Sports
Wazupnaija – Naija Entertainment blogs & Forums – Sports
Gareth Southgate names 26-man squad for World Cup qualifiers
The latest England squad has been released ahead of the upcoming international break. The Three Lions are set to begin their qualifying campaign for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar in the closing days of March. They begin by welcoming San Marino to Wembley before a trip to Albania. Finally, they’ll face Poland at home. Several players miss out on the squad through injury. Leicester City duo James Maddison and Harvey Barnes have been sidelined in recent weeks, while wingers Jadon Sancho and Jack Grealish are also unavailable. Regular number one Jordan Pickford misses out after being substituted early against Burnley, while Jordan Henderson and Joe Gomez remain long-term absentees. Jesse Lingard has earned a recall to the England setup following an impressive loan spell at West Ham United. John ...
‘So happy’, ‘Well deserved’: Some Man United fans react as duo earn England call-ups
A selection of Manchester United fans have expressed their delight after Luke Shaw and Jesse Lingard returned to the England squad under Gareth Southgate. Shaw has not played for the Three Lions since September 2018, and he previously pulled out of the squad in March 2019 due to injury. He has since been out of the fray due to injuries and competition for places, but his form this season has not gone unnoticed by Southgate. Shaw has been one of United’s best-performing players this season, bagging one goal and six assists from 34 appearances. He was recently named the Red Devils’ Player of the Month for February. Alongside Shaw, Chelsea’s Ben Chilwell is the other left-back/left wing-back option in the England squad. The duo are set to compete for places in the upcoming World Cup qualifier...
‘Shame’, ‘Absolute joke’: Some Leeds fans react after England squad announced
The latest England squad has been announced for the upcoming World Cup qualifying games. Leeds United fans are absolutely furious with Gareth Southgate’s decision to leave out Patrick Bamford for their upcoming games. The Three Lions are set to begin their qualifying campaign for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar in the closing days of March. They will face San Marino first at Wembley before a trip to Albania. Finally, they’ll play Poland at home. David Anderson of The Mirror claimed yesterday that Southgate was considering giving Bamford his senior national team debut. Luke Ayling was also in line for a call-up, with Anderson claiming that Southgate is impressed by the right-back. However, apart from Kalvin Phillips, who retains his place, neither Bamford nor Ayling managed to find th...
Manchester City emerge as favourites to sign Jack Grealish
Manchester City are in pole position to sign Aston Villa star Jack Grealish, according to the Daily Mail. Grealish came through the academy at Aston Villa, earning his first Premier League appearance with the club in on 7th May 2014. He has since made over 200 appearances for the Midlands side, scoring 32 times. This season, the Englishman has emerged as one of the most creative players in the division. He has recorded ten assists in the Premier League this term – a figure bettered only by Harry Kane and Kevin De Bruyne. In addition, he has also bagged six goals, making him Aston Villa’s joint second top scorer. Grealish had enjoyed a fine season As a result of his form, Grealish has been constantly linked with moves away from Villa Park. Man City are the latest club to be mentioned as pot...
Predicted Spurs starting XI: Mourinho to makes eight changes; 27-year-old returns
Tottenham Hotspur will look to progress through to the next round of the Europa League when they face Dinamo Zagreb tonight. Spurs are leading 2-0 from their round of 16 first leg, and Jose Mourinho’s side will look to finish the job in Croatia. The north Londoners are heading into this fixture on the back of a 2-1 defeat against Arsenal in the Premier League and will be looking to return to winning ways. Harry Kane scored twice for Tottenham in last week’s first leg, but the England striker could be rested for this one. Carlos Vinicius could lead the line in his absence. Mourinho is likely to make a few changes to the side. In defence, Eric Dier, 27, is likely to start in place of Toby Alderweireld. Ben Davies has played regularly in Europa League, and the Welshman is set to start in...
How Atlético Madrid’s tactical missteps cost them huge against Chelsea
With a 1-0 deficit to overturn, Atlético Madrid visited Stamford Bridge to face Thomas Tuchel’s still-undefeated Chelsea in the second leg of their Champions League round of 16 clash. Coming back from a goal down was not Atlético’s game – they had never won a Champions League tie after losing the first leg. By contrast, Tuchel’s Chelsea were unbeaten in 12 games, winning eight of those. The German tactician would become the first Chelsea manager to avoid defeat in his first 13 games in charge if he kept this run going, so this was quite an important match from the record-keepers’ point of view too. The Blues cruised to a 2-0 victory despite a couple of initial scares, as goals from Hakim Ziyech and Emerson helped them advance to the quarter-finals. In this analysis, though, we wi...
Gabriel Agbonlahor urges Leeds United to sign ‘reliable’ defender with 209 PL appearances
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Gabriel Agbonlahor has said that Leeds United should consider a move for Crystal Palace defender Patrick van Aanholt. Van Aanholt has been with the Eagles for the past four years, where he has accumulated 130 appearances across all competitions. His current deal expires at the end of June, and it appears that he could leave on a free transfer with Leeds and Arsenal interested in signing him. In an interview with Football Insider, Agbonlahor said that Van Aanholt would be a ‘great signing’ for a team outside of the top six in the Premier League. He said: “He’s played a lot of Premier League games. He’s Mr Reliable, and he’s very good going forward. “I think that would be a great signing, and it’s something that Leeds should pursue. “Any club in...
Former Aston Villa star says he ‘would love to see’ 15-goal attacker join Dean Smith’s side
Former Aston Villa striker Gabriel Agbonlahor has revealed that he would love to see Alfredo Morelos join Aston Villa this summer. The 24-year-old Colombian striker has been linked with a move away from Rangers and it will be interesting to see if he can secure a move to the Premier League. As per Football Insider, the striker dreams of playing for a Premier League club and Agbonlahor believes that most Premier League clubs would want to sign the Colombian. Agbonlahor said: “I would love to see him at Aston Villa. I think he’s a great striker. Apart from the top four, five all the other clubs would have him. He’s quite quick, he’s a finisher, he’s aggressive, he works hard and he’d add a lot to all of those clubs.” Aston Villa signed Ollie Watkins from Brentford at the start of the se...
Jurgen Klopp admits top four place is “almost impossible”
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has admitted defeat in his hopes to finish in the Premier League’s top four this season, labelling the task “almost impossible”. Having lifted the league trophy with ease last season, the Reds made a strong start to their title defence, finding themselves top of the table at the beginning of the new year. However, 2021 has been nothing short of a disaster for Liverpool. They have lost eight of their last 13 league games and been knocked out of the FA Cup by bitter rivals Manchester United. Liverpool have been well below standard in 2021 They currently sit in sixth place, five points off the Champions League spots. Meanwhile, Everton, Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa could all overtake them if they win their games in hand. Manager Jurgen Klopp has played down...
Liverpool handed massive potential boost as owners approve £540m investment
According to Boston Globe, Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group have added basketball superstar LeBron James as one of their partners. They have approved a £540 million private investment that would make RedBird Capital Partners their third-largest partner. James has held a two percent share of Liverpool since 2011, but he has now become part of FSG, owning an undisclosed amount of their shares. The newly-formed partnership will help provide the financial muscle that would boost FSG’s efforts to acquire more teams, with another European football club, NFL and NBA franchises, NHL, MLS, WNBA and NWSL teams, sports betting, eSports and data analytics companies on their wish list. It remains to be seen how FSG’s latest moves will benefit Liverpool, but it could help improve the financial resou...
Manchester United hand youngster new contract
Manchester United have agreed a new contract with young defender Teden Mengi, as confirmed by the club’s official website. Mengi came through the academy at Man Utd and earned his first professional contract in September 2019. He made his senior debut last August, replacing Timothy Fosu-Mensah in the 2-1 Europa League round of 16 second leg victory over LASK. Mengi in a youth team match The centre-back is yet to make a second appearance for the Red Devils, featuring only as an unused substitute. He has since been loaned out to Derby County in the Championship to gain some experience. However, he is a player that Man Utd evidently wish to keep, with the club confirming via their official website that he has put pen to paper on a new deal. This contract will keep him at Old Trafford until at...
Ziyech and Emerson strike as Chelsea knock out Atletico Madrid
Chelsea have reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League following a comfortable 2-0 victory over Atletico Madrid at Stamford Bridge. It was a quiet beginning to the game, with neither side posing much threat on goal. The first talking point of the match came in the 26th minute. Cesar Azpilicueta miscalculated his back pass, almost allowing Yannick Carrasco through on goal. The Chelsea defender subsequently put his arm across the Belgian, who went down under the challenge. Controversially, no penalty or red card was awarded. Not long after, Thomas Tuchel’s men took the lead with a goal created and finished by three summer arrivals. Kai Haverts fed the ball into Timo Werner out on the left, who rolled across to Hakim Ziyech, who slotted underneath Jan Oblak with his weaker right foot...
