Rashford pays tribute to Manchester bombing victims
AFP/File / Paul ELLISManchester United striker Marcus Rashford has paid tribute to the victims of the Manchester Arena bombing
Marcus Rashford has paid tribute to his home city on the first anniversary of the Manchester Arena bombing, which killed 22 people.
On May 22, 2017 Salman Abedi, a British man of Libyan heritage, blew himself up outside the venue, which had been hosting a concert by teen pop idol Ariana Grande.
Manchester United and Manchester City adopted the tagline of "a city united" following the atrocity and Rashford has spoken of the devastating impact of the attack.
The United and England striker wrote on his club's website of his memories of growing up in Manchester and what the city means to him, recalling his own memories of attending events.
"What happened in Manchester on 22 May, 2017 was unimaginable," he said.
"I won't forget the moment I found out about the bombing at the Arena. In that moment, I won't lie, it's so tough to process. The likelihood of you knowing someone who was directly involved in it is quite high, so it's a difficult moment."
United went on to win the Europa League final against Ajax on May 24, dedicating the victory to the victims of the bombing.
"We all spoke about it beforehand in the dressing room before we went out for the final and when the game had finished and we'd won, the first thing we did was make sure we showed our respects for what had happened back home," Rashford said.
Rashford and team-mate Jesse Lingard visited survivors of the attack shortly afterwards.
"We went to put smiles on faces where we could but they ended up helping us and making us smile," he added. "I really can't put into words how brave those incredible kids are, how brave all the victims are. I can't find the words to do them justice."
The Arena has since reopened and Rashford said his thoughts would always remain with those affected.
"My support still goes out to the victims and their families," he said. Nobody will ever forget what happened but the way Manchester pulled together shows you everything you need to know about the people here. Seeing how everyone reacted made me so proud to be a Mancunian."
Kane named England's World Cup captain
AFP/File / Adrian DENNISHarry Kane will captain England at the 2018 World Cup
Tottenham striker Harry Kane will be England's captain at the World Cup in Russia, the Football Association announced on Tuesday.
Manager Gareth Southgate has shared the leadership role around since taking over as manager in 2016 but has now settled on Kane for the tournament, which begins next month.
The 24-year-old, who has scored 12 goals in 23 international appearances, was first handed the armband for the qualifier against Scotland last June and has skippered the side on three further occasions.
Southgate, who announced his decision during a team meeting at England's training base on Monday, said: "Harry has some outstanding personal qualities. He is a meticulous professional and one of the most important things for a captain is that they set the standard every day.
"He has belief and high standards and it is a great message for the team to have a captain who has shown that it is possible to be one of the best in the world over a consistent period of time."
Southgate and Kane, who burst onto the senior international scene with a goal 79 seconds into his 2015 debut against Lithuania, appeared in a live video posted on England's Twitter account soon after the official announcement.
"It's an amazing honour," said Kane. "Obviously you always dream of playing for England, growing up. To be the captain is that little bit more.
"So excited, obviously excited for the World Cup. I just can't wait to be there and experience it. To be leading the lads out is going to be special. But for me nothing changes -- I'm the same person, the same player, and it's just about the team. We've just got to do what we can and go as far as we can."
Kane's Spurs team-mate Eric Dier and Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson were seen as the other likeliest candidates for the role.
The standout star in England's inexperienced squad, Kane will travel to his first World Cup full of confidence after another outstanding season in which he passed the 30-goal mark for club and country for the fourth season in a row.
Kane has netted 45 goals in 52 appearances for Spurs and England in 2017/18, missing out on a third consecutive Premier League Golden Boot title to Liverpool's Mohamed Salah.
His goals fired Spurs to third place in the Premier League, meaning they qualified for the Champions League for the third season in a row.
The retired Wayne Rooney, the dropped Joe Hart and Gary Cahill, who is heading to Russia after a last-minute reprieve, have also captained England under Southgate.
"Of course, Harry will need the support of the other good leaders that we have got around him," said Southgate.
"You don't become a top team by just having a good captain with good values because that has got to spread right throughout the group but I think he is the one who is ready to take that challenge on."
COPY https://www.afp.com/
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