Pochettino to sign two-and-a-half-year Manchester United deal; Fernandes rejects second contract offer: football – live

A Poch timeline for you. The official announcement is expected later today but Pochettino won’t arrive at the club until next Wednesday. Here’s how the next 10 days look:

• Friday 13 November: United are set to confirm his appointment.

• Saturday 14 November: He takes charge of the USA in the first leg of their Concacaf Nations League quarter-final against Haiti in Miami (9.30pm UK time).

• Tuesday 17 November: He leads the USA for the last time, in the second leg against Haiti in Cincinnati (midnight UK time).

• Wednesday 18 November: He flies to Manchester to meet his new bosses.

• Thursday 19 November: He takes his first training session with the players.

• Sunday 22 November: His first game in charge is Liverpool away at Anfield (4.30pm). Gulp!

Ahead of Mauricio Pochettino’s unveiling at Manchester United, Andrew Beasley crunches the numbers to look at the Argentine’s possible impact.

An elite manager? The stats say yes: only the five “big beasts” of Alex Ferguson, Arsène Wenger, José Mourinho, Jürgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola have better points-per-game averages than Pochettino.

Jack Grealish has issued a public apology to Everton fans after he made his comeback in a behind-closed-doors match with Derby. Grealish has missed four matches and not played for the Toffees since 17 October following a breach of club discipline.

Boss David Moyes has been reluctant to discuss any finer details and the club only confirmed the 31-year-old former England winger was “not match-fit” ahead of a trip to Newcastle on 2 November but Grealish featured in a friendly at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Thursday in the strongest suggestion yet that a line has been drawn over the issue.

“Nice to be back out there with the boys today after a few good days training,” Grealish wrote on his Instagram story.

“I want to apologise to the fans and everyone at the club for not being able to help the team the last few weeks. I love playing for this club and can’t wait to be back playing in front of you guys in an Everton shirt. See you all soon.”

Grealish spent the first half of the 2025-26 campaign on loan at Everton before injury curtailed his spell on Merseyside, but he returned on another temporary deal on transfer deadline day. (Press Association)

Good morning! Harry Kane scores for England and more managerial chaos at Manchester United. Yep, some things never change.

Kane’s penalty, on his record 126th appearance for the Three Lions, secured England’s 2-1 victory over Croatia in the Nations League on Thursday night. Earlier in the day, Michael Carrick had been sacked by Manchester United, paving the way for Mauricio Pochettino to take over the reins at Old Trafford.

We’ll have reaction to those big events, women’s Champions League and Nations League updates plus news of an apology from Jack Grealish to Everton. In other words, lots to talk about and dissect!