Man United made it eight games unbeaten with their win over West Ham on Sunday and while there was plenty of action in the game, one moment, in particular, was all anyone could talk about.
Cristiano Ronaldo blanking Gary Neville.
Yes, while Marcus Rashford scored his landmark 100th goal in the 1-0 win, it was this moment with the Sky Sports pundits that went viral as Ronaldo greeted everyone but his former teammate.
As you can see, while Neville brushed off the awkward moment – joking that he was “off the Christmas card list” and ignoring Ronaldo fan number one Piers Morgan’s attempts to rile him up – if we’ve learned anything about CR7 over the past season or so, he has form for taking things to heart.
Sky colleague and Monday Night Football co-host Jamie Carragher wasted no time in quipping “welcome to blanked by Ronaldo club”, having suffered similar treatment earlier this season.
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It also led to a healthy selection of memes:
When you owe someone money and tell them you haven't got it, but then you see them in the pub 😂https://t.co/gic2MBfPPc
While most will have seen the numerous memes, some might still be scratching their head as to why Ronaldo blanked Neville in the first place.
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For those who didn’t catch Neville’s thoughts on Ronaldo refusing to warm up and storming down the tunnel after being snubbed to start against Spurs earlier in the month, the former United fullback said the team is “better without him” and suggested that they should consider selling him in January.
Speaking on Sky after the 1-1 draw with Chelsea, Neville said: “there aren’t many Manchester United fans who would now have Ronaldo in their starting eleven… they score more goals without him and they win more points without him.”
While the stats do back up his point, the 37-year-old was clearly angered by them, especially given some of the important goals he has scored — including the hattrick he scored the last time they played Spurs, hence his obvious frustration at being benched.
Despite playing with him as a United teammate for six seasons during his first stint and playing a big role in helping him mature as a professional, Neville now believes Ronaldo has left Erik ten Hag with “no other option”, noting that is the second time Ronaldo has left Old Trafford” before full-time.
The 47-year-old concluded that this sort of behaviour is “unacceptable”, no matter the profile of the player, and urged the manager to either end the beef or at least sort “a truce to get to the World Cup“.
While the Dutch coach seems to have calmed things down in the dressing room, it might take more than a nice Christmas present from Gary to mend fences with his old mate Ronny.
Man City fan jailed after causing £10k damage to a police vehicle following Champions League victory
Emily Sergeant
A Manchester City fan has been jailed for his part in large-scale disorder following the club’s Champions League victory.
The court heard how, following Manchester City’s Champions League Final win over Inter Milan in Istanbul in Turkey on Saturday 10 June 2023, jubilant fans flocked to the streets of Manchester city centre for late-night celebrations.
The large influx of fans in high spirits prompted a police response to ‘ensure public safety’ and ‘prevent any public disorder’, according to Greater Manchester Police (GMP).
However, the disorder did begin to escalate despite police presence.
A number of fans, including 22-year-old Leon Blackett, scaled a police vehicle and proceeded to jump up and down on it, which subsequently caused more than £10,000 worth of damage, and resulted in the vehicle having to be written off.
#JAILED | Leon Blackett (14/01/2003) of Craigmore Avenue, has been been handed a three-month jail term for causing £10k worth of damage to a police vehicle following the club's Champions League win in 2023, along with 41 months for other offences.
Following the disorder, an investigation was launched by GMP’s City Centre policing, with officers obtaining social media and CCTV footage that helped them to identify those responsible.
Blackett admitted to the offence, after he was arrested on Thursday 19 October 2023.
Following admitting to the offence, Blackett was sentenced to 44 months in prison – a three-month jail term for this football-related offence, along with 41 months for possession of a bladed article and a domestic related communications offence.
He has also been given a seven-year Football Banning Order, commencing on the day Blackett received his sentence.
“The actions by Blackett in the wake of Manchester City’s historic Champions League Final victory were completely unacceptable,” commented PC Matt Ford, from GMP’s Specialist Operations Planning Unit.
“This is a timely reminder to those who commit crimes while following the football in another country, we will seek prosecutions for unacceptable behaviour.”
Featured Image – GMP
Sport
Six Nations to stay free-to-air as broadcasters strike new TV deal
Danny Jones
Good news for rugby fans as the Guinness Six Nations is set to remain free-to-air for the foreseeable future following a new deal being struck between the competition and its current broadcasters.
With the 2025 tournament approaching its conclusion, the organisers are already looking ahead to the next year and how to contest will be marketed, with many predicting the rights to be snapped up by a major sporting channel.
Fortunately, however, the Six Nations‘ present coverage partners have managed to keep the games as part of the current TV license package after striking a new four-year deal.
The agreement between BBC and ITV, who air all of the annual fixtures between them at the moment, will see the pair host the matches until 2029 at the very least.
As mentioned, it was thought that broadcasters and streaming platforms like TNT Sports might secure the licensing for at least part of the tournament as they continue to expand their large and varied service but, for now, UK coverage is staying right where it is.
Under the new contract, ITV will show 10 games per season, including every England match, while the BBC will air the remaining five fixtures.
BBC will also host all Wales and Scotland home games bar when the two nations play England at Murrayfieldand the Principality Stadiums, respectively.
Better still, not only will the men’s competition be staying free-to-air but BBC will continue to show every game during the Women’s Six Nations as the interest in female rugby continues to grow.
In fact, it’s having quite a boom here in Greater Manchester on its own.
Greater Mancs making strides for the next generation.
This year’s tournament has been as blockbuster and nail-baiting as ever, with England still in with a chance of winning the whole thing if they beat Wales with a bonus point – provided France fail to beat Scotland in the final game.
England’s last game gets underway at 4:45pm and it’s all to play for.
You can find all the best places to watch the remainder of the action down below:
Danny Jones -
31st October 2022 
