THE Champions League is BACK tonight as Chelsea face Zenit St Petersburg after Manchester United play Young Boys.

 

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• Liverpool are gearing up to face AC Milan on Wednesday, at the same time as Manchester City host RB Leipzig.

  Elsewhere there are updates on the condition of footballing icon Pele, 80, who is recovering after having a tumour removed.

  Meanwhile, Jack Wilshere's future could soon be resolved with former club Arsenal set to let the former midfielder train with them, opening the door to a potential comeback.

  • Manchester United asked Cristiano Ronaldo’s agent about signing Barcelona whizkid Ansu Fati during transfer talks.

    Fati has just one year remaining on his current Barca deal and was offered to top European clubs - including Manchester City - by agent Jorge Mendes this summer.

    And according to Spanish paper Mundo Deportivo, the 18-year-old's agent was ‘asked’ about his availability while hashing out Ronaldo’s deal to United last month.

    Super agent Mendes has represented Ronaldo for over 18 years and also has Jose Mourinho, David De Gea and Ruben Dias on his roster.

  
  

  Not many footballers would turn down swapping shirts with Erling Haaland - let alone one playing in the SEVENTH tier of English football.

  Yet Hednesford Town striker Reece Styche delivered that extraordinary snub to the planet’s hottest prospect in Oslo last week.

  He told SunSport: "None of us wanted Haaland's shirt, so we snubbed him. Last March, our skipper Roy Chipolina asked for Haaland's shirt when we met in Gibraltar.

  "Norway won 3-0 but Haaland never scored, was substituted after an hour and was in a bit of a mood. After they'd both done TV interviews, Roy said to him: 'My little boy's a massive fan of yours, do you mind swapping jerseys?

  "Haaland just looked at him, laughed and walked off! He can buy a lot of things - but he can't buy class - perhaps the media hype has gone to his head.

  "He had the chance to make a little kid's day, month, year, whatever and he said no. So no-one wanted his shirt in Oslo. Maybe he kept it to mark his hat-trick or gave it to a Norwegian fan because it was their first home match with supporters after Covid."

  

• 38 MINUTES AGO

  GARD OF HONOUR

  Cristiano Ronaldo's son channelled his inner Jesse Lingard following Manchester United's 4-1 win against Newcastle on Sunday.

  The Portuguese forward, 36, banged in a double against the Magpies on his second United debut, while Lingard got on the score sheet in stoppage time.

  United sit top of the Premier League table after their unbeaten start this term where they have won three out of their opening four games.

  And the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's eldest child, Cristiano Ronaldo Jr, 11, was clearly in a joyous mood after the club's win against the Toon outfit.

  The youngster, who has linked up with United's academy, was spotted performing Lingard's iconic 'J-Lingz' celebration.

  

• 50 MINUTES AGO

  NUMBER RON

  Cristiano Ronaldo will match Iker Casillas' Champions League appearance record when he plays for Manchester United today.

  The Portuguese superstar, 36, has been thrust into the starting XI for United's first group stage game against Swiss side Young Boys, having only made his second 'debut' at the weekend.

  And the match marks Ronaldo's 177th Champions League appearance - matching the record held by Real Madrid legend Casillas.

  Ronnie already holds the record for most Champions League goals, netting 134 times in the competition.

  And he is now just one game away from becoming the outright record holder for appearances too.