World Cup
Manchester United linked with Nick Pope with club concerned Dean Henderson is ‘too inexperienced’
Manchester United are being linked with Burnley stopper Nick Pope this summer, with the club concerned that Dean Henderson is not ready to be the club’s number one. Following Henderson’s return from two seasons on-loan at Sheffield United in the summer, there has been constant debate over who should be the Red Devils starting goalkeeper, particularly with David De Gea having been inconsistent in the last 18 months or so. The majority of this campaign has seen the Spaniard remain as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s first-choice, with the younger Englishman largely having been deployed in domestic cup competitions. With De Gea granted leave to return to Spain for the birth of his first child last week, the 24-year-old has been handed the chance to impress with a run of games, although after a strong p...
Zlatan Ibrahimovic: Brazil legend Ronaldo ‘the best player in history’
Milan star Zlatan Ibrahimovic has named Brazil legend Ronaldo as ‘the best player in history’. Ibrahimovic expressed his admiration towards the World Cup winner ahead of Milan’s Europa League clash with Red Star Belgrade on Thursday night, while putting him ahead of modern-day greats such as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in the all-time list of top players. The 39-year-old thinks Ronaldo Nazario, who inspired Brazil to World Cup glory in 2002, transcended the game with his unique talents and still stands out as the unrivalled master of the footballing craft to this day. Zlatan told Discovery Plus: “I don’t need to describe Ronaldo, ‘The Phenomenon’. “I always say you have the players that play the game, and the players that are the game. For me, Ronaldo is the game. When you watch him...
Leon Balogun impresses at right back in Europa League for Rangers
Super Eagles center back Leon Balogun impressed in a right-back role as Rangers won in a seven -goal thriller in the Europa League round of 32 clash against Royal Antwerp at Bosuilstadion on Thursday night. With 24 minutes played, the Nigeria international came off the bench to replace Rangers skipper James Tavernier, who was not able to continue due to an injury. The right-back position is not entirely new to Balogun as he has played in that role for the national team, Mainz and Brighton & Hove. In fact, he made his debut for the Super Eagles as a right-back when he replaced Efe Ambrose in the second half of a pre-World Cup friendly against Mexico in March 2014. “I was back to an old role and I was happy I can still play it,” Balogun said at yesterday’s press conference. “I think the ...
FIFA announces appointment of chief operating officers for Women’s World Cup 2023
On Tuesday, world football governing body, FIFA, announced the appointment of two Chief Operating Officers (COOs) in Australia and New Zealand respectively for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 that will be jointly hosted by both countries. Last year, the pair took up the initial appointment to lead the FIFA Women’s World Cup office in their respective host countries. Now, Jane Fernandez has officially been named as the COO for Australia, with the New Zealand COO position going to Jane Patterson, officially too. The Australian Fernandez led Football Australia’s successful joint bid to host the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023. Upon a successful bidding, she was appointed Head of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 Office for Australia. Her vast background in organising successful competitions include...
Ex-Eagles boss faults Desire Oparanozie’s exclusion from Falcons squad
Former Super Eagles coach, Sunday Oliseh has berated the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) for excluding Super Falcons captain, Desire Oparanozie, from the list of players that will be representing Nigeria at the Turkish Women’s Cup. Recall that on Thursday, the NFF released a 23-man list and shut the door on the team’s dependable striker Oparanozie on the ground that she has not been playing since a sit-in protest over unpaid bonuses and allowances at the 2019 World Cup. In his words, NFF’s spokesman, Demola Olajire said: “Oparanozie is still part of the team’s plans, and her non-inclusion has nothing to do with that protest in France because she was not the only one involved,” Olajire told BBC. “Selection of players is predominantly the prerogative of the coaches and not the NFF. “She re...
Ex-Golden Eaglets star joins South African side Stellenbosch FC
Former Nigeria’s Under-17 star, Ibraheem Jabaar, has pitched tents with a South African club, Stellenbosch FC. Jabaar, a member of the Golden Eaglets squad that made it to the quarter-finals stage of the 2019 FIFA U17 World Cup, is an exciting addition in attack to Steve Barker’s team. ✍️✅🛅 Deal Sealed. The club is excited to announce the signing of this young Nigerian International who puts pen to paper with #Sfc 🍇 🤝 🇳🇬 Welcome Ibraheem Jabaar (18 y/o)👏 Jabaar is…#ProudlyStellenbosch#StellenboschFC pic.twitter.com/g0Vf7y05nx — Stellenbosch FC (@StellenboschFC) February 9, 2021 The 18-year-old talent joined the South African side from Ijebu United on a long-term contract. Confirming the signing of the Nigerian midfielder ...
Ex-Golden Eaglet defender Joins Georgian club Saburtalo Tbilisi
Former Nigerian Under-17 international left-back, Ogaga Oduko, has completed a winter transfer to FC Saburtalo Tbilisi, one of the elite football club-sides in Georgia. Saburtalo, league champions in 2018, Georgian Cup winners in 2019 and also Georgian Supercup winners in 2020 snapped up Oduko on a two-year contract until January 2023. Ese Oduko, the adoptive father of the ex-Golden Eaglets player said his son “signed a two-year deal and might go to Belgium in the summer before moving to England.” England-based football scout, Ese Oduko who is also the CEO of Fresh Talents Football club/academy further said: “But we are hopeful for the future for him (Ogaga).” The 18-year-old who played for Nigeria at the U-17 African Cup of Nations hosted by Tanzania in 2019 has already played a friendly ...
Shkodran Mustafi joins Schalke from Arsenal
Arsenal’s squad trimming has continued, with Shkodran Mustafi joining Schalke on a deal until the end of the season. Gunners boss Mikel Arteta said prior to the January transfer window that he was keen to trim some flab from his squad. Mesut Ozil has been the highest-profile departure, with the former Germany international joining Fenerbahce and in so doing the club cleared a sizeable chunk of wages from the monthly bill. Sokratis Papastathopoulos joined Olympiakos earlier this month after being released from his contract, William Saliba, Sead Kolasinac and Matt Smith have left on loan, while Matt Macey joined Hibernian on a permanent basis. World Cup winner Mustafi emerged as a possible departure towards the end of January, and he was linked with a shock move to Liverpool. Premier League ...
Victor Osimhen faces Napoli sanctions for breaching coronavirus rules in Nigeria
Napoli coach Gennaro Gattuso said Sunday he felt foolish for giving Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen permission to travel home for Christmas with the forward testing positive for coronavirus on his return. Osimhen faces club sanctions after images of him partying without wearing a mask were shared on social media. But Gattuso said he also felt embarrassed for giving the 22-year-old permission to return to Africa. “The responsibility of sending him to Nigeria was also mine. It’s embarrassing for the two of us,” Gattuso said after Sunday’s 4-1 Serie A win over Cagliari. Osimhen apologised earlier on Sunday. “I am sorry for what happened. I made a mistake going to Nigeria right now,” the forward said in an Instagram post. “I made a mistake going to a surprise party without understanding the gr...
Thomas Muller and wife venture into horse sperm business
After making a good show of his soccer career with numerous laurels to show for his efforts, German international Thomas Muller and his wife Lisa have ventured into horse sperm business. In fact they are tipped to soon become ‘horse sperm millionaires’, according to German newspaper Bild. The Mullers are selling horse sperm online and are reportedly progressing in that regard. The World Cup and Champions League winner Muller is the self-titled ‘director of carrots’ at his wife Lisa’s stables. She is a champion dressage rider so knows a thing or two about all things equine. Now their breeding farm has been named ‘EU Insemination Station’ for 2021. This means breeders can order semen from their stallions, including Muller’s favourite D’Avie (or Dave as it’s also known as). Two ‘installments’...
FIFA increases Africa’s women’s world cup slot to 6
FIFA has increased Africa’s slots at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup to be held in Australia and New Zealand from three to six. The decision was one of the major decisions the Bureau of FIFA Council took on Thursday, December 24, when it met to discuss the fate of upcoming FIFA competitions. Africa in time past had three direct slots, which were given to the top three performing teams at the Africa Women’s Championship. The new decision, which is due to the expansion of the competing teams from 24 to 32 teams, will mean that Africa will have four direct slots and two others fighting in play-offs. The two host countries, Australia and New Zealand, will automatically qualify for the 2023 World Cup and their slots have been taken directly from the quotas allocated to their confederations, nam...
Italy World Cup hero’s home robbed during his funeral
The home of Italy’s 1982 World Cup winner Paolo Rossi, was burgled during his funeral on Saturday, according to the Associated Press. Rossi’s wife, Federica Cappelletti, reportedly discovered the crime upon returning to a house in disarray and valuables missing. Rossi died Wednesday of lung cancer at the age of 64. Thousands of mourners gathered in Vicenza, Italy, on Saturday to remember the departed forward, who received the Golden Ball, Golden Boot and Ballon d’Or after scoring six goals for Italy at the World Cup in 1982. His coffin was carried by a group of his former teammates. His wife and teammates were also among those to speak at the funeral. Aside helping Italy win the World Cup, he was part of the Juventus side that won their first Champions League title in 1985. Get more storie...
