United Strand's 500 Days With No Haircut: Man United's Draw Keeps Streak Going
Manchester United fan and social media influencer Frank Ilett, better known as The United Strand, has hit the milestone of 500 days without cutting his hair until his beloved Red Devils win five games in a row. Ilett came close to shaving off his curls last week, before United drew with West Ham, halting their run at four wins in a row, agonizingly short of his target. The United Strand's rise to fame Back in October 2024, The United Strand channel was born, with Ilett sitting down in front of a camera and claiming that he would not be cutting his hair until United won five consecutive games. Since then, the Red Devils have been through three different managers, a series of highs and lows, but have never been able to get the job done. Tomas Soucek's goal was the difference between him being able to finally shed the hair, but instead, he must now continue growing it. The United Strand's campaign did not gain much traction at first, but as the months crept by, and his hair became longer and more noticeable, football fans have taken a keen interest in his journey. Across all platforms, Ilett has accrued thousands of followers and built a brand for himself. He has starred in mainstream adverts and worked with major companies as his cause spread across the globe. Plans to celebrate latest milestone A week after that agonising draw with West Ham, Ilett has announced on social media that he will be commemorating the 500-day mark by giving away a signed United shirt. In a post, he said: "Not only is it day 500, but it's Chinese New Year, the year of the horse, and pancake day," Ilett said on Instagram as he pulled both a toy horse and a pancake from his hair. "To mark the day I'll be doing a giveaway of a signed shirt on my Instagram page later today, so keep an eye out." United Strand divides the dressing room Both head coach Michael Carrick and the likes of Matheus Cunha have publicly acknowledged Ilett's challenge, which is being done for charity. However, the response from inside the dressing has been one of frustration, with players claiming that it is taking the focus away from their efforts and putting more pressure on them. Club legend Wayne Rooney slammed The United Strand during a recent podcast, admitting the entire saga was driving him mad. Speaking on the 'No Tippy Tappy Football' podcast, he said: "I'd put him to the other side of the country. He's doing my head in. "We're talking about Michael Carrick and Man United trying to win their fifth game in a row, and the whole thing is about to get this guy his hair cut. I bet he'd be devastated if Man Utd win the fifth game, because all of a sudden he's irrelevant." Cunha followed a similar path, adding: "People are more worried about getting five wins because of the haircut than about the 15 points. "So, I'm more for the 15 points, I don't care about his haircut at all. We talk about it sometimes, but it's not very motivating for us. We don't see it as cool. No-one wants those five wins more than we do, or more wins, whatever. But I think having this pressure from his haircut hides a bit of the beauty that could be in the season, you know?" March the next opportunity for a trip to the barbers With the win counter now reset to zero, Ilett will not be able to visit his barber until at least March 20. However, for that to happen, United must beat Everton, Crystal Palace, Newcastle, Aston Villa and Bournemouth. It is not an impossible task, considering the previous run included wins over Manchester City, Arsenal and Tottenham. First up for Carrick's men is a trip to the Hill Dickinson Stadium on Monday night, a tough test for the club, despite having had nearly two weeks off, after they were knocked out of the FA Cup in the third round by Brighton.
🗣️ Prestianni speaks out after racism accusation: You misunderstood
Gianluca Prestianni used a story on his Instagram profile to deny having made racist insults towards Vinicius Junior.
According to the Argentine player from Benfica, the Real Madrid number 7 "misinterpreted" words he thought he heard.
"I want to clarify that at no time did I direct racist insults at the player Vinicius Junior, who unfortunately misinterpreted what he thought he heard."
"I have never been racist towards anyone and I regret the threats I received from Real Madrid players."
Prestianni used a photo of himself with the Brazilian from the previous match between Benfica and Real - which resulted in Benfica's qualification to the playoffs - in the post that will be deleted in 24 hours if he doesn't save it.
Uefa has not yet commented on the case.
Mbappé came to Vini Jr.'s defense, ensuring that he heard Prestianni call the Brazilian Mono (monkey in Spanish) five times.
Vini Jr. spoke about the episode criticizing, for example, the protocol adopted by Uefa.
Mourinho, the coach of Benfica, avoided commenting on the alleged offenses, focusing on criticizing the celebration of the forward after deciding the game.
Real and Benfica will play again next Wednesday (25).
The Spanish team will have the advantage of a draw in Madrid.
The Encarnado will need to win by two goals to advance in regular time.
Whoever advances to the round of 16 will face Sporting or Manchester City.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.
Arizona Cardinals could have interest in Bears QB Tyson Bagent
The Arizona Cardinals are expected to make moves at quarterback this offseason. Kyler Murray is on the way out, and it is uncertain what they play to do with Jacoby Brissett.
According to Arizona Sports 98.7 FM's John Gambadoro, there is a quarterback currently under contract with another team.
The Cardinals could seek to work a trade with the Chicago Bears for quarterback Tyson Bagent. As a rookie in 2023, he went 2-2 for the Bears when Justin Fields was injured. Over the last two seasons since Caleb Williams was drafted, he has appeared in seven games and played only 27 total snaps.
He is under contract for the next two seasons at $4 million each year with a $250,000 workout bonus each offseason as well.
Would the Bears be willing to move Bagent?
He threw three touchdown passes and six interceptions in those four starts in 2023. He rushed for another two scores.
He is a scrappy, athletic quarterback who would be fun to watch.
Would he be acquired to potentially start? If so, the Cardinals could be looking at a rough 2026.
Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire's Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.
This article originally appeared on Cards Wire: Arizona Cardinals could have interest in Bears QB Tyson Bagent
Michigan basketball thunders through Purdue on the road
WEST LAFAYETTE, IN – Bodies were on the floor less than 30 seconds in and No. 7 Purdue’s fanbase at Mackey Arena was in an absolute frenzy.
The atmosphere was deafening early and the preseason No. 1 team (Purdue) against the current No. 1 (Michigan basketball) lived up to the hype for a few minutes, only for the Wolverines to put together an incredible 40-15 run in the middle 12 minutes of the first half to go up by 20.
From there, the Wolverines just had to hang on to finish off their most impressive victory this season, 91-80, extending their lead in the Big Ten and further cementing themselves as a No. 1 seed in next month’s NCAA Tournament.
Yaxel Lendeborg, days after a video from last May surfaced showing him disparaging Purdue, wasn’t bothered by the hostile crowd, posting 13 points and seven assists. But it was Aday Mara who dominated from start to finish, with a 10-point, 12-board double-double before fouling out. Elliot Cadeau added a team high 17 points, including eight of U-M’s first 10 in the second half.
Big Ten tournament picture
The win by the Wolverines (25-1, 15-1) extends U-M’s lead in the Big Ten to 2½ games over Illinois (12-3) and three games over Nebraska (11-3). The Cornhuskers played late Tuesday night at Iowa, while the Illini visit USC on Wednesday night. Michigan has four games remaining in league play and could clinch its first regular-season title since 2021 with victories in its next two Big Ten contests.
Next up for Michigan basketball
But first, the Wolverines have to deal with No. 3 Duke in a neutral-site nonconference matchup in Washington on Saturday (6:30 p.m., ESPN). The winner at Capital One Arena this weekend could have the inside track for the No. 1 overall seed in next month’s NCAA Tournament. After the Blue Devils, the Wolverines return to Big Ten play again Minnesota at Crisler Center on Tuesday (8:30 p.m., Big Ten Network).
Bullying on the boards
Michigan has won 11 consecutive games, all without losing the rebounding battle. That continued Tuesday, when Mara, Lendeborg and Johnson came up with big boards at bigger times.
With U-M down 7-2 early, Lendeborg and Johnson came away with two extra chances on the same possession, allowing Lendeborg to hit a 3 in front of the Purdue bench. Johnson grabbed an offensive board moments later, leading to two free throws to start a 15-0 run.
But perhaps the play of the half was when Will Tschetter went up between four Boilermakers and tipped a ball behind his back to Lendeborg, who swung it to Trey McKenney for a 3-pointer to go up 15.
In all, U-M had eight offensive rebounds in the first half, leading to open looks as seven Wolverines hit at least one 3-pointer, including all four reserves making their first long ball of the night.
Bullying Braden Smith
Braden Smith was Big Ten preseason Player of the Year but looked more like John Smith on this night.
Purdue’s superstar point guard missed all four of his shots in the first half, going scoreless until he hit a baseline fadeaway with 18:31 to play; that got Purdue only within 17.
The Wolverines switched up their ball coverage on him all night: Sometimes Mara’s length stumped him, other times Roddy Gayle Jr. pestered him on the ball and, in the second half, Johnson even got a turn.
As a result, Purdue was forced to feed Trey Kaufman-Renn early; he finished with a team-high 27 points, but it took 26 shots to get there.
Purdue entered Tuesday averaging nearly 20 assists a game, best in the Big Ten. Against the Wolverines, the Boilermakers managed 12, but they struggled to string multiple scoring possessions together in a row.
Bullying the nation’s best
The Wolverines improved to 13-0 away from Crisler Center, which includes two victories in the most hostile arenas in the country − Michigan State and Purdue.
The win also moves U-M to 3-0 in top-10 matchups (Michigan State, Nebraska and Purdue) and 4-0 against top-12 teams (Gonzaga).
Tony Garcia is the Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan basketball shows why it's No. 1 with pounding of Purdue
Lakers' Luka Doncic makes eight-word admission that will make Mavericks fans shed a tear
Lakers' Luka Doncic makes eight-word admission that will make Mavericks fans shed a tear