Sport

Puma and Man Utd star Brandon Williams unveil Worker Bee inspired boots

Puma have launched a new edition of the Future 5.1 football boot inspired by Manchester and the iconic worker bee symbol.

Kate Jackson Kate Jackson - 17th July 2020
Pro:Direct x PUMA City Pack

Puma have launched a new edition of the Future 5.1 football boots inspired by Manchester and the city’s iconic worker bee symbol.

The boots are an exclusive collaboration with Pro:Direct Soccer and will honour the famous work ethic of Mancunian workers both past and present.

All of the other features of the Future 5.1 boots will remain, including the customisable lacing system, but this new edition features a black and yellow theme and ‘MCR’ printed on the sole of the boot alongside a honeycomb pattern.

The boots will also contain the worker bee on the heel of the boot.

Pro:Direct x PUMA City Pack

The worker bee is an enduring symbol of the city; born out of the Industrial Revolution when Manchester was abuzz with mass production activity.

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Man United left-back Brandon Williams has helped launch the boots and the rest of the City Pack collection.

Williams, who is Mancunian born-and-bred, growing up just outside of the city centre, will debut the boots during United’s FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea this Sunday (19 July), should the 19-year-old feature in the game.

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Pro:Direct x PUMA City Pack

The City Pack collection also includes a t-shirt and hoodie, as well as a Worker Bee shirt with ‘A City United’ printed on the back of the shirt. The phrase is a reference to the times in which Manchester’s football rivals, United and City, have joined together in times of adversity.

Fancy getting your hands on the collection? Items are available to pre-order on prodirectsoccer.com.

Sport

Wrexham AFC announce Manchester United friendly with hilarious Sir Alex Ferguson video

Danny Jones Danny Jones Man United Wrexham friendly Sir Alex Ferguson video

Manchester United confirmed that they would be playing Wrexham AFC as part of their US tour on Tuesday, but the Welsh club’s Hollywood owners had a much better way of announcing the pre-season friendly.

While the Red Devils put out a simple statement revealing that one of their games would come against the resurgent Red Dragons, Wrexham‘s celebrity owners in Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney once again decided to put their acting to good use and inform their own fans of the upcoming match.

So, what’s the best way for a National League club to announce a massive fixture with one of the biggest sporting franchises in the world? Well, ideal scenario: getting a United legend and perhaps the greatest football manager of all time to help you do it would have quite the impact. Surely not?…

Yes, somehow, Rob and Ryan managed to convince Sir Alex Ferguson to be in the video and while they’re the ones known for their funny bones, it’s the gaffer who shines as the star of the show.

Manchester United vs Wrexham AFC, announced by the Sir Alex Ferguson. What a time to be alive.

So good. We almost thought we were staring at a still image at one point and the gag was going to be along the lines of him not even being there while they wonder, ‘is he frozen’?, but the punchline was the perfect level of dry for Scotsman who is literally known for his infamous ‘hairdryer’.

Now, we’ve seen plenty of parodies and funny videos since the acting, writing and comedy-producing duo first bought the club back in November 2020, but I think it’s fair to say we never expected to see Sir Alex in a sketch.

Obviously, we’ve seen countless commercial ads involving United down the year working — including that time the players met Deadpool himself (remember that?) — but we can’t remember the legendary coach ever getting involved with these kinds of shenanigans before.

Suppose retirement has given him the free time to focus on the things he enjoys: i.e. more United.

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As detailed in the video and United’s tour teaser at the start of the week, the two teams will be playing in a pre-season friendly at the Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego on July 25 later this year.

Not only will there be plenty of American Reds piling through the doors this summer, but there’s also sure to be a fair few transatlantic Wrexham supporters too, as the story of the club’s takeover has captured the attention of millions, especially after their hugely popular documentary series.

To make things even cooler, it isn’t the only connection between the Devils and the Dragons we’ve seen of late either, as former United keeper and Premier League veteran Ben Foster came out of retirement to sign for Wrexham 18 years on from his previous loan spell. What a coup

Reynolds even popped up in his latest matchday vlog. Wrexham really is one of the strangest sporting stories we’ve witnessed in quite some time.

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

Featured Image — Wrexham AFC

Sport

Manchester United reject offers for Mason Greenwood as rep says he ‘should be allowed to move forward with his young life’

Danny Jones Danny Jones Greenwood offers Turkish clubs United return

Manchester United have reportedly rejected a number of offers for Mason Greenwood as the club continues their internal investigation into his behaviour.

The club have reportedly received a number of offers for the young forward from Turkish teams in recent weeks and months while Greenwood has been suspended from playing or training. He has yet to return to the sport after charges of attempted rape, controlling and coercive behaviour and assault occasioning actual bodily harm were dropped.

The charges handed down in January 2022 were ultimately dropped last month when key witnesses withdrew, more than a year on from the incident that was widely circulated on social media.

Now, following a behind-the-scenes feature by The Athletic and ‘new material’ leading the Crown Prosecution Service to drop the case for the foreseeable, it seems United are now the only party still investigating Greenwood, with his own team and figures around the club pushing for a resolution.

Speaking to Laurie Whitwell as part of the piece, one of Greenwood’s representatives argued that there is “no real substance” to the allegations, them “a mix of old news, speculation, half-truths and completely untrue claims.”

He went on to say, “Mason is 21, he has been cleared and should be allowed the opportunity to rebuild and move forward with his young life.”

Another source is also said to have told the outlet that the youngster has been fundamentally changed by the experience, insisting that he “would run through a brick wall” to be back playing at United.

As for the club’s stance, it remains to be seen what their final decision on his future will be, but it was reported earlier this month that a potential return is still “firmly under consideration” and his number 11 shirt has not yet been vacated as many would have expected if he was set to move on.

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On the other hand, the article goes on to detail questions surrounding Greenwood’s conduct and general attitude during his relatively short time as a senior player too, the suggestion being that he was slacking in training because “he knew he was a good player”.

His attendance at Carrington is said to have been raised as an issue on more than one occasion and then-manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær often covered for training sessions and games he missed after failing to turn up to the team hotel for “unexplained absences”.

Another source who watched him play aged just 16 also went on to reveal that Bradford-born academy product “wasn’t shy about telling someone they were s***”, apparently even calling out Cristiano Ronaldo as “dead [finished]” when he was still at Real Madrid.

Greenwood played over 100 senior games for United and was widely considered one of the brightest young prospects in England, let alone the club, but the career trajectory he looked to be on is widely different from the problematic position he finds himself in now, regardless of any offers from abroad.

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

Featured Image — Manchester United (Twitter)

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