Manchester United transfer news LIVE Paul Pogba latest and Erik ten Hag to Man United updates

Manchester United players took centre stage on Thursday night as the road to Qatar continued.

Diogo Dalot, Bruno Fernandes and Cristiano Ronaldo started for Portugal as they took a step closer to the 2022 finals.

That came in a crucial play-off showdown at the Estádio do Dragão. Having progressed with a 3-1 victory, Portugal will meet North Macedonia in a shootout to reach the World Cup after the European minnows chalked up a historic win over Euro 2020 winners Italy in Palermo.

Ronaldo and co will lock horns with North Macedonia on Tuesday night. After that the United trio will return to Old Trafford to continue their top-four charge.

With one eye on next season, United have identified Erik ten Hag as the preferred candidate to replace Ole Gunnar Solskjaer on a permanent basis. In terms of transfers, Paul Pogba and Jesse Lingard are gearing up to leave on a free as they head into the final months of their contracts.

Follow the live blog below for all of the day's breaking news.

Predicting how United could line-up on the opening day next season is proving more difficult to do than picking out Saturday night's winning lottery numbers.

With under two months to go until the 2021/2022 campaign reaches its conclusion, United are gearing up for what will be their biggest summer in recent years.

After signing Raphael Varane, Jadon Sancho and Cristiano Ronaldo was unable to move United back into a position where they could challenge for the Premier League title this season, wholesale changes need to be made at Old Trafford over the coming months, starting with the appointment of a permanent manager.

Continue reading this from George Smith here.

Praise from Roy Keane usually comes at a premium and especially when United have