Sports

Liverpool (UK), Jan. 19, 2020 Liverpool came through a high-octane tussle with old rivals Manchester United to win 2-0 at Anfield and move 16 points clear at the top of the table on Sunday. The win sparked a chorus of “we are going to win the league” from their now-expectant …

By Olanrewaju Akojede Lagos, Jan. 18, 2020 The Group Managing Director (GMD) of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mele Kyari, on Saturday said physical fitness was very crucial to workers’ well-being towards attainment of optimal performance. Kyari, while speaking after the closing ceremony of the 12th NNPC Sports Fiesta in …

Jeddah, Jan. 9, 2020 Atletico Madrid pulled off a stunning turnaround to beat FC Barcelona 3-2 in an enthralling Spanish Super Cup tie in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Thursday. They thus booked their place in the final of the revamped competition where they will face Real Madrid on Sunday. Argentine …

Manchester (UK), Jan. 9, 2020 (Reuters/NAN) Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola needed only 15 minutes in training to get the tactical changes which led to Tuesday’s 3-1 win over Manchester United, playmaker Kevin De Bruyne said. The 3-1 win was in the League Cup semi-finals on Tuesday. Guardiola opted to …

By Victor Okoye Abuja, Jan. 8, 2020 Liverpool and Senegal star Sadio Mane and Nigeria and FC Barcelona Women forward Asisat Oshoala have picked up the top awards for African Men’s and Women’s Player of the Year respectively. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that both players were crowned …

London, Jan. 5, 2020 Crystal Palace skipper Luka Milivojevic became the first player in an English match to be sent off as a result of a referee reviewing an incident on a pitch-side monitor. This had occurred during his side’s 1-0 defeat by Derby County in the FA Cup third …

Liverpool (UK), Jan. 6, 2020 A stunning strike from 18-year-old Curtis Jones gave Liverpool a 1-0 win over Everton in their FA Cup third round tie at Anfield on Sunday. Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp made nine changes to his side, giving starts to three teenagers, while his Italian counterpart Carlo …

Madrid, Jan. 4, 2020 Atletico Madrid made it three La Liga wins in a row by beating Levante 2-1 at home on Saturday. The victory took the capital side up to third in the standings following an action-packed game in which three goals were scored in the space of five …

London, Jan. 4, 2020 Holders Manchester City began their assault on the FA Cup with a 4-1 victory over English football fourth-tier’s Port Vale on Saturday. But city rivals Manchester United and Wolverhampton Wanderers face an unwanted replay match after drawing 0-0 at Molineux. Goals from Oleksandr Zinchenko, Sergio Aguero, …

London, Dec. 26, 2019 (Reuters/NAN) Goals from Michael Obafemi and Nathan Redmond earned improving Southampton a surprise 2-0 win at Chelsea in the Premier League on Thursday. Obafemi broke the deadlock with his first goal of the season, bursting inside from the right and curling into the top corner after …

Bournemouth (UK), Dec. 26, 2019 (Reuters/NAN) A second-half equaliser from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang gave Mikel Arteta a point in his first game as Arsenal manager as his side came back from a goal down to draw 1-1 with Bournemouth in the Premier League on Thursday. The two sides came into the …

Leicester (UK), Dec. 27, 2019 Rampant Liverpool moved 13 points clear at the top of the English Premier League (EPL) after Roberto Firmino struck twice in an emphatic 4-0 win at second-placed Leicester City. The victory was inspired in large part by attacking right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold who created three goals …

Cairo, Dec. 23, 2019 Liverpool pair Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah, plus Riyad Mahrez from Manchester City, were named as the three candidates for this year’s African Footballer of the Year award, to be decided next month. Senegal talisman Mane will be the favourite for the award ahead of his …

Munich (Germany), Dec. 23, 2019 Bayern Munich interim  coach Hansi Flick will remain in charge until the end of the season, the German Bundesliga champions said on Sunday. Flick was promoted from the coaching staff after Niko Kovac’s dismissal, following Bayern Munich’s 5-1 thrashing away to Eintracht Frankfurt last month. …

Seville (Spain), Dec. 22, 2019 Atletico Madrid moved back into the top four in La Liga with a hard-fought 2-1 win at Real Betis on Sunday. They therefore recorded back-to-back league victories for the first time since the beginning of September. Substitute Angel Correa put Atletico in front in the …

Milan (Italy), Dec. 22, 2019 Brescia striker Mario Balotelli replied to being dropped for the second time this season by coming off the bench to score on Sunday. But his team had to settle for a 1-1 draw at Parma in Serie A after the home side snatched a late …

London, Dec. 20,2019 New Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta says he is confident he will have the London club challenging for top honours again and asked for patience after being appointed head coach on a three and half year contract on Friday. Arteta, who made 149 appearances for Arsenal between 2011 …

Milan (Italy), Dec. 19, 2019 A superb Cristiano Ronaldo header sent Juventus three points clear in Serie A with a 2-1 victory at Sampdoria on Wednesday, as Gianluigi Buffon matched the league appearance record. Ronaldo was denied his second goal by the offside flag late on, before Samp scorer Caprari …

Barcelona (Spain), Dec. 19, 2019 Real Madrid outplayed FC Barcelona for large parts of Wednesday’s La Liga clash but were unable to make their dominance count and the ‘Clasico’ ended goalless. The result though left the Catalans top of the standings on goal difference. Both sides had shots cleared off …

Berlin, Dec. 19, 2019 Bayern Munich’s Joshua Zirkzee and Serge Gnabry scored stoppage-time goals to give the Bundesliga champions a 3-1 win at Freiburg on Wednesday. Also, Borussia Moenchengladbach joined RB Leipzig at the top of the table with a 2-0 win over Paderborn. Bayern Munich, who moved up to …

London, Dec. 19, 2019 Manchester City remained on course to lift the League Cup in England for a third successive season after overcoming third-tier Oxford United 3-1 on Wednesday. They will now face Manchester United in the semi-finals, after their city rivals also overcame Colchester United in another quarter-final fixture. …

Zurich, Dec. 16, 2019 World football ruling body FIFA on Monday filed claims in a court in Switzerland seeking to recover two million Swiss francs (about £1.56 million) from former French football star Michel Platini. It said the money was paid inappropriately by ex-FIFA President Sepp Blatter to Platini. “FIFA …

Nyon (Switzerland), Dec. 16, 2019 Manchester United will continue their 2019/2020 UEFA Europa League campaign against Belgian side Club Brugge after Monday’s draw for the last 32 of the competition. Three-times European champions Manchester United, arguably the biggest name in the draw, qualified as group winners while Club Brugge dropped …

London, Dec. 14, 2019 Defiant Bournemouth stole all three points with a late goal from Dan Gosling at Chelsea in the Premier League on Saturday, ending a five-match losing streak with a 1-0 win. Gosling looped his shot over goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga’s head in the 84th minute and defender, Cesar …

London, Dec. 15, 2019 Arsenal have confirmed that defender Kieran Tierney faces around three months on the sidelines after suffering a dislocated right shoulder in Monday’s English Premier League (EPL) win at West Ham United. “Kieran will undergo surgery next week and will rehabilitate for around three months,” the club’s …