Of course, we all know the Wythenshawe-born Manchester United and England star has been making a name for himself on the football pitch and scoring impressive goals since he was a teenager, but it has been his ongoing work off the field to end child food poverty, stand up against the government, challenge racism and prejudice, inspire people across the globe, and ultimately give a voice to the voiceless that has seen him really shine since 2020.
It’s what earned him thousands of new fans, countless accolades, and an MBE in the process – and now, it’s also what’s seen him take the reins as the guest-editor and star of the Beano.
The 24-year-old footballer has been immortalised in cartoon form on the front cover of the ever-popular children’s comic, and said he “jumped at the chance” to guest-edit a one-off edition too when it was pitched to him.
Rashford also appears throughout the magazine, and is drawn alongside iconic characters like the Bash Street Kids, Billy Whizz, and Bananaman.
In his special guest-edited edition of the world’s longest-running comic, Rashford makes sure to urge all his young readers to “embrace their differences”, and celebrate “all the things that make us unique”.
Breaking news! 😱 😁
We are excited to announce @MarcusRashford as guest editor of our special issue in stores next week! ⚽️
He revealed in his editor’s letter that his favourite thing about the Beano is how “brings together all sorts of different children,” adding: “Instead of our differences dividing us, we embrace them here and we find strength in them.
“Nobody is a success in football without good teammates, and that’s true in life as well.
“Everybody needs to build a team of allies to have fun with and speak up for what’s important. Our voice is strong alone, but when our voices come together, we are powerful. When we fight for things that are important together, we can make progress a lot quicker than by ourselves. Asking for help is no weakness. Asking for help to achieve things quicker is a superpower.
“Finding your voice doesn’t have to be difficult. It can be as simple as having the confidence to stand up for something you believe in, or to champion someone else and their difference.
“Your journey is your strength, and everyone has something valuable to contribute.”
The 24-year-old footballer has been immortalised in cartoon form on the front cover of the children’s comic / Credit: Beano
The special edition of Beano celebrates the launch of Rashford’s new book, You Can Do It: How to Find Your Voice and Make a Difference, which has been co-written with Carl Anka and published by Macmillan Children’s Books.
The special guest editorship is also part of NatWest’s Thrive programme – created in partnership with Rashford and the National Youth Agency – and aims to help six-16 year olds become more financially confident and realise their full potential through a series of interactive group workshops and peer-to-peer sessions.
For each copy of the special edition sold, 20p will be donated to the Marcus Rashford Book Club to help children access books.
Featured Image – Beano
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Pep Guardiola hints at when Manchester City fans can expect to see their latest arrival
Danny Jones
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has given supporters a rough timeline as to when they can expect to see their new signing, or at least their latest arrival, make his first appearance.
The Blues wrapped up the January transfer window with four major signings: their new attacking number seven, Omar Marmoush (who has already bagged a hattrick on his home debut) promising defensive duo, Abdukodir Khusanov and Brazilian Vitor Reis, as well as their ‘mini-Rodri’, Nico Gonzalez.
However, the club has had another late arrival who was technically signed back at the start of last year but who has spent for the last 12 months or so loaned back to his previous parent club, River Plate in Argentina, waiting to make the move over to the Etihad Stadium – and now he’s here in Manchester.
Speaking on his touchdown in 0161, Pep said Claudio Echeverri won’t be thrown into first-team action straight away but did give a rough estimate as to when City fans could expect him to get involved. You can see him discussing the integration plan in his post-match press conference following the Spurs win.
The mention was only brief but there’s still plenty of reason for Man City fans to be excited by the late January signing.
“Yeah, he [Claudio Echeverri] is going to start to train and mainly will be for the end of the season, maybe the [Club] World Cup and as soon as possible [that] he arrives he can adapt quick for the future.”
As mentioned, the 19-year-old Argentinian attacking midfielder from Resistencia officially put pen to paper with CFG back in January 2024 and was quickly dubbed ‘the next Messi’.
Now, although the football world is often quick to jump the gun with these things and he isn’t the first and certainly won’t be last to be slapped with this premature title, he’s done more to back up these claims since then than he has rubbish them.
Starring at the 2025 Under-20 South American Championships, netting six goals in nine games to finish the tournament as the second highest scorer thanks to notable braces against Brazil and Uruguay as the young Argentine’s finished as runners up.
He also notched 48 senior appearances for River Plate thus far, netting four goals and grabbing eight assists in that time, not to mention having already captained his national team at the 2023 Under 17s World Cup, where he scored another five.
Safe to say there’s plenty of talent to be tapped in this lad.
Once again, Echeverri won’t go straight into the senior set-up for a little while yet, barring a major injury crisis, but he’ll be a more than exciting addition to the City Football Academy and for future first-team lineups for years to come.
Who knows, maybe he’ll be included in an FA Cup matchday squad? Nevertheless, you can expect him to not just come of the bench but hopefully show what he can do at the Club World Cup this summer.
City‘s first fixture as reigning champions of the competition will be against Moroccan side Wydad AC on 18 June 2025.
You can watch Echeverri’s first full interview as a Man City player down below:
The new Man City signing is excited to be finally be part of the club 13 months on from agreeing his contract.
Rochdale has been named Greater Manchester’s ‘Town of Culture’ for 2025
Emily Sergeant
Rochdale has officially been named Greater Manchester’s Town of Culture for 2025.
Taking over the reins from Bolton – which held the title in 2024 – and following in the footsteps of Stockport before that, which held the title in 2023, and even hosted a massive ‘Town of Culture Weekender’ festival with 50+ free events to celebrate and bring its title year to a close, it’s now the turn of the north-eastern Greater Manchester borough of Rochdale.
Rochdale’s year will build on the town’s already-rich cultural history and international reputation as the home of the co-operative movement.
More than 35 arts organisations will be bringing together an ambitious programme of festivals, exhibitions, events, and performances throughout the year.
Unfamiliar with what the ‘Greater Manchester Town of Culture’ title is all about? It’s an accolade that’s handed out every year to different boroughs across the region.
Bury was the inaugural title-holder 2020 and held onto it in 2021 too due to the COVID pandemic, before being followed by Stalybridge in 2022, Stockport in 2023, and of course, Bolton in the year just gone.
The title celebrates Greater Manchester’s culture and heritage.
As well as getting a new title to shout about, it also sees the towns given a grant from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) culture fund to help develop a programme of cultural events and activities throughout the year.
Rochdale has been named Greater Manchester’s ‘Town of Culture’ for 2025 / Credit: The Manc Group | Rochdale Council
In Rochdale’s case, you can expect the ‘very best local talent’, as this year is promising to put ‘people power’ centre stage, with residents helping to plan, develop, and deliver a lineup of creative activities, alongside a number of major events.
This includes the popular free days out for families, an exciting new urban arts festival, two different food and drink festivals, a lantern parade, the Ignite Fire Festival, a Pride parade, and so much more.
You can also expect live music performances, a new people’s gallery, and even some major international collaborations that are yet to be announced.
Rochdale is taking over the reins from Bolton, which held the title in 2024 / Credit: Rochdale Council
“Rochdale is a place with a rich cultural history, so it is great to name it Greater Manchester’s town of culture as it’s town hall and town centre enter a new era,” commented Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham as the borough was crowned this week.
“Rochdale submitted a fantastic bid for this which, was incredibly exciting and ambitious, while being firmly rooted in its local talent and deep history.
Emily Sergeant -
27th July 2022 
