England manager Gareth Southgate has warned his players not to use social media “too regularly” ahead of Qatar 2022.
Speaking to Sky News‘ Rob Harris on 11 November after having revealed his 26-man World Cup squad on Thursday, the Three Lions boss said he has advised his travelling team to avoid social media platforms before, during and after the tournament — at least too often, anyway.
“I would always advise players not to use social media too regularly but that’s the world they live in”, says Southgate, conceding that he has to “allow adults to make adult decisions.”
Describing what is on the one hand “the second-best period in English football” in terms of progress in the previous two tournaments, the 52-year-old couldn’t help but also reflect on the negative side of his team’s recent experiences.
Referencing the horrific racist abuse that the likes of Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka and Jadon Sancho received following the penalty shootout defeat to Italy in the Euro 2020 final, Southgate’s focus is not only on the football itself but keeping the team spirit and morale intact through the competition.
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In terms of reporting any potential abuse that may occur this World Cup, he went on to explain that the players have already “had people come and speak to them and explain that process helps them go and find the guilty parties”, urging England players and anyone online to speak up should any incidents arise.
However, he admitted that FA can only “do [their] bit” on the front and hopes both the UK government and social media companies “keep pushing… to try and control that the best they can.”
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Southgate hasn’t banned the use of social media in Qatar though, declaring instead that “as long as you can rationalise that and not let it affect your happiness and your mood, then that’s fine.”
Southgate went on to stand firm behind his squad selection which omitted the likes of Sancho, insisting that he has simply picked the team he thinks will give England “the best chance of winning the tournament”.
In the past, he has often been criticised for having his ‘favourites’ and sometimes choosing too many defensive-minded players. That being said, there are plenty of progressive ball-playing midfielders and attackers in this particular squad.
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The man himself isn’t on any social media but will no doubt also be a target following any potentially poor performances and many fans have been calling for him to be sacked for some time. It feels like make-or-break time for the coach.
Details released of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners while Mayor
Emily Sergeant
Details of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners during his tenure as Mayor of Greater Manchester have been released.
In case you need bringing up to speed on the situation a little first, Manchester City was found guilty back in September all of its charges related to the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-season period, and on top of that, was also found guilty of the majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate with the League’s investigation.
According to the Premier League, the independent Commission found that Manchester City had arranged so-called ‘sham’ commercial deals with a number of its sponsors.
These were part of a disguised funding scheme – with those sponsors only required to pay a portion of the relevant sponsorship fees.
The remainder was then funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), which owned the club.
The Commission also concluded, as quoted by the Premier League, that the club had ‘made concerted efforts to stop and frustrate the Premier League investigation’.
Within the past week or so, it has since come to light that now-Prime Minister Andy Burnham had dealings with Manchester City during his tenure as Greater Manchester Mayor, and Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) has now issued a public statement, giving details on the matter and what these ‘dealings’ entailed.
A spokesperson for GMCA confirmed that Burnham had a ‘formal meeting’ with Man City Chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, back in October 2021.
The statement reads in full: “In October 2021, Andy Burnham, in his role as Mayor of Greater Manchester, had a formal meeting with Khaldoon Al Mubarak at the UK Government’s Global Investment Summit arranged by the Department for International Trade.
“In his capacity as Mayor, he was a guest of Manchester City FC at home matches on a small number of occasions, including attending Vincent Kompany’s testimonial match in September 2019, where he met the Chairman informally in the stands. These have been declared in the usual way.
“Also during his time as Mayor, representatives of Greater Manchester sporting clubs would routinely join business delegations as part of Mayoral international visits.
“This included representatives from Manchester United travelling to Austin and Dublin, Lancashire Cricket Club joining a delegation to India, and Manchester City FC staff supporting visits to China and Japan.”
Featured Image – Lauren Hurley / Number 10 Downing Street (Press Image via Flickr)
Sport
Multiple arrests made for ‘tragedy chanting’ and police officer assault as Man City defeated Liverpool
Emily Sergeant
Multiple people were arrested over the weekend as Manchester City defeated Liverpool in a Premier League clash.
Merseyside Police have confirmed that a total of 10 people were arrested during the policing operation at Liverpool’s home ground of Anfield as they hosted Manchester City on Sunday 11 October.
One man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police constable, five were on suspicion of tragedy chanting, one on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly, two for affray, and one on suspicion of throwing items onto the pitch.
Police are now appealing to the public, and are particularly looking to speak to witnesses of the assault of the officer.
At around 6:35pm, as fans left the stadium, a police officer sustained a ‘serious facial injury’ during the arrest of a man on Anfield Road, and was subsequently taken to hospital for treatment but is now recovering at home.
Investigating officers are now conducting enquiries, speaking to witnesses, and analysing CCTV and camera phone footage.
Chief Inspector Leanne Hobin said it’s ‘extremely disappointing’ that an officer has sustained a serious injury while carrying out their duty.
“I hope the arrests send a clear message and act as a deterrent to others,” Chief Inspector Hobin continued. “Anyone who engages in this abhorrent behaviour risks ending up in custody and getting a criminal record.
“Despite the actions of a few, the overwhelming majority of the 60,000 fans in attendance behaved well and I want to thank them for their co-operation.”
Manchester City ended up defeated Liverpool 3-0 during the Premier League clash at Anfield.
Danny Jones -
11th November 2022 
