The Chippy: Long Live the King

The King is back

EA Sports unveiled a trailer for the newest iteration of their money-sucking FIFA video game series. In THIS economy, I was resigned to not falling victim to spending my hard earned money on FIFA Points as opposed to like food or housing. But, like a flying karate kick to the chest, the addition of Eric Cantona to the FIFA Ultimate Team Icons has reinvigorated me to heat up that digital spoon.

Along with King Eric joining the FIFA line up, I’m certainly excited to play FIFA 21 career mode to see how an updated Manchester United looks. While Paul Pogba will likely see his rating go down a point or two after an injury-riddled season, upgraded ratings to Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial, Mason Greenwood, and Bruno Fernandes should make the Reds a hell of a lot of fun to play with against your friends — especially when one of your best friends is stuck with Spurs.

United flirts with Kingsley

I’m starting this Chippy off by typing king a lot. Anyways, for a little bit there on Friday, it was rumored that Manchester United was considering Bayern Munich’s Kingsley Coman as an alternative to Jadon Sancho.

However, as quickly as the rumor came, it was shutdown by Bild’s Christian Falk shut it down.

While Coman is a talented winger that would link well with fellow Frenchmen Pogba and Martial, the winger is having a difficult time staying healthy — an attribute that United really cannot afford at the moment as depth continues to be a problem.

The lack of guaranteed Champions League (for now) could also be a sticking point if United try to push the issue. As our compatriots at Bavarian Football Works wrote during their reporting of the rumor, “If United end up losing to Leicester, I would wish them the best of luck in trying to convince Coman to sign up to play in the Europa League.”

Homecoming

We’re not waiting until the holidays to be reunited with family members we’re sick of. Sky Sports reported that United would not extend the current loans for Alexis Sánchez and Chris Smalling at Inter Milan and Roma, respectively.

However, Sánchez’s and Smalling’s returns could be short-lived. United is still pursuing new loan deals or even permanent transfers of the players to the Italian clubs, but, with United, Inter, and Roma all vying for the Europa League title, preventing those players from playing in the final weeks of the tournament is some decent gamesmanship from United.

Rashford finishes third in fraudulent lazy FWA Player of the Year Voting

The captain of the league winners who is definitely not the best player on his team and is likely not even the best midfielder on his team took the Player of the Year award simply for being the captain of the club. Imagine if United won the league last year and Ashley Young was named player of the year, but I digress.

What matters, because we’re a Manchester United blog, is that Rashford — who literally broke his back for his club — finished third behind Jordan Henderson and Kevin de Bruyne and ahead of Virgil Van Dijk and Sadio Mane. High praise for a player who really discovered a new performance gear this season and proved a level of maturity and leadership I know I’m not capable of at 29 let alone 22.

Long live Marcus Rashford, first of his name, King of Manchester. I look forward to him rightfully winning the award in the future as United returns to its throne as Kings of England.