Football
Paris Saint-Germain star tests positive for coronavirus
Paris Saint-Germain forward Kylian Mbappe has tested positive for coronavirus and has left the France national squad Mbappe has returned home and will not face Croatia on Tuesday night in the UEFA Nations League. He featured in Saturday’s 1-0 win over Sweden and scored the winning goal in that clash Mbappe is also set to miss PSG’s fixtures away to Lens on September 10 and at home to Marseille on September 13 according to Telefoot. A statement from the French FA told Goal. “The result of his Covid-19 test carried out by UEFA on Monday morning was found to be positive. He was placed away from the group after receiving the results, at the end of training, before going back to his own home in the evening. “Like the entire delegation, Kylian Mbappe had undergone a test prior to the games of th...
Premier League set to reject requests to postpone games due to Covid outbreaks
Premier League officials are set to reject requests to postpone games in the event of Covid outbreaks amongst top-flight sides, with clubs required to fulfil fixtures unless they have fewer than 14 players available. The 2020/21 season is set to begin this weekend with the division’s authorities determined to finish the rescheduled and congested campaign on time ahead of next summer’s European Championships, with clubs having been informed that fixtures will need to be fulfilled even in the event of significant coronavirus outbreaks amongst top-flight squads. According to the Mail, Premier League clubs will be required to fulfil fixtures unless they have less than 14 players available for selection, including U21 players, who they will be obliged to play in the event of such circumstances....
Plateau United coach seeks financial support to achieve Champions League Semi final target
Plateau United coach Abdu Maikaba has stated that they need the required support to meet the target of semi-finals of the 2020/2021 CAF Champions League. The former Akwa United coach admitted the 2017 NPFL champions will require even more backing and hard work to realize their last-four ambition in the competition – a feat which was last achieved by a Nigerian club – Sunshine Stars in 2012. “They (Plateau State Government) gave us enough support, but actually, we have to work very hard to achieve that target,” he said. “Getting to the semi-finals (of the CAF Champions League) is not an easy task, and we have to work very, very hard. We have to be given all the necessary support to get there. “In terms of personnel, like the replacement of players, I have to get the support to make the repl...
CAF shock over missing AFCON trophy
Confederation of African Football (CAF) has expressed shock after reports that the AFCON trophy is missing from the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) headquarters in Cairo, Egypt. On Friday former EFA vice-president Ahmed Shobier claimed that the AFCON trophy can not be found. The Pharoahs won the AFCON title in three consecutive editions in 2006, 2008 and 2010, hence awarded the trophy for keeps. However, the silverware that was achieved under the guidance of legendary coach Hassan Shehata has seemingly been stolen a decade on. And reacting to the development, CAF has stated they will render support to the EFA to recover the missing trophy. “CAF has learnt with shock reports of missing AFCON trophies from the Egyptian Football Association secretariat. “Our doors are open and the @EFA ca...
Barcelona prepare final offer to land Lautaro Martinez from Inter
Barcelona are preparing a final offer for Lautaro Martinez, with the beleaguered Blaugrana ready to test Inter’s resolve as they prepare for life without Luis Suarez at the head of their attack. New boss Ronald Koeman recently made it clear to the Uruguayan, despite him being close friends with wantaway Lionel Messi, that he would no longer be a key player for the Catalans and should attempt to find a new club. And although Lyon attacker Memphis Depay has been mooted as a potential successor due to his ties with Koeman, Goal reports that Lautaro remains at the top Barca’s wishlist, with the Argentine seen as a complete centre-forward in the precise mould the club are looking for. There are many complications in the way, however, the most notable of which being the fact that Suarez still ha...
Virus-hit club loses CAS appeal against UCL ouster
Slovan Bratislava lost its appeal Friday against exclusion from the Champions League by UEFA after players tested positive for COVID-19 in pre-game checks. The Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld UEFA’s ruling last week that ordered the Slovakian champion to forfeit a first qualifying round game in the Faeroe Islands without playing. Public authorities in the Faeroe Islands put two different squads of Slovan’s players into quarantine when a virus infection in each group was reported in tests required by UEFA. The game was postponed twice, then UEFA’s appeal panel awarded Faeroes champion KI Klaksvik a 3-0 win to advance to the next round. Slovan later said all 35 players tested negative on returning to Slovakia. Friday’s urgent ruling from a CAS judge – without yet specifying reasons – w...
Gennaro Gattuso: Victor Osimhen must keep working hard despite good start at Napoli
Napoli manager Gennaro Gattuso has demanded that Victor Osimhen stay grounded despite his impressive start to life at the club. Osimhen continued his impressive pre-season form for the Serie A club by netting a hat-trick in Friday’s 4-0 win against Teramo. The Nigeria international scored three goals and bagged an assist in Napoli’s first pre-season friendly against fourth division club L’Aquilla last week. The 21-year-old has now scored six goals in two appearances for the Blues. Gattuso however wants his new striker to keep working hard ahead of the new season. “Osimhen needs to keep working hard and never to be satisfied, these goals count for nothing,” Gattuso stated after the game. ”What’s important is that he’s already integrated into the group, joking and laughing with all his teamm...
Gareth Bale: Real Madrid blocked my return to Premier League
Gareth Bale has accused Real Madrid of making it “very difficult” to leave the Spanish club as the Wales forward looks to end his Bernabeu exile. Bale is out of favour with Real manager Zinedine Zidane and played just 48 minutes of Madrid’s 12 games when the Spanish season resumed after the coronavirus lockdown. Zidane, who has feuded with Bale throughout his two spells in charge, said the winger did not want to play in last season’s Champions League last-16 second-leg tie at Manchester City. Bale has two years left on his Real contract, but there appears little chance he will force his way into the manager’s plans. The 31-year-old almost joined Chinese Super League club Jiangsu Suning in 2019 before Real pulled the plug on the deal, a decision that still irks Bale. “I think the club needs...
Villarreal boss applauds Samuel Chukwueze’s performance vs Real Sociedad
Nigeria international Samuel Chukwueze was impressive again as Villarreal recorded a 2-0 win over Real Sociedad in a pre-season game on Tuesday. Chukwueze who scored in Villarreal’s pre season game against Valencia continued from where he stopped as he ran the show against the Basque based team. Chukwueze set up Francis Coquelin for the opening goal in the 8th minute, making him the player with the most assist in pre-season games for Villarreal. Emery was impressed with his performance and he rose to his feet to applaud the 20-year-old when he went past three players in a flash. Despite the arrival of Real Madrid youngster Take Kubo, Chukwueze has continued to get enough game time under his belt and he will be hoping to start in opening their La Liga campaign against newly-promoted Huesca....
Premier League terminate £490 million TV deal in China
The Premier League has terminated its TV rights deal with China, its biggest overseas contract, leaving a huge hole in clubs’ finances. The deal with Chinese broadcaster PPTV was worth around £490m and had lasted only one of its three years. The conflict is said to have been around a fee of £160m that the Premier League was owed in March but did not receive. “The Premier League confirms that it has today terminated its agreements for Premier League coverage in China with its licensee in that territory,” a spokesman said on Thursday. “The Premier League will not be commenting further on the matter at this stage.” It is not known if the conflict is based purely on money or involves the escalating political tensions between China and the UK government. Boris Johnson announced in July that Hua...
Napoli president confirms Kalidou Koulibaly, Arkadiusz Milik are ‘on the way out’
In what will come as interesting news to Manchester City, Juventus and Roma, Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has confirmed that Kalidou Koulibaly and Arkadiusz Milik are both poised to leave the club. Napoli and City have been haggling over a fee for Koulibaly for a number of weeks and it seems a compromise is close to being reached, with Napoli reportedly demanding in the region of €80m for the defender. While Milik has been linked with a move to Roma as a potential replacement for Edin Džeko, or to Juve as a replacement for Gonzalo Higuaín. “Koulibaly and Milik are both on their way out, transfer market permitting,” De Laurentiis told Canale 21 on Wednesday. “So, if the transfer market allows us to sell these two excellent players, we will know how to replace them. If not, then we...
Real Madrid skipper Sergio Ramos hopes Leo Messi stays at Barcelona
Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos insists he wants Lionel Messi to stay at Barcelona, for the good of LaLiga. Messi’s father Jorge flew into Barcelona on Wednesday for crunch talks with club president Josep Maria Bartomeu, with the player’s camp reportedly hoping to engineer a move to Manchester City. But when asked about the situation at Spain’s pre-Germany press conference, Los Blancos skipper Ramos gave a surprising answer. “This doesn’t concern us,” Ramos told reporters. “He’s earned the right to decide his future, I don’t know if he’s doing it in the best possible way, but Spanish football, Barcelona and Real Madrid players – because we want to face the best – want him to stay. “He makes LaLiga better, his team is better with him and El Clásico is more beautiful with him. “I have nothi...
