The first fully indoor padel club is coming to Manchester later this year and is set to open just a 10-minute walk from Victoria Station for anyone looking to come into town for a game.
Seemingly one of the biggest crazes on the planet at the minute, while this is by no means the first padel facility to open in Greater Manchester, it is set to be the only place where you’ll be able to play the increasingly popular tennis-lite sport inside anywhere in the city centre.
With an existing site down the road in Alderely Park, Macclesfield, Pure Padel has already grown a loyal following since opening back in October 2023, but by bringing their expertise nice and central, their super accessible ‘pay to play’ approach is sure to take off even more.
You can see the renders of what the space is set to look down below:
Credit: Pure Padel
As you can see, the state-of-the-art setup will include six indoor panoramic padel courts and a mezzanine viewing platform to watch all the action.
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But there’s much more to this place than just playing surfaces.
Set to include a pro-padel shop, a bistro-style café and bar; fully equipped changing rooms with showers, plus the comfortable seating area upstairs on the mezz, there’s a bit of everything going on here.
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Further still, Pure Padel has ambitious plans to build another 30 padel clubs in the next five years, with eight currently in planning and a further 15 in the pipeline, with further expansion across their home county of Cheshire.
Plus, there’ll be free onsite parking and WiFi available to customers at this latest location set to open in Cheetham Hill – sounds simple but it’s always a nice bonus.
Credit: Supplied
Set up by two experienced Padel coaches – originally from mainland Europe where the game first took off – you can also rest easy in knowing that you’re getting the very experience of the sport you could hope for when Pure Padel lands in Manchester city centre.
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Co-founder and head of commercial operations, Sammy Arora, said: “Padel has taken the UK by storm – and the North West is slowly becoming a padel hub after leaders London and Bristol who set the scene…
“We hope bringing indoor padel to Manchester will help make it even more accessible to those living and working close by. Currently, north Manchester residents are travelling as far as Huddersfield, so we know there’s demand for more padel courts in the city centre that are reachable by car and public transport.
“Choosing a site so close to Victoria station is a real asset – we hope it’ll help bring players into the city centre who will go on to spend on hospitality and shopping to further support the local economy.”
Sammy went on to add: “Manchester’s cold and wet climate (fair point) makes our indoor proposition even more attractive to players who are looking to keep up padel year round. Unpredictable weather can really impact the game, so a club away from the elements ensures the best playing experience.”
Having got hooked on the sport back in Milan, he added: “It’s fantastic to see such a broad mix of people picking it up, from those who no longer play fast-paced racket sports like squash and tennis, or those wishing to step away from work for exercise and to socialise.”
Scheduled to open this August, you’ll be able to book courts simply through Playtomic from 7am right through to 10pm, with the easy-to-use app also enabling first-timers or solo players to find and play with others of a similar level and match them accordingly for a fun and fair game.
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No member fees either, just plain old fun and the ability to play as much or as little as you want without the constraints of the traditional sports club model. See you on the court sometime soon!
Cole Palmer picks up FSA Men’s Player of the Year for 2024
Danny Jones
Chelsea star Cole Palmer has officially won the Football Supporters’ Association (FSA) Player of the Year Award for 2024 following what can only be called an incredible 12 months.
It’s been an unbelievable 12 months for the former Manchester City academy product and now England international, who is still only 22, having already notched eight goals and six assists in 15 games for his club this season.
The Wythenshawe-born winger, attacking midfielder and all-round dynamo has been virtually unplayable the entire calendar year, to be honest, becoming the fastest Chelsea player in history to reach 30 goals with his latest contribution this past weekend.
Picking up the award at this year’s ceremony held in London on Monday night, Cole Palmer becomes the first Chelsea player to ever win FSA Player of the Year, having done so with just over one full senior season under his belt.
Congratulations to @ChelseaFC forward Cole Palmer who picks up the award following a sensational 2024 – a clear favourite with the voting public. "Thank you to everyone who voted for me, it's an honour to be the first Chelsea player to win this award," Cole said. #CFCpic.twitter.com/36xN22ceRB
Registering 26 goal contributions in 2024 so far, he’s been one of the most prolific players not only in England but in European football full stop, and he’s no way near done yet.
With a busy Christmas period ahead thanks to the congested festive fixture list, you can expect him to add to that tally soon enough, having just scored a goal-of-the-season contender in the West London side’s 3-0 win over Aston Villa on Sunday.
Leading the league in chances created from open play (30) and so often being the match-winner in a team so overly saturated with talent – approximately £1.15 billion on a total of 39 players across the last five transfer windows – he’s worth his weight in gold.
Just a lad from Manchester who’s very good at kicking a ball.
Cole Palmer now has a goal or assist against 𝟭𝟴 of the 20 different opponents he's faced in the Premier League for Chelsea 🤯⚽️🅰️ pic.twitter.com/eCMOmkm94R
With well over half the season still to go and Enzo Maresca’s side finally looking like a team worthy of the money spent and able to compete at the top of the table, the question is how much more quality is there to come from him?
Currently third in the assists table (6) and not too far from the front of the Golden Boot race (8), we wouldn’t be surprised if you see the local lad picking up even more personal accolades come May.
Well done, Cole – we’ll be pulling out the Palmer celebration the first chance we get. Mainly because it’s December and we’re freezing…
Featured Images — Premier League (screenshot via YouTube)
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Pep Guardiola fires back at Liverpool fans after ‘sacked in the morning chants’
Danny Jones
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has hit back at Liverpool fans after chants of “you’re getting sacked in the morning” rang around Anfield this past weekend.
Not unlike this spell of seven games without a win – now six defeats and one draw – Guardiola has never really had those chants pointed in his direction before given that he’s one of the most successful managers in history, and it’s clear he was just as taken aback as those watching were.
The 2-0 loss to his title rivals marked four straight league defeats for the first time in Pep’s entire career and City‘s worst run since 2008, when the club was first bought by the Abu Dhabi United Group.
With that in mind, the home crowd certainly had fun at the Spaniard’s expense, and after the chanting continued, he was happy to respond with the facts both on the pitch and in the presser.
Having reminded the Kop End and co. of his time in England thus far, Guardiola went on to reiterate in his post-match press conference: “I’m so proud of my six Premier Leagues against that team and the previous team [under Jürgen Klopp].
While he applauded Arne Slot’s side for their performance, recognising that a trip to Merseyside is always difficult, he didn’t expect to hear the kind of chanting he did after conceding the second goal, and with time still to play against what is still one of the best teams in world football.
“Maybe I deserved to be sacked with our results! Maybe I’m still in the job because I won six Premier Leagues and a lot of titles. They want to sack me. I wish they were more kind. Why didn’t they do it at 0-1? Why didn’t they do it last season when we won the league? Why do they want to sack me now?
“I didn’t expect that from Anfield, for other clubs like Brighton I can understand it, but for Anfield, I didn’t expect this, maybe it is the [level of] respect we have. They know we have won six Premier Leagues. But it’s fine, it’s part of the game.”
🗣️ "I'm so proud of my six Premier Leagues against that team"
Pep Guardiola reacts after some Liverpool fans were heard chanting that he will be getting 'sacked in the morning' 🔹 pic.twitter.com/nMkFTx4b76
In a similar vein, replacement keeper Stefan Ortega (who stepped in for out-of-form Ederson) also said he had been told that the “area [Liverpool] is probably not the best part in the UK” and that his manager responded well to the taunting overall.
Meanwhile, as well as some much-needed levity and sarcasm, the 53-year-old did insist that his years in Manchester have “probably been the best of my life” and that he just wants his team back in their “prime” – we’re sure it won’t be long before we see the familiar City we’re all used to.
In fact, some interpreted Pep’s specific reaction after the full-time whistle as equal parts playful banter and actually admiring Anfield for the atmosphere its supporters create, having criticised the Etihad Stadium for a lack of noise more than once.
We’re not so sure but you can decide for yourself.
We had a good laugh today but I liked this from Guardiola. Had some fierce battles over the years but he's always been respectful of Liverpool and you can see how much he admires Anfield. https://t.co/qkZpb6POgB
With a promising Nottingham Forest team coming up on Wednesday – not to mention Forest being the only team to have beaten Liverpool in the Prem so far this season – the Catalan coach won’t just be hoping for a defiant home crowd but a desperately needed win if they are to stay in the race.
One thing is for sure, if Pep thinks these ‘sacked in the morning’ chants will be limited to Liverpool, he’s got another thing coming if they go even a goal down in the next game.
Do you think Pep deserves more respect as he suggested, or is behaviour like this completely fair game during derbies and title races?
You can watch his press conference in full down below:
Danny Jones -
21st June 2024 
