The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) is to meet with former President Olusegun Obasanjo in Abeokuta on Saturday ahead of 2019 polls. Uche Secondus made this known in Abeokuta while addressing journalists after a meeting between the executive members of the party in Ogun and the PDP NWC. The Chairman who described Obasanjo as a “warrior” who had fought many battles, explained that the consultation had become necessary to get direction from the former president and tap from his wealth of experience. Secondus insisted that : “Mother of all corruption is happening under Buhari’s government. “This…
Author: David Folami
Ayo Fayose of Ekiti state has accused security agents deployed to monitor the governorship election in the state of bias. Fayose also said that the police frustrated the good intentions of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). He said “I want to state expressly that police have hijacked the whole process, INEC might mean well but the process was tampered with by the police “As I speak, thugs are having a field day snatching ballot boxes under police watch, this is a national disgrace “There were cases of not only ballot snatching, but ballot cleansing and clearing, as the police…
Thibaut Courtois has suggested that Chelsea will need to increase their contract offer to convince him to stay at Stamford Bridge after his impressive performances at the World Cup. Courtois has just one year left to run on his current contract, and Chelsea have reportedly offered him a long-term extension worth around £200,000-a-week — but the Belgian believes he has proven he is worth more with his form in Russia. “I will go back and I will see what they want and how they say it,” he said, according to the Telegraph. “Obviously, with this World Cup, I think what…
Croatia have not yet made the decision whether Nikola Kalinic will receive a medal for his participation in the World Cup. Kalinic, the AC Milan forward, refused to enter Croatia’s opening group-stage game against Nigeria on June 16 as a substitute and was subsequently sent home by coach Zlatko Dalic for his insubordination. With Croatia advancing to the World Cup final against France on Sunday, players will receive either a gold or silver medal — and Kalinic is entitled to one as an official member of the squad — but whether he receives it has not been determined. “Let’s see,”…
Clement Lenglet “would love” Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Adrien Rabiot to join him at Barcelona after becoming the second new arrival at Camp Nou this summer. PSG’s Rabiot, who is into the final year of his contract, has been strongly linked with a move to the Spanish champions and Lenglet is keen for his compatriot to join him. “Of course [I would like to have him here],” the defender said in a news conference on Friday. “He’s a really good player and Barca always want the best players in the world — and ambitious young players always want to grow and…
Liverpool have completed the signing of Xherdan Shaqiri, the Merseyside club announced on Friday. The Switzerland international has been a player on Liverpool’s radar since 2014 and had his heart set on a move to Anfield when the club’s interest first emerged this summer. “I’m very happy to be here. It’s a huge club with big history, big players and a fantastic coach,” Shaqiri told Liverpool’s website. “So I’m really glad and happy to be here. “As a player you always want to be on the biggest stage in football. A few years ago I wanted to come too but…
Real Madrid have said they have “no intention” of pursuing a move to sign Neymar from Paris Saint-Germain. “In the face of the constant reports linking PSG’s Neymar Jr. to our club, Real Madrid C. F. wish to clarify that the club has no intention of making any offer for the player,” the statement said. “The two clubs enjoy an excellent relationship and, as such, if Real Madrid were at any stage to consider securing the services of a PSG player, they would approach the club in the first instance.” On Thursday, Brazilian news outlet Globo Esporte reported that Madrid…
France’s players of African origin will be proud to represent the continent when they face Croatia in Sunday’s World Cup final, according to Les Bleus’ coach Didier Deschamps. “It has always been the case that the French team has always had players from Africa and from other countries and territories, and not just in football but in other sports,” Deschamps told journalists at Saturday’s pre-match press conference in Moscow. “They are all French and they are all proud to be French,” he added, “but through their origins, through their childhood, they have friends, they have families in these countries so…
Didier Deschamps has said the lessons of Euro 2016 will be crucial in guiding France through Sunday’s World Cup final against Croatia and says they must “do things differently” in order to lift football’s most vaunted prize. “There are nine players who are here today and were at the Euros, know what happened and unfortunately know how it ended,” Deschamps said in his prematch news conference. “What happened two years ago must serve us for tomorrow and those nine players know. Of course we want to do things differently, but it’s only once you’ve lived through this situation that you…
Manchester City are unlikely to do business with Napoli again after they pulled out of an agreement for midfielder Jorginho, sources have said. The Italy international was a top target for Pep Guardiola but has now joined Chelsea on a five-year deal worth around €60 million. As recently as Thursday, Jorginho told City that he preferred to join them, but sources said he was “bullied” into a move to Chelsea with the threat of being forced to see out the remaining two years of his contract with Napoli. A £43m transfer fee was agreed between De Laurentiis and City last…
Gareth Southgate doesn’t believe England are one of the world’s top four teams despite finishing fourth in the 2018 World Cup on Saturday. “In the end, we are very proud of what we’ve done. We’re under no illusions as to where we stand as a team; we’ve finished in the final four but we’re not a top-four team yet, we know that, and we’ve never hidden behind that,” Southgate said. “Against the very best teams, we’ve come up short, but we’ve had a wonderful adventure and some experiences that will stand this group of players and staff in really good…
Roberto Martinez has said his players were deserving of their historic third-place finish at the 2018 World Cup following Saturday’s 2-0 victory over England. “It’s all about that achievement. I think these players deserve that,” said Martinez after the match. “What we have seen in this World Cup is that the players did not want to rely on talent anymore, they wanted to rely on working as a team, becoming a group of players that would do anything to achieve results.” Belgium had only three days to recover from a devastating semifinal loss to neighbours France which ended their dream…
Wow. After the final whistle, after the trophy presentation, after the slides on the glitter-strewn turf by the French players, after even the French fans have stopped singing, the mind is still buzzing, the heart still racing. There’s an unwritten law that World Cup finals aren’t meant to be like this; they are meant to be tight, controlled, cautious affairs punctuated by a goal when everyone has gone to sleep (or in 2010, frozen stiff). This match had everything – six goals (as many as the previous four finals together), an own goal, two goals that were controversial to say…
Luka Modric accepted the Golden Ball award as the best player at the World Cup after his side lost to France 4-2 in Sunday’s final. Modric scored two goals in the group stage and converted both of his attempts in penalty shootouts to help Croatia reach the final. The Real Madrid star embraced Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic after being given the award by FIFA president Gianni Infantino and Russia President Vladimir Putin in a rainy postgame ceremony. “I am proud of the award,” Modric said. “The incredible fan support makes me even happier. You know that despite the defeat you’ve…
Thibaut Courtois has suggested that Chelsea will need to increase their contract offer to convince him to stay at Stamford Bridge after his impressive performances at the World Cup. Courtois has just one year left to run on his current contract, and Chelsea have reportedly offered him a long-term extension worth around £200,000-a-week — but the Belgian believes he has proven he is worth more with his form in Russia. “I will go back and I will see what they want and how they say it,” he said, according to the Telegraph. “Obviously, with this World Cup, I think what…
Juan Mata is hoping a strong season at Manchester United will help him regain a place in the Spain team that is now led by Luis Enrique. A 2010 World Cup winner and 2012 European champion, Mata only featured once for Spain under Lopetegui, in a 2-2 friendly draw with England in November 2016. “I will do everything in my power to return to the national team,” the 30-year-old midfielder, who has scored 10 goals in 41 appearances for Spain, said to Marca. “I hope the new coach will count on me because I’m going to do everything possible to…
Wayne Rooney has said that England will find more international success if foreign Premier League coaches have “a little bit more faith in young English players.” England’s longtime captain and all-time top scorer never reached the semifinals of a major tournament with the Three Lions before his international retirement in 2016, and he was succinct when asked to name the biggest obstacle facing up-and-coming English players. “Playing. Just to continue playing in their clubs,” Rooney said on Thursday. “I think there’s more homegrown players, well not more, but homegrown players get a chance and they stay in the team, in…
The decision was a turning point as Griezmann scored to put France into a lead they would never relinquish, as Les Bleus went on to win 4-2. Dalic said he thought such a decision had no place in a game of such magnitude. “We played well but the penalty knocked the wind out of us and after that it was very difficult,” Dalic said after congratulating France on their victory. “I just want to say one sentence about that penalty: You don’t give a penalty like that in a World Cup final.” Dalic also stood by his tactics and plans…
Luke Shaw is prepared to walk away from Manchester United on a free transfer next summer if his first-team prospects at Old Trafford do not improve, sources have said. The 23-year-old is in the squad for the preseason tour of the United States and, according to sources, is hopeful of becoming Jose Mourinho’s first-choice left-back next season. United would like Shaw to sign a new deal to protect an asset that cost nearly £30 million in 2014, but sources have said that he is ready to keep his options open, including walking away for free next summer, if he cannot…
Robert Lewandowski has had a change of heart and now wants to stay at Bayern Munich next season, according to reports. In June, the Bayern striker’s agent Pini Zahavi said Lewandowski was seeking “a new challenge,” with the club’s top scorer from last season hoping to catch the eye of interested clubs with his performances for Poland at the World Cup. Now, according to the report, Lewandowski has decided to stay at Bayern this coming season under Niko Kovac. And incoming manager Kovac praised his star striker at his presentation as Bayern’s coach last Monday. “I think he’s a world…