THE subject of Manchester United is dominating the airwaves at the moment after their 3-0 home defeat at the hands of Bournemouth in front of their own dissatisfied supporters. Images of United fans heading for the exit long before the end of home games have become commonplace over the past few weeks. There’s clearly something very wrong at Old Trafford and we are not talking about a leaky roof. As it stands, the latest victim of United’s lack of direction and transfer market blunders will be Michael Carrick, but what about the men in charge of transfer activity? Surely if heads are to roll, United’s board should be looking at those who are bringing second rate players to the club? United’s latest disaster came just a few days after they were humbled 4-1 away to Como in the Champions League. Carrick was actually cheered by the supporters after Bournemouth had strolled to victory, but then the team was jeered as they stood forlorn on the pitch.

Focus on the line-up: Manchester United v Bournemouth

Manchester United used 15 players against Bournemouth, costing a total of £ 650 million. It is time to look at some of the older players and question if they are ever going to be good enough for the club; Dalot, Mount, Maguire, Zirkzee and Martinez, for example, are in their peak years. As for the youngsters, do United feel they have had good value for the fees paid for Yoro (£ 52 million), Heaven (£ 42 million), Santos (£48 million) and Beleba (£ 70 million)? Carrick dropped Bruno Fernandes against Bournemouth but in truth, he is their only player with any claim to being world class, but he is 32 and probably has one eye on Saudi Arabia. There is a definite lack of star quality in their squad at the moment, but some players could get there. Last season, United spent big sums on new forwards, but have they really worked out?  Last season, Mbeumo, Sesko and Cunha averaged 0.34 goals per game, but this season, the figure has dropped to 0.27 per game. Big money continues to be spent and some of the fees now look over-inflated, such as the money paid for Andrey Santos, who they picked up from Chelsea. United are in a mess at the moment and it starts with the squad – the January window may be a busy one for the club.

Premier League: Two horses already?

Manchester City were beaten for the first time in the league when they went down by 2-1 to Aston Villa. Nicolas Jackson gave Villa an early lead but Erling Haaland equalised with a typical header, but the home team came again and clinched the points through Jackson. Arsenal, without the injured Bukayo Saka, drew level on points with City thanks to their 2-0 victory against Everton. Their goals were scored by Ezri Konsa and Gabriel. Third-placed Brighton, who have been in excellent form, were beaten 2-0 at Liverpool, who secured their first Premier win at Anfield this season. Alexander Isak scored his sixth goal of the campaign. Tottenham continued their improvement with their second win of the season, a 2-0 success at Chelsea. Goalkeeper Mike Penders, on his league debut for Chelsea, punched the ball in his own net for Spurs’ first goal in the 77^th minute and Mathys Tel added a second 10 minutes later. It was only the second time in 36 years that Spurs had won at Stamford Bridge in the league.

Player of the week: Nicolas Jackson

Jackson has struggled for consistency since he arrived at Chelsea in 2023, hence he was sold to Aston Villa for £ 47.5 million, yielding a £ 15 million profit for the Blues. He was signed from Villareal after he had failed a medical at Bournemouth earlier in 2023, and in 81 games, scored 30 goals. He had a decent loan period with Bayern Munich in 2025-26, but he was never regarded as first choice again at Chelsea and moved to Villa at the end of August 2026. Although precise details of his birthplace are unavailable – Gambia or Senegal – Jackson has been capped 40 times by Senegal, scoring nine goals. His performance against Manchester City underlined his potential, but at 25 years of age, he needs to perform more consistently. Unai Emery may be the man to get the best out of him.

Bundesliga: Big two coming head-to-head

Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund are neck-and-neck at the top of the Bundesliga and will meet on October 31 at the Allianz Arena. Both sides won at the weekend, Bayern beating in-form Freiburg 3-1 with goals from Dayo Upemecano, Serge Gnabry and Ballon d’Or nominee Michael Olise. Dortmund won 1-0 against struggling Eintracht Frankfurt with a goal 10 minutes from time by Max Beier. RB Leipzig bounced back from two heavy defeats – against Bayern and Real Madrid – to beat Elversberg 4-0 with Rômulo Cardoso scoring twice. Bayer Leverkusen were beaten 3-0 at Hoffenheim, who scored two goals in the last two minutes and had a man sent off. Borussia Mönchengladbach came from behind to beat Stuttgart and secured their first win of the league campaign. Gladbach still remain bottom of the table.

La Liga: Atléti leapfrog Real

While Real Madrid were enjoying their Clasico win at Barcelona (see below), Atlético Madrid were strengthening their title bid with a 1-0 win over Deportivo. As ever, Atléti’s success is built on a strong defence – they have conceded only eight times in 10 games – and they have scored exactly half of leaders’ Barcelona’s 40 goals. Julián Alvarez scored the only goal three minutes into the second half. Athletic Bilbao were in good form, scoring four past Getafe, who had a player dismissed in the final minute. Real Betis, who are in fourth place, were held 0-0 by Celta Vigo.

Game of the week: Barcelona 1 Real Madrid 2

José Mourinho enjoyed this one. Barcelona had won all nine of their La Liga fixtures and were one game from creating a new record, but Real Madrid were determined to win this one. Kylian Mbappé was the hero of the hour, scoring two goals, including the 87^th minute winner. He had given Real the lead in the 41^st minute when a cross from Yan Diomande flew into the net via the French striker. Mbappé almost had another when he struck a post, but Barca levelled through Raphinha on 61 minutes, whose shot went through the legs of Jude Bellingham. Mbappé’s decisive goal came after the ball was squared by Eduardo Camavinga. Mbappé’s brace took his total to 11 league goals this season.

Serie A: Unbeaten quartet keep going

Italy’s Serie A could be a tight title race this season if the first couple of months are a pointer for the whole season. Four teams are unbeaten: Inter Milan, Lazio, Roma and AC Milan. Inter were losing at home to Fiorentina until added time when Marcus Thuram equalised. Then in the 97^th minute, Inter were awarded a penalty and Piotr Zielinski scored the winner. Lazio are level on points with Inter but the impasse between the supporters and club continues. Only 10,000 saw Lazio maintain their best ever start with a 2-1 win against Parma. Lazio have conceded just five goals in eight games this season. Napoli and Roma drew 3-3 with Scott McTominay netting twice, while AC Milan won 2-0 at Udinese.

Attendances

1. Borussia Dortmund v Frankfurt: 81,365
2. Inter Milan v Fiorentina: 74,642
3. Atlético Madrid v Deportivo: 68,674
4. West Ham v Southampton: 62,250
5. Liverpool v Brighton: 60,404
6. Arsenal v Everton: 60,207

Eredivisie: Feyenoord thwart PSV

The first meeting of the Dutch big guns saw PSV Eindhoven held to a 1-1 draw by Feyenoord at the Philips Stadium. As a result, Feyenoord remain three points clear at the top of the table. PSV went ahead in the first half through Guus Til but the Rotterdam side improved in the second half and levelled through Anis Hadj Moussa. Despite its billing as a Champions League quality game, it was not a memorable 90 minutes. Ajax leapfrogged PSV to claim second place, coming back from a goal down at Sparta to win 2-1. Twente are in fourth position after their 2-0 win at AZ Alkmaar.

Leading scorers (league goals)

13: Raphinha (Barcelona); 12: Beljo (Dinamo Zagreb), 12: Essende (Young Boys), 11: Mbappé (Real Madrid), ,10: Glushenkov (Zenit), 09: Haaland (Manchester City), 09: Sánchez (Wisla Krakow).

Austria: Mixed fortunes for Vienna

Rapid Vienna and Red Bull Salzburg are pulling away from the pack a little at the top of the Bundesliga. Rapid won 5-1 against Lustenau with a commanding performance that saw them 3-0 ahead at half-time. Salzburg won 3-1 away at LASK with Haris Tabaković netting a hat-trick. Sturm Graz, who were reduced to 10 men at the end of the first half, were held 2-2 at home by Ried. Austria Vienna continue to have a hard time – they were beaten 2-1 at Altach. They face Rapid next weekend in the Vienna derby. Austrian Cup round of 16 action takes place in midweek with stand-out ties including First Vienna versus Rapid and Bregenz against Salzburg.