England goalkeeper Mary Earps has been awarded an honorary doctorate at her alma mater.
The 30-year-old said she was “proud” to be part of a growth in women’s football and said she hoped that future generations would benefit even further as she was awarded for her contribution to sport.
The Lioness said it was “pretty incredible” to receive the honorary degree from Loughborough University.
Accepting the award, the England and Manchester United player described her time at the university – where she gained a degree in information management and business studies in 2016 – as “manic” and said she did not expect life to be “a lot more manic later down the line”.
“To be awarded an honorary doctorate is pretty incredible,” Earps said.
“It’s even more special to come back to where I studied and gained a degree in 2016. Life at Loughborough back then was what I thought was manic, little did I know life was going to get a lot more manic later down the line.
“It’s great to be part of the growth of women’s football. Many people have come before us and we’ve stood on their shoulders and benefited from that. Hopefully, future generations will equally benefit from what we’ve achieved in this time.
“I know being here today is not something everyone gets to do and I’m thankful to be awarded this honorary degree for my contributions to sport.”
Earps made her full international debut a year after graduating from the university, which is well known for its sporting achievements.
She helped the Lionesses achieve European glory in 2022 when the team won the Uefa Women’s European Championships.
The squad narrowly missed out on World Cup glory this year when they were knocked out in the final, but Earps was named the best goalkeeper at the tournament and awarded the Golden Glove accolade.
She was voted BBC Women’s Footballer of the Year 2023 and has been nominated for the 2023 BBC Sports Personality of the Year award, which will be announced next week.
Earps was made a “Doctor of the University” at Loughborough’s winter graduation service on Thursday.
Professor Nick Jennings, vice-chancellor and president of Loughborough University, said: “Mary’s contribution to women’s football has been nothing short of extraordinary.
“She consistently performs brilliantly at the very highest level, inspiring both peers and future generations.
“Loughborough is an institution that is synonymous with sporting excellence and alumna such as Mary make us incredibly proud.
“We’re delighted to award Mary an honorary degree as we look forward to her achieving yet more greatness on the global stage.”
Man United could be without Toone until new year, says Skinner
Marc Skinner revealed that Manchester United could be without midfielder Ella Toone until the new year after she picked up a calf injury in training.
Toone has featured in five games in the Women's Super League this season, but is yet to register a goal or an assist so far this term.
The 25-year-old has missed United's last two games and was not selected in Sarina Wiegman's England squad for their upcoming friendlies against the United States and Switzerland.
She had previously appeared in a staggering 96 straight matches before missing United's WSL showdown with Leicester City last weekend.
But ahead of the Red Devils' meeting with league leaders Chelsea on Sunday, Skinner confirmed they would be without Toone for not only that game, but for the foreseeable future.
"We have three games [after the international break and before Christmas]. There's always the hope, but I think you balance and you go, 'right, if we can get her back, we get her back'," Skinner said.
"But we're just not going to rush her in this moment because it's a calf injury, it's your running mechanism. If we injure the running mechanism, it takes longer.
"So ideally we'd like her back for those games afterwards.
"The projection is she misses this game [Chelsea], she misses the international window, probably misses the first game after that, and then we'll see from there.
"But because it is such a short block of only three games, we'll assess whether it's worth that or actually resetting to come back after Christmas."
Al-Nassr 1-2 Al-Qadsiah: Aubameyang winner ends hosts' unbeaten run
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang hit the winner as Al-Qadsiah inflicted a 2-1 defeat on Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League on Friday to end their 21-match unbeaten run.
Cristiano Ronaldo's seventh league goal of the season put Al-Nassr ahead, but Al-Qadsiah replied swiftly through Julian Quinones before Aubameyang struck the decisive blow.
The hosts drew first blood in the 32nd minute when Ronaldo slotted home after Al-Qadsiah goalkeeper Koen Casteels had spilled a routine catch from Talisca's cross.
However, Al-Nassr's joy was short-lived when Quinones brought down Turki Al Ammar's delivery five minutes later, with the Mexcio winger firing past Bento to level the scores.
Quinones also played a part in the winning goal after brilliantly turning the ball back across goal from Nahitan Nandez's search pass to tee up a simple finish for Aubameyang.
The result sees Al-Qadsiah move level on 22 points with third-placed Al-Nassr, with Al-Shabab also level with them.
Stefano Pioli's Al-Nassr are six points adrift of defending champions and leaders Al-Hilal, who also have a game in hand.
Vlahovic out of Juventus clash with Milan
Dusan Vlahovic will miss Juventus' trip to Milan in Serie A this weekend and is also a doubt for the Champions League game at Aston Villa, head coach Thiago Motta has confirmed.
Vlahovic returned from the international break with a muscle problem in his left thigh, and the manager, after he confirmed the Serbian's absence for Saturday's game at San Siro, was asked about his chances of playing on Wednesday at Villa Park.
"I don't know. He definitely won't be there tomorrow. We hope to have him back as soon as possible," Motta told a press conference on Friday.
"Injuries are part of football. Now it's Vlahovic's turn, but we'll keep playing with the same principles, attacking and defending together."
Vlahovic is the latest of Motta's injury problems at Juventus. Argentine winger Nicolas Gonzalez missed the last six league games and is still unavailable, while Poland striker Arkadiusz Milik is a long-term absentee.
Brazilian midfielder Douglas Luiz will also miss the game with Milan and defender Juan Cabal recently suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury, the same issue which will keep fellow defender Gleison Bremer out for the rest of the season.
"I'm really disappointed for Cabal because, like Bremer, he'll be out for a long time," Motta said.
"This is another reason to push ourselves, to commit that bit more so that these absences don't weigh too heavily."
Juventus go into the game as the only unbeaten side in Serie A but find themselves sixth in the standings in what is so far a very tight title race, with just two points separating Motta's side from leaders Napoli.
"It's very balanced and this is good for both us and the public," Motta said.
"We must all try to continue like this. We have to try to get as many positive results as possible."
Milan are one place behind Juve but six points off Motta's side.
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