Sport

Mary Earps admits her future at Manchester United is still uncertain

She says the ball is in their court. Well, pitch...

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 21st May 2024

Lionesses goalkeeper Mary Earps has admitted that her future with Manchester United Women remains uncertain as the two parties are still yet to reach an agreement over a new contract.

Having won Euro 2022 and the Finalissima with England, not to mention the club’s first Women’s FA Cup earlier this month, Earps has become one of the most in-demand female players on the planet.

United rejected a bid for 2023’s Sports Personality of the Year last year following her further heroics in the Women’s World Cup but she is still yet to commit herself to a new deal, admitting that she’s waiting for clearer answers from them “on what they’re trying to achieve”.

Speaking to Sky Sports this week, the 31-year-old said, in short: “It’s kind of up to the club”.

Earps went on to explain that “conversations are still ongoing” and that “it’s a tough situation” but that she doesn’t want to make any rash or emotional decisions until she has a clearer picture of United’s long-term vision.

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“The beginning of the season was really tough”, said the Nottingham-born shot-stopper. “I felt really upset about things that were being said about me that weren’t true but I’ve tried to be professional, keep my head down and just work hard.

“I’ve tried to shoulder that responsibility of the team, the performance and where we fell short this season – I think that’s what you should do as a leader and a more experienced player. You have to stand up in those moments and I know I’ve given my heart and soul”.

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While it’s clear there’s still lots of passion from the United and England number one, she insists that she can only make a final decision once she gets the answers she’s after.

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As for the Red Devils themselves, despite winning their first major trophy since reforming, they ended the Women’s Super League on a sour note, handing the title to Chelsea following a 6-0 drubbing – in front of the Old Trafford crowd no less.

Moreover, there seems to be a growing rift in the fan base as many supporters were frustrated to see manager Marc Skinner given a new contract despite calls for him to be sacked following a lacklustre domestic season.

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Were Earps to ultimately depart as well, the mood around the club might dip even further.

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Featured Images — Man United Women/Mary Earps/England (via Instagram)

Sport

Manchester city centre’s first indoor padel club set to open later this year

Danny Jones Danny Jones indoor padel club opening in manchester city centre

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:

pure padel manchester city centre
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.

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 are upstair on the mezz, there’s a bit of everything going on here.

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 at available to customers at this latest location – sounds simple but it’s always a nice bonus.

places to play padel in manchester city centre
book pure padel manchester
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.

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 closeby. 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.”

where to buy padel rackets in manchester?
You’ll even be able to gear up and relax in here.

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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 matches them accordingly for a fun and fair game.

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 some time soon!

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Pure Padel (supplied)

Sport

Calls for Southgate to start Kobbie Mainoo and Cole Palmer grow following England’s lacklustre second game

Danny Jones Danny Jones Calls for Southgate to start Kobbie Mainoo and Cole Palmer for England grow at Euro 2024

The calls for Gareth Southgate to start Manchester-born duo Kobbie Mainoo and Cole Palmer in the next Euros game are growing after England’s lacklustre second game against Denmark.

The Three Lions have four points on the board, which should be enough for them to advance into the knockout stages of the competition, but it’s fair to say that the 1-0 and 1-1 scorelines have summed up a somewhat underwhelming start to their Euro 2024 campaign.

Most of the frustration surrounding England‘s opening fixtures has been the lack of attacking intent from the team as well control in the middle of the park, with Liverpool right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold being played there due to his passing range.

As a result, lots of fans are already questioning why the Southgate is yet to start Stockport-born Kobbie Mainoo – Man United’s breakthrough midfielder from this season – as the national team boss looks to find the right balance in midfield, with many already declaring the Trent ‘experiment’ a failure.

As you can see, lots of pundits and supporters alike believe Mainoo could be the solution to why England don’t look as commanding in the midfielder, especially given numerous standout appearances in his debut campaign – not least his man-of-the-match performance in United’s FA Cup win over Man City.

The consensus seems to be that Southgate is cautious of throwing the tournament debutant into the mix, despite the Stopfordian having clearly shown his maturity even at the young age of 19.

The same goes for Cole Palmer, as there seems to be just as many fans crying out for the inclusion of the attacking midfielder from Wythenshawe, who picked up the Premier League’s Young Player of the Season award and who boasted the goal contributions (33) of any player in the division for 2023/24.

Commentator Arlo White simply posted, “Get Mainoo and Palmer on!!”, while former City and England striker Daniel Sturridge added: “I’m genuinely shocked we haven’t seen Cole Palmer grace the field yet.”

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With so many echoing the same sentiment, you have to start wondering when not if, with plenty of others also backing Conor Gallagher to come into midfield as Southgate chose to sub him on against the Danes.

That being said, we have seen this fractious relationship between the fans, the manager and his often cautious squad selections plenty of times before, with the 53-year-old refusing to use Jack Grealish early enough at the last Euros.

Only time will tell if Southgate will listen to the calls to bring Mainoo and Palmer into the side but one thing’s for sure, England need an injection of new energy or something if they are to spring into life and turn into the best version of themselves we’ve seen previously.

You don’t get too long to fine-tune your squad on the big stage and they need to get a rhythm going if they want to go far as we know they can.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Kobbie Mainoo (via IG)/soccer.ru (via Wiki Commons)/Cole Palmer (via IG)

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