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Month: May 2017

Incredible Isco – Real Madrid are a better team without Gareth Bale

Written by Dane Massey on . Posted in Sport.

Zinedine Zidane’s Real Madrid have one foot in their third UEFA Champions League final in four years, thanks to yet another Cristiano Ronaldo hat-trick in a 3-0 win over city rivals Atletico at the Santiago Bernabeu. The hat-trick was the 47th of Ronaldo’s amazing career.

There seems to be no limit to the Portuguese megastar’s ability, as he continues to display imperious goalscoring form year after year, cementing himself amongst the very best to have ever played the game. Ronaldo is just one goal away from his 400th for Los Blancos — his 399 so far have come in just 389 games. Astonishing.

All the spotlight will once again be on the former Manchester United forward in the Welsh capital, if his side finish the job at the Vicente Calderon next week. The occasion would perhaps be even more special for Gareth Bale though, in the city where he was born.

While Ronaldo will no doubt be the first name on the team sheet for Zidane, Bale’s place in the team is not 100 percent certain even if the Welsh superstar is fit.

There have been calls this week from Bale’s Real teammate Toni Kroos for the £86 million man to step up to the mantle of being Los Blancos’ talisman. The fact that Bale has only completed five games in the past six months and only scored nine goals in 26 appearances this season, however, suggests he’s not quite ready for Ronaldo to pass him the baton just yet with the Portuguese on 35 goals in 41 games this term.

Since he arrived at the Bernabeu in 2013, Bale has scored a respectable 67 goals in 149 games as a right-winger. Ronaldo, though, who like Bale plays as a wide forward but on the opposite flank, has scored 198 goals in 190 games — nine more than Lionel Messi.

Despite the fact Bale cost more money, the pair simply don’t match up individually despite Spanish journalist and football expert Guillem Balague claiming last year that Bale was now Real’s best player. Balague, though, was wrong: Bale has a long way to go before he can reach the levels of his current teammate.

It’s a devastating partnership when they’re playing together. Individually, Ronaldo and Bale are Real Madrid’s two best players, but without Bale both Ronaldo and the team play better. Last night’s 3-0 win over Atletico was as good as Los Blancos have played for a long time, and absent from proceedings was the club’s record signing Bale.

Yet the starting line-up Zidane picked was arguably the strongest side he can pick from — even if Bale was fit. The man who stepped in for the Welshman was Isco, who was ice cool on the ball as always and played a huge part in his side’s immaculate performance.

With Bale out, Real Madrid appeared to rely on pace much less. They kept the ball exceptionally well, having 63 percent of possession. Of course, if Bale had played, Real would have still dominated the ball, but the selection of Isco made Zidane’s game plan more flexible and less one-dimensional.

Ronaldo gained more freedom, roaming from the left to the right flank throughout the game, while Kroos and Modric’s control of the middle third gave Isco a free role off the left-hand side of the field. The Spaniard was popping up everywhere.

Isco was selected ahead of Colombian star James Rodriguez, who has been impressive of late, but Isco’s selection was fully merited as he shown last night. Real’s number 23 completed 98.2 percent of his passes, misplacing just one of the 57 passes he attempted. It was a near perfect display from Spanish international.

It shows there is no hierarchy in a football squad. James cost £65 million, more than double the amount Los Blancos paid for Isco, who cost just £30 million from Malaga in 2013 — the same year Bale signed for the club.

The former Malaga star has been in and out of the team, with Bale a permanent fixture in the XI when fit. Zidane, though, may now have to rethink this decision.

In fact, when Isco had a run in the team under Carlo Ancelotti in the 2014/15 season, it coincided with Real’s best form of that campaign. The Bernabeu side won 22 games in a row in all competitions between September 2014 and January 2015, with Bale missing 15 of these matches. In his place came Isco, who filled the void expertly as Real won all the games while averaging more ball possession.

Last night’s incredible display from Isco could well mean that he’s ousted Bale, as well as James, in Zidane’s pecking order to force himself into their strongest XI, despite the fact the pair costing a combined fee of £151 million.  With Bale also expected to miss the second leg, next week’s game across the city could be the perfect chance for Isco to stake a genuine claim to start in Cardiff on the 3rd June.

As the old cliché goes, “there’s no ‘I’ in team.” There is, however, an ‘I’ in Isco, and after a somewhat up and down last three and a half years, the 25-year-old Spaniard is now reaching his full potential and becoming an increasingly important player for Real Madrid. It’s open for debate, but I believe Isco makes Los Blancos a better team.

Marco Silva – The New Pochettino?

Written by Dane Massey on . Posted in Sport.

Just over two years ago, I made the case that Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino could one day emulate Diego Simeone and win a top-flight title, as Simeone did with Atletico in 2014. Two years on, there is a possibility that this might come true, as Spurs find themselves in the thick of a title shake-up with London rivals Chelsea.

Now though, Pochettino has an apprentice of his own in the shape of Hull City’s Portuguese boss Marco Silva, aged just 39.

Pochettino is currently one of the hottest prospects in Europe, but let’s not forget where it started out for the Argentine in English football.  When Pochettino replaced Nigel Adkins as Southampton manager in January 2013, he was virtually unknown in the English game.

The former-Espanyol coach took over with Saints sat just above the drop zone on 22 points, and Adkins’ sacking came just two days after an impressive 2-2 draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in a hard-fought comeback by Southampton.

It was a questionable decision at the time, but it proved the right one as Southampton finished the season on 42 points and secured top flight status for another season.

Southampton, now managed by Frenchman Claude Puel, on Saturday secured their 41st point of this campaign at home to Hull City – leaving them just one point short of their 2012/13 points tally with five games left to play.

Hull had a share of the spoils, but if Silva had been at the helm since the beginning of the season, there is a strong possibility that they would be close to Southampton in the table – Saints currently sit ninth.

The dismissal of Mike Phelan in January this year coincided with Silva’s appointment, and it had parallels to the situation on the South Coast four years ago.

A further similarity between the two clubs’ situation is that Adkins’ results at Southampton in 2012/13 perhaps didn’t merit what their performances deserved, as was the case with Hull this term under Phelan.

Unlike Southampton, though, Hull have by far the weakest squad in the Premier League as well as having the lowest budget and wage bill of the 20 teams in England’s top flight.

Even worse, the Tigers had just 13 points when Silva took on the challenging managerial reigns in Humberside – nine points less than Southampton had in 2012/13 when Pochettino took the job at the opposite end of the country.

When Silva came in, his side were rock bottom and six points adrift of safety. They looked down and out, almost certain to take the plunge back into the Championship. Silva, though, has changed the mindset of the whole club — Hull now sit two points above the relegation zone with three games left to play.

Silva has picked up 21 points in 15 Premier League games since he became the Hull manager, and it has sent the Tigers roaring up the table – this represents more points than Pochettino achieved in his first half season with Southampton having played one less game than the Argentine.

The main reason is the Tigers’ home form. Only Spurs, ironically managed by Pochettino, and Everton under the guidance of another former-Saint Ronald Koeman (Pochettino’s successor), have picked up more points at home than Silva’s men in 2017.

Hull have earned 19 points from seven games at the KCOM Stadium since Silva took over, having only registered eight points in 10 home games under Phelan.

Home victories over AFC Bournemouth, Liverpool, Swansea City, West Ham United, Middlesbrough and Watford have seen Hull steer clear of the drop zone and in with a genuine chance of retaining top-flight status next season against all the odds.

Defying the odds has been no problem for Silva in the past either, as he transformed Estoril from second division minnows to the fourth best team in Portugal between 2011 and 2014 — behind only SL Benfica, FC Porto and Sporting Club de Portugal — widely regarded as Portugal’s big three consistently.

The Tigers have also earned two home wins in cup competitions under Silva, against Swansea and Manchester United in January. Silva’s side pushed United all the way in the EFL Cup semi-final, losing 3-2 on aggregate over two legs.

Just as Pochettino guided Spurs to the League Cup final in 2015, Silva could have achieved the same feat. If he was in charge for Hull’s 2-0 first leg defeat at Old Trafford instead of Phelan, the game and tie could have had a different outcome.

Hull’s fine performance against United at the KCOM Stadium demonstrated Silva’s hunger for medals, and he is no stranger to silverware. He won the Segunda Liga (Portuguese second tier) in 2012 with Estoril, as well as the Taca de Portugal (Portuguese Cup) in 2015 with Sporting Lisbon before moving onto Olympiacos where he won the Greek league title in 2016.

The man from Portugal has now become hot property on Humberside, he could go a very long way in the game just as Pochettino has done and will continue to do.

In contrast to their home form, Hull’s away form has not been so impressive. The point at the St. Mary’s Stadium, where Pochettino used to manage, was only Hull’s seventh point away from home this season, and just their second under Silva. It’s been tough on the road, but the home form of Hull has been key in their bid for survival.

When Silva took over at the KCOM Stadium, he made seven January signings. Alfred N’Diaye, Andrea Ranoccia, Lazar Markovic, Omar Elabdelloui, Evandro Goebel, Oumar Niasse and particularly Kamil Grosicki have all played their part in Hull’s excellent second half of the season. Despite losing top scorer and talisman Robert Snodgrass to West Ham in late January, as well as losing Ryan Mason to long-term injury just a week later, Silva has coped well with injuries and has developed a fresher look to the Hull squad.

With Sunderland up next at home, followed by a trip to fellow strugglers Crystal Palace, the amber and black army will fancy their chances to further boost their chances of staying up.

Silva will then come face-to-face with Pochettino on the final day of the season — two men who share so many similarities in the way they think about the game of football.

Just as Pochettino guided Southampton to safety four years ago, Silva, under much more difficult circumstances, has instilled belief and fight into Hull City. The Portuguese boss has turned the KCOM Stadium into the Tigers’ pit, and Hull are looking like potentially pulling off one of the greatest escapes of the Premier League era.

What does it take to be the best dressed at Pangaea?

Written by Sarah Kilcourse on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

Pangaea is a mainstay in the University of Manchester social calendar, and it is certainly a night where you should dress to impress. Three times a year Pangaea announces a theme for the event, meaning we attendees need (potentially) three fancy dress costumes. Best of all this means you have three chances every year to be crowned best dressed!

It turns out, after a bit of searching through the Mancunion archives, that the fancy dress crown nearly always goes to a man! Yes, sadly all the recent solo winners have been male but there have been a couple of mixed gender group victories. Is being a guy enough though? What are the fancy dress competition winning trends?

Princess Leia from Pangaea Space Odyssey. Photo: The Mancunion

Well a bit of cross dressing is appreciated for starters. Let the winner you shine through by channelling your favourite female icon. So far women dressed as men has not achieved any gold medals at Pangaea, but ladies this is your moment! I hope to see at least one female Tom Hanks at this summer’s Castaway Pangaea — haven’t you ever wondered if you would suit a beard?

Strong make-up is another winning decision at Pangaea. Former winners have used make-up to their advantage, the Rumble in the Jungle winner’s costume centred on bold face paint. However, he also strongly veered off into the cultural appropriation of a stereotypical “African” tribesman which is neither necessary nor cool. But that was three years ago — here’s hoping we have become more learned individuals who would not be so foolish now.

The King of Hearts, Down the Rabbit Hole. Photo: Lorimer Macandrew

Last September’s King of Hearts won (I would say) not on the strength of his costume, but the strength of his pose. This stately costume champion serves as a reminder to all that when someone asks for your photo, you better werk it. Yes I did just say werk. Get practising your Vogue moves and dabs, scroll through Instagram for the best psoing tips, just to be ready for the photographers.

If the solo pose/costume is too daunting look for safety in numbers. Having a buddy that matches you not only asserts that at least one other person will look as ridiculous as you, but also makes your costume look better because there is two of it. While your costume may be lackluster, at least you have agreed to be that lackluster together.

Games Consoles from Pangaea Level 10. Photo: Daniel Saville

I really, strongly, adamantly hope that this year there is a bit more appreciation for the effort made by girls. Glitter and crop tops still definitely count as costumes, they may not be original but a lot of effort can go into the glitter work! I do not doubt that Castaway will bring with it a succession of flowers, mermaids, butterflies, fish and anything else in between that acts as opportunity to sparkle.

My hope, as mentioned earlier, is for a female Tom Hanks from Castaway, but perhaps with a glitter beard…

Kevin de Bruyne masterclass: Manchester City 5-0 Crystal Palace

Written by Harry Newton on . Posted in Sport.

If this game was a film…

Click…

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

This film is shite by the way, just before I continue. Adam Sandler films are shite.

A performance today was vital from City – and the team just seemed to click right from the very beginning. David Silva’s second-minute goal eased any tensions and allowed the team to play how they wanted to – not that Palace put up much of a fight either way. Silva’s return to the team was noticeable. Despite how City have a wealth of attacking talents in their team, it is Silva who is the most consistent and always available for an alternative pass.

Silva’s goal came from a beautiful pass… from David Silva. He looped the ball over the defence for Raheem Sterling who put a short looped cross in. This was headed away, but Silva smashed in from only a few yards out.

Bored Defence

Vincent Kompany and Nicolás Otamendi back together at the back is shaping up well, as both didn’t let Christian Benteke have a sniff, and prevented Palace from having any massive chances. As the two were not especially challenged at the back, they got increasingly bored so decided to bag themselves a goal each too (I’m sure there was more tactical thinking in this than just pure boredom).

Kevin de Bruyne noticed Kompany dropping-off from the Palace back four like 2003-Thierry-Henry, played him the ball, and Kompany belted the ball into the top corner. Otamendi’s was a little more like a defender’s goal though as he used his famous head to put away the chance. De Bruyne put in a perfect cross from a central free-kick to meet Otamendi’s darting run. He headed at the near-post for the final goal of the game.

With these two showing a solid partnership, and John Stones having been impressive this season, Guardiola may consider how many defenders he will want to buy this summer. One centre-back may be necessary with Kompany’s injuries, and with Kolarov actually being a left-back… but it’s all shaping up for an interesting summer.

Post-Match Presser

Sam Allardyce described Palace’s defensive display as a “capitulation”.

Pep Guardiola revealed that he wants Manchester United to win the Europa League and finish fifth, so that England can have five teams in the Champions League.

Man of the Match – Kevin de Bruyne

After a rough few weeks for de Bruyne, he has been gradually improving and getting back to his best, and this game showed that perhaps he is back to his best again. Along with assisting Kompany and Otamendi with their goals, he bagged one for himself. On the 60th minute Gabriel Jesus brought the ball down with great strength and played it infield to de Bruyne who hit it first time low into the corner. The Belgian took a fair few heavy challenges from the Palace team during the game, but shrugged this off and his delivery was in fine form. Not to mention that he almost scored a brace, after a his free-kick clanged the crossbar on the 51st minute. It may have been Silva’s re-entry into the side that gave City the spice they needed in the early minutes, but it was de Bruyne’s end-product that set City apart from Palace.

The future

This season has been a little “oooh next year will be great, won’t it?!” and without sounding too much like Liverpool FC 1990-2017 – next year could be a very successful season for Manchester City fans. This was epitomised in this match by viewing Leroy Sané and Raheem Sterling. Sterling scored the fourth goal of the game, on the 81st minute with a low driven shot, but his game generally was brilliant. Both of the young wingers ran at the defence, cut in-field, took on shots, and drove crosses into the box, showing their versatility. Albeit, this was not always successful – with a little more patience and a little more time, these two could be very special for City next season.

In a Nutshell

·         Goals goals goals, Pep-esque fluidity, and a couple of class saves from Willy Caballero to make the whole team happy

·         Otamendi and Kompany making a great partnership

·         De Bruyne is back on form

·         Silva the necessary catalyst to get City back firing

·         Goal difference may be important to the top-four race

·         Kompany makes City look so much more stable at the back

·         Fernandinho at right-back is something worth exploring further

·         Aguero may not be missed that much if the team continue like this

Your chance to vote for the Mayor of Manchester

Written by Lily Sheehan on . Posted in News.

On Thursday 4th May, local elections are taking place across England, Scotland and Wales. In Manchester, voters will choose Greater Manchester’s first elected Mayor.

The elected candidate will have a variety of duties, similar to the role of the Mayor of London. They will be responsible for overseeing the emergency services, housing and transport. He or she will make important decisions concerning the entire city of Manchester, whilst local councils are responsible for day-to-day issues.

After much deliberation, it has been decided that the Mayor will receive an annual salary of £110,000. The Mayors of Liverpool and Birmingham will be paid £85,000. The figure is almost double the £56,000 recommendation made by Tony Lloyd, the interim mayor.

The Mayor of Greater Manchester will set the budgets for the emergency services. They will hold influence — not direct power — over housing policy, and will also be in charge of Manchester’s buses and trams. With control of timetables, routes and fares, there is some hope that the new Mayor will be able to unify the city’s transport network to create a system similar to London’s.

All major UK parties will be represented in the mayoral election. The Labour Party have selected Andy Burnham as their candidate. The Warrington native is a former member of both the Cabinet and Shadow Cabinet, and Burnham came second to Jeremy Corbyn in the 2015 Labour leadership election. He was the MP for Leigh until May 3rd and did not stand for re-election.

In an interview with the Manchester Evening News, Burnham said that he wants to make sure Greater Manchester Labour has “its own voice”.

Sean Anstee is standing for the Conservatives in this election. Anstee began his finance career at 16 at Barclays in Timperley; ten years later, he was working for the Bank of New York Mellon and running Trafford Council. Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, the candidate spoke about his background: “I think people might have this stereotype of a silver-tongued Tory boy. I quite like not to be the stereotype.”

Acknowledging that his political leaning is unusual in Manchester, Anstee said: “I want to use the mayoral election for people to rediscover what they think conservatism could mean for them.”

Liberal Democrat Jane Brophy is also hoping to become Mayor of Greater Manchester. Her focus is mainly on health and the environment: she drives an electric car and was part of the first household in Manchester to install a wind turbine. Brophy also holds healthcare dear; one of her sons has special educational needs, and so she has witnessed “the frontline” of the NHS.

As an Orthodox Jew, UKIP’s Shneur Odze believes that it is wrong to view his party as racist and anti-immigration. In a Manchester Evening News article, London-born Odze said that UKIP “don’t believe in discriminating against anybody on the basis of race, colour, country of origin… multiculturalism has patently failed. We need a new vision that will allow people to play a full part in communal life.”

The Daily Mail recently published an article that claims Mr Odze, a married rabbi who lives in Salford, is part of an online fetish community.

Although poll cards in the Manchester Gorton constituency state that this polling day will decide the area’s new Member of Parliament, this is now inaccurate. Due to the snap election, this vote will now take place on June 8th when the rest of the country takes to the polling booths.

You can register to vote in the general election until 22nd May.

Review: Piccolino

Written by Holly Pollard on . Posted in Food & Drink.

Surrounded by Prosecco drinkers basking in the afternoon sun, Piccolino Restaurant Manchester falls somewhere under the category of a slightly upmarket Carluccios or Zizzis. We were greeted at the door by the reassuring mumble of sound one gets at any popular restaurant, whilst Piccolino’s staff were quick to wave a ‘Ciao’ as they passed amongst the comforting buzz.

With the sunshine twinkling across chandeliers and mirrored walls, one could almost be convinced we had stumbled into a trendy London restaurant and at a push even a Milano Bar but the cheesy UK Top 40 that tinges the atmosphere is quite useful in reminding you not to get ahead of yourself.

One thing I would like to point out, is that everyone in the restaurant took the form of either smartly dressed businessmen or the middle-class families of Didsbury, so if you are planning on coming to Piccolino, perhaps remember to leave your ripped jeans and hoodies at home, as we ended up feeling slightly out of place.

After taking our coats, we were seated at the bar to wait for our table (we were early) and so decided to order some drinks. In terms of price, the drinks here are not cheap, but if you are willing to spend around twenty-five pounds each on a nice lunch, then you can have it all — cocktails included.

For drinks, we had a glass of the house white and a ‘Paloma’ cocktail, which consisted of ‘Jimador reposado tequila’, elderflower liquor, lime, agave nectar and a drop of trademark Italian San Pellegrino. Contrasting to the many bad cocktail experiences I’ve had, the cocktails here aren’t sickly sweet and syrupy but instead really refreshing and palatable, I could have easily had another.

The whole experience of sitting in Piccolino is part of the meal. The restaurant is trimmed with deli counters that flaunt their wholesome produce whilst simultaneously working up your appetite. As for both of us, who were very hungry by this point: the meats, cheeses, cakes and breads that filled the glass cabinets of each delicatessen; worked synonymously with the lavish plates of food drifting around with waiters, teasing our appetite and making our mouths water.

Despite being a chain, the menu at Piccolino covers all bases, many of which are avoided at most Italian chains. Emphasised by the decor, Italian speaking staff, plush baby blue leather seats and copper pizza oven, the menu feels genuine and the ingredients good quality.

For our meal, we decided to order a Spaghetti Carbonara, as we felt this was a good control for judging any Italian restaurant and Piccolino’s scored highly in comparison. Topped with a poached egg and a rasher of bacon, the carbonara is creamy and rich but does not tread the dangerous boundary of being overly salty or cheesy which can be the case for a lot of Carbonaras in British chains.

We also shared Beef Carpaccio with a rocket and parmesan salad, bread-crumbed Asparagus accompanied by a poached egg and Courgette fries, all of which was delicious, the Courgette fries in particular. Although, I would probably not order the asparagus again as it is quite expensive and you only receive 5 stalks for your eight pounds, which weren’t remarkably sweet to justify such a price.

Seated behind the Patisserie counter, with the warm, soft waft of Crème Patisserie tempting our noses, it would have been a waste not to order a pudding from their extensive desert menu. We shared a chocolate and almond tart accompanied by vanilla Ice-cream — warm, gooey and smooth, with that melting texture that quenches even the severest of chocolate cravings. Piccolino’s chocolate and almond tart is everything a chocolate tart should be; so delicious, we were left passive-aggressively fighting over the last forkful.

Although perhaps too expensive for a daily visit, Piccolino’s is the perfect place for the occasional lunch with your mum and with wine glasses as big as your face, there’s not much at fault with this sunny, friendly Italian.

Masterchef winner Simon Wood set to open his first restaurant in Manchester

Written by Miriam Mizzi on . Posted in Uncategorised.

If you can’t remember Simon Wood’s appearance on Masterchef, then you’re not nearly a good enough fan. His gentle demeanor, mouthwatering ingredient choice, and classy plating skills left every viewer in awe. Now, the Oldham chef is set to open his first restaurant named WOOD in Manchester.

The restaurant, which will be located on Jack Rosenthal Street at First Street, will be serving an a-la-carte lunch and dinner menu, a pre-theatre and concert menu, and a seasonal tasting menu. The interior space is being designed to reflect nature and natural wood, and an open-kitchen will dominate the restaurant.

The North West’s only Masterchef winner has also confirmed two top professionals are joining his team. The Head Chef will be Mike Jennings, who honed his skills by being mentored by world renowned Shaun Rankin at Bohemia Restaurant in Jersey.

After seven years he brought his knowledge home and began working at Northcote before taking over Grenache in 2012. Located in the suburbs of Salford, Mike was able to carve out his own style, achieving a Michelin recommendation in the first year, two AA Rosettes on his first inspection and a nomination for the Good Food Guide’s Best Restaurant amongst many other awards.

Mike comments: “Simon’s vision and enthusiasm excites me, he’s not afraid to cook from the heart, something I share completely. I can’t wait to work alongside him creating amazing food that this incredible city deserves.”

In addition, James Cunningham will join the team as general manager. James has worked for successful names spanning from Michael Caines to Harvey Nichols.

James comments: “It is a fantastic honour to be asked to be involved with WOOD Manchester. Simon’s cuisine and vision are incredibly exciting and will bring something new to the Manchester restaurant scene. I can’t wait to open this amazing new venture to the Manchester public!”

When it launches this summer WOOD will be open Tuesday to Saturday and will be sure to be Manchester’s new favourite foodie paradise.

Live: The Amazons

Written by Amy Matthews on . Posted in Music.

6th April at Deaf Institute

8/10

Reading rockers The Amazons have had an extraordinary few months, from being nominated for Radio 1’s Sound of 2017, playing Radio 1’s future festival and supporting the likes of You Me At Six and Jimmy Eat World. There is no stopping the band, who formed in 2014.

After months of relentless touring, travelling across Europe and around the UK, the band return to Manchester during the second leg of their sold-out UK tour.

Tonight the band play Deaf Institute. Walking into the crowded room, it was so full I couldn’t even get to the bar, and no wonder because the 300 capacity room was bursting at the seams, so much so that I’m told people viewed the show from the stairwells due to the lack of second hand tickets or touts.

Admitting defeat and choosing to stand on a tiny space on the balcony for the entirety of the set was clearly a blessing in disguise: I got a perfect view of the band, minus bruising from the mosh pits or the inflatable shark being thrown amongst the crowd later into the set. To this day, the shark’s significance to the band remains unknown (if anyone could clear up this confusion for me it would be greatly appreciated).

The band open their set with newest single ‘Black Magic’ (a previous Mancunion and Radio 1 track of the week), which receives enormous roars from the crowd.

It’s hard to believe the band have been on the road for so long, since lead singer Matt Thompson’s voice sounded even better in person, holding notes like I had never seen before. The crowd are jumping up and down like mad. The band introduce themselves, with Thompson saying “We’re gonna have a f***ing good time” and we certainly do.

They proceed to play old fan favourite ‘Millions’ as mosh pits open up and audience members move all over the place. ‘Lets keep the party going’, Thompson shouts, which is received with roars and cheers. They then play old fan favourite ‘Stay With Me’, which is shortly followed by the gleaming ‘Ultraviolet’ from their 2015 Don’t You Wanna EP.

These tracks certainly go down a treat, with many audience members being hoisted onto one another’s shoulders. After thanking the audience for selling out the show and hinting at their new album due in May, the band play a new song off the album entitled ‘Burn My Eyes’. This loud and dark track goes down well with the crowd, and is shortly followed by popular single ‘Night Driving’.

After thanking their highly impressive support act The Pale White, the band proceed to play new track ‘Raindrops’, a slow and sharp contrast to their heavy rock sound, which still goes down a storm with crowd.

‘Little Something’ increases the crowd’s spirits and cause a sea of phones to appear, while ‘In My Mind’ sees Thompson throw himself around the tiny stage and into the crowd. This is followed by one of their oldest and most popular tracks to date, ‘Junk Food Forever’, which sees the audience — a mix of both young and old —jump up and down, swaying everywhere.

Two young, excited concert-goers attempt to jump on stage, but are swiftly removed by security: another tries their luck, which earns them a shout-out from Thompson after being chased out of the venue by security. Oh, the joys of being young and fearless.

The band then leave the stage for their encore, before storming back onto the stage — a roar of “One more song, one more song” is heard by the crowd. The band then return to play ‘Something In The Water’: this melodic track is clearly aiming for bigger venues and is a ferocious end to a glorious set.

The band thank the crowd, saying they will be a back soon. With the release of their debut self-titled album due in late May, after tonight’s performance the wait for the bands presumed return to Manchester in the new year is now all the more unbearable. One thing is for sure: it will be worth the wait.