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YOU can’t say Ruben Amorim didn’t try something new.

But choosing a teenage 5ft 9ins holding midfielder to play up front for the first time did nothing to solve the goalscoring crisis at Manchester United.

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Reuters

Ruben Amorim’s experiment failed as the Red Devils lost 2-0[/caption]

Eyebrows were certainly raised when Kobbie Mainoo, 19, got the nod to lead the line for United as Crystal Palace visited Old Trafford.

Especially when the Portuguese manager named not one but two senior strikers on the bench.

Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee watched on as Mainoo took his place up top.

Safe to say, the experiment failed as Manchester United scored zero and Palace scored two on another miserable afternoon for Amorim.

Mainoo’s role was not as an out-and-out No9 – instead dropping in as a No9 to get involved in the play.

It meant at times he was more of a No10, where he excelled in the Europa League win at FCSB on Thursday.

And his average position reflected that, only just in front of Bruno Fernandes with Alejandro Garnacho and Amad Diallo further forward.

In Mainoo’s defence, he is not responsible for the rogue tactic not paying off as he tried his best against a trio of towering Palace centre-halves.

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After all, he is not a striker and has six goals in his professional career – albeit memorable ones against Wolves and Manchester City last season before his maiden European goal on Thursday night, his first strike of the season.

Zirkzee has 47, Hojlund has 57 and Aston Villa-bound Marcus Rashford has 155 – a penny for his thoughts as a fellow academy graduate started up front…

But in fairness to Amorim, it wasn’t all bad, either.

In fact, it started relatively brightly with Mainoo teeing up Garnacho well and also hitting the post.

But that chance with six minutes on the clock proved to be the youngster’s only shot of the match.

In his 70 minutes on the field, Mainoo racked up 31 touches in all – three in the Eagles’ penalty area – with 12 of his 15 passes successful.

He won three duels but lost nine and failed to complete a single dribble as he struggled to hold the ball up or stretch the Palace defence.

In the end, Mainoo was taken off with 20 minutes to go as Amorim sent on both Zirkzee and Hojlund – but neither of them offered much more.

And with that, Amorim is no closer to knowing where or who goals will come from in the second half of the season.

Diallo is United’s top scorer in the Premier League on six – three of which came late on against Southampton – with Fernandes on five, three of which have been from the penalty spot.

Next is Rashford on four – despite him not making a league appearance since December 7.

The January transfer window shuts on Monday night and United do not appear to be bringing a striker in to follow defenders Ayden Heaven and Patrick Dorgu into Old Trafford.

Amorim will be relieved to look at the fixture list and see it is Leicester in the FA Cup next.

The leaky Foxes defence have conceded 60 goals this season, including eight in two games away at Manchester United during their now-boss Ruud van Nistelrooy’s brief stint in interim charge with the Red Devils.

But when attention returns to the Premier League away at Spurs in a fortnight before games against Everton, Ipswich and Arsenal, who can Amorim rely on to deliver the much-needed goals to secure much-needed wins and earn much-needed points to climb up from 13th in the table?

On today’s evidence, it is not Mainoo – for Mainoo is a midfielder who chips in with the odd goal from time to time.

But is it Hojlund? Is it Zirkzee? Or does it need to be someone else?

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Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee were sent on with 20 minutes to go[/caption]

Alamy

Mainoo struggled to have the impact he would have wanted[/caption]

EPA

His one shot of the match came back off the post[/caption]

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Amad Diallo is United’s top scorer in the Premier League with six[/caption]

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Last week, the "Election" actress sparked rumors that she and the "Titanic" star were no longer friends when recalling how she lost a pal over a bad joke.

Дональд Трамп висловив задоволення позицією Венесуели, яка погодилася прийняти своїх громадян, яких депортують з території Сполучених Штатів. Про це президент США написав у своїй соцмережі Truth Social. Трамп також привітав повернення з Венесуели шістьох американських заручників, яких утримував режим Мадуро. «Дуже добре, що венесуельські заручники повернулися додому, і дуже важливо відзначити, що Венесуела погодилася прийняти всіх […]

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The Love Island star is included in a terrifying double decker collision by bus. Shaughna Phillips revealed that she was ...

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AJ Pritchard claims Ekin-Su Culculoglu should have been removed from the Love Island villa after her fiery row with his brother Curtis.

On Friday night All Stars viewers watched Ekin-Su tip the contents of her drinks glass over Curtis’s knee as tensions flared.

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AJ Pritchard said that if the roles were reversed, Curtis would have been sent packing by bosses.[/caption]

Addressing the incident in a Q&A on social media, AJ said if the roles were reversed Curtis would have been a goner.

He said: “If it was a guy doing that to a girl, they’d probably be removed from the show. It wasn’t on his face; it was on his legs.”

His girlfriend Zara Zoffany added: “No, no, she missed, so that was really lucky for her.”

AJ then said: “But certain actions, like that, are childish. Whatever heated debate or argument you’re having, it’s bad.”

The fiery moment came after Curtis admitted he had led Ekin on following the latest recoupling shake-up, where bombshell Danielle Sellers picked him.

Sitting down for a tense chat, Curtis confessed: “I’ll be completely honest with you. I lied to you.”

Ekin-Su was left fuming, feeling played after Curtis revealed he hadn’t been “100% honest” and admitted that he should never have told her he was closed off.

He explained that Danielle’s decision caught him off guard but Ekin-Su wasn’t having any of it.

She accused him of making up “bulls**t,” calling him a liar.

Ekin-Su stood up and dashed her drink at him before storming off, declaring: “You don’t exist to me. You’re done. Dusted.”

As the villa gasped she then turned her sights on Danielle, sarcastically wishing her “good luck” with Curtis.

The drama kicked off when Danielle shocked the villa by choosing Curtis in the latest recoupling.

The boys later called Curtis out for not sticking to his word, after he had previously told them he planned to have a conversation with Danielle but never did.

After the fallout with Ekin-Su, Curtis pulled Danielle aside to explain himself.

He admitted that he was originally going to tell her he was closed off, but decided he didn’t want to.

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ARSENAL youngster Myles Lewis-Skelly was on wide-up duties against Manchester City.

The talented full-back did Erling Haaland’s celebration after putting the Gunners 3-1 up against Pep Guardiola’s side at the Emirates.

Lewis-Skelly wrapped in a two goal cushion in the 61st minute, with a great strike for his first career Premier League goal.

But it was the 18-year-old’s celebration that has Arsenal fans talking.

Lewis-Skelly hilariously did City striker Haaland’s meditation celebration near the corner flag with his back towards the fans.

It clearly wasn’t planned as his team-mates huddled around him and laughed as he stood back up again.

Haaland’s celebration involves him sitting in a meditative pose, reminiscent of the ‘Lotus’ pose from yoga.

In this pose, he sits on the ground with his wrists on his knees and his fingers touching his thumb, embodying calm and inner peace.

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A WOMAN has revealed that she’s started talking in a full-blown Italian accent after having a stroke, despite never having visited the country. 

Althia Bryden, 58, who is retired and lives in London with husband Winston, 63, suffered the stroke in May last year and was initially unable to speak.

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Althia Bryden now speaks in an Italian accent after having a stroke[/caption]

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Althia pictured with husband Winston on This Morning[/caption]

She was also not able to feel the upper right portion of her body for over three months due to a carotid web in her neck, which doctors believe could have caused the stroke.

When she was able to have it removed by surgery last August she was left dumfounded when she was finally able to talk.

Although she could speak, it was in an Italian accent.

Speaking on This Morning, she said: “I hadn’t heard my voice for a long time. When I spoke, I thought, ‘Who is it?’ I didn’t realize it was me.

“So you’re speaking, and you think it’s somebody else talking?

“Yes! I looked behind me in my hospital bed, wondering, ‘Who is speaking to me?’ 

“It was a big shock.

“I thought maybe because she had frightened me from my sleep—because, you know, in the hospital, they wake you so early in the morning—it was a dream.”

TV host Alison Hammond replied: “That must have been so weird, like somebody had taken over, like another character.”

Husband Winston shared how weird it had been for him when he arrived at the hospital and heard the Italian accent.

He said: “When I came into the ward, I looked at her and said, ‘Hi, darling.’ 

“She responded, ‘Hi, Bab,’ but the way she said it—I actually took a step back. 

“She spoke again, and I was shocked.”

As well as adopting the new accent, Althia admitted she now slips Italian phrases into conversations, such as “mamma mia”, “bambino” and “si”, and has adopted hand gestures too.

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Althia even uses hand gestures and phrases she didn’t before the operation[/caption]

Althia continued: “My life feels like a contradiction. 

“I’m happy to speak again, but now I’m searching for my old sound, and it’s nowhere to be found. 

“I feel like a stranger in my own body, and nobody can tell me why this is happening to me. 

“I keep asking, ‘Why is this happening to me? Why do I speak like this?’ But nobody has an answer.

“I’ve realised it is a blessing. I think about the fact that I couldn’t speak before, and now I can. 

“I don’t want to be ungrateful for my blessing.”

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Despite now speaking solely in an Italian accent, Althia has never been to Italy[/caption]

New accent cure?

Professor Nick Miller, an expert in neuroscience at Newcastle University, gave his views on Althia’s Foreign Accent Syndrome.

He shared: “It’s the label given to instances where someone has a stroke or another neurological disorder and suddenly starts sounding like they’re speaking with a foreign accent. 

“They may have never spoken that language before, never been to that country, and never associated with that language.

“When a stroke affects parts of the brain that control speech—such as the tongue, lips, and vocal cords—it alters the strength, speed, and range of movements, which changes how speech sounds. 

“This creates subtle shifts in pronunciation and rhythm that might resemble a foreign accent.”

When asked if there is a cure, he said: “The prognosis is good. 

“Treatment can focus on speech therapy to help regain original pronunciation, or for functional cases, cognitive behavioral therapy to help regain control over speech.”

FORMER England boss Eddie Jones says James Lowe and Jamison Gibson-Park were the difference for Ireland in their Six Nations opener.

 Simon Easterby’s side came from behind to beat their neighbours 27-22 in their opener fixture of the 2025 tournament.

Ireland are eyeing a record breaking three-in-a-row of Six Nations titles.

Despite trailing at half-time, they turned the game around with an explosive second-half display to run out winners in the Irish capital.

And former England and Australia boss Edide Jones hailed thwo standout performers, who he reckons exposed the gulf in class between the sides.

Speaking on ITV after the match, Jones singled out Jamison Gibson-Park and James Lowe for their inspirational displays for the reigning champions.

He praised man of the match Gibson-Park and his Leinster team-mate Lowe.

He said: “You saw the quality of Gibson-Park and Lowe in the second half,” Jones said.

“They controlled the game brilliantly, and the rest of the team followed their lead.”

Jones also said that England’s senior players must raise their levels in the weeks ahead.

The Japan coach added: “The difference in the second half was striking.

“Ireland sharpened up and used possession more effectively, while England’s intensity in defence dropped. That created the gap between the teams.”

Jones also admitted that he doesn’t envy England boss Steve Borthwick before saying he’s glad that he’s no longer in charge of the Red Roses.

He added: “I’m glad I’m not!” before offering a measured assessment of England’s positives.

“They showed resilience in the first half, particularly in defence and at the breakdown.

“But in the second half, they conceded too many penalties, allowing Ireland to find their rhythm.

“Staying disciplined and sticking to the basics under pressure is something they need to improve through hard work and repetition.”

Ireland travel to Scotland next week, while England host tournament favourites France at Twickenham.