ToBeCandidUpdate™

Jose Mourinho insists Wayne Rooney is “going nowhere” despite continuing speculation about the Manchester United captain’s future. For this first time since bursting onto the scene so remarkably at the age of 16 with Everton, the forward faces a serious fight to get into the starting lineup. Prior to missing the last two matches with a calf complaint, Rooney had started five of seven games for club and country as a substitute. The England skipper, who turned 31 on Monday, is in a period of transition and heightened speculation, with it reported this week that Mourinho had told Rooney he needs to move if he wants regular first-team football. The United boss said that was “not true at all” and underlined his desire to keep him at Old Trafford for the foreseeable future. “I don’t know,” Mourinho said when asked how long Rooney can play on. “With [his age being] 31, I know he can. “I know he can, I know he’s a top player, I know he can play at the top level. “I cannot make ...

At an event at its headquarters in Cupertino, California, today, Apple unveiled the latest generation of the MacBook Pro, its laptop for power users. The big deal about this version is the addition of a secondary display and integrated Touch ID fingerprint scanner just above the top row of the computer’s physical keyboard. Photos of the component were presumably included in error in the latest build of macOS Sierra, so the element of surprise has been majorly reduced, but fortunately for Apple some implementation details were left out. These are the thinnest and lightest MacBook Pro models ever, said Phil Schiller, senior vice president of worldwide marketing at Apple. The new 13-inch version is 16 percent thinner than the previous generation at 14.9mm thick, while the 15-inch model is 15.5mm thick, which is 14 percent thinner. The former weighs 3 pounds, while the latter weighs 4 pounds. The models are available in space gray and silver. The display on these aluminum-wrapp...

Pep Guardiola has reassured Sergio Aguero that he has a future at Manchester City. Aguero has been through a tricky October, with his early-season run of goalscoring form grinding to a halt and his place in City’s starting line-up called into question. Guardiola dropped the forward to the bench for recent games against Everton and Barcelona, although he did start Sunday’s 1-1 Premier League draw at home to Southampton — a result that left City top of the table on goal difference. The manager seemed to suggest last Friday that Aguero was free to leave the club if he wanted to, saying that “when he decides to leave City, it will be his decision”. However, Guardiola –- whose side visit Manchester United in the fourth round of the EFL Cup on Wednesday -– has insisted the Argentina international remains a significant part of his plans. “Sergio played really well in the last games,” Guardiola said Tuesday. “I am so happy with Sergio and hopefully he can stay for a long time. “W...

Manchester United defender Eric Bailly says he hopes to return to action “before two months.” Bailly, who has impressed at Old Trafford since his summer move from Villarreal, limped off after 52 minutes of Sunday’s defeat to Chelsea with a knee injury, and manager Jose Mourinho said “I am afraid he is badly injured.” But on Tuesday, Bailly thanked fans for their support on social media and said that he was aiming for a return around the holiday fixtures. He wrote on Instagram: “I wanted to thank you for all the messages of support that I received since the injury! I hope to be able to play again for United and The Elephants before 2 months, God willing.” The Ivory Coast international will be in a fitness race to be selected for the 2017 African Nations Cup in Gabon, where Les Elephants begin their campaign on Jan. 16.

Samsung is offering Note 7 owners in South Korea the chance to upgrade their phone to a Note 8 for half the price when the as-yet-unannounced handset becomes available next year. According to a report from Reuters, the company announced the deal as part of an ongoing exchange program for the Note 7 in its home country, but there’s no word on whether the same offer will be made in the US. In a statement on Monday, Samsung said customers who trade in their Note 7 phone for either a flat-screen or curved-screen version of the Galaxy S7 can trade up for a Galaxy S8 or Note 8 smartphone launching next year through an upgrade programme. The news seemingly confirms that Samsung will be continuing the Note line despite the disaster of the Note 7, which was permanently discontinued earlier this month. According to Reuters, Note 7 owners in Korea will only have to pay half the price of a Galaxy S7 to get their hands on a Galaxy S8 or Note 8 next year. When Samsung was asked if the sa...

Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola face off for the second time this season when Manchester United entertain holders Manchester City in the English League Cup fourth round on Wednesday. Guardiola’s City took the spoils when he and Mourinho resumed hostilities in September, winning 2-1 at Old Trafford through goals from Kevin De Bruyne and Kelechi Iheanacho. But City have gone off the boil since, Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Southampton leaving them without a win in five games, while United crashed to a crushing 4-0 defeat at Mourinho’s former club Chelsea. Asked whether the identity of his side’s League Cup opponents would help motivate his hurting players, Mourinho told MUTV: “I would prefer to play in the Premier League. “It’s a bad feeling in the Premier League. With the combination of results, the gap to the top is six points. We’ve had a very difficult period of matches. “We are really, really sad, but again this is not for kids. This is for men and tomorrow (Monday) we have to...