Marcus Rashford has issued a statement in response to a viral video showing his interaction with fans after a match earlier this week.
The 24-year-old Wythenshawe-born footballer claims that there are “two sides to every story” and that “emotion got the better of me” during the moment when he was filmed after his Manchester United side were beaten 1-0 by Atletico Madrid at Old Trafford on Tuesday in the last 16 of the Champions League.
In the fan-recorded video, which has since gone viral on social media, footage appears to show Rashford walking past fans outside the ground, hearing something shouted at him, and then trying to head towards them before being ushered away by security.
Although what was said during the interaction is somewhat unclear, Rashford seems to make a gesture with his hand to the fans as he walks away.
Many have claimed Rashford stuck his middle finger up at the group of fans.
The day after the match and following the video of the interaction racking up tens of thousands of views online, many have not only taken to critiquing Rashford for his supposed actions during the clip, but also the level of his performance once he came onto the pitch in the second half, and questioning whether the footballer is in the right place both mentally and physically since returning from injury.
Rashford has scored just five times in this season after making his return from shoulder surgery in October, and has started only two of United’s last seven games in all competitions.
Now, he has had his say.
Taking to Twitter to issue a statement on the video, Rashford denied that he had raised his middle finger to the fans lined up outside Old Trafford, and clarified the words that he used during the confrontation.
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His statement read: “A video can paint a thousand words and in this case lead to inaccurate info being shared on social media.
“Guys for weeks I’ve been heckled, threatened, questioned and last night my emotion got the better of me. I’m a human being. Reading and hearing that stuff about yourself every day it wears you down. No one is more critical of my performance than me. But what you see in this video lacks context. I had been heckled from the minute I stepped foot outside the ground, abuse not just aimed at my football.”
He added that he believed people were just “looking for a reaction from me,” and admits that he “should have walked straight passed and ignored it”.
“I want to clarify two things,” he continued.
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“The first being what I actually said to the man throwing abuse at me which was ‘come over here and say it to my face’, a fact security can back up. Secondly, the fact I used my forefinger to direct the fan to ‘come over and say it to my face’. I did not gesture with my middle finger.
“I’m not entitled. This isn’t ego. I’m upset. I’m disappointed. And in that moment it was silly but I was being human.”
Featured Image – Instagram (@manchesterunited)
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Music charity launches exclusive giveaway after naming Liam Gallagher as newest ambassador
Danny Jones
A local grassroots music charity is holding a special giveaway of exclusive Oasis x adidas Originals merch to celebrate Liam Gallagher becoming their latest ambassador.
The legendary British frontman and global rock icon is no stranger to teaming up with charities, but this latest project is seeing him focus on his hometown and the Manc music scene more than ever.
Brighter Sound, who are based right here in Manchester city centre, announced the one and only Liam Gallagher as their latest collaborator on Monday, 1 June, but that’s not all.
As mentioned above, they’re also holding a prize draw to raise funds for the cause, with some special kicks up for grabs – and they’re a model that became collectors’ items almost instantly.
The local music development organisation, which has been helping support young artists and aspiring creatives for more than two and a half decades at this point, revealed Liam would be teaming up not only to help promote fellow Mancunians in and around the music industry.
But there’s still much more to it than that.
With this special fundraising initiative also on the table – as are a limited edition pair of his sold-out adidas Achille SPZL trainers (including the extremely rare and highly sought-after Japanese-exclusive version) as part of the giveaway – this marks a commitment to supporting up-and-coming talent.
All proceeds from the charitable prize draw will go towards a crucial pot of money that will then go directly towards backing rising musicians across the region.
In case you haven’t seen the shoes in question, both Liam and his elder sibling Noel teamed up with adidas Originals during the Oasis Live ’25 merch boom and reunion tour phenomenon as a whole, each creating their own special ‘Spezial’ design. You can see more of them down below.
They obviously flew off the shelves rather quickly.
Speaking in an official statement, the 53-year-old said of the fresh partnership: “I’m honoured to be an Ambassador for Brighter Sound and support the new generation of creatives launch their music projects. We need more help for the arts, especially for the working class.”
Getting to work in and around his native territory across Greater Manchester will no doubt be an added bonus for the Burnage-born Gallagher brother.
As for Brighter Sound, the organisation’s director, Kate Lowes, added: “It’s a real honour to be working with Liam and his team on this special prize draw, and to welcome him as an ambassador for Brighter Sound. Manchester is an incredible place for music – and Liam and Oasis are a huge part of that story.
“This partnership reflects a shared commitment to making sure that more amazing talent continues to grow from the city and find its place on the world stage.”
For anyone looking to enter the prize draw and help support Brighter Sound’s work across Greater Manchester, you can do so right HERE.
Featured Images — Brighter Sound (supplied)/Jonnysmirth (via Wikimedia Commons)
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Four North West towns named among Britain’s top 10 seaside ‘property hotspots’ for 2026
Emily Sergeant
Four North West towns have been named among Britain’s top 10 ‘property hotspots’ by the sea for 2026.
You may already be familiar that, every year, leading property listing website Rightmove takes a look at all the cities, towns, and residential areas across the UK where house prices saw a significant hike on average last year, and puts together a top 10 list.
The ‘hotspot’ table is made up of a variety of locations where prices rose the most, when compared to the end of the year prior.
But now, they’ve done a special seaside version too.
Of course, “Manchester‘s got everything except a beach” so it won’t come as a surprise that no Greater Manchester towns are featured on this list, but that isn’t the case for the rest of the North West though, as Merseyside and Cumbria are well represented.
In fact, it’s actually the North West that’s taken the top spot, as Bootle in Merseyside has been named Britain’s top seaside house price hotspot, with asking prices having risen 11% in the past year alone, and that’s even with an average house price still way below the national average at £141,680.
Four North West towns have been named among Britain’s top 10 seaside ‘property hotspots’ for 2026 / Credit: James Feaver | Gabe Fender (via Unsplash)
Second place can be found just 10 minutes further up the coast in the town of Crosby, where the average asking prices are up 9% compared to last year, reaching £330,900.
Wallasey comes in at sixth place on the list, with house prices rising 7% to £200,753 on average, while Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria ranks at number nine with house prices increasing 6% to an average of £185,169.
Rightmove says the data shows that coastal living remains ‘relatively accessible’ in several areas, with nine of the top 10 fastest growing seaside locations still priced below the national average, and across more than 100 coastal areas analysed, more than 80% also have an average asking price below the national average (£378,304).
“The fastest-growing seaside markets this year show that demand for coastal homes in many areas remains resilient, even as overall price growth across the UK stays more modest,” commented Colleen Babcock, who is Rightmove’s property expert.
“While some locations are seeing strong price increases, there are still many areas where living by the sea is more affordable, giving buyers a wider range of options depending on their budget.”
Emily Sergeant -
17th March 2022 
