Ralf Rangnick denied having any problems with Jesse Lingard as he confirmed the England international and Edinson Cavani were available again for Manchester United.
Both players missed the FA Cup fourth-round clash with Middlesbrough, which United lost on penalties after a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford on Friday.
Cavani was granted extra time off after international duty with Uruguay, while Rangnick said Lingard had been allowed to "clear his head" after he was not allowed to leave the club during the January transfer window.
Lingard disputed the suggestion he had requested to skip the Middlesbrough game, insisting the club had instructed him to take a longer break. Rangnick said after the match that he had wanted Lingard in the squad.
Rangnick has insisted there is no animosity between himself and Lingard and that he would have sanctioned his exit on deadline day were it not for the absence of Mason Greenwood. The 20-year-old is not currently being considered for selection by United following his arrest for alleged rape, assault, sexual assault and threats to kill.
The United interim manager said both the 29-year-old Lingard and Cavani would be back for Tuesday's Premier League match against Burnley.
"With regards to Jesse, I have a very good relationship with him," Rangnick said on Monday. "He knows I would have been willing to let him go at least until the issue with Mason came up. He mentioned some personal issues.
"We have to look forward now, there are no problems whatsoever between myself and Jesse and vice versa. I'm very happy to have him in the squad and he'll be in the squad for tomorrow night's game.
"They're both available and will both be part of the squad for tomorrow's game at Burnley. Both are top professionals, both have been training well."
United will be without Fred and Alex Telles for the game at Turf Moor after the Brazilian pair tested positive for coronavirus.
The match is the Red Devils' first since their shock cup exit to Middlesbrough, in which they were punished for missing a hatful of chances, ending the contest with 30 shots and 4.32 expected goals to their opponents' 1.43.
Rangnick felt the performance was positive but that United paid the price for their profligacy in front of goal and for failing to stop a simple Boro counter-attack before Matt Crooks' equaliser, which was allowed to stand despite the ball striking Duncan Watmore's hand.
Asked if United needed an overhaul, he said: "I don't know. I don't think so. Overall, the development of the team and performances over the last couple of weeks have improved.
"There are two points of criticism that we all have to face. One: we wasted too many clear-cut chances, 22 shots inside the box, 10 were massive opportunities and we should easily have been 3-0 up at half-time. It should have been 6-1 or 6-2.
"And the other one was, 10 seconds before we conceded the goal, it was a perfect counter-pressing situation inside their half, we took away time but not the ball away from them and eight seconds later we were outnumbered in our box, it was a handball goal and I'm still convinced this goal should have been disallowed, but we shouldn't have allowed this situation.
"Those are the two things I fault with the team. We invested a week into the game plan and many of those things have been confirmed by the team and were shown on the pitch against Middlesbrough."
Lasse Sorensen ready to swap studying fairytales for writing own in Carabao Cup
Lasse Sorensen has been studying fairytales after going back to school – now he is ready to write his own against West Ham.
Online lessons, assignments and a six-hour exam has made the Lincoln midfielder an expert.
The works of Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen, which include the Emperor’s New Clothes, the Ugly Duckling and the Princess and the Pea, have been the focus.
Enrolling in the Voksenuddannelsescentre, adult education courses, Sorensen completed his Danish literature class in the summer, all part of the 23-year-old’s plan to earn the qualifications he missed growing up.
It is apt, playing for a club known for its recent romantic cup stories, as Lincoln target another against the Hammers in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday.
“The school takes it right back to analyse fairytales, novels and old scripts from 300 years ago,” Sorensen tells the PA news agency, ahead of the third-round tie at Sincil Bank.
“So all the very boring stuff that I don’t think anybody really finds interesting, I certainly didn’t! I’ve done every fairytale Hans Christian Andersen has written.
“In Denmark you need subjects like Danish, maths, history and physics before you can do anything in later life. So I took Danish, the equivalent to A-Levels in England, so if I want to go to Uni one day, I can.
“When you play senior football a lot of it is games, games, games. There’s so much football.
“So, sometimes the best thing to do is leave and get your head off it. I was thinking ‘what can I do which can be beneficial?’ I’m a thinker so if something happens I’ll sit and think about it a lot, good or bad.
“I’ll sit and think if I don’t have anything else do to, so why not go back to education?
https://x.com/itvfootball/status/1649865138101420032?s=20
“It can never be bad and the main thing was just to get my brain off football sometimes. Otherwise, on your CV, you’ve got a little bit to say you’ve played football for a few years and done nothing else.”
Leaving his home town, Vejen, and first team Esbjerg to join Stoke in 2016 Sorensen’s education took a back seat.
At just 15 he moved to England without any qualifications and, while there were English lessons at the Potters, football was the focus.
“Because I was Danish, I was just studying the language. I came to the club and then had to quickly learn as much as I could,” says the midfielder, who made eight appearances for Stoke before joining Lincoln in 2021.
“So on the Wednesday, which was normally when the English lads used to do the education, I spent my time learning English.
“The hardest bit of going back to school was just starting and getting your head around it.
“As much as I’ve enjoyed getting my mind off other things, it’s never the most exciting thing to sit down and do.
“But that was the good thing as well because you’ll say to yourself ‘you need to get it done otherwise you won’t get it.’
“It was disciplined, the hardest and the best thing was I had to be disciplined about it.”
His online studies culminated in the exam back in Vejen this summer with Sorensen’s graft paying off as he scored 10 – the equivalent to an A.
“I had to sit with 100 people in a big school hall with my laptop for six hours, you couldn’t speak either of course. It was a bit different to what I’ve done for the last eight years,” says the Denmark Under-20 international, who is also planning to start a financial advisor course.
He is now in a break from his studies as he prepares to start a maths course in a few months. Football remains the priority and the immediate one is another Premier League scalp.
Last season Lincoln reached the Carabao Cup last 16, where they lost to Southampton, as they added to the club’s cup pedigree after their impressive run to the FA Cup quarter-finals in 2017 while still in the National League.
A shoot-out win at Sheffield United last month earned the Imps a crack at the Europa Conference League holders and Sorensen knows Mark Kennedy’s side can write another chapter.
He said: “It’s always 11 v 11. Some might be the favourites and some the underdogs but if you want it more than the others, you are the ones who win it.
“They’re a really, really good team, they are quality players, but it’s not actually won yet.
“It’s been shown before, we beat Sheffield United in the last round so we’ve got a growing belief we could do it again.
“You’ve always got to believe in yourself to do the thing most people think you can’t.”
Duncan Ferguson appointed Inverness boss on three-year deal
Duncan Ferguson has been appointed as Inverness manager.
The former Dundee United, Rangers, Newcastle and Everton striker has signed a three-year contract.
The job is Ferguson’s second in management after a brief spell at Forest Green last season. Rovers only won one of the 18 games the former Scotland forward took charge of and were relegated from Sky Bet League One.
The ex-Everton coach succeeds Billy Dodds, who lost his job months after leading Caley Thistle to the Scottish Cup final. Inverness are bottom of the cinch Championship with one point from five games.
Inverness said the appointment came after an “extensive recruitment process which involved some truly excellent candidates”.
A club statement added: “Duncan has worked alongside some of the most respected and outstanding football coaches in the world in recent seasons and we are proud to have him join ICTFC as our new manager.
“His professionalism, commitment and dynamic leadership skills shone through in our discussions, making him the standout candidate.
“Everyone at the club is looking forward to supporting Duncan as the hard work starts now and we hope every Caley Jag will now get right behind him and the team in what we are sure will be a thrilling journey.”
Football rumours: Jadon Sancho urged to end stand-off with Erik ten Hag
Jadon Sancho has been urged by players at Manchester United to end his dispute with manager Erik ten Hag, according to the Daily Mirror. The Times reports that the PFA has offered to help the England winger, 23, settle his differences with ten Hag.
Arsenal are gearing up to grab Ivan Toney, with the Daily Mirror reporting Brentford have valued the 27-year-old at £60 million ahead of a likely move for him in the January transfer window.
Jesse Lingard has ended his one-month training stint at West Ham to move to Saudi Arabia, with the Daily Mirror reporting club manager David Moyes insisting the club is comfortable with Lingard’s decision.
The Daily Telegraph reports that Chelsea secretly parted ways with Bruno, who joined Craven Cottage under former manager Graham Potter’s watch and was a first-team coach under Mauricio Pochettino.
Social media round-upPlayers to watchRomelu Lukaku: Roma are keen to turn the 30-year-old striker’s loan from Chelsea into a permanent move.
Mohamed Salah: Negotiations between Liverpool, Saudi Arabia and the striker’s agent are becoming the subject of a Harvard study.
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