Sports
Wazupnaija – Naija Entertainment blogs & Forums – Sports
‘He’s a class act’ – Richard Keys leaps to the defence of £375k-a-wk United star
Manchester United secured a 1-1 draw against Tottenham Hotspur last Friday but they should have left North London with all three points as they were the better side. The Red Devils had more possession (61%), shots (12) and shots on target (6) than the host, and were unlucky to have gone behind in the first-half. David de Gea failed to properly deal with Steven Bergwijn’s shot and has since come in for criticism. United legends Roy Keane and Gary Neville were left fuming with the Spaniard’s error, and some fans want Sheffield United loanee Dean Henderson to be recalled to Old Trafford and handed the number 1 spot next season. Nevertheless, Red Devils manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer maintains that de Gea is the best goalkeeper on the planet, and beIN Sports’ Senior Football Anchor and former Sk...
Champions League: UEFA revamp sets up exciting fortnight of football
The announcement that this season’s Champions League will culminate with a ‘final eight’ tournament in Portugal is an exciting development for the competition. The implementation of a straight knockout format from the quarter-final stage changes the dynamic of the tournament and should prove to be hugely attractive for fans. Read on as we take a closer look at the revised format for the Champions League and predict who we think will contest the final. Champions League Schedule The remaining round of 16 ties will take place on August 7 & 8, with the four winners progressing to the quarter-finals. Those ties will be played from August 12-15 as single-leg fixtures which will be hosted in the stadiums of Benfica and Sporting Lisbon. The two semi-finals will be staged in the same venues on ...
Report: Man. City owner’s business partner finally reveals his role in Newcastle takeover
Reports emerged a week ago that Ali Jassim, a close business associate of Manchester City owner Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, is serving as a broker in Saudi Arabia’s plans to buy Newcastle United through the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund – Public Investment Fund. His role wasn’t particularly very clear at the time, but he has finally revealed it during the ongoing court case between PCP Capital Partners’ owner Amanda Staveley and Barclays. As shared by The New York Times’ Tariq Panja on Twitter, Jassim agreed a cooperation agreement to share commission if he helps to source a buyer for the Magpies, but now Staveley is now a principal and he has nothing to do it with it anymore. The businessman has no involvement now in the Newcastle deal, nor any financial interest in it. Jassim finally ...
‘That’s why Arsenal want him to stay’ – Richard Keys comments on Luiz’s new deal
Arsenal have handed Brazilian centre-back David Luiz a new deal that will see him remain at the club until next summer today. ✍️ One-year deal for @DavidLuiz_4✍️ Long-term deal for @PabloMV5✍️ Long-term deal for @OficialCedric✍️ Loan extension for @DaniCeballos46 More info on the new deals 👇 — Arsenal (@Arsenal) June 24, 2020 The 33-year-old joined the Gunners from Chelsea last summer and has since featured in 33 games across all competitions. While Luiz hasn’t been poor, he hasn’t been exceptionally impressive either, with many Arsenal fans and pundits questioning the club’s decision to hand him a new deal. He was responsible for two of Manchester City’s goals in last week’s 3-0 defeat at the Etihad Stadium, and a lot were ex...
David Ornstein says Arsenal like England international centre-back attracting the bigwigs
According to The Athletic’s David Ornstein, Arsenal like Aston Villa centre-back Tyrone Mings, but it remains to be seen if they will be making a move for his signature this summer. The England international is also attracting interests from some of the biggest clubs in the land, and he will definitely be moving on should Villa relegate. Dean Smith’s side are currently 19th in the Premier League table with eight games to go, but they are just a point away from safety and still have a realistic chance of escaping the drop. Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta wants a left-footed centre-back and he seems keen on Mings. “I understand there is interest in Tyrone Mings from a couple of big Premier League clubs,” Ornstein said on The Ornstein and Chapman Podcast. “Arsenal like him too, but whether that ...
Hammers star comments on Fornals’ miss against Wolves, admits side miss injured 32y/o
West Ham United resumed Premier League action with a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday, and they will hope to do much better when they play Tottenham Hotspur this evening. Weekend’s loss left them hanging precariously outside of the relegation zone, but skipper Mark Noble reckons things might have been different had Pablo Fornals converted a rare chance in the opening minutes of the game. The Spaniard was through on goal from a tight angle, volleying his effort into the stand when he could have chosen to square pass the ball to Michail Antonio who had the best chance of scoring. West Ham were punished for the miss in the second-half, with the visitors scoring twice within the space of 11 minutes 28 minutes after the restart. “We didn’t create too many clear cha...
‘The audacity’ – Some Spurs fans fuming with Antonio’s comments ahead of Hammers clash
West Ham United are hoping to return to winning ways when they face Tottenham Hotspur tonight in North London, and Michail Antonio fancies his side’s chances despite weekend’s 2-0 loss at the hands of Wolverhampton Wanderers. The Hammers striker was responsible for Spurs’ first defeat at their new stadium last year after scoring the only goal of the derby, and he isn’t convinced that they are unbeatable after their display against Manchester United last Friday. “It’s a fresh start again for us, we go again and Tottenham are a team we normally get some good results against,” the West Ham star told Sky Sports News. “One thing I noticed [from their draw against Manchester United] is that they are not that free-flowing, attacking team they used to be. They sat back quite a bit and played ...
Saint-Maximin’s hilarious reaction to making Alan Shearer’s TOTW
Newcastle United blew Sheffield United away at St. James’ Park on Sunday, securing a 3-0 victory to all but guarantee Premier League safety. Second-half goals from Allan Saint-Maximin, Matt Ritchie and Joelinton handed the Magpies valuable three points, and their 10th win of the campaign saw them go 11 points clear of the relegation zone with eight games remaining. The French winger and English midfielder Isaac Hayden made Alan Shearer’s Premier League Team of the Week as a result, and they definitely deserve the spots given their stand-out performances against the Blades. Saint-Maximin’s pace and tricks proved too much for the visitors’ defence to handle, and he is pleased to have made Shearer’s TOTW, reacting thus on Twitter to the inclusion: pic.twitter.com/PiZ622fQn3 — Allan Saint-Maxi...
Report: Manchester United suffer massive transfer blow as Euro giants close to signing £30m target
According to reports from BBC Sport, German giants Borussia Dortmund are hopeful of completing the signing of Jude Bellingham. The highly-rated youngster broke the record of Trevor Francis when made his first-team debut aged 16 years and 38 days for Birmingham City in August. He became the youngest ever player to have represented the club. The exciting young versatile midfielder has made 33 Championship appearances this season, and has scored four goals thus far. He has provided two assists as well. The youngster has been heavily linked with a move to Manchester United, but it seems he will be heading to Germany to join Dortmund. The German giants feel they can lure him with the example of how Jadon Sancho’s career has flourished after he moved to Germany from Manchester Cit...
‘Significant’: George Caulkin delivers ‘positive’ update on NUFC takeover
For the past three months, hardly a day has passed when we didn’t have any piece of new information on the Newcastle United takeover. That shows that it is arguably the most complicated takeover saga the Premier League has faced thus far, and we don’t know yet what the outcome will be. The Athletic journalist George Caulkin has been keeping the fans updated with regular information surrounding the takeover, and he has added something new on Twitter yesterday. I’ve not been asked much! The stuff that happened yesterday was viewed as positive, obviously, and significant. Haven’t heard more today. It’s the same position in the sense that everyone is still waiting. — George Caulkin (@GeorgeCaulkin) June 22, 2020 Newcastle United fans will love the fact that behind the scene actions were taken ...
‘Got to find other ways’ – Dean Smith hints at a new role for 24-yr-old Aston Villa star
Aston Villa manager Dean Smith has hinted that there could be a positional change to get the best out of Jack Grealish in the upcoming games. The Aston Villa midfielder has been fouled more than any other player in the league this season and Smith claims that if Grealish is fouled in the good areas, it could help Aston Villa create chances and score from set-pieces. Smith has explained that Grealish will have to be more involved in the play. When asked if the 24-year-old midfielder could play centrally, the Villa manager revealed that Grealish is comfortable as an eight or a number ten. He said (via Birmingham Mail): “Listen, he’s a top player and he gets targeted hence getting 11 fouls yesterday (vs Chelsea). He got nullified in the game because of that as well. “Myself and Jack have got ...
‘Prodigiously talented’: Gary Lineker makes bold prediction on ‘special’ Man City player
Manchester City defeated Burnley in the Premier League on Monday night at the Etihad Stadium. Phil Foden and Riyad Mahrez both scored twice as Pep Guardiola’s side thrashed Burnley 5-0 to ensure that Liverpool have to wait longer to win the Premier League title. Former great England striker turned popular football pundit Gary Lineker has showered praise on Foden on Twitter. Lineker posted two tweets on Foden. In his first tweet, he has hailed him as a ‘prodigiously talented’ player. He has claimed that Foden will be one helluva player who will be a regular player for Guardiola next season. Stunning goal from the prodigiously talented @PhilFoden. He’s going to be one helluva player…and yes, he’ll be a regular feature next season. — Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) June 22, 2020 In a separat...
