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    I’m a League One star targeting Wembley glory with Charlton in play-off final – but I’m also training to be a PILOT

    WILL MANNION has been training to become an aeroplane pilot.And the keeper hopes his Charlton team will be flying in tomorrow’s play-off final against Leyton Orient – before landing a place in the Championship.Will Mannion is targeting promotion to the Championship with CharltonCredit: GettyThe keeper is a pilot in his spare time away from the pitchCredit: AlamyThe 27-year-old has already done 15 hours of flying lessons and is a third of the way through being able to fly solo.Mannion told SunSport: “I was 14 when I took my first lesson. It was something I was going to do properly if football didn’t work but thankfully it did.”Now it’s something I want to do after football. I’m going to do more lessons so I can get my Private Pilot Licence in the next couple of years.”I’ve been flying Cessna 172 planes, which are like a four-seater washing machine with wings! I’ve got a fair way to go yet.READ MORE ON FOOTBALL”When I was at my last club Cambridge, I flew out of RAF Duxford, which was awesome because you would have Spitfires taking off in front of you!”It’s hard to describe the feeling of flying a plane. I would liken it to riding a bike in the sky!”It’s intuitive when you’re up there with the controls.”It’s not as scary as people think. It’s fun, especially when ­taking off and landing.Most read in FootballBEST ONLINE CASINOS – TOP SITES IN THE UK”Although taking off and landing are the two hardest things because that is where things can most likely go wrong.”But I’m never frightened, you just have to know what you’re doing.Ex-Rangers star Greg Docherty sends message to his dad following Charlton Play-Off semi-final victory”The plan is to get more lessons locally. Biggin Hill isn’t too far away so will probably fly out of there.”Mannion cannot pinpoint why he fell in love with aviation but he then took it up in case a football career did not pan out.And now he is contemplating a career in the sky when his days in football are over.He added: “The next stage for me is to go out solo. I’ve got to do around 45 hours to get my licence.”The great thing is it’s not something you need to do by a certain deadline, you can just chip away at it in your own time.It was something I was going to do properly if football didn’t work but thankfully it did.Will Mannion”There are various exams — theory and practical — you must do. Then I can be in a position to just take a plane out for leisure at the weekend or on my days off.”But that is only the first stage.”There are quite a few more exams before you can fly a plane for easyJet.”At this stage I don’t know how far I’d go with it but might consider working in the commercial airline industry one day!”Back on the ground, Charlton have the chance to return to the Championship after five years stuck in League One.Mannion has played a crucial role in helping the Addicks reach this Wembley final – having kept a club-record TWENTY-FIVE clean sheets this season.Not bad for a keeper who only joined last summer from Cambridge.He said: “To have played in as many games, finish fourth, play like we have as a team and keep as many clean sheets has been massive.”It’s not something I predicted when I came but as the season progressed you could see we were a solid defensive unit and it paid off in terms of our league position and reaching a Wembley play-off final.It will be surreal but it’s just another game. We cannot afford to get carried away by the occasion and romance of it.Mannion on Wembley”The clean sheets aren’t just down to me. It starts from the front in terms of how we play, we’re a high-pressing team.”That transcends throughout the team.”The lads in front of me have been outstanding all season. They’ve limited what I’ve had to do to a minimum.”Mannion is establishing himself as a No 1 after a lot of years doing the hard yards.He was a young pro at Hull – rubbing shoulders with the likes of Harry Maguire, Jarrod Bowen and Andy Robertson – after being signed by Steve Bruce.He had loan spells in non-league with Aldershot and Kidderminster before a season with Cypriot team Pathos having struggled to find a club at home.Charlton’s boss Nathan Jones is aiming for promotion on SundayCredit: Shutterstock EditorialHe said: “It was during the Covid spell. I couldn’t even find a club to look at me, never mind sign me. So I had this opportunity to go abroad and I gave it go.”As a life experience it was good to see a different culture – although on the football side I didn’t get a lot of opportunities.”A move to Cambridge brought 29 League One appearances over three years before what has turned out to be his best season yet at the Addicks.Mannion has only previously been to Wembley as a spectator — watching Crystal Palace beat Watford in the 2013 Championship play-off final and the 2009 FA Cup final when Chelsea saw off Everton 2-1.He said: “It’s one thing imagining yourself playing there and quite another actually thinking you will play there.Read More on The Sun”It will be surreal but it’s just another game. We cannot afford to get carried away by the occasion and romance of it.”We’ve one more game to achieve what we set out to do – win promotion.” More

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    Gary Neville BANNED by Premier League club for last game of season with Sky Sports left fuming at decision

    GARY NEVILLE was BANNED from commentating on Nottingham Forest’s Champions League qualification decider with Chelsea as his feud with the City Ground club plunged to new depths.In a shock decision, Forest told Sky that former England defender Neville would be “denied” accreditation for Sunday’s crunch clash.Gary Neville has been banned from Nottingham Forest’s showdown with ChelseaCredit: PAThe Sky pundit called out Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis (right) for invading the pitch after a game against LeicesterCredit: PAForest are preparing for their biggest game in decadesCredit: GettyIt came just two weeks after Neville slammed Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis’ “absolutely scandalous” on-pitch row with boss Nuno Espirito Santo in the final minutes of the 2-2 draw with Leicester on May 11.Marinakis was furious that Forest’s medical staff did not recognise the extent of striker Taiwo Awoniyi’s injury when the Nigerian collided with a post.Awoniyi was subsequently placed in an induced coma after undergoing surgery for a ruptured intestine.When he saw the confrontation, Sky co-commentator Neville said: “What the Forest owner has just done on the pitch over at the City Ground is absolutely scandalous.READ MORE ON FOOTBALL”If I was Nuno, I’d be going and having a very strong word with him, because that is an absolute scandal.”He’s just qualified them for a European competition, and from where that club’s been, and to be remonstrated with on that pitch in front of the club’s fans is an absolute joke.”Neville then added on X: “Scandalous from that Forest owner. Nuno should go and negotiate his exit tonight with him! The Forest fans, players and manager do not deserve that.”Forest hit back, using the club’s social media accounts to implicitly accuse Neville of having pushed “fake news online”, adding: “Baseless and ill-informed outrage for the purposes of personal social media traction serves no one – least of all the injured player.Most read in FootballBEST ONLINE CASINOS – TOP SITES IN THE UK”We call on these influential voices to show the same respect for player welfare that they often demand from others. Let concern come before commentary. “At Nottingham Forest, we believe the mental and physical well-being of our players and coaching staff must always take precedence — over media narratives, inflammatory judgements, and certainly over self-promotion.”Jamie Carragher in huge row with Gary Neville over Arsenal title prediction and striker claimForest also insisted there had been no confrontation between Marinakis and the manager.But now the club have taken the row one stage further by banning Neville from the City Ground where he was due to be working on Sunday.Sky said that Neville had been “confirmed to co-commentate live from the City Ground” when the game was chosen as the channel’s first selection for this weekend’s final weekend games.A spokesman for the channel said: “Sky Sports was subsequently informed by Nottingham Forest that Gary Neville would be denied accreditation to the match.”This was an unprecedented and unwelcome step.“As a result, Sky Sports has decided to revise its production plans and has taken the decision to present the game from Sky Studios in west London.”Personally, I think it’s disappointing that a great club like Nottingham Forest have been reduced to making such a decisionGary NevilleInstagramSky chiefs are clearly furious with Forest and backing Neville, who has chosen not to be part of the broadcast at all after being prevented from fulfilling his duties at the City Ground.It is expected he will be replaced as co-commentator with Sky choosing to still work the match coverage from the ground even though their show will now be presented from Osterley rather than Nottingham.SunSport have contracted Forest for comment.Neville has since responded with a statement on his Instagram page.He wrote: “I was contacted by Sky Sports earlier on in the week and told that I would be commentating at the City Ground on Sunday for the Nottingham Forest v Chelsea match.”I was informed yesterday by Sky Sports that Nottingham Forest would not give me an accreditation or access to the stadium as a co-commentator.”I’ve had no choice but to withdraw from the coverage.”I’ve dished out my fair share of criticism and praise in the last 14 years of doing this job and have never come close to this unprecedented action.”Personally, I think it’s disappointing that a great club like Nottingham Forest have been reduced to making such a decision.Read More on The Sun”Whilst they have every right to choose who they let into their own stadium, it’s symptomatic of things that have happened over the last 12 months with the club.”I wish the coaching staff, players and fans of the club all the best in their quest to achieve Champions League football.” More

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    Tom Lockyer admits pain at not being offered a new Luton contract as he targets return to football after horror collapse

    TOM LOCKYER has revealed he was hurt when Luton did not offer him a new contract this month.But he told SunSport he is hoping to make a miraculous return next season following two collapses due to a heart condition.Tom Lockyer is looking for a new club after being let go by Luton TownCredit: GettyThe 30-year-old hasn’t played since a cardiac arrest on the field in December 2023Credit: GettyLockyer was Luton’s captain and played over 100 times for the HattersCredit: AlamyThe centre-half, 30, has not played since suffering a cardiac arrest in Luton’s Premier League game at Bournemouth in December 2023, where he was technically dead for 2min 40sec before medics resuscitated him.That came seven months after he was taken to hospital when he collapsed during the Hatters’ Championship play-off final win against Coventry at Wembley.He has since had a defibrillator fitted like Manchester United star Christian Eriksen and former Red Devil Daley Blind.But after returning to training this season, he suffered further setbacks due to ankle injuries that needed surgery.READ MORE ON FOOTBALLYet the Wales international is confident he WILL play next term.Lockyer said: “I’d love to have stayed at Luton and felt hurt when I got news I wasn’t getting a new contract after what I’d done for the club.”But it’s a business and I haven’t played for 18 months.”I love Luton. I’ve enjoyed so many great memories there.Most read in FootballBEST ONLINE CASINOS – TOP SITES IN THE UK”The last year has been frustrating. I have to get through two reserve games to get my heart signed off as fit to play but then two days before the first one I rolled my ankle and needed surgery.”Then I was pushing to get back before the end of January and I pushed too hard, too soon and needed to redo the operation.Tom Lockyer shows defibrillator fitted into his chest after Luton captain suffered cardiac arrest in Bournemouth clash”I will get fit with my ankle, get my two ‘heart games’ ticked off and see where the land lies.”“If Luton like the shape I come back in then brilliant, maybe we could continue something.”Since Lockyer last played for the club they have suffered back-to-back relegations to League One.And he believes had he been fit, then both may have been avoided.Lockyer was club captain and played 102 league games for the Hatters before his cardiac arrest.If I was fit, especially this season, there’s no way on earth we’d have been relegated.Tom LockyerHe said: “If I was fit, especially this season, there’s no way on earth we’d have been relegated.”That’s not me being big-headed. I’ve been in that changing room, I know what I can bring, so that’s the sad reality.”Lockyer’s one huge regret from his Luton career is not celebrating his goal against Sunderland at Kenilworth Road that sealed their place in the 2023 play-off final.He added: “I was straight down the tunnel saying, ‘The job isn’t done’, whereas a few other lads just celebrated that moment.”Then I go to Wembley, end up missing all the celebrations there, the trip after, the bus tour, everything that goes with it, so that out of everything cuts me deep.”I watched the rest of the play-off final on my phone in the ambulance then on the hospital TV, extra-time and penalties.If I don’t get back to professional level, I’ll find a local team somewhere, that’s for sure. If anyone needs a centre-back, hit me up!Tom Lockyer”If I do get back playing I’ll be celebrating the little wins.”This weekend’s play-off finals will kick off one minute later than normal, starting today at 3.01pm with Sheffield United and Sunderland’s Championship showdown.The times are designed to raise awareness of the Every Minute Matters campaign – a collaboration between Sky Bet and the British Heart Foundation – which aims to inspire supporters to learn CPR.Lockyer said: “If someone can see me playing safely, then surely that will give hope to other people.Read More on The Sun”If I don’t get back to professional level, I’ll find a local team somewhere, that’s for sure. If anyone needs a centre-back, hit me up!”TOM LOCKYER is part of Sky Bet’s Every Minute Matters campaign that is encouraging everyone to learn CPR online in just 15 minutes by visiting bhf.org More

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    Tottenham trophy parade LIVE: Celebrations UNDERWAY as Spurs end 17-year trophy drought with Europa League win

    TOTTENHAM fans will welcome home their Europa League winners back to North London TODAY.The Spurs faithful have flocked onto the streets to witness Ange Postecoglou’s side parade the European trophy that ended their 17-year wait for silverware.The parade will run from Edmonton Green, past the stadium, loop around Northumberland Park and then return to the ground.Follow our live blog below…Trophy on displayThe Europa League trophy is proudly on display at the front of the team bus.Credit: YoutubeCredit: YoutubeCredit: YoutubeCopy linkCopiedPlayers arriveThe Spurs players have arrived at the bus and the parade is set to get underway.Club captain Son Heung-Min could be seen holding the Europa League trophy.Credit: YoutubeCopy linkCopied’Fans refused entry’By Joshua Hall at Tottenham Hotspur StadiumMaybe there’s more Spurs fans than we all thought.Police have started to refuse entry towards the stadium as fears grow about overcrowding and “crushing” of young fans.Every Spurs fan is desperate to get a glimpse of their European heroes – and you can understand why.Copy linkCopiedHello and welcome to SunSport’s live blog of Tottenham’s trophy parade!Fans are already starting to pile onto the streets of North London as supporters prepare to welcome home their heroes.Spurs ended their 17-year wait for silverware with a 1-0 win over Manchester United in the Europa League final.The club have confirmed the bus will depart at 5.30pm from Edmonton Green and the parade will last between 60-90 minutes.Credit: ReutersCredit: ReutersCopy linkCopied More

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    Florian Wirtz ‘tells Bayern Munich he’s joining Liverpool’ with £125MILLION transfer just days away

    FLORIAN WIRTZ has told Bayern Munich he is joining Liverpool, according to reports.The German is one of the hottest properties on the transfer market this summer.Florian Wirtz has told Bayern Munich he will be joining Liverpool this summerCredit: GettyBut according to football journalist, Sacha Tavolieri, Wirtz is now just one step away from joining the Anfield outfit.Mere days ago it was revealed that Manchester City had pulled of the race to sign the Bayer Leverkusen ace over concerns about the overall cost of the deal potentially reaching a figure of £252million.However, numbers involved in the deal have not deterred German champions Bayern Munich or English champions Liverpool.THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY..The Sun is your go to destination for the best football, boxing and MMA news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video.Like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/TheSunFootball and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheSunFootball. More

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    ‘Very different to Wrexham’ – Gary Neville and David Beckham WON’T pour millions into Salford as they outline ‘project’

    MANCHESTER UNITED legend Gary Neville outlined the plan he and David Beckham have for Salford City after their recent takeover of the club.Neville and Beckham, both 50, led a new consortium and gained control of the League Two side earlier this month by buying out shares from fellow Class of 92 icons Nicky Butt, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and Phil Neville. Manchester United legend Gary Neville outlined the plan he and David Beckham have for Salford CityBeckham and Neville completed the takeover of Salford earlier this monthNeville insists he and Beckham won’t pour millions in SalfordThe United greats have teamed up with businessman Declan Kelly and Lawn Tennis Association chairman Lord Mervyn Davies after major backer Peter Lim stepped away last year. The former England internationals have big plans as they are determined to get the League Two outfit in the Championship within the next five years.Ever since their arrival in 2014, Salford got promoted from the Northern Premier League Division One North to the EFL in five years, but they have remained in the fourth tier ever since.Neville told The Overlap Fan Debate, on behalf of Sky Bet: “Shares in a football club for most owners, other than the passion and the feelings you get from it, you’re a reliability from an investment perspective more than an asset.Read More on Football”We’ve put money into Salford and in January we just thought we needed to get a group of people involved, who we could trust.”Me and Becks [Beckham] agreed that we would put money in for the next four or five years, which is a commitment we’ve all made.”Salford City won’t be changing the budget – to reverse out of the model we already have, you need two or three years. “You can’t go from investing to becoming sustainable that quick – you need to look at players’ contracts for three years and you’ve generally got a model that you’ve built which you can’t come away from.”Most read in EFLCASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITSSuccessful celebrity-owned clubs have risen to prominence in recent years and many are hoping Salford will follow suit.Wrexham have earned three successive promotions from the National League to the Championship under Hollywood celebrity owners Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds.’Were we not good enough-‘ – Man Utd legend Roy Keane takes cheeky dig at David Beckham over 50th birthday snubAnd Birmingham won the League One title this season and will join the Red Dragons in the second division with NFL legend Tom Brady as minority owner.However, Neville is adamant things will be “very different” compared to Wrexham and Birmingham.The Man Utd hero insists millions will not be poured but instead he and Beckham will focus on turning the club into a “good football project” that will be very close to the local community.Neville added: “We just need to change the model of the club slightly, in fact quite a bit. It’s very different than Wrexham and Birmingham – you’re talking about millions going into those clubs. “That’s not what we’re looking to do with Salford. We want Salford to be a good football project.”Salford City has the cheapest ticket prices in the EFL. On day one, I committed to the fans that we would be the most affordable and accessible football club. I’d rather go down than do that [be unsustainable].”Neville is adamant Salford won’t follow Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds’ example with WrexhamThe same goes for Birmingham City, where NFL legend Tom Brady is a minority owner More

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    Sky Sports pundit makes Ruben Amorim sacking prediction amid Man Utd’s ‘most complicated post-Sir Alex Ferguson dilemma’

    LIVERPOOL icon Jamie Carragher has claimed that Manchester United must start to consider Ruben Amorim’s future at Old Trafford.The Red Devils have endured a terrible season which took another bad turn on Wendesday.Jamie Carragher believes Ruben Amorim’s future is in doubtCredit: PARuben Amorim and Man Utd lost the Europa League final to TottenhamCredit: GettyUnited suffered a 1-0 loss to Spurs in the Europa League final, leaving them without European football ahead of the 2025-26 campaign.As a result, they will miss out on £100million worth of revenue from a cut in sponsorship income, TV earnings and gate receipts.To make matters worse, United could finish the Premier League season as low as 17th in the table – just one place above the relegation zone.Amid the club’s ongoing woes, Sky Sports pundit Carragher believes that United officials must start questioning whether or not Amorim is the right man to carry the club forward.READ MORE ON MAN UTDIn his column for The Telegraph this week, he wrote: “At some point during their post-season review of a dire campaign, someone in the Manchester United boardroom will need the courage to ask the toughest question: ‘Did we appoint the wrong manager at the wrong time?'”Sir Jim Ratcliffe may still believe Ruben Amorim is one of the best young coaches of his generation.”He may think that, had Amorim not joined United last November, he would have been hired by another top European club and excelled.”He may also be sure that if United had the same funds to rebuild the team as Amorim’s predecessors had at their disposal, it would be a question of when, not if, United return to the top of the English and European game.Most read in FootballJoin SUN CLUB for the Man Utd Files every Thursday plusin-depth coverage and exclusives from Old Trafford”But in the aftermath of a dismal Europa League final defeat by Tottenham Hotspur, the dilemma around Amorim is more complicated than for any of those who have tried and failed at Old Trafford since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement.”Carragher added: “The much-anticipated tactical innovations, and development of younger players, have been non-existent.Ruben Amorim offers to quit Man Utd ‘without any conversation about compensation’ if board want him goneThe Red Devils could finish as low as 17th in the Premier League tableCredit: Getty”The only successful game-changing strategy Amorim has offered is throwing Harry Maguire up front for the final few minutes of European games.”The Liverpool icon concluded by suggesting that while United might back Amorim now, they will have to reassess if the club endure a slow start to the 2025-26 campaign: “At United, the board appears to be more sympathetic than ruthless, but that will not last if there is no sign of improvement after a full pre-season.”So far, every big call of the Ratcliffe era has backfired. Ten Hag kept his job after a shock FA Cup final win. Amorim is likely to be backed after a shocking cup final performance.”Once more, it feels like United are keeping the faith more in hope than expectation.”United face Aston Villa on the final day of the season this weekend.The Red Devils then jet off to Malaysia for a post-season friendly against ASEAN All-Stars. More

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    Lewis Hamilton sent ‘flying’ after hitting huge bump as Ferrari involved in scary Monaco Grand Prix incidents

    LEWIS HAMILTON was seen on a flying lap, literally, as he went airborne after driving over a kerb at the Monaco Grand Prix.The seven-time world champion enjoyed his best race result of the season in Imola after an impressive drive through the field.Lewis Hamilton had scary incident at the Monaco Grand PrixCredit: GettyHe was forced to take evasive action to avoid a crashThe move sent him flying into the air as he went over the kerbHowever, the challenge of Monaco’s narrow street track posed some very different issues for the Scuderia as they endured a horror FP1.As the 40-year-old zoomed into the iconic “piscine” section of the track, he was forced to take evasive action as traffic ahead of him almost caused catastrophe.The Brit was forced to steer to the left to avoid a massive collision.This saw him drive straight over the kerb of the chicane, which then sent him flying into the air.READ MORE IN F1Hamilton then miraculously managed to avoid his car crashing into the barriers but not before his car scraped along the floor.Reacting on the team radio, he said: “Ah f*** mate, so much traffic.”I have to box mate, I’ve just gone completely over the kerb mate.”Hamilton ended the session in P9, clocking a fastest lap time of 1:12.690 from 30 laps of the circuit.Most read in MotorsportBEST ONLINE CASINOS – TOP SITES IN THE UKTeam-mate Charles Leclerc topped the session in his home race with a time of 1:11.964.But that was not before he suffered a nightmare start that saw him go off track.Lewis Hamilton fumes ‘have a tea break while you’re at it’ at Ferrari staff and refuses to apologise in Miami GP bust-upSoon after he was involved in a red flag incident as he lost the left half of his front wing after a collision with Lance Stroll.The Aston Martin driver had let one driver go heading into the famous hairpin turn, before veering right on to the racing line where Leclerc was racing along.The move saw Leclerc crash into the back of Stroll, who said he did not hear his team’s radio call that the Monegasque was coming down.Stroll was handed a one place grid penalty for the incident by the FIA, who additionally slapped his super licence with a penalty point.Ahead of the weekend, Hamilton had said he was “buzzing” to race around Monaco in a Ferrari.He said: “It’s a much different track… Ferrari have generally gone well here [in the past] but as you know, Qualifying is everything and we’ve struggled so far this year, so we’ll see.”I’ve never driven this car at this track, so that will be new for me, it’s a new characteristic to what I’ve experienced in the past.”But it’s exciting to drive for the first time a Ferrari around these streets of Monte Carlo.”Read More on The SunHamilton is currently P6 in the World Drivers Championship standings, nine points behind team-mate Leclerc.McLaren pair Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris are one and two in the rankings with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen close behind.Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc also had a horror start to the session after a crash at the Monaco hairpinCredit: AP More