Sport

Paul Scholes sends clear message to Gareth Southgate over England’s Euro 2024 starting 11

He's echoing what many have been calling for even prior to the tournament.

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 25th June 2024

Manchester United legend and former England player Paul Scholes has sent a pretty clear message to manager Gareth Southgate ahead of the Three Lions final group game of Euro 2024.

Southgate‘s side take on Slovenia at 8pm on Tuesday, 25 June and despite having already qualified for the knockout stages, it’s fair to say that many fans and pundits alike haven’t been overwhelmingly impressed with their performances thus far – not least of all Paul Scholes.

It’s fair to say the retired Premier League veteran and ex-England international knows a thing or two about being a midfielder and since finding the right balance in the middle of the park seems to be one of their main issues so far, Scholes isn’t mincing his words when it comes to his critcism.

After Monday’s reports that Southgate is swap out Trent Alexander-Arnold for Conor Gallagher following what many have dubbed a ‘failed’ midfield experiment, Scholes jumped on Instagram to accuse the England boss of being “obsessed” with energy above other traits.

It remains to be seen whether or not Southgate will indeed start the Chelsea star ahead of any of his other midfielder options but, as you can see, Scholes wants to see the player with the best footballing “brain” come into replace the Liverpool right-back, who was tried there due to his passing range.

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While there’s no question that Alexander-Arnold is an intelligent footballer – hence why he was given the nod to play at the base of the midfield in the first place – he isn’t exactly an energetic, box-to-box midfielder or someone with loads of expefrience in the position for his club, let alone for his country.

With that in mind, Scholes made it very clear that he believes Man United‘s breakthrough talent from this season, Kobbie Mainoo, should be preferred ahead of any other player being rotated into the starting 11, having emerged as one of the best midfielders in the league and scoring the winner in the FA Cup final.

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And in case anyone was doubting that Mainoo is indeed the player that Scholes was referring to, he said just as much to TNT Sports, claiming “if he came in [to the team], all of a sudden you have control” and adding that sometimes it only takes on player to make the rest of the tick.

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It’s worth noting that he’s by no means the only one calling for the United youth product to come in, with his name and Cole Palmer both being cried out for by much of the England fan base.

Southgate also irked a lot of fans by overlooking the capabilities of Mainoo, Declan Rice and others when he claimed that he they “don’t have a natural replacement for Kalvin Phillips”, despite many believing that a number of players could do the job in that pivot so long as you find the right balance around them.

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Scholes did ultimately show his support and faith that England will get better as the tournament goes on but he’s making no bones about who he thinks could be the solution for that midfield dilemma that has so long lingered over our teams in years gone by.

Elsewhere, captain Harry Kane was also applauded for his response to recent punditry by ex-national team players Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer who essentially summed up their performance at Euro 2024 so far as “sh*t”.

Harry Kane praised for ‘classy’ response after pundits dig out England’s start to the Euros
Kane essentially reminded the ex-England internationals that they have a role to play too.

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Featured Images — Diego Sideburns (via Flickr)/England (via Instagram)

Sport

Pep Guardiola confirms Manchester City star Rodri will be out for the season

Danny Jones Danny Jones Rodri ruled out for the rest of the season with ACL injury

Bad news for Manchester City fans as the club has now confirmed what everyone was dreading: Rodri will be out for the rest of the season.

Things didn’t look good when the Spaniard was substituted during last week’s game against Arsenal after colliding with fellow midfielder Thomas Partey during a corner and given that he hadn’t long come back from his previous injury, supporters were already fearing the worst.

Rodri has been a linchpin in the middle of the park for Man City ever since he joined back in 2019, going on to win the hallowed Treble and four Premier League title wins in a row, not to mention Euro 2024 – safe to say that even for all their quality, the team doesn’t tick over quite the same without him.

Breaking the news during his press conference ahead of City’s trip to Newcastle this weekend, when asked about the exact nature of the previously unconfirmed injury, manager Pep Guardiola simply shook his head and said: “Next season he will be here. This season is over [for him].

Speaking on Friday, 27 September, the Catalan coach explained, “He had surgery this morning, ACL and some meniscus” but sadly there looks to be no hope of his returning for the remainder of this campaign.

Pep went on to add: “Unfortunately, he got the worst. It is what it is. We are here to support him – good recovery, step by step and move forward.

This comes after the seasoned CDM suffered a fairly serious hamstring injury during the Euros final which already saw him sidelined for the start of the 24/25 season and while City do have the likes of Gundogan and Kovacic to share those duties, it doesn’t get much worse than a cruciate ligament tear.

Guardiola did insist that they have no other player quite like Rodri in their squad, no matter how healthily stocked, and that they will simply have to try and do their best “to find a way [to replace him]” with other talents in the team.

Even prior to the severity of the ligament injury being fully revealed, his national team and former clubs such as Villareal sent messages of support, with fans, players and everyone in football alike knowing how serious an ACL injury can be, especially for someone at this particular point in his career.

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As if player fitness and well-being weren’t already a pressing concern in recent times, it was only earlier this month that Rodri spoke about the ever-increasing number of games.

In short, the number 16 says “It’s too much” and whether people see it as a sport or a business, someone needs to start looking after the “main characters”.

Fair to say with the overall average number of injuries jumping up each year and with incidents like this now having put an end to his season, he might have a point…

You can watch Pep’s pre-match press conference ahead of the match against Newcastle this Saturday down below:

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

Featured Images – pantkiewicz (via Flickr)/Manchester City Youtube (via screenshot)

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Ultimate Performance: the global gym group living up to their name and thriving here in Manchester

Danny Jones Danny Jones is ultimate performance manchester a good gym?

Gyms are ten a penny here in Greater Manchester, but there’s something to be said for a fitness brand that can operate on a global scale whilst still delivering that smaller, more bespoke feel that you only get from personal trainer-focused facilities – say hello to Ultimate Performance.

With a total of 24 locations all over the world, the Ultimate Performance gym group is much more than just another chain; the UP approach is becoming its own fitness phenomenon, with countless high-profile clients, write-ups in health and wellness outlets and consistent results across the board.

Better still, if you’re a Manc looking to get in the best shape of your life, their Manchester location is based right in the heart of the city and of the centre’s most exciting districts, so you’re well-placed to get your transformation underway whenever you ready.

Priding themselves on not only being the “home of the world’s leading personal trainers in Manchester” but also delivering value for money by the time you’ve achieved your fitness goals. So, what exactly is it that sets them apart?

ultimate performance manchester gym
Credit: Supplied

Well, for starters, given the scope of the company and its growing reputation, Ultimate Performance locations are typically much bigger than most and their programmes are more comprehensive than most other gyms where you pay a monthly membership fee.

At the other end of the spectrum, they also promise a much more expansive offering than regular PTs and boutique gyms, both in terms of the facilities and infrastructure as well as in how their clients are looked after.

Rather than just being paired with an available instructor, time is taken to ensure you find the right match when it comes to your trainer and the workouts you take on, with clients being given proper supervision/programming that is geared towards very specific outcomes without being babied.

You only have to hear it from the numerous testimonials taken from their Manchester clients alone to understand the kind of experience you’ll receive at an Ultimate Performance gym.

They’ve had a fair share of famous faces vouch for the quality of coaching too, from the likes of Hollywood A-lister Glen Powell over in the States to Gemma Atkinson here in Manchester.

To put things into perspective when you simply Google ‘best gym Manchester‘ you’ll not only find round-up articles like ours but also several results for Ultimate Performance specifically.

If you Google “best gym Manchester” which is how we found you guys! UP make most of the other lists, if you wanna read a few to get more of a sense this might help – we didn’t pay for these they happened naturally.

From personalised UP free weights, high-end equipment and other little touches that let you know they mean business, they give you everything you need to transform your body or lay the foundations for lifelong health.

The only question left is are you ready and how seriously are you willing to take it?

UP fitness gym manchester reviews
Credit: Ultimate Performance

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Ultimate Performance is the gym in Manchester to join if you want to stick to your plan and achieve whatever goals you set yourself, from fat loss to muscle building to general health, with some of the world’s best personal trainers coaching from here.

The transformation photos of previous and current U.P clients speak for themselves – you will get results here.

You can find out more or enquire HERE.

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

Featured Images — Ultimate Performance (supplied)

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