Author: Nurudeen Obalola
By Korede James Manchester United could not build on their recent impressive results as they fell to a 3-1 English Premier League defeat to Brighton at Old Trafford on Sunday. Yankuba Minteh, Kaoru Mitoma and substitute Georginio Rutter struck for the visitors as they secured a third straight league win over Manchester United at Old Trafford. Minteh gave Brighton the lead just five minutes into the game but Bruno Fernandes drew United level on 23 minutes from the penalty spot. Joao Pedro thought he had restored Brighton’s lead on 53 minutes but his goal was disallowed by VAR. The disallowed…
The Australian Open men’s quarter-finals on Tuesday will be Novak Djokovic versus Carlos Alcaraz, and No. 2 Alexander Zverev versus No. 12 Tommy Paul. Djokovic, who has won 10 of his 24 Grand Slam titles at Melbourne Park, defeated No. 24 Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (4) on Sunday, while Alcaraz advanced when No. 15 Jack Draper quit because of a hip problem after two sets. Zverev, a two-time major runner-up, defeated No. 14 Ugo Humbert 6-1, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2; Paul, a semi-finalist in Australia in 2023, eliminated Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-1, 6-1, 6-1. In women’s singles, Coco Gauff’s consecutive-set streak ended at…
Nottingham Forest manager Nuno Espirito Santo is confident that Super Eagles striker Taiwo Awoniyi will be back to his best form soon. Awoniyi has been working hard to get back to fitness and sharpness since missing a large part of pre-season. The Nigeria international scored his first goal of the campaign in the 3-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers earlier this month. The striker made the line-up for last weekend’s FA Cup before returning to the bench for Tuesday night’s 1-1 draw with his former club Liverpool. “He can absolutely get back (to that previous level). Yes, absolutely. Because he shows…
LaLiga club Real Betis are closing in on a loan deal with Manchester United for their Brazilian forward Antony. According to European transfer expert Fabrizio Romano on Sunday, the Spanish club and the English club are working on the final details of an agreement. The deal would see Antony move on loan to Real Betis until June, with no option or obligation to buy. Antony is reportedly open to the potential move, with Manchester United to cover part of his salary while on loan. Also TEAMtalk reported that the Manchester United board is open to offloading Antony this month and…
By Korede James Super Eagles forward Ademola Lookman scored his 10th Serie A goal of the season on Saturday night but it was not enough as Atalanta lost 3-2 to visiting Napoli. Lookman, the current African Player of the Year, is just one goal shy of equaling his league tally for the whole of last season. Atalanta have now gone five consecutive matches without a win, recording three draws and two defeats, while Napoli’s winning run has extended to six games on the bounce. Atalanta got off to a good start as Mateo Retegui gave them the lead in the…
By Korede James Arsenal missed the chance to close the gap on Liverpool as they let slip a 2-0 lead to draw 2-2 with Aston Villa in the English Premier League on Saturday at the Emirates Stadium. The Gunners looked to be cruising to victory after Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz scored in either half to take them 2-0 up. But Youri Tielemans and Olie Watkins struck to help Villa to a share of the spoils. The draw means Arsenal are on 44 points, six points behind Liverpool who have a game in hand. Mikel Arteta’s side needed to put…
By Korede James Two stoppage time goals from Darwin Nunez secured a 2-0 victory for Liverpool at Brentford in the English Premier League on Saturday, earning the leaders their first victory in three fixtures. Liverpool looked to be heading for a third consecutive draw in the league before Nunez struck twice in added time. The Uruguayan, who came on in the 65th minute, broke the deadlock in the 91st minute off an assist from Trent Alexander-Arnold. He then sealed the three points for the Reds when he added the second goal two minutes later after being set up by Harvey…
By Korede James A hat-trick from Justin Kluivert helped Bournemouth to a 4-1 win against Newcastle United in Saturday’s English Premier League early kick-off. With the win, Andoni Iraola becamr the first ever Bournemouth manager to go 10 Premier League games unbeaten in charge of the club as Newcastle’s nine-game winning run across all competitions ended. Bournemouth temporarily moved up to sixth place on 37 points, just one point from fourth. The Magpies remain in fourth on 38 points. Bournemouth took a deserved lead in the sixth minute as a brilliant cutback by Antoine Semenyo after some great footwork found…
By Korede James Victor Osimhen is confident that Galatasaray will achieve great things this season, even with tough fixtures. Osimhen, who is on loan to Galatasaray from Napoli, netted his 11th Turkish Super Lig goal in Friday’s 1-1 draw at Hatayspor. The Super Eagles star drew Galatasaray level on 56 minutes after scoring from the penalty spot. The draw took the champions to 51 points, nine ahead of second-placed Fenerbahce, who will play on Sunday. Reflecting on the draw with Hatayspor, Osimhen lamented his side’s inability to convert scoring chances. “There was a bit of a lack of intensity in…
By Korede James Nigerian midfielder Kelechi Nwakali has won Barnsley’s Goal of the Month award for December. “Reds fans have voted Kelechi Nwakali the December Goal of the Month winner,” the English third division club stated. “The Nigerian midfielder struck home against Exeter City on December 14 in Devon, volleying from the edge of the area just after the restart to level proceedings at St James Park. “December Player of the Month, Davis Keillor-Dunn, scored just before the hour mark to wrap up three points on the road for the Reds. “Nwakali was presented his award by Reds fan and…