Carrick Facing the Sack With United in 18th Place, While Macedonia Head to Glasgow After 720 Minutes Without a Goal

United in 18th place: Carrick facing the sack, and Pochettino costs 7 million pounds

One win in ten rounds and 18th place in the Premier League - that is the record Manchester United took into the international break. After a 4:4 with Aston Villa at Old Trafford, the club is already looking for a replacement for Michael Carrick, though there is no official decision yet. The irony hurts: last season Carrick took the team to third place with 39 points from the last 17 rounds and got a two-year contract in May. Top of the list is Mauricio Pochettino, but his contract with the USA runs until 2030 and terminating it costs around 7 million pounds, plus the assistants who have followed him for more than a decade. Eddie Howe and Julian Nagelsmann are also mentioned, and Didier Deschamps has already said no. The final word belongs to Jim Ratcliffe and the Glazer family - the people who trusted Carrick six months ago.

Wenger, 77, considers challenging Infantino

Arsène Wenger is seriously considering running against Gianni Infantino in the FIFA presidential election in March, and the deadline for candidacies expires on 18 November. He has influential people from European football behind him, and UEFA would reportedly back him. The trigger is Infantino's failed plan to sell commercial stakes in the World Cup to private investors, which collapsed under criticism precisely from Europe. Infantino claims he has the "overwhelming majority" on his side, and all 54 African federations have publicly stood behind him. The interesting part is that Wenger isn't an outsider - he is FIFA's own chief of global development and supported expanding the World Cup to 48 teams. Is this a revolt against the system, or just a fight over who sits at the top?

Neuer nearing retirement, Bayern looking for a backup for Urbig

Manuel Neuer, at 40 and after 607 appearances for Bayern, is expected to end his career at the end of this season. The latest blow came in Mainz - a partial tendon tear in his right foot, which will keep him out until the end of the year. The long-term future in goal is earmarked for Jonas Urbig, but Bayern want an experienced goalkeeper as competition. The biggest favourite is Oliver Baumann of Hoffenheim, and Fulham's Bernd Leno is ready to accept a backup role. Also on the list is Schalke's Loris Karius, who still hasn't shaken his habit of costly mistakes - a name that brings back unpleasant memories for Liverpool fans.

The national team heads to Glasgow after 720 minutes without a goal

Eight games without a win and 720 minutes without scoring - that is the run Goce Sedloski's side takes into the last two games of League B of the Nations League. On Friday it's Scotland in Glasgow, and three days later Slovenia in Skopje. The Scots are not in their best form - four points from four games and two home defeats, 0:3 to Switzerland and 1:2 to Slovenia - but they beat us 2:0 in Skopje, and Scott McTominay is returning in goalscoring form. The word from Glasgow is "extra aggression", which means a lot of work for Stole Dimitrievski. Darko Churlinov is optimistic: "Today there's no national team that can't be beaten." Sounds nice - but to win, you first have to score.

FC Skopje is in Europe's club of teams without a win

FC Skopje is one of only 16 clubs in Europe's leagues that still have not won a single game in the 2026/27 season. After 13 rounds the record is 4 draws and 9 defeats. The chance of a first win comes on 21 November, when they host Arsimi, the second-to-last team in the First League. For comparison, Europe has 24 unbeaten clubs, none of them from Macedonia, and Porto is the only one with a perfect 11 wins from 11 games. When a club's biggest hope is a visitor from the bottom of the table, the question isn't whether the win will come, but how long the wait will be.