Former Manchester United star Jesse Lingard has finally found himself a new club as he is set to join South Korean side FC Seoul on a free, pending a full medical, but many football fans were left scratching their heads after he was presented with a flute after touching downat the airport.
Lingard has been a free agent in the transfer market ever since his contract at Nottingham Forest expired last summer and despite reportedly receiving interest from more than 20 clubs in that time, the ex-Man United midfielder has now decided to try out life in the K-League.
While many will be wondering why he chose FC Seoul, in particular — especially when he had been linked with the likes of Lazio, Everton and his former loan club West Ham for the longest time — even more might be raising an eyebrow as to why exactly a fan gifted him a flute when arrived in South Korea.
Well, obviously, there is some context behind it.
Jesse Lingard received Danso, a traditional Korean wind instrument, as a gift from a fan at Incheon International Airport😂 #kleaguepic.twitter.com/8usj420rYt
As explained by Korea Football News on X, the flute is actually a traditional Korean wind instrument made out of bamboo called a ‘danso’ and as for why was given it (besides being a token of the new culture he is embracing) you’d have to go back to his time at United and West Ham.
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For those who remember his in-form periods for the Red Devils and purple patch for the Hammers, Lingard was well known for whipping all manner of amusing celebrations, from the moonwalk and making the now official ‘J-Lingz’ logo with his hands to, you guessed it, playing the flute.
He enjoyed the dance and flute playing gesture on more than a few occasions during his time across the two clubs and given its humorous nature, not to mention his popularity and Premier League profile at the time, the celebration went on to be mimicked by others and even feature in multiple FIFA games.
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All that being said, while it might look a bit random that he was given a woodwind instrument at first glance, it’s actually not that bizarre when you look into it — even if the whole thing did start out as a nod to St Patrick’s Day away back in 2017. We expect he’ll be whipping out the flute if he scores on debut.
JESSE LINGARD was mobbed by fans as he arrived in South Korea to complete his FC Seoul transfer… and was bizarrely handed a flute.
GALATASARAY have signed Premier League duo Forest Serge Aurier and Fulham Carlos Vinicius on loan AFTER transfer window shut pic.twitter.com/4Ujii0rNzj
Soon to pen an apparent two-year deal with the club after passing the first part of his medical and his official unveiling imminent, the 31-year-old is expected to join up with FC Seoul right away.
Although there are few concrete details surrounding the exact terms of the deal, it has been reported that the Warrington-born footballer will sign his contract “within the next 24 hours” and is rumoured to have been promised a “lucrative salary”.
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Linagrd’s signing will also likely serve as a bit of a marquee coup for the K-League, similar to the raft of senior players that have recently joined Saudi Arabia and could potentially attract more talents from Europe to make the switch later in their careers.
🚨🇰🇷 Jesse Lingard has completed first part of medical tests on Monday as new Seoul FC player.
Final part will be completed today ahead of signature on Wednesday.
Lingard will join Seoul FC on two year contract in the next 24h, if all goes to plan. pic.twitter.com/68OiTC1vD4
Two Manchester Basketball players have been named in the SLB Team of the Season for 2025/26
Danny Jones
A pair of Manchester Basketball players have been named in the latest SLB Team of the Season for 2025/26.
The most recent UK Super League Basketball (SLB) campaign is set to wrap up this month, with the playoffs taking place down in the capital, but there are other awards to be handed out before then.
It remains to be seen how ‘The Final Four’ phase will play out at The O2 in London on 17 May, but we can definitely take joy in moments like this.
Announced on Thursday, 7 May, Manchester Basketball confirmed that duo Max Jones and Jordan Johnson have joined the rest of the league’s roster of the best players this term.
As detailed on the club website, “Max has averaged 17.4 points in the SLB in 32 games – he’s been a starter for the franchise and was also named in the ENBL All-Star Five in Germany last month.
“Jordan averaged 14.1 points and 5.1 assists in 30 games in the SLB, had a stellar European campaign and hit 30 pts in just over 27 minutes in the SLB Cup Final.”
Commenting on social media, one fan wrote: “Both JJ and PJ have been so great at the PG spot all year. I feel this is a joint award for them both, but they can only fill one spot for the accolade. If we wanna be a serious club to build upon year on year, JJ also needs to be in an MCR jersey next year.
“We absolutely have the pieces to build around. JJ’s nerve is sooooo cool under pressure. You can just tell they wanna loft a meaningful trophy, and it’s gonna happen if we as a club plan and build the way we need to.”
Plenty of supporters have also stressed the importance of making sure that the board tie down the likes of Jones and other big talents this summer; the rest of the Molten All-League Team of the Season for 2025/26 can be found below.
It’s also worth noting that teammate Tim Adetukasi and women’s team star Irene Oboavwoduo have each been named in the SLB’s British Team of the Year in their respective divisions for 2026.
Writing in a club statement reflecting on a great week of recognition for the resurgent club, General Manager Dominique Allen said: “We are really proud to be a club flying the flag for British players.
Both Tim and Irene have made a real impact on and off the court. We’re really happy for both of them that they are getting some well-deserved recognition.”
Well done to all the MCR stars who are helping get the franchise back on its feet following such a major rebrand across the board.
Here’s looking forward to another promising and productive year for Manchester Basketball.
Manchester City win first Women’s Super League title in a decade
Danny Jones
After a decade of hope and hard work, Manchester City have finally won the Women’s Super League once again in a huge moment for the local club.
Lifting not just their first division title in 10 years, but only their second WSL trophy since the modern female football era began in 2010, it felt like only a matter of time to many supporters.
Ending a six-year Chelsea supremacy, this is also manager Andrée Jeglertz’s first at the helm of Man City’s women’s team, who arrived at the club with a strong silverware record at the start of this season.
These were the scenes at home base as one key result sealed their status as champions:
— Manchester City Women (@ManCityWomen) May 6, 2026
City Women secured the WSL title following third-placed Arsenal’s 1-1 draw against Brighton on Wednesday evening.
They even managed to do so with a game to spare and a six-point gap over the west London club, which has won so much over the past few years.
Speaking in an interview with club media after confirmation of the win, captain and Euro 2025-winning Lionesses defender, Alex Greenwood, said: “[It feels] absolutely incredible. “A moment – we as a team, me personally – us as a club has waited so long for”.
“An incredible moment, it’s an incredible feeling. I’m so glad we got to spend this moment together as a group. Just an absolutely incredible feeling.”
With fans watching both at home, along with the first team themselves, the celebrations have already begun as the team shared a look back at how they got here.
You can see the recap posted on social media in full below.
Commenting on his latest accolade, the Swedish head coach added in a full club statement: “There’s never been doubt about the talent in the group, but there is something else about talking about being winners and champions. We started that early, and we believed in that. That’s led us through this year.
“It hasn’t been easy; it’s been hard work every day, but we had a strong belief that we could be sitting here in May and be champions. That is the first thing, and we definitely deserve it.”
Congratulations to the Cityzens on a well-deserved and long-awaited WSL title; could this be the start of another sporting dynasty of dominance over in East Manchester? Only time will tell…
In other news around the Etihad Campus, the women’s, EDS and academy team stadium is also set to host the final of the FA Youth Cup later this month.
Danny Jones -
7th February 2024 
