eyeing Pau Cubarsi

I’m told that the four main clubs eyeing Cubarsi are Arsenal, Man City, Chelsea, and Bayern Munich.

“While it’s not necessarily a realistic one for the moment, there’s a lot of love for Cubarsi at Arsenal, City, Chelsea, and Bayern,” one source with close ties to the agents industry told me.

“I can’t name names, but a recruitment official from one of those clubs praised Cubarsi for his ‘near-flawless decision-making’ and ‘intelligence beyond his years’.”

It’s understood that there has not yet been any formal or informal contact between clubs and Cubarsi or his representatives, but it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that they could soon try to establish a connection there.

If there’s any indication at all that Cubarsi stalls over a new contract, then that could be the moment for clubs to get involved and make him aware of their interest.

Barcelona’s plan for Pau Cubarsi

Still, sources close to Barcelona insist that there is no concern over Cubarsi’s situation, and plans to improve his contract soon.

It is also understood that the Catalan giants will likely end up offering him the captain’s armband in the coming years to highlight even more just how important he is to the team.

This is Cubarsi’s third season as a first-team regular at the Nou Camp, while he also has ten caps for the senior Spanish national team.

In short, everything is very much in place for Cubarsi with his current club, and there’s no current sign of him exploring other options, but as ever with these things, the situation could always change at any moment and there’ll be big clubs ready to pounce if they do.

The post Sources: Arsenal among clubs who “love” this “near-flawless” wonderkid appeared first on CaughtOffside.

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