Matt Pottinger, who has served as President TrumpDonald John TrumpTrump’s top adviser on Asia to serve as deputy national security adviser United Auto Workers strike against GM poised to head into eighth day Trump doubles down on call to investigate Biden after whistleblower complaint: ‘That’s the real story’ MORE‘s top adviser on Asia, will serve as the new deputy national security adviser.

Newly named national security adviser Robert O’Brien confirmed the personnel move to reporters on Air Force One on Sunday while traveling to New York City with the president for the United Nations General Assembly.

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“I think Matt’s one of the most impressive young foreign policy/national defense/national security experts in the government,” O’Brien said. “He’s got a wonderful personality, I think he’s a team player. He’s going to help me bring some cohesion to the [national security council].”

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Pottinger has been a key figure on some of Trump’s most high profile foreign policy plays, including the summits between the president and North Korean leader Kim Jong UnKim Jong UnTrump’s top adviser on Asia to serve as deputy national security adviser Maher: Republicans ‘right’ to say Democrats ‘never got over Trump’s behavior’ Overnight Defense: Trump hits Iranian central bank with sanctions | Trump meeting with Ukrainian leader at UN | Trump touts relationship with North Korea’s Kim as ‘best thing’ for US MORE. Trump and Kim have met face-to-face three times thus far, though there has been no concrete commitment to denuclearize the Korean peninsula.

Pottinger previously worked as a correspondent at The Wall Street Journal before enlisting in the Marine Corps in 2005. He served in Iraq and Afghanistan, and joined the Trump administration in 2017.

O’Brien said a replacement for Pottinger would be announced in the near future, but that Pottinger would remain involved on Asia issues.

Trump last week announced O’Brien as his pick to replace John Bolton as national security adviser. O’Brien, who previously served as the administration’s special envoy for hostage negotiations, is Trump’s fourth national security adviser thus far.

 

President TrumpDonald John TrumpAlaska Republican Party cancels 2020 primary Ukrainian official denies Trump pressured president Trump goes after New York Times, Washington Post: ‘They have gone totally CRAZY!!!!’ MORE on Saturday defended his reported push for Ukraine’s president to investigate former Vice President Joe BidenJoe BidenUkrainian official denies Trump pressured president Trump goes after New York Times, Washington Post: ‘They have gone totally CRAZY!!!!’ Warren overtakes Biden in Iowa for first time: poll MORE, maintaining his discussion with Ukraine’s leader earlier this summer was “perfectly fine and routine.”

In a pair of tweets Saturday morning, Trump argued that the news media was avoiding coverage of Biden’s past ties to Ukraine and continued to highlight the former vice president’s efforts to convince the country to fire a top prosecutor in 2016.

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“The Fake News Media and their partner, the Democrat Party, want to stay as far away as possible from the Joe Biden demand that the Ukrainian Government fire a prosecutor who was investigating his son, or they won’t get a very large amount of U.S. money, so they fabricate a story about me and a perfectly fine and routine conversation I had with the new President of the Ukraine,” Trump tweeted.

“Nothing was said that was in any way wrong, but Biden’s demand, on the other hand, was a complete and total disaster. The Fake News knows this but doesn’t want to report!” he added.

Democrats and other critics of the president have hammered Trump in recent days over reports of his repeated efforts to lobby Ukraine to launch an investigation into Biden, the current Democratic presidential front-runner, arguing that it amounts to foreign interference in a U.S. presidential election.

The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that Trump urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate Biden during a call in July, telling him roughly eight times to work with his personal attorney Rudy GiulianiRudy GiulianiUkrainian official denies Trump pressured president Timeline: The Trump whistleblower complaint Biden accuses Trump of ‘abuse of power’ over Ukraine call MORE on the matter.

Trump and other Republicans argue that Biden’s efforts in 2016 to urge Ukrainian officials to fire the country’s top prosecutor were motivated by a probe into a company on which Biden’s son Hunter served as a board member.

The prosecutor in question later resigned after being the target of corruption allegations, while no evidence has emerged to support the claim launched by Trump allies about Biden’s efforts to urge Ukraine to fire the official.

Biden dismissed the allegation on Friday while blasting Trump amid rising scrutiny over a whistleblower complaint reportedly involving a call the president had with a foreign leader.

“Not one single credible outlet has given any credibility to his assertion. Not one single one,” Biden said of Trump’s allegation against him. “So I have no comment except the president should start to be president.”

Trump’s defense of his conversations with Ukraine’s leader comes just a day after he asserted it “doesn’t matter” what the two leaders discussed while calling for an investigation into Biden once again.

“It doesn’t matter what I discussed, but I’ll tell you this, somebody ought to look into Joe Biden’s statement,” Trump told reporters at the White House while hosting the prime minister of Australia.

The president has battled controversy for days after it was reported that a whistleblower in the intelligence community raised alarms over a promise Trump allegedly made to a foreign leader, supposedly involving Ukraine.

It’s unclear if the whistleblower complaint reportedly involving Trump and Ukraine is related to the proposed Biden investigation.

Acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire has reportedly refused to release the contents of the whistleblower complaint to members of Congress.

Lawmakers have pushed for the whistleblower complaint to be released to them in full, while some Democrats have renewed calls for Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiTimeline: The Trump whistleblower complaint DC statehood push faces long odds despite record support Ukraine could badly damage both Donald Trump and the Democrats MORE (D-Calif.) to support impeachment proceedings in the wake of the news.

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The Portuguese superstar will play no part for the Bianconeri in a Serie A clash with Genoa on Sunday as he gets the chance to recharge his batteries

Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri has revealed that Cristiano Ronaldo will play no part in a meeting with Genoa on Sunday as he is awarded a well-earned break.

The Portuguese superstar has been left out of the Bianconeri’s latest matchday squad for Serie A action.

With the reigning champions 18 points clear at the top of the table, they find themselves in the enviable position of being able to rotate in domestic competition.

That means Ronaldo, fresh from his Champions League hat-trick heroics against Atletico Madrid, can take in a rest and recharge his batteries.

Allegri has said of his talismanic forward: “Cristiano needed to rest and therefore he will not come to Genoa.

“Cristiano played plenty of games this year.

“We spoke with each other and he shared my idea about this management in the next matches until the Champions League.”

Allegri appears to be suggesting that Ronaldo may not figure as prominently as he has until this point over the coming weeks.

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He has taken in 36 appearances across all competitions this season, registering 24 goals.

Those efforts have Juve closing in on yet another Serie A crown, while also chasing down Champions League glory.

Having lifted that trophy on five previous occasions, including an historic run of three successive triumphs at Real Madrid, Ronaldo was taken to Turin to help deliver European success.

He will be given every opportunity to be in the best possible shape for crunch clashes to come, with Juve having been paired with Ajax in this season’s quarter-finals.

The first leg of that clash will be taken in on April 10, with there Serie A games against Genoa, Empoli, Cagliari and AC Milan to come before then.

Ronaldo has also rejoined the Portugal ranks for upcoming Euro 2020 qualifiers having not figured for his country since the 2018 World Cup.

He will head into meetings with Ukraine and Serbia on the back of a break, with Allegri revealing that he is also planning to give Giorgio Chiellini and Blaise Matuidi a rest.

Paulo Dybala will be involved, though, while Mattia Perrin will fill in between the sticks.

Allegri has said of the challenge facing Juve against Genoa: “Only five wins are missing to claim the Scudetto mathematically.

“Tomorrow it will be a difficult game.

“Genoa, at home, is a tough opponent and we have to have the right performance. In the first game [a 1-1 draw in October], we dropped points against them.”

The Serbia midfielder joins Luke Shaw, Romelu Lukaku and Anthony Martial on the treatment table during the international break

Nemanja Matic is the latest Manchester United player to withdraw from his national team’s upcoming games.

The Serbia midfielder will not play in his country’s matches against Germany or Portugal.

He follows clubmates Luke Shaw and Anthony Martial, who pulled out of the England and France squads respectively with injuries earlier this week.

Matic, 30, was forced to miss recent United games against Liverpool, Crystal Palace, Southampton and Paris Saint-Germain before returning to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s starting line-up for the Premier League defeat to Arsenal.

He was taken off with four minutes remaining of the FA Cup quarter-final loss to Wolves at Molinuex last Saturday.

Matic, Serbia’s vice-captain, had been called up for the friendly in Germany on Wednesday night and the Euro 2020 qualifier against Portugal on Monday.

His withdrawal from the squad appears to be a precautionary measure, with coach Mladen Krstajic telling the Serbian FA official website: “Nemanja Matic will not play in Wolfsburg, nor in Lisbon. He played the last match for his club but did not stay on the field until the end.”

There is also a doubt over the fitness of United striker Romelu Lukaku.

The Belgian joined up with his national squad ahead of their games against Russia on Thursday and Cyprus on Sunday despite a foot injury that kept him out of the Wolves game. He is being assessed by Belgium’s medics.

Martial has a knee injury with an official France statement reading: “Anthony Martial is suffering from recurring problems in the right knee. He again felt severe pain in his right knee after Saturday’s match against Wolverhampton.”

Shaw’s issue is unspecified.

United return to Premier League action against Watford at Old Trafford on March 30 following the international break.

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The Spanish giants have been linked to both Tottenham and Chelsea heroes and the former striker is sure they would be a success in La Liga

Michael Owen is confident that Premier League stars Harry Kane and Eden Hazard would fit in well at Real Madrid.

Tottenham hotshot Kane has been touted as a potential signing for the Spanish giants amid his continued incredible form for the London club, having scored 164 goals in just 249 appearances.

But it is Blues hero Hazard who has been most heavily linked to the Santiago Bernabeu team over the last year. Not only has the Belgium international openly flirted with Madrid, Goal understands the club have already made contact over a £100 million ($132m) summer deal.

Los Blancos are in the hunt for a new star following the loss of long-term talisman Cristiano Ronaldo last year and ex-Madrid and England forward Owen believes they cannot go wrong with Kane or Hazard.

“There are a lot of good players and teams in the Premier League. We’re seeing them doing well in the Champions League,” he told AS. “Of course they could fit in at Real Madrid. Kane is very good, Hazard is very, very good… both of them are excellent players, without any doubt.”

But Owen admits they cannot fully replace five-time Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo, adding it has become difficult for them to sign new stars.

“It’s impossible to replace a player like Cristiano,” he added. “A small club might be able to sign lots of players but the big clubs only have a limited pool to find players. Maybe there are just 10 players in the world who could sign for Real Madrid. It’s very complicated.

“Also, now all of the clubs are financially stable, they’ve got money and they don’t need to sell… All of that might have contributed to Madrid not signing anyone. Real Madrid’s big advantage is their history. Every footballer wants to play there.

“Their season didn’t start well, they didn’t follow on from last season which was fantastic. And it’s difficult when your best player leaves, and your coach [Zinedine Zidane]… [Santiago] Solari, who was a team mate of mine, did a good job, but it wasn’t enough.”

Zidane returned to Madrid this week, replacing Santiago Solari as coach on a contract that runs until 2022.

The Ajax midfielder consulted with his Netherlands manager before making a decision on his future

Frenkie de Jong has confirmed he asked Netherlands head coach Ronald Koeman for advice before agreeing to join Barcelona from Ajax.

De Jong will link up with La Liga leaders Barca for the 2019-20 season after agreeing a move for an initial fee of €75 million (£65m/$85m).

Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain were among the clubs reportedly interested in the midfielder, with Barca boss Ernesto Valverde critical of the Premier League champions after De Jong claimed Pep Guardiola called him to try to persuade him to move to England.

But Barca got their man and De Jong has confirmed former Camp Nou star Koeman was a sounding board as he considered his future.

“I’ve asked him a lot. I know that he’s been successful over there,” De Jong told reporters on Wednesday.

“I wanted to know what it was like, how the city, daily life and the club were. It’s always comforting to know those things before going there.”

Asked if he requested Koeman’s advice, De Jong replied: “Yes, I did. Every time I joined up with the national team.

“There’s always been rumours of interest, so I wanted to know what Ronald Koeman thought of everything.

“[He said] to go somewhere I get to play regularly. It didn’t matter where, as long as I played.

“I’m sure the manager has his preferences, but to him it’s most important to gain experience at the highest level.”

De Jong is expected to play a key role as Netherlands open their qualifying campaign for Euro 2020 with home games against Belarus and Germany.

Koeman has spoken highly of the player’s attitude given he is still relatively young and inexperienced.

“I don’t think I was that wise when I was 21 years old,” Koeman said. “I learned that later on in life. 

“He’s that way in everything he does. He’s always smiling. You’d want everybody to be like that, but unfortunately not everybody’s the same.”

Of Netherlands’ qualification chances, Koeman said: “If you’re in the same group as Germany, you’re the favourites to qualify for Euro 2020 together with them. But it also comes down to the points you take from the other teams in the group. And then, home matches should always be won.”

Happy Friday and welcome back to On The Money. I’m Sylvan Lane, and here’s your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line.

See something I missed? Let me know at slane@thehill.com or tweet me @SylvanLane. And if you like your newsletter, you can subscribe to it here: http://bit.ly/1NxxW2N.

Write us with tips, suggestions and news: slane@thehill.com, njagoda@thehill.com and nelis@thehill.com. Follow us on Twitter: @SylvanLane, @NJagoda and @NivElis.

 

THE BIG DEAL–Trump downplays urgency of trade talks as Chinese negotiators cut US trip short

What started out as a productive day for U.S.-China trade talks quickly soured Friday as President TrumpDonald John TrumpJulián Castro: It’s time for House Democrats to ‘do something’ about Trump Warren: Congress is ‘complicit’ with Trump ‘by failing to act’ Sanders to join teachers, auto workers striking in Midwest MORE faced another setback in his long push to strike a deal with Beijing.

Chinese officials on Friday abruptly canceled plans to tour farms harmed by Beijing’s tariffs on American agricultural goods, dampening hopes of successful trade talks between the U.S. and China.

• After meeting with Trump administration officials in Washington this week, trade negotiators from China cut short a trip intended to revive negotiations between the countries.

• Chinese negotiators canceled plans to visit farms in Bozeman, Mont., and Omaha, Neb., next week, which would have signaled a willingness from Beijing to ease its tariffs on U.S. crops and begin a long-promised ramp-up of purchases from American farmers.

• Keep in mind, Beijing has used its leverage over the U.S. farm sector to retaliate against Trump’s tariffs on Chinese goods by imposing high import taxes on pork, soybeans and other American agricultural exports.

It’s unclear what prompted the Chinese officials to cut their trip short, but the scrapped farm visits appears to be a significant setback after weeks of goodwill gestures. The White House announced Friday the exemption of more than 400 Chinese products from 25-percent tariffs imposed by Trump, which followed Beijing exempting pork and soybeans from further tariff hikes.

 

But Trump, who spoke to reporters shortly before the news of the canceled trips emerged, brushed off concerns about whether he could strike a deal with China before the election.

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“I don’t think I need it before the election. I think people know that we’re doing a great job,” Trump told reporters during a joint press conference with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Friday.

“We’re doing very well. Our economy is very strong,” Trump added. “China is being affected very badly, we’re not.”

 

Background: Trump faces dwindling leverage with China

 

LEADING THE DAY

Trump says he’s sanctioning Iran’s national bank: President Trump announced Friday that he had sanctioned Iran’s national bank, calling the penalties the “highest sanctions ever imposed on a country.”  

“These are the highest sanctions ever imposed on a country, we’ve never done it to this level. It’s too bad what’s happening with Iran, it’s going to hell,” Trump told reporters, saying Tehran is “practically broke.”

• Trump made the comments to reporters during an Oval Office meeting with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison. The announcement comes two days after Trump said he had instructed the Treasury Department to increase sanctions on Iran following attacks on two oil facilities in Saudi Arabia. 

• The Trump administration has blamed Iran in the attacks, which took out roughly 5 percent of the global oil supply on Saturday.  

• The Treasury Department said in a statement that it was sanctioning Iran’s central bank, Iran’s national development fund and Etemad Tejarate Pars Co., an Iran-based firm that U.S. officials said is used to conceal financial transfers for purchases by Iran’s defense ministry.

 

What that means: Essentially, it means that all of the above entities are banned from the U.S. financial system, can no longer access any U.S.-held assets, and that U.S. residents, citizens and entities are banned from doing business with Iran. That’s not likely to affect much in the U.S., but any foreign individuals or firms that do business with the targeted Iranian entities are also liable to penalties under these sanctions. 

 

Pennsylvania, Wisconsin lost the most factory jobs in the past year: Two swing states narrowly won by President Trump over Democratic nominee Hillary ClintonHillary Diane Rodham ClintonMissing piece to the Ukraine puzzle: State Department’s overture to Rudy Giuliani On The Money: Trump downplays urgency of China trade talks | Chinese negotiators cut US trip short in new setback | Trump sanctions Iran’s national bank | Survey finds Pennsylvania, Wisconsin lost the most factory jobs in past year Meghan McCain, Ana Navarro get heated over whistleblower debate MORE in 2016 were the sites of the greatest losses in manufacturing jobs between 2018 and 2019, according to data released Friday by the Labor Department.

Wisconsin has lost about 5,200 manufacturing jobs since August of last year. In Pennsylvania, losses of manufacturing jobs topped 7,700, according to the survey.

Trump carried the two states in 2016 despite Pennsylvania and Wisconsin having not previously voted for a Republican presidential candidate since 1984.

 

The political cost: Trump’s path to re-election depends on him winning Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan again in 2020, and these types of job losses cut against what made him so appealing to those states in 2016. 

 

ON TAP NEXT WEEK

Tuesday:

• The House Financial Services Committee holds an oversight hearing of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), featuring all five SEC commissioners, 10 a.m.

• A House Appropriations subcommittee holds an oversight hearing of the Internal Revenue Service with Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration J. Russell George, 10 a.m.

• A House Financial Services subcommittee holds a hearing entitled “Examining the Racial and Gender Wealth Gap in America,” 2 p.m.

Wednesday:

• The Senate Banking Committee holds a hearing entitled “Facilitating Faster Payments in the U.S,” 10 a.m.

• A House Financial Services subcommittee holds a hearing entitled “Promoting Financial Stability: Assessing Threats to the U.S. Financial System,” 10 a.m.

Thursday:

• The House Financial Services Committee holds a hearing entitled “Examining Legislation to Protect Consumers and Small Business Owners from Abusive Debt Collection Practices,” 10 a.m.

• The House Financial Services Committee’s fintech task force holds a hearing entitled “The Future of Real-Time Payments,” 2 p.m.

 

GOOD TO KNOW

• Walmart announced Friday it will stop selling e-cigarettes as federal and state governments crack down on the vaping industry. 

• Key lawmakers left their meetings with Facebook CEO Mark ZuckerbergMark Elliot ZuckerbergOn The Money: Trump downplays urgency of China trade talks | Chinese negotiators cut US trip short in new setback | Trump sanctions Iran’s national bank | Survey finds Pennsylvania, Wisconsin lost the most factory jobs in past year Hillicon Valley: Lawmakers say Zuckerberg to ‘cooperate’ on antitrust probes | Dems see victory after McConnell backs election security funds | Twitter takes down fake pro-Saudi accounts Lawmakers say Zuckerberg has agreed to ‘cooperate’ with antitrust probe MORE on Friday expressing confidence that he will cooperate with their ongoing antitrust investigation.

President TrumpDonald John TrumpAlaska Republican Party cancels 2020 primary Ukrainian official denies Trump pressured president Trump goes after New York Times, Washington Post: ‘They have gone totally CRAZY!!!!’ MORE on Saturday defended his reported push for Ukraine’s president to investigate former Vice President Joe BidenJoe BidenUkrainian official denies Trump pressured president Trump goes after New York Times, Washington Post: ‘They have gone totally CRAZY!!!!’ Warren overtakes Biden in Iowa for first time: poll MORE, maintaining his discussion with Ukraine’s leader earlier this summer was “perfectly fine and routine.”

In a pair of tweets Saturday morning, Trump argued that the news media was avoiding coverage of Biden’s past ties to Ukraine and continued to highlight the former vice president’s efforts to convince the country to fire a top prosecutor in 2016.

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“The Fake News Media and their partner, the Democrat Party, want to stay as far away as possible from the Joe Biden demand that the Ukrainian Government fire a prosecutor who was investigating his son, or they won’t get a very large amount of U.S. money, so they fabricate a story about me and a perfectly fine and routine conversation I had with the new President of the Ukraine,” Trump tweeted.

“Nothing was said that was in any way wrong, but Biden’s demand, on the other hand, was a complete and total disaster. The Fake News knows this but doesn’t want to report!” he added.

Democrats and other critics of the president have hammered Trump in recent days over reports of his repeated efforts to lobby Ukraine to launch an investigation into Biden, the current Democratic presidential front-runner, arguing that it amounts to foreign interference in a U.S. presidential election.

The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that Trump urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate Biden during a call in July, telling him roughly eight times to work with his personal attorney Rudy GiulianiRudy GiulianiUkrainian official denies Trump pressured president Timeline: The Trump whistleblower complaint Biden accuses Trump of ‘abuse of power’ over Ukraine call MORE on the matter.

Trump and other Republicans argue that Biden’s efforts in 2016 to urge Ukrainian officials to fire the country’s top prosecutor were motivated by a probe into a company on which Biden’s son Hunter served as a board member.

The prosecutor in question later resigned after being the target of corruption allegations, while no evidence has emerged to support the claim launched by Trump allies about Biden’s efforts to urge Ukraine to fire the official.

Biden dismissed the allegation on Friday while blasting Trump amid rising scrutiny over a whistleblower complaint reportedly involving a call the president had with a foreign leader.

“Not one single credible outlet has given any credibility to his assertion. Not one single one,” Biden said of Trump’s allegation against him. “So I have no comment except the president should start to be president.”

Trump’s defense of his conversations with Ukraine’s leader comes just a day after he asserted it “doesn’t matter” what the two leaders discussed while calling for an investigation into Biden once again.

“It doesn’t matter what I discussed, but I’ll tell you this, somebody ought to look into Joe Biden’s statement,” Trump told reporters at the White House while hosting the prime minister of Australia.

The president has battled controversy for days after it was reported that a whistleblower in the intelligence community raised alarms over a promise Trump allegedly made to a foreign leader, supposedly involving Ukraine.

It’s unclear if the whistleblower complaint reportedly involving Trump and Ukraine is related to the proposed Biden investigation.

Acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire has reportedly refused to release the contents of the whistleblower complaint to members of Congress.

Lawmakers have pushed for the whistleblower complaint to be released to them in full, while some Democrats have renewed calls for Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiTimeline: The Trump whistleblower complaint DC statehood push faces long odds despite record support Ukraine could badly damage both Donald Trump and the Democrats MORE (D-Calif.) to support impeachment proceedings in the wake of the news.

Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Bernie SandersBernie SandersWarren overtakes Biden in Iowa for first time: poll The polls are asking the wrong question Sanders unveils plan to eliminate Americans’ medical debt MORE (I-Vt.) on Saturday released a plan that seeks to cancel $81 billion in past-due medical bills for Americans.

“The very concept of medical debt should not exist,” Sanders said in a statement. “In the wealthiest country in the history of the world, one illness or disease should not ruin a family’s financial life and future.”

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“It is immoral and unconscionable that families across the country are finding themselves nearly broke or bankrupt because of crippling medical debt while the health care industry made more than $100 billion in profits last year. My administration will take on the greed of the health care industry and end the epidemic of medical debt in America,” he added.

Under the plan, Sanders says he would negotiate and pay off past-due medical bills in collections that credit agencies have reported. A Sanders administration would also ban the collection of medical debts beyond the statute of limitations and instruct the Internal Revenue Service to conduct a review of the billing and collection practices of the nearly 3,000 nonprofit hospitals, his campaign said.

Sanders is also vowing to use the bankruptcy court system and allow people to adjudicate debt stemming from payments to providers and insurers for medical expenses. He said he would also remove medical debt from credit reports and end credit checking for rental housing, employment, insurance and other nonlending practices.

Sanders, who has long railed against the high cost of health care, cited a study from The Commonwealth Fund saying 79 million Americans have problems with medical debt as evidence that his plan is necessary.

The Vermont Independent has been a vocal advocate of a “Medicare for All” platform that would eliminate private insurance and has led trips to Canada to allow people to buy prescription drugs at lower costs than in the U.S.

The plan’s release comes as he defends a challenge on his left flank from Sen. Elizabeth WarrenElizabeth Ann WarrenWarren overtakes Biden in Iowa for first time: poll Warren avoids attacks while building momentum Sanders unveils plan to eliminate Americans’ medical debt MORE (D-Mass.), who is also fighting for the primary field’s progressive mantle.

A man who previously worked alongside Sir Alex Ferguson finds himself back at Old Trafford, but he also has commitments with Central Coast Mariners

Mike Phelan would be interested in staying on at Manchester United if Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is handed the managerial reins on a permanent basis, but would like to split his time with Australian side Central Coast Mariners.

Phelan, who finds himself back in the dugout at Old Trafford, has ties to two clubs on opposing sides of the world.

Having previously played under and then worked alongside the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson, the trusted right-hand man was returned to Manchester following Solskjaer’s appointment as successor to Jose Mourinho on an interim basis.

Phelan has earned plenty of praise for the role he has played alongside a coach who has delivered a welcome upturn in fortunes for the Red Devils.

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If Solskjaer were to be handed the United reins, then he would be expected to keep his current backroom team intact.

Phelan, though, had accepted a role as sporting director of A-League side Central Coast Mariners prior to rejoining the Red Devils and would like to balance his commitments between both sides if possible.

He told the FOX Football Podcast on his future plans: “It’s just a case of how things develop over the next couple of months.

“It’s a busy time for Manchester United obviously, but the season is coming to an end in Australia so I think once decisions are made back over in England then I think we’ll open those discussions again with the Mariners and hopefully the partnership can continue.

“I think it’s a good one; it’s a nice one to be able to be associated with the Mariners, and obviously an association for the Mariners with Manchester United is always a nice thing.

“It’s all down to ifs and buts right now, but I certainly would like to keep my interest at the Mariners.”

Phelan has a possible job share in mind because he believes Solskjaer is well placed to stay on at United.

A member of the club’s 1999 Treble-winning squad has overseen 14 wins from 19 games and is considered to be the leading contender for a high-profile post despite suffering back-to-back defeats against Arsenal and Wolves in the Red Devils’ last two outings.

“Managing people is no different wherever you are,” added Phelan.

“You try and get the best out of people, you try to communicate well, and he’s got all those skills. It just so happens now that he’s got an opportunity at Manchester United, which he’s relishing.”