Sports
Wazupnaija – Naija Entertainment blogs & Forums – Sports
Predicted Newcastle XI vs Brighton: Steve Bruce to make one change, 26-yr-old to start
Newcastle United take on Brighton and Hove Albion in the Premier League tomorrow, and the Magpies are under pressure to pick up all three points. Steve Bruce’s team have failed to win their last five league matches and are in danger of losing their top-flight status. The Magpies have failed to score in six of their last eight away league games and are missing key attackers like Callum Wilson and Allan Saint-Maximin for this fixture. The visitors will need a bit of luck the score against a well-organised Brighton defence, especially without their top forwards. Brighton have an impressive record against Newcastle, keeping a clean sheet in six of their last seven matches against the Magpies in all competitions. The home side will be hoping for another shut-out given how poor Newcastle have be...
‘I will make a decision that is best for my career’ – 25-yr-old hints at possible Celtic exit
Celtic defender Jack Hendry has hinted that he could leave the Scottish club permanently at the end of the season. The 25-year-old is currently on loan at Belgian club KV Oostende and has produced some impressive performances. Speaking to Belgian publication Het Laatste Nieuws (translated by Sportwitness), the 25-year-old revealed that he has enjoyed his time in Belgium. He said: “I am grateful to KV Oostende for the platform they have offered me. In this way, I showed my abilities and kickstarted my career. I, therefore want to give the club something in return for their confidence. “I’m not going to lie: I’m ambitious and want to play at the highest possible level. We’ll see where that is – I won’t let it distract me. At the end of this season, I will make a deci...
Predicted Celtic XI vs Rangers: Kennedy to make one change, 29-yr-old to start
Celtic host Rangers in the Scottish Premiership this weekend and the Hoops will be looking to end the visitors’ unbeaten run in the league. Rangers have already won the Scottish Premiership title and they will be hoping to finish the season as strongly as possible. Steven Gerrard’s men have beaten Celtic in their last three meetings and will be hoping to extend that run of form over their bitter rivals. However, Celtic fans will demand a strong reaction and the home side will be out to fix their recent results against the Ibrox outfit. [embedded content] Rangers are in rampant form and head into the game on the back of four consecutive league wins. By contrast, Celtic have failed to win two of their last three games and will have to improve to beat Rangers here. The Ibrox outfit crashed ou...
Predicted West Ham XI vs Arsenal: Moyes to make two changes to his side, 28-yr-old to return
West Ham United host Arsenal in the Premier League this weekend and they will be hoping to extend their fine run of form with a victory. The Hammers are unbeaten in four of the last six league matches and they will be confident of picking up all three points against an inconsistent Arsenal side. West Ham are currently fifth in the Premier League and a victory would keep them in the running for a top-four spot. The last time these two sides met Arsenal picked up a 2-1 win and the Hammers will be aiming to avenge that defeat here. David Moyes’ side are full of confidence at the moment and Arsenal will have to be at their best to grind out a win this week. The home side will be without the services of Angelo Ogbonna, Darren Randolph and Ryan Fredericks due to injuries. Arthur Masuaku and...
Predicted Aston Villa XI vs Spurs: Dean Smith to make three changes, 27-yr-old to start
Aston Villa host Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League this weekend and they will be hoping to get back to winning ways. Dean Smith’s side have won just one of the last six Premier League matches and they will be under pressure to turn their form around. Spurs are currently four points ahead of Villa in the table and the West Midlands club will be looking to close the gap. The home side have kept a clean sheet in five of their last seven Premier League games at Villa Park and they will be hoping for another shutout against Tottenham. The likes of Harry Kane and Gareth Bale have done well in recent weeks and Villa will have to be at their best defensively to keep a clean sheet. Meanwhile, the London club have an excellent head to head record against Aston Villa and they have won eleven of...
Predicted Rangers XI vs Celtic: Gerrard to make two changes, 22-yr-old set to return
Rangers take on Celtic in the Scottish Premiership this weekend and they will be hoping to extend their fine run of form in the league with a victory over their bitter rivals. The League leaders have won 22 of their last 24 league matches and they will be full of confidence heading into this game. Rangers have already managed to secure the Scottish Premiership title and they will be hoping to inflict further misery on Celtic with a win at Parkhead. The visitors have managed to win the last three derbies and they will fancy their chances of making it four in a row. Rangers are coming into this game on the back of a disappointing defeat in the Europa League and they will be fired up to produce a positive reaction here. The visitors will be without the services of Nikola Katic and Nathan Patt...
‘Very dangerous’: Bielsa raves about Leeds player; drops hint about summer transfer plans
Marcelo Bielsa has dropped a hint that he may not look to sign a new striker in the summer transfer window. Leeds United have been heavily reliant on Patrick Bamford, and there are suggestions that Bielsa should look to add more quality in the forward department. However, the Argentine claims that he is happy with the attacking force he has got at the moment and has played down Leeds’ need to sign a new striker. Bielsa said, as quoted by The Mirror: “Tyler Roberts, Bamford and Rodrigo can all play as a centre-forward and Rodrigo and Tyler can also play behind the centre-forward. “They are all options, and throughout different stages of the campaign, they have given positive responses.” Leeds signed Rodrigo from Valencia for a club-record £26 million, but the Spaniard has mostly played in t...
Ancelotti confirms five Everton players out of Man City clash, 26-year-old available to play
Everton will take on Manchester City in the FA Cup sixth-round clash at Goodison Park on Saturday. Ahead of the match, Carlo Ancelotti has given the latest team news update, and Everton fans won’t be too happy about it. Jordan Pickford is injured and he is out of tomorrow’s game. He hasn’t been picked for the England national team squad as well. Second-choice goalkeeper Robin Olsen is also out injured for this game. In his absence, Joao Virginia, 21, is expected to start. Olsen out of tomorrow’s game. Gbamin will train with the team next week. James too — Patrick Boyland (@Paddy_Boyland) March 19, 2021 Everton fans will be relieved to see that Jean-Philippe Gbamin has finally returned to training after a long injury lay-off, but he won’t feature against City. The 25-year-old def...
Champions League flashback: Liverpool and Man City’s chance for revenge + 2020 Final repeat
The fixtures for the Champions League quarter-finals have been drawn, with several enticing fixtures. Manchester City were the first side out of the pot, coming up against Borussia Dortmund, while Porto got drawn against Chelsea. The final two fixtures see repeats of recent finals, with Bayern Munich facing Paris Saint-Germain, and Real Madrid playing Liverpool. In anticipation of the next round of European games, here is a look back at some of the best clashes between these sides. Manchester City vs Borussia Dortmund Balotelli’s equaliser was not enough to prevent an early exit for Man City Rather surprisingly, this is only the second time that these two sides have been drawn up against each other. The first came in the group stages of the 2012/13 season. It was a very different Borussia ...
Another Levy masterclass: Spurs reportedly have come up with exciting transfer plans for 25 y/o player
According to reports from Daily Mail, Tottenham Hotspur have come up with an exciting plan to sign Carlos Vinicius permanently. The 25-year-old joined Spurs in the summer transfer window on loan from Benfica. The clause in his contract states that Spurs will have to pay a massive sum of £36m to sign him permanently. Daniel Levy, the Spurs chairman, is unwilling to pay that amount, but he is still keen to do a deal, at a lower price. The report claims that Levy is looking to do a deal for less than half of the buying clause – at £17m. If Spurs can pull off the deal at that price, it will be seen as another transfer masterclass from Levy. SL View In recent years, Spurs have found it really difficult to sign a top-class striker who will serve as a back-up option for Harry Kane....
‘Don’t trust’: Mourinho reveals what he told Spurs players at half-time vs Zagreb
Tottenham Hotspur boss Jose Mourinho has revealed to BT Sport that he felt really sad after Spurs were knocked out of the Europa League on Thursday. Spurs were leading 2-0 from the first leg, but somehow they managed to throw it away, as Dinamo Zagreb took to extra-time to seal a pulsating 3-0 victory. The Portuguese boss has revealed to Football London what his instructions to Spurs players were at half-time. After a 0-0 first-half, it appeared that Spurs were on their way to the quarter-finals. Mourinho has suggested that he warned his players of the potential threat from the home side as he sensed they were gaining in momentum. Apart from a few Spurs players, the rest just didn’t turn up, and it was a lacklustre performance from the visitors collectively. Mislav Orsic scored a hat-trick...
Can Everton take advantage of Pep’s rotation and beat Man City this weekend?
Manchester City travel to Merseyside this weekend to take on Everton at Goodison Park with a place in the FA Cup semi-finals up for grabs. This tie comes just a month after the two sides last met in the Premier League, a comfortable 3-1 away win by a rampant City side in the midst of their record-breaking winning run broken recently by rivals Manchester United. Everton The Toffees come into the clash as underdogs having lost their last two Premier League games in succession to on Chelsea (2-0) and Burnley (2-1) respectively, and haven’t beaten City in any competition since January 2017. An unexpected win for Carlo Ancelotti’s side would mean qualification for a first FA Cup Semi-final and a first trip to Wembley since 2016 – excluding when Tottenham Hotspur used the national stadium as the...
