There was a lot of action going on off the pitch at Elland Road last night, with both Kyle Walker and Pep Guardiola causing chaos.
The pair both brought some light relief to the Premier League clash between Manchester City and Leeds by behaving like toddlers.
At one point, Kyle Walker had broken what looked like a very expensive piece of camera equipment he kept playing with.
At another, Pep was toddling around in his giant puffer jacket like someone just learning to walk.
And at another, poor Kalvin Phillips was pulling silly faces as Leeds fans chanted fat jokes at him.
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What on earth was in the water in Leeds last night?
Kyle Walker breaking a camera last night, to the amusement of onlookers. Credit: Amazon Prime Video
The madness started when Walker tried to turn round the camera clamped to the roof of the Man City dugout, which seemed to be blocking his view.
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But rather than turn it round, he accidentally snapped it clean off its perch, then quietly placed it on the ground and looked away. You can practically hear him doing a nonchalant whistle in his head.
A technician had to run out and fix it at half-time after what’s now been dubbed ‘Walker vs Bench cam’, ready for him to just stare down the camera for ages like a ‘lovable grandparent trying to work FaceTime’.
Once the defender had stopped smashing stuff, it was over to Man City manager Pep Guardiola to start wreaking havoc.
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He had a momentary temper tantrum (despite City’s 3-1 victory) and kicked a water bottle, sending it flying into the assembled Leeds dugout, who were just minding their own business.
Realising he’d hit someone in the face with a bottle, Pep clapped his hands to his head and trotted straight over to apologise. Cute.
He was also welcomed home to his former club ground with chants of ‘You fat b*stard’.
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He took it like a champ from his former team’s fans though, laughing along and puffing out his cheeks.
And Pep soon corrected his comment, joking: “He has the perfect body, so sexy!”
Featured image: Amazon Prime Video
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.
Daisy Jackson -
29th December 2022 
