Author: Nurudeen Obalola
By Korede James Holders Real Madrid have been drawn against ity rivals Atletico Madrid in the round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League. In another mouthwatering tie produced during Friday’s draw, English Premier League leaders Liverpool will take on Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain. It will be an all-German affair as Victor Boniface and Nathan Tella’s Bayer Leverkusen will square off with Bayer Munich. Club Brugge, with Raphael Onyedika, will battle Aston Villa while it will be Barcelona vs Benfica. In other round of 16 ties, Borussia Dortmund will be up against Lille, Feyenoord will battle Inter Milan, and…
Daniel Dubois’ International Boxing Federation heavyweight showdown against Joseph Parker in Saudi Arabia on Saturday is off, with the British champion having been taken ill and replaced by Martin Bakole. Dubois was set to put his title on the line for the first time since knocking out Anthony Joshua at Wembley in September when he was scheduled to take on New Zealander Parker in Riyadh. However, the 27-year-old Londoner was not able to attend the scheduled pre-fight press conference on Thursday, with promoter Frank Warren confirming Dubois’ health was being assessed. “Unfortunately at this moment in time Daniel is being…
By Korede James Viktoria Plzen head coach Miroslav Koubek has praised Nigerian forward Rafiu Durosinmi after his brace helped the Czech Republic club reach the UEFA Europa League round of 16. Going into Thursday’s second leg clash, Viktoria Plzen needed to overturn the 1-0 first leg deficit. Durosinmi broke the deadlock in the 27th minute to bring the aggregate scoreline to 1-1 before Pavel Sulc made it 2-0 with 10 minutes left in the first half. In the 38th minute Durosinmi got his second goal and Viktoria Plzen’s third. “Rafiu is excellent in the penalty area. He has a goal…
By Korede James Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen was on target for Galatasaray who were eliminated from this season’s UEFA Europa League after playing a 2-2 draw with AZ Alkmaar in their play-offs second leg clash in Turkey on Thursday. It was Osimhen’s sixth goal in seven Europa League appearances this term and also his 20th in 25 matches across all competitions. AZ Alkmaar qualified for the round of 16 6-3 on aggregate. It was a return to action in the Europa League for Osimhen who missed the first leg last Thursday due to suspension. Needing to overturn the 4-1…
By Korede James Remo Stars recorded a 2-0 win against Kwara United in Thursday’s week 25 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) fixture in Ikenne, Ogun State. The victory means leaders Remo Stars are now 10 points clear of second-placed Shooting Stars in the league table, while Kwara United are ninth. It was back to winning ways for Remo Stars, who lost 2-1 to Rangers last time out. After being frustrated for most of the encounter, Remo Stars finally got the breakthrough thanks to Arinze Anakwe 11 minutes from time. Hadi Haruna added the second goal in stoppage time to seal…
Former Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) President Luis Rubiales has been convicted of sexual assault, after the court ruled that he had kissed Jenni Hermoso without her consent during the celebrations of Spain’s 2023 World Cup triumph. Less than a week after going into deliberation, a decision was made. The prosecution had requested a sentence of 2.5 years for Rubiales, for sexual assault and coercion, of which 1.5 years was for the latter part of the sentence. Former RFEF Marketing Director Ruben Rivera, ex-Spain manager Jorge Vilda and ex-sporting director Albert Luque were also accused of coercion, however all four have…
By Korede James Legendary former Italy forward Alessandro Del Piero has given his support to Ademola Lookman over the Super Eagles forward’s reaction after being singled out for criticism by Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini for missing a penalty. Del Piero, a 2006 FIFA World Cup winner, posited that he would have been very upset at being targeted the same way. After being out with a knee injury and with Atalanta 3-0 down in Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League play-off second leg clash with Club Brugge, Lookman came on before the start of the second half and scored seconds later to…
By Korede James Belgian coach Hein Vanhaezebrouck has insisted that no other club in the country’s top flight has a striker with the unique attributes of Tolu Arokodare. The 24-year-old Nigerian striker has been in superb form for Genk this season, leading the scoring charts with 15 goals and five assists in 26 appearances for the league leaders. “They have a weapon up front with Tolu,” Vanhaezebrouck, who led Gent to the Belgian league title in the 2014-2015 campaign, said as an analyst on Extra Time via Voetbalniews. “No team in Belgium has that. No one has someone like Tolu…
By Korede James A hat-trick from Kylian Mbappe earned Real Madrid a 3-1 win against Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 playoffs second leg clash in Madrid on Wednesday night. Real Madrid advanced 6-3 on aggregate having won the first leg 3-2 in Manchester last week. With his treble, Mbappe became the first player to score a Champions League knockout round hat-trick against a team managed by Pep Guardiola. The France international opened the scoring just four minutes into the game as he ran on to a long pass from Raul Asensio and lobbed Ederson. He…
By Korede James Shooting Stars Sports Club (3SC) played out a 2-2 draw with Lobi Stars in a week 25 clash of the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) in Ibadan on Wednesday, missing the chance to cut Remo Stars’ lead at the top. The Oluyole Warriors, who are now winless in their last three games, are in second place, seven points adrift of Remo Stars who have a game in hand, while bottom side Lobi Stars have failed to win any of their last five matches. Joshua Akpan opened the scoring for 3SC at the Lekan Salami Stadium on 18…