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.
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.
Featured Images — Man United Women/Mary Earps/England (via Instagram)
Sport
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 -
21st May 2024 
