Sport

Cristiano Ronaldo ‘agrees personal terms with Manchester City’

Ronaldo's agent Jorge Mendes is currently negotiating the Portugal captain's exit from Juventus

The Manc The Manc - 27th August 2021

In news that will divide a city like nothing else before it, it has been reported that Cristiano Ronaldo has agreed personal terms with Manchester City.

The former Manchester United legend is said to be on the verge of a sensational move to the blue side of Manchester, according to the Independent’s Chief Football Writer, Miguel Delaney.

The Portuguese winger, 36, has already spoken on the phone with Man City boss Pep Guardiola and it is understood that he will receive a salary of over £250,000 a week.

Ronaldo’s agent Jorge Mendes is currently negotiating the Portugal captain’s exit from Juventus, who are eager to offload him in order to use revenue from his sale to begin a rebuild at the club.

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Rumours are that City do not want to pay Juve’s desired £25 million fee and there is still a hell of a long way to go if this deal was to go through.

Ronaldo’s agent also investigated Paris Saint-Germain as another possible destination, with Ronaldo interested in forming what would have been a sensational partnership with Lionel Messi, but the French juggernauts were unwilling to go forward on it.

With the likelihood that Pep will leave City in the next couple of years, this would be a prime opportunity to secure a world class striker and lift the Champions League trophy with the Etihad side before departing – and with Ronaldo’s hunger to do the same thing and bag another Ballon d’Or in the process, this deal seems all the more likely.

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However, Wayne Rooney is not convinced that former team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo will join Manchester City ahead of the transfer window closing.

Rooney told Sky Sports: “I don’t know what to make of it, to be honest. If you are asking me ‘do I think it’s possible?’ I would have major doubts that it is a possibility.

“Cristiano has got a great legacy at Manchester United and I don’t think he would go somewhere for financial reasons.

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“So I would be a bit unsure if that is going to happen. I think there is more chance of it being PSG if he is to leave Juventus. But, on the other hand, it is football, anything can happen.

“It has happened before with big players and legends from Manchester United, in terms of Peter Schmeichel, who went to City. Andy Cole went to City. Mark Hughes managed City.

“It has happened before, but I think someone of Cristiano’s stature…. I can’t see it happening.”

Sport

Changing the beautiful game for girls everywhere | Ella Toone – Manc of the Month August 2022

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson

Just a few short weeks ago, we all witnessed a monumental sporting moment – football finally came home.

And it was the women’s game that did it, only a year since the England men’s team came so close to lifting the Euros trophy themselves.

The nation is bursting with pride for the phenomenal achievements of every player on England women’s team, affectionately known as The Lionesses, but we just had to give a little shout out to one of our local girls.

Ella Toone. The Wigan-born star has been called wonder kid and a golden girl, but she prefers to be ‘just Ella’.

Credit: Instagram, Ella Toone

The 22-year-old has built the bulk of her sporting career here in Greater Manchester.

Born in Tyldesley, she spent many years as a junior at Manchester United – but the team, until very recently, didn’t have a senior women’s team for her to move up to.

So it was off to Blackburn she went, then briefly she played for Manchester City, before finally joining Man Utd in 2018 for their inaugural season.

In an interview with BBC Sport, Ella – a life-long United (and Cristiano Ronaldo) fan – said: “It’s the best feeling in the world. Growing up a Manchester United fan, and then being able to play week in week out for the club that you love and support is really special.

“Growing up it was tough – I was in the United academy for seven/eight years, and there was nothing to look up to. There was no women’s team to try and get in to.”

But once news of a Manchester United women’s squad landed, Ella said: “It was home. I knew that my ambitions matched theirs. I’ve been happy ever since.”

Fast forward to 2022, and she has become a household name thanks to her stunning performance with the England Women’s team at the Euros.

Ella’s impeccable chip into the net had all of Wembley on its feet during the final, and it was one of two goals that saw England storm to victory.

Along with her teammates, she is now riding the wave of the team’s success to try and make changes that will last an eternity.

The Lionesses recently penned an open letter to Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss, demanding that young girls are given the opportunity to get into the sport and that women’s football is given proper investment from school age onwards.

They told the prospective PMs that only 63% of girls can play football in PE at school, saying ‘a generation of school girls deserve more.’

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The letter stated: “Throughout the Euros, we as a team spoke about our legacy and goal to inspire a nation. Many will think that this has already been achieved, but we see this as only the beginning.

“We are looking to the future. We want to create real change in this country and we are asking you, if you were to become Prime Minister on 5 September, to help an achieve that change.”

Read more: Changing the cancer conversation for the better | Steve Bland – Manc of the Month July 2022

The highly-praised letter went on to ask the Government to ensure all girls have access to a minimum of two hours a week of P.E.

The co-signed letter said: “They deserve to play football at lunchtime, they deserve to play football in PE lessons and they deserve to believe they can one day play for England. We want their dreams to also come true.

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“This is an opportunity to make a huge difference. A change that will impact millions of young girls’ lives. We – the 23 members of the England Senior Women’s EURO squad – ask you to make it a priority to invest into girls’ football in schools, so that every girl has the choice.”

And as Ella Toone herself once said – “I was once just a little girl with a lot of dreams, and I’ve managed to achieve them.”

About Manc of the Month

We all know that Manchester is home to some special people, some born here and others drawn here, and after a bumpy two years that effectively amounted to one big lockdown, it’s these special people that have inspired and led us through the tough times – so we decided to start a series that shines a light on those who should be celebrated.

Following on from our ‘The Mancs of the Year’ feature towards the end of 2020, Manc of the Month officially kicked off in July 2021, with Marcus Rashford MBE, Manchester’s mural king Akse P-19, the local chef feeding the region’s vulnerable families Mary-Ellen McTague, and Manchester’s groundbreaking new Council leader Bev Craig among previous honourees.

Featured image: England Women’s

Sport

All Premier League players to be given mandatory sexual consent training

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

It has been confirmed that the Premier League has introduced mandatory sexual consent training for all players and staff.

Ahead of the 2022/23 football season starting this weekend, and following what has been a recent string of high-profile cases and enhanced police action in England involving top-flight footballers, the Premier League has made the decision to introduce mandatory sexual consent training for all players and staff in what has been described as a “long-overdue step in the right direction”.

The training sessions – which were first reported by the Telegraph – are part of a wider safeguarding education programme that was updated and developed after the Sheldon report, and are set to address healthy and respectful relationships, and include understanding harassment and consent.

The Sheldon report was an independent review into historical child sexual abuse in football.

It revealed “significant institutional failings” by the Football Association (FA), and said the organisation “did not do enough to keep children safe”.

The mandatory sexual consent training sessions are also being introduced after a coalition of women’s groups sent an open letter to the FA and Premier League back in February that urged them “to confront a culture of gender-based violence”.

The Premier League has introduced mandatory sexual consent training for all players and staff / Credit: Alex Motoc (via Unsplash)

As well as mandatory training, the coalition – which made up of the End Violence Against Women Coalition, The Three Hijabis, and Level Up – also asked for Premier League clubs to “adopt clear sexual misconduct policies and protocols”.

They also wanted clubs to sign a charter “to tackle unacceptable behaviour”.

The coalition met with the Premier League in March and June – however, according to BBC Sport, the groups have said the FA has not yet engaged with them.

Read more: Football fans warned about ‘surge’ in ticket scams ahead of new season

Speaking on the confirmation by the Premier League that mandatory sexual consent training is to be given to Premier League players and staff, Andrea Simon – Director at End Violence Against Women Coalition – said: “Today’s announcement is a long overdue and important first step in the right direction.

“Gender-based violence is a pervasive and systemic issue that must be addressed across the football industry as a whole, with urgent and coordinated action.”

Featured Image – Premier League (via Flickr)

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