Tottenham and England forward Harry Kane reflected on a “special” day after he officially received the Freedom of the City of London on Thursday in a ceremony alongside his family at Guildhall.

One of the City of London’s ancient traditions, the Freedom is believed to have begun in 1237 and enabled recipients to carry out their trade.

England captain and record scorer Kane was awarded the Freedom of the City of London in November for his outstanding sporting achievements but was only now able to receive his certificate in a ceremony alongside wife Kate, his three children and other members of his family.

Chris Hayward, the City Corporation’s policy chairman, and deputy policy chairman Keith Bottomley nominated Kane, who has spent the majority of his playing career in the capital with Tottenham where he is their all-time top scorer.

Reflecting on the day at Guildhall, Kane told the PA news agency: “It was great, really unique and really special in its own way.

“Just a great experience. I have all my family with me today and for them to be in that room with me and see me get the certificate has been amazing.

“I am learning more and more about it as we go on. The ceremony dived into a bit of the history and some of the names before me so it is incredible to be a part of.

“I am extremely grateful to London and what it has given me, the opportunities it has given me. I have been lucky to live here my whole life pretty much.

“I have had a couple of short spells away when I was on loan, but other than that I have been here. To represent not just England but London as well is something I am extremely proud of.

“To receive this award has been an amazing honour for me.”

Kane follows in the footsteps of former England cricketer and World Cup-winning captain Eoin Morgan, who officially received the Freedom of the City of London last year.

Meanwhile, every member of the Lionesses’ squad received the Freedom of the City of London following their winning exploits at Euro 2022.

Spurs forward Kane guided England to the final of the European Championships two years ago and won the golden boot at the World Cup in 2018.

Policy chairman Hayward added: “Harry Kane is an outstanding sportsman and role model for young footballers, having achieved so much before the age of 30.

“Born and raised in London and admired by many millions of followers of the beautiful game – not just in this country, but around the world – it was our pleasure to welcome him and his guests to Guildhall.”

Bottomley said: “I was delighted to support the nomination for Harry Kane’s Freedom, which is richly deserved.

“Harry is, in every sense, at the top of his game and his Freedom goes some way towards expressing our admiration for his tremendous skill on the pitch, and our considerable pride in him.”

Stockport boss Dave Challinor always believed his side would be fighting for promotion as the Hatters prepare to face Carlisle in the Sky Bet League Two play-off final.

County are bidding to make it back-to-back promotions on Sunday and booked their place at Wembley after coming from behind to beat Salford 3-1 on penalties after the two sides were locked at 2-2 on aggregate after extra time over two legs.

Challinor took over at Edgeley Park in November 2021, just five months after he guided Hartlepool into League Two and the County boss repeated that feat with his current club – this time finding himself one game away from his first English Football League promotion.

The 47-year-old admitted they suffered a poor start to the season but never stopped believing he could guide the club to successive promotions.

He told a press conference: “The start of this season was tough but we have got over that and we have built.

“Now it’s come up to this point where we have to back ourselves and we all hoped of having the shot of getting into League One because that was our ambition at the start of the season.

“It was a big ambition some would say, now we have the opportunity to take it. Promotion was always the plan, the hope, the ambition and that’s the big thing.”

Stockport ended the season unbeaten in 13 games but narrowly missed out on the automatic promotion places, finishing just four points behind Northampton in third place.

Challinor admits the Wembley stage is a far different atmosphere to many that greet his players on the pitch on a weekly basis in the fourth tier, as around 40,000 fans are expected to descend onto Wembley Way.

He continued: “You can have an impact in front of 10,000 at Edgeley Park, a bigger impact elsewhere in front of 2,000, it’s going to be difficult in front of the Wembley crowd.

“What we do everyday on the grass outside gives us bigger belief and trust that the players are good enough and that’s not going to stop me from wanting to kick a bottle or an advertising board.

“We are in a really strong situation, the fact we have got two players in (Antoni) Sarcevic and (Chris) Hussey that have played in a play-off final, so in terms of that, they can pass on completely different feelings and emotions, and we need to use those experiences in a positive way.”

Striker Paddy Madden has scored 10 league goals this season so far, and was also a part of the side which won promotion to League Two last year.

The 33-year-old made the switch to non-league from League One Fleetwood in the 20-21 season, and Madden insists his move was always based around the vision of the football club when many thought it was for financial reasons only.

He said: “At the time there were a lot of eyebrows raised about dropping down the leagues but I knew what kind of plans were in place here.

“I had the chance to watch a couple of game at Edgeley Park, heard the atmosphere and that played a massive part in me coming here because I knew how well the team was followed.

“We always backed ourselves that we would get into a good position, we are annoyed with ourselves that we did not get top three but at the same time getting promoted through the play-offs is better.”

Kilmarnock manager Derek McInnes hopes in-form striker Kyle Vassell can dust himself off for their do-or-die showdown with Ross County.

Vassell struck twice in Wednesday’s 3-0 win over Dundee United, which kept Killie in pole position in the race for cinch Premiership survival.

The Ayrshire side will secure their top-flight status for another year if they avoid defeat against Ross County at Rugby Park on Sunday but they face a play-off if they lose.

Vassell, who missed games in recent weeks before hitting three goals in three matches, went off after a heavy challenge from Charlie Mulgrew in the second half on Wednesday.

McInnes said: “He’s not really trained properly since the Hearts game around seven weeks ago. We’re just getting him out there, to be honest.

“He’s been doing a lot of work with the physio, but we don’t want to irritate his knee.

“He did a wee bit of work with us on Tuesday and declared himself fit, as he does. He turns up for his work and he’s prepared to get his hands dirty.

“He’s so important to me and the team. We’re hoping that he’s all right.

“We’re conscious that it usually takes five or six days for it to clear up, we’ve only got three, so we’re up against it. Knowing him as I do, he’ll be willing to put himself out there.”

LaLiga president Javier Tebas claims with the correct legal framework he can eradicate racism in Spanish football within six months.

The problem has been an issue for some time but hit the headlines on Sunday when Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior spoke out after being abused at Valencia, saying Spain was a racist country because of “continuous episodes across several cities”, and his club filed a hate crime complaint with the Spanish State Attorney General’s Office.

That prompted a tetchy response to Vinicius on social media from Tebas, for which he subsequently apologised, but after complaining the league’s hands were tied by the country’s law which means LaLiga can currently only identify and report incidents and punishment is rarely handed out, the outspoken president is adamant he can rapidly eliminate the problem.

“What we want is the power to do more things. With the power we are convinced within months this would be solved,” he told a specially-arranged press conference.

“We are going along the legal route and I think in six months’ time this will be at zero and we will be the best league in the world.

“The competencies we want are for those intolerable behaviours – racism, homophobia.”

When challenged on his six-month solution claim, Tebas added: “We have been able to have economic control to stop our clubs gong bankrupt so if we are given the competencies we can put an end to this because it is easier to stop than financial control.

“Tomorrow, a communique will go to the head of government and political parties requesting the law is urgently modified against racism, xenophobia and intolerance and requesting the (Spanish Football) Federation and LaLiga to have competencies.”

Asked why LaLiga had not made such a request before, Tebas said: “That was probably a mistake of ours too but we thought we were making progress in the courts when we made complaints directly.

“We have seen it is not enough and we need greater agility and more speed to solve these problems more quickly.”

In the interim, Tebas said Vinicius would have his full backing should he decide to walk off the pitch in the face of further racist abuse.

“If he feels affected of course I’d encourage him to leave the pitch,” he said.

“He and the whole team could abandon it. That is the decision of the referee but I’d encourage him to leave the pitch – he will be supported by me personally and LaLiga.”

LaLiga has set up dedicated reporting channels, via email and its website, in order to speed up the identification of people who engage in racist behaviour but since the creation of LaLiga’s integrity and security department in 2015, there have only been, according to documentation provided by LaLiga, more than a dozen racist incidents linked to matches reported.

However, LaLiga also lists nine separate incidents relating to Vinicius since December 2020, four of which have been resolved but with only two found to have featured racism, with the clubs involved allowed to issue sanctions themselves.

Tebas denied Spain was a racist country but admitted he was concerned about the league’s worldwide image in the light of the latest accusations, although he did not think it would deter black players from signing for LaLiga clubs.

“If I weren’t concerned I’d be crazy. Of course I am concerned and we will work to find a solution to turn this image around. Spanish football is not racist,” said Tebas, who said he would speak to Vinicius when things had “calmed down” but had contacted sponsors to offer reassurances.

“We think it doesn’t reflect reality. This is unexpected and difficult but something we have to face up to, we can’t just hide and cry in the corner.

“We do protect black sportspeople from any racism. We will continue to protect them from any insults they receive on the field, in their professional career and outside their professional career.”

The Elvis Star Browne Women’s league commenced on Saturday with wins for Queen City and NAGICO Cayon Rockets.

Queen City crushed Garden Hotspurs 7-1 on Sunday at the SKNFA Technical Center in St. Peters. 

Kerisha Powell was the star of the day for Queen City as she bagged four goals. She found the net in the 5^th, 19^th, 33^rd and 66^th minutes. The other goals came from Azyka Morton (27’), Kymoyan Grant (39’) and Devel Griese (63’).

Lakisha Davis scored a 78^th minute penalty for Garden Hotspurs. 

In Sunday’s second match, it took a last-minute stoppage time strike from Niclaire Sharry of the NAGICO Cayon Rockets to give the team a 3-2 win over Rams Village Lady Superstars.

Shekola Wilson gave Cayon the lead in the 16^th minute before Olujede Bridgewater equalized for Village Ladies eight minutes before halftime. Five minutes later, Wilson struck again to give Cayon a 2-1 lead going into the interval.

The 53^rd minute saw Bridgewater grab her second to make it 2-2 before Sharry struck Cayon’s winner in stoppage time.

On Saturday, MCFR United Old Road Lady Jets and Newtown United played out a 2-2 draw.

The side entered halftime locked at 1-1 after goals from Katelyn Forbes (15’) for Newtown and Leranja Wilkinson (31’) for the Jets.

With just under a quarter-of-an-hour to go, Zonia Marshall gave Newtown United the lead before Shinella McCalla equalized for the Jets in stoppage time.

The League continues on Thursday with Bath United playing Queen City at the Nevis Athletics Stadium at 7 pm. Then, on Saturday at 6 pm, Garden Hotspurs will play MFC Old Road United Lady Jets at the SKNFA Technical Center. On Sunday at 6 pm, Newtown United will play Rams Village Lady Superstars.

Aberdeen midfielder Graeme Shinnie admits he was fired by a sense of injustice as his double helped the Dons return to Europe.

Shinnie netted twice in Wednesday’s 3-0 win over St Mirren as Aberdeen secured third spot, which will guarantee group stage football next term if Celtic beat Inverness in the Scottish Cup final.

The 31-year-old was returning from a four-match ban, which was extended because the club’s appeal against his red card against Ross County was deemed as having no prospect of success.

Shinnie had been suspended for five of Aberdeen’s previous seven games and was sent off in the other two, so he was determined to make his mark on Wednesday.

“That’s four games of frustration coming out,” he told RedTV.

“I went through the whole season without scoring. I think I have scored in every season that I have played in so far, so I am delighted to keep that run going. Bit selfish of the boys not to get me a penalty at the end for my hat-trick. My legs had gone at the end so I was struggling to push forward.

“The frustrating part of being out for so long, which I felt was unjust, was not being able to help the team and try to drive them forward.

“Coming into this game, having to win to finish third, it was my objective to drive the team on. Did I envisage scoring two goals? I wanted to but I didn’t expect it so I am absolutely over the moon to help the team.”

Shinnie admitted the Dons’ turnaround in fortunes under manager Barry Robson had been unthinkable.

Jim Goodwin lost his job after heavy defeats by Hearts and Hibernian sandwiched a huge Scottish Cup upset at Darvel, and Aberdeen were 10 points behind Hearts after losing to St Mirren in Robson’s first game in caretaker charge.

Wednesday’s victory sent them four points above the Jambos, with Saturday’s trip to Celtic Park now a dead rubber.

Shinnie said: “Who would have thought we would have been in this position in January? I can only speak so highly of the manager and the staff, how good they have been, and also the players.

“To react to one of the worst week’s in the club’s history, that’s what we had to react to, to where we are now, the third best team in the league, it’s an incredible turnaround. The hard work has paid off.

“The manager and staff have changed the style of football. It’s exciting football, there’s a lot of men pushing forward on the transition. It’s good to watch and it’s good to play in.”

Shinnie was coy when asked whether he would be part of the club’s European adventure. His loan spell from Wigan expires soon and he has a year left on his contract with the Latics.

“Well, I have got one more game to go first,” Shinnie said. “Like the manager always says, we will take one game at a time.”

Dundee United stand on the brink of the drop following Wednesday’s 3-0 home defeat by Kilmarnock.

To avoid automatic relegation from the cinch Premiership, United need to beat Motherwell at Fir Park and hope Killie beat Ross County on Sunday while gaining eight goals on the Staggies.

Here, the PA news agency looks at what has gone wrong in United’s third season back in the Premiership after finishing fourth last term.

Instability in the dugout

United have had six managers since American businessman Mark Ogren purchased a controlling stake in December 2018, and three this season alone. Jack Ross was sacked after just seven games in charge and his assistant, Liam Fox, was promoted before leaving the role in late February with Jim Goodwin taking charge until the end of the season. There was further change around the time Fox departed as sporting director Tony Asghar left his role.

European nightmare

United beat AZ Alkmaar in the Europa Conference League in their first home match of the season but their campaign began to unravel during the return trip to the Netherlands when they conceded seven goals – six of them in a 25-minute spell. The shell-shock appears to have lasted and more heavy defeats have followed. United lost 3-0 at home to both St Mirren and Kilmarnock, suffered a club-record 9-0 home defeat by Celtic and were thrashed 4-0 by Ross County.

Goalkeeping problems

United signed one-cap Australia international Mark Birighitti from Central Coast Mariners to replace Celtic-bound Benjamin Siegrist but the 32-year-old has never really recovered from a poor start. Birighitti lost his place after conceding 11 goals in two matches but his replacement, Carljohan Eriksson, let in 12 in the next two games. Birighitti regained his place and United allowed Eriksson to join Nordsjaelland on loan in January without signing a replacement. Birighitti lost his place again after gifting St Johnstone a late winner but 21-year-old Jack Newman let in four goals in Dingwall on his full debut. Birighitti was again dropped following his part in a terrible opening goal for Livingston and Newman was back in goal on Wednesday night.

Lack of bite

United have a host of ball-playing midfielders including Ian Harkes, Jamie McGrath, Craig Sibbald, Peter Pawlett, Dylan Levitt and Arnaud Djoum but they have lacked a ball-winner in the centre of the park since losing Jeando Fuchs and then Calum Butcher. The problem appeared glaringly obvious as United crumbled in Alkmaar but with Asghar seemingly taking a significant role in player recruitment, nothing was done about it.

Where were the goals coming from?

United signed Tony Watt from Motherwell in January last year but he only managed one goal, against his former club, to add to the 10 goals he netted in claret and amber that season. They brought in former Scotland striker Steven Fletcher before the start of this campaign and sold Nicky Clark to St Johnstone. Watt struggled for game time before being allowed to join St Mirren on loan on the final day of the January window while he was locked on four league goals alongside Fletcher. The 36-year-old has since doubled his season tally but is the only experienced forward on the books with support coming from Rory McLeod, who turned 17 in February.

Leadership issues

Captain Ryan Edwards endured a struggle with his own form and has largely been out of the team since early February while 37-year-old Charlie Mulgrew admitted he found it a challenge to balance a coaching role with playing duties. The difficulties in turning around their fortunes have been evident within games and also during lengthy runs where negativity has lingered. United conceded 24 goals during a five-match losing streak in August, went 11 games without a win following a mini-revival after the World Cup and have now lost four matches on the trot after appearing to turn the corner with a hat-trick of wins.

Lee Johnson is looking for one final top-class Hibernian performance to leapfrog Edinburgh rivals Hearts into fourth place on Saturday.

The Jambos failed in their bid for third place in the cinch Premiership despite a 2-2 draw with Rangers at Ibrox on Wednesday night, with the result leaving them just two points ahead of Hibs, who beat champions Celtic 4-2 at Easter Road on the same evening.

Ahead of the final league game of the season, Johnson, whose side beat Hearts 1-0 last month in Leith for their first derby win in 10 attempts, urged a final push, albeit that both fourth and fifth will bring European spots if Celtic beat Inverness in the Scottish Cup final on June 3.

“It is a fantastic climax to the season and for us,” said Johnson, who is likely to be without CJ Egan-Riley after the defender suffered a knock against Celtic.

“That is the key. We are going to enjoy it. We are away from home, we will have our set of supporters there.

“We believe in ourselves. We beat Hearts in the last game so the form is there, which is good.

“It is a wonderful game for us. It is not one where I will have to delve deep into the motivational manual, that’s for sure. They will all be there, ready and up for it.

“It is one more round, one more round of big effort and obviously there is a big prize at the end of the day.

“The fact that they have the draw and the win on offer probably, potentially tweaks the mindset for them.

“For us, we know what we have to do. Straight shoot-out, we have to go and win the game. As simple as that. We are very clear in what we need to achieve.

“In reality, it is about us and about us delivering consistently good performances.

“What’s great is that we know what a good Hibs performance looks like now and we have done that numerous times throughout the year and we just have to find that again.

“There is one more round (of fixtures), two days’ recovery – find the performance lads.”

Meanwhile, Hibs have announced Gareth Evans as their new academy director.

The former Hibees player will complete the club’s football structure, working alongside director of football Brian McDermott, Johnson and chief executive Ben Kensell.

Evans told the club’s official website: “I am delighted to be trusted with this role and will continue to build and develop the club’s academy set-up.

“We have a lot of talented coaches and players at HTC, and I’m really passionate about developing young players. Hibs has a great tradition of that, and I want that to continue with the coaches and players at the club.”

Euro 2022 winner Jill Scott believes England can overcome the absence of key players to claim World Cup glory this summer.

Manager Sarina Wiegman’s preparations for the tournament in Australia and New Zealand, which begins in July, have been hampered by the loss of some star names to injury.

The European champions will be without captain Leah Williamson and midfielder Fran Kirby due to long-term knee problems while another casualty, forward Beth Mead, is rated highly doubtful having been sidelined since November.

With two more experienced campaigners in Scott herself and Ellen White having retired since last year’s European success at Wembley, there could be a very different feel to the Lionesses squad.

Scott told the PA news agency: “Obviously we’ve had a few injuries. You can’t shy away from the fact that we’re going be missing the captain, a fantastic player.

“Her game has reached new heights and she’s going be a really big miss, but it’s an opportunity that presents itself to the younger players. I still think we’ve got a great squad.

“You’ve had players like Lauren James step in and she looks like she’s played for England for years.

“Being led by Sarina, I still fully believe that we can go out there and win the World Cup.

“What she is really good at is focusing on you and the team – focusing on your performance and the team’s performance.

“It’s like (you think) the only person that can beat us today is ourselves. I’m sure that will be the same mindset going into this tournament.”

Scott was speaking at the launch of ‘The Greater Game’, a new programme by the Football Association to encourage better health and wellbeing among 12-16 year-olds.

The initiative aims to harness the power of football to inspire young people and their families to make at least one healthier action each week.

Delivered in the form of workshops and with the help of grassroots clubs, it focuses on the four key areas of moving well, eating well, sleeping well and thinking well.

The scheme is being piloted in five areas before being rolled out nationally next year.

Scott, an ambassador for the programme, said: “This is about getting young people more physically active and looking after the their mental wellbeing as well, using the power of football. I’m a really big believer in it.”

Scott is pleased to be able to use her profile for the benefit of others.

“I’ve always tried to be a role model,” she said. “I had David Beckham as as my role model growing up and I thought he always had time for people.

“To think you might have young girls, young boys, looking up at you when you’re playing in the Euros – I do take that role very seriously.

“The next generation is our future, so prevention is better than cure. I always say that, and if we’re going make them feel better now, then it’s only going to benefit society in the future.”

Following Wednesday night's washout of the Group A matches in the final round of the Concacaf Women U20 Championships qualifiers, Jamaica will now play their opening match against Canada on May 26.

They will then play the USA on May 28 with their final group match against Panama set for May 30.

Adverse weather conditions resulted in water-logged fields in the Dominican Republic on Wednesday night causing the games to be postponed.

The other Group A fixture between the United States and Panama was also called off.

Mark Robins has praised Coventry for being “one game away from achieving a dream” at the end of a season in which he accepts he might have been sacked.

Coventry meet Luton in the Sky Bet Championship play-off final on Saturday with a Premier League place and the millions of pounds that come with such status at stake.

Yet Coventry – who played seven of their opening nine league games away from the CBS Arena this season after the Commonwealth Games’ Rugby Sevens wrecked the pitch – were bottom of the Championship on October 19 and still in the relegation zone as November began.

“We are one game away from achieving a dream and changing the club’s future very quickly,” said manager Robins.

“This season has been exceptional in terms of the start we were handed and all the well documented issues that we had.

“The fact I remained in post when others didn’t. Bottom of the league in October, it’s generally unacceptable.

“That’s been something you look back on and say, ‘OK, that could have happened but it didn’t’.

“We managed to navigate our way through a really difficult period and come out the other side.

“The supporters understood the situation and really backed it, and without them it wouldn’t have happened.

“That’s why it makes it so special because, for me, the biggest achievement since I came through the door is the reconnection between players and supporters and long may that continue.”

Robins’ second Coventry spell – he spent five months there before leaving for Huddersfield in February 2013 – began in March 2017 with the Sky Blues bottom of League One and doomed to relegation.

Coventry claimed promotion the following season with a Wembley play-off final victory over Exeter, and Robins repeated the trick in the Covid-hit campaign of 2019-20 as the club returned to the second tier of English football for the first time since 2012.

Success was more notable as it was achieved against the backdrop of playing in Birmingham between 2019 and 2021 due to a rent dispute.

A sense of calm did not arrive until January when Doug King completed a full takeover of the club, while last month’s agreement of a five-year deal to continue playing at the the CBS Arena has provided further stability.

“I’ve had so much turbulence here that my first job at Rotherham stood me in good stead,” said Robins, recalling the 2008-09 League Two season when the Millers were deducted 17 points and Luton lost 30 for breaching Football League insolvency rules.

“The game is one for the romantics because of the journeys both clubs have been on.

“Luton dropped out of the league when I started my managerial career and found it very difficult to come back from that position.

“It took them five years to get back in and they have had a phenomenal run ever since.”

Coventry lost only once in their final 17 games to finish fifth in the Championship and they edged out highly fancied Middlesbrough in their play-off semi-final.

But Robins said: “We are under no illusions Luton are going to be made favourites because they finished 10 points ahead of us in the division.

“Luton are a really good team with some good technical players and have the power to go with that. That’s why they finished third.

“They are a year ahead of us in their development (Luton were play-off semi-finalists last season) and are expected to go up. No one expected us to be in this game.

“But the change of ownership has accelerated our five-year plan by five years. We’ve got to try and and finish this off, but to be in a position to do that is in itself incredible.”

Barnsley head coach Michael Duff has challenged one of his players “to step up and be the hero” in their Sky Bet League play-off final against Sheffield Wednesday.

Wednesday will start as the bookmakers’ favourites for Monday’s Wembley showdown against their local rivals after overturning a 4-0 first-leg deficit in their thrilling semi-final win against Peterborough.

Barnsley finished fourth in the table, 10 points behind Wednesday, but backed up their 2-0 league win at Hillsborough in September with a 4-2 victory over the Owls at Oakwell in March.

Duff, who took over last summer following the club’s relegation from the Championship, said: “I bet if you look at the odds we’ll be the underdogs. It’s not me trying to create a narrative of my own, they are the facts.

“They finished on 96 points, God knows how many goals they scored, loads of clean sheets, 23-game unbeaten run and they were 4-0 down after the (semi-final) first leg.

“But they’re in a one-off game with us now and the positive is that we know we can hurt them.

“We think we know what we’re going to get and hopefully someone can step up and be the hero.”

Barnsley’s first league double over their South Yorkshire rivals in March also halted the Owls’ club record 23-game unbeaten run.

But Duff, who will choose his starting line-up from a fully-fit squad, said that would have little bearing on Monday’s winner-takes-all encounter.

“Other than the fact that we know we can beat them,” Duff said. “You can dress it up which ever way you want. They’re older, much more experienced.

“Their players will have thousands more league appearances than we have and that might help them. It might not.

“Our youth and naivety might help us. We won’t know until the game pans out, but we know we can hurt them.

“We also know they’re a huge club with big players, and big players, a lot of the time, step up in big moments.

“So we’ll enjoy the day as much as we can, but we’re not going to Wembley for a day out, we’re going there to win.”

Duff acknowledged significant local bragging rights were at stake for both clubs’ fans, but does not feel that will be such a big factor for the players.

“There’s no point hiding away from it,” the former Cheltenham boss added. “But we’re not going to drum it up into something it isn’t.

“It’s a game of football. It’s 22 lads running around, there will be three blokes in black annoying everybody, probably, the pitch will be green and there will be white lines.

“Obviously the local derby element adds just a little bit of spice to what already will be a brilliant game.”

Marc Skinner is bemused at the lack of praise for his Manchester United side even though they head into the last Women’s Super League game of the season with an outside chance of winning the title.

United head to Liverpool on Saturday afternoon two points behind league leaders Chelsea, who will be crowned champions for a fourth successive time if they defeat relegation-threatened Reading.

However, even if the final day unfolds as anticipated and United settle for a runners-up spot, it would still be their highest top-flight finish, in a season where they reached the FA Cup final for the first time.

Just five years after being reformed, Skinner believes United gate-crashing the established order of Chelsea, Manchester City and Arsenal should be more widely recognised by those following the game.

“We’ve been exceptional this year and I don’t think we get enough credit, I really don’t,” said the United boss.

“There’s always a caveat as to why we’re successful. That is other teams’ injuries, other teams maybe not having the run they wanted and having Champions League and I get that. It’s a factor we will have to look at but I just feel the players have been exceptional this year.

“It’s not about where we finish in the league right now, that’s not the over-riding factor. We’re growing up in front of the public eye whereas other teams have already done that. I feel this team in a pressure cauldron not only have performed well but won games of football.

“We’re still in contention to win and if we don’t we finish second but to do that and disrupt the historical top-three, that is a big, big season regardless of what’s happened elsewhere.

“I want people to give this team and the players the credit they deserve.”

Aoife Mannion will miss out this weekend after tweaking her knee while blocking a shot in training although Skinner is confident the Republic of Ireland defender will be fit for the World Cup.

“We’re hoping so, that’s the plan,” said Skinner, who will also be unable to call upon Maria Thorisdottir because of the Norwegian’s foot injury.

“There’s nothing structurally wrong. She won’t be in at the weekend but we’re hoping in a few weeks, she’ll be back.”

Pep Guardiola believes the perceived injustice of Erling Haaland’s disallowed goal in Wednesday’s thrilling 1-1 draw at Brighton proves Manchester City are Premier League champions on their own merits.

City top scorer Haaland looked to have claimed a late winner at the Amex Stadium but his close-range header from Cole Palmer’s cross was ruled out after VAR spotted a shirt pull on Levi Colwill.

Guardiola was visibly angered by the decision after seeing a replay on the big screen inside the ground and was later shown a yellow card by referee Simon Hooper for his ongoing protestations.

The City boss claims 36-goal striker Haaland has endured similar physical contact from defenders all season and feels the incident shows his side have not benefited from favourable refereeing calls during their charge to the title.

“If it’s disallowed, every action to Erling Haaland by all central defenders is a fault,” he said.

“Every action. And we saw one or two (on Wednesday).

“It’s a goal because he’s bigger, he’s stronger, he won the position (from Colwill) and it was an incredible action from Cole Palmer and the goal should be given.

“But that proved that what we won on the pitch belongs to us, not anyone gave us anything.

“He has bruises on all of his body after the games. If he’s faulting in the disallowed goal, every action to him is a fault and never happens.”

Haaland, who squandered two excellent first-half chances, nodded home 11 minutes from time in front of the travelling fans after Julio Enciso’s stunning strike cancelled out Phil Foden’s opener.

A gripping south-coast contest halted City’s top-flight winning streak at 12 games but mattered little in the context of their season.

that proved that what we won on the pitch belongs to us, not anyone gave us anything.

Guardiola’s men enjoyed alcohol-fuelled celebrations after lifting the Premier League trophy following Sunday’s 1-0 win over Chelsea and are bidding to complete the treble with FA Cup and Champions League glory.

Following Sunday’s visit to Brentford, City face rivals Manchester United at Wembley on June 3 before attempting to become European champions for the first time against Inter Milan in Istanbul a week later.

Guardiola has defensive issues moving towards the two finals after Nathan Ake, Ruben Dias, Aymeric Laporte and Manuel Akanji missed the trip to Sussex.

Jack Grealish was also absent, while John Stones and Foden were withdrawn during the game as a precaution.

“Phil had a knock in the first half and problems in his leg and the doctor told me that in this position it is dangerous so we don’t take a risk,” said Guardiola.

“John at the end was a little tight but he didn’t feel anything and is fine, he told me, but we didn’t want to take a risk because we had just one central defender with John.

“The others are injured so hopefully they can recover as soon as possible.

“We sustained no injuries for a long time but the moment we get near the Champions League final, four or five players get little niggles – important ones – and we have to recover them.”

Sixth-placed Brighton cemented their spot in next season’s Europa League with the midweek point.

Pascal Gross, the Seagulls’ first signing following promotion to the top flight in 2017, told his club’s website: “I’m so proud of the boys, what an achievement for us.

“We can’t wait for the Europa League. What a season ahead.”

Paraguayan Enciso’s spectacular equaliser followed another goal of the season contender from the 19-year-old in last month’s 2-1 win at Chelsea.

“He can have it (goal of the season),” said Gross. “Two incredible goals.

“What I like more, he’s getting better and better. It’s not easy coming from far away abroad with no English.

“But he’s improving speaking English, he’s improving adapting to the group, a good guy and I think there’s much more to come.”

Rob Edwards admitted it would be an “incredible story” for Luton midfielder Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu to reach the Premier League having been at the club since they were in the National League.

Mpanzu joined from West Ham in 2014 when Luton were languishing in the fifth tier of English football and a win on Saturday in the Sky Bet Championship play-off final against Coventry would be his fourth promotion in 10 seasons.

Over 300 appearances and nine years later, the 29-year-old is potentially 90 minutes away from reaching the top-flight and facing off with his former side next season.

“It would be (a great achievement). I need to stress that it would be an incredible story,” Edwards said.

“I know people have gone from the National League to do incredible things but to do it with one club would be a great story and if we are able to do it there’s not one person I would be more happy for than Pelly.

“He is such an important person around the place and an incredible man, he deserves it but it doesn’t mean we are going to do it, we have to make it happen but it would be great for him.

“He’s the heartbeat of the group because he’s been here so long, an honest guy, very hard-working and he’s just stepped up. To do one more level would be incredible.”

Mpanzu felt his transfer to Luton was a risk but since praised the club’s mentality and belief as a key factor to their stark success over the last decade.

And Luton’s current longest serving player believed he would one day return to the Premier League.

“It has been a risk but here we are moments away from the Premier League, it’s been a good experience and I don’t want it to end on Saturday,” Mpanzu added.

“I knew my ability would get me back there (Premier League), obviously you have got to have a great team around you and support, but when you have belief and know you can rise back to the top, Luton have done that in a short space of time.

“Going from non-league to the Premier League with one club would be crazy.”

Defender Dan Potts played with Mpanzu at West Ham before rejoining his former team-mate at Kenilworth Road in 2015.

Mpanzu looked back at the pair’s comeback story since leaving the Hammers, saying: “He followed me here and he told me he was signing.

“I told him the team is going places and he’s been a good signing. He’s stuck with me through thick and thin.

“It’s mad we were both at West Ham and now one game away from the Premiership so it’s been a real journey with him also.”