Manchester United return to action in the Premier League
Manchester City cruised to an easy win against Arsenal on Wednesday night but will Manchester United be able to take maximum points in crucial match against Spurs?
The first day back of the restarted season had it all.
Goal line technology faulted during Villa’s match up with Sheffield United, denying the latter a clear goal; David Luiz had a horror show against City, giving away a goal, a penalty and getting himself sent off; and the dominant image of the day was all 22 players (plus the referees) taking the knee in support of the Black Lives Matter movement at the start of each game.
Tonight, Manchester United return to action for their first time since March in their crucial match with Spurs – as Jose Mourinho looks to close the four-point gap on his former team.
The Red Devils come into the game unbeaten in all competitions since January and will be hoping that the three-month break will not have hindered their momentum as they push for a top four position.
A win will put United ahead of Chelsea in fourth position, who take on Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon.
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Spurs come into the game in wobblier form, drawing once and losing twice in their last three games in the Premier League.
However, Harry Kane will finally be back in contention for Spurs, having failed to feature for Jose’s side since the defeat to Southampton on New Year’s Day.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will also be boosted by the return of key players, as Paul Pogba and Marcus Rashford return to the squad after long stints on the sidelines.
Pogba may have made little impact on United’s season but fans will be hoping that the Frenchman links up well with January-signing and new star man Bruno Fernandes.
Rashford, who scored twice against Spurs in the win at Old Trafford in December, was having his best season at United before injury put him out of action.
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Mancunian born and bred, Rashford has been in the spotlight outside of football this week after steering the Government into a u-turn on the free school meals policy this summer.
Rashford has been praised by many in the country, including his manager at the pre-match press conference.
“Marcus is such a top, top human being and he’s brought his own experiences as a kid into this conversation and changed the lives of so many kids…,” said Solskjaer.
“So, he’s already been the captain of the club at such a young age and he’s proving all the time his human qualities which is the main attribute for a Man United player, along with his qualities as a player.”
Will Rashford once again prove to be the difference?
United will take on Spurs at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium at 8:15pm on Friday the 19th and will be shown on Sky Sports.
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.
Kate Jackson -
19th June 2020 
