Barcelona have invited Brazilian side Chapecoense to play in next summer’s Joan Gamper Trophy match at Camp Nou in homage to the 71 people who died in an airplane accident in Colombia last month. Nineteen of Chapecoense’s players were among those killed in the crash just outside Medellin as the side travelled to the first of two matches against Atletico Nacional to determine the champion of the Copa Sudamericana. CONMEBOL, the South America governing body for football, have since officially given the Copa Sudamericana title to Chapecoense, at the request of Atletico Nacional. Barca have not yet confirmed a date…
Author: David Folami
Arsene Wenger has ruled out the possibility of selling Mesut Ozil or Alexis Sanchez next summer if they do not sign new contracts, saying they will remain at Arsenal for the remainder of their current deals. The star duo have 18 months left on their contracts but are stalling at signing extensions as negotiations over their salaries continue to drag on. The Daily Telegraph reported on Thursday that Arsenal would be willing to listen to offers for Ozil next summer if he does not lower his wage demands, while the Daily Mirror claims Chelsea are lining up a move for…
Marcus Rashford has said that playing out wide for Manchester United, rather than as a striker, will help him in the long run. Rashford, 19, regularly played as a striker in his breakthrough campaign last season under former United manager Louis van Gaal, scoring eight goals in 18 appearances in all competitions. Van Gaal’s successor Jose Mourinho has regularly shunted him out to the wing though, meaning that Rashford has not been as prolific this season, scoring four in 19 in all competitions. “Playing out wide is going to help me to develop to play in the middle in the…
President Muhammadu Buhari has commiserated with the families of three National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members, who died recently during the 2016 Batch ‘B’ Orientation Programme in three states. A statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday by the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, described the demise of the youth corps members as “shocking, sad and unfortunate”. President Buhari expressed regret that they died in the course of answering the national call to serve. He urged the families, friends and associates of the deceased to be consoled by the knowledge that their “loved ones paid the…
Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) says Nigeria has lost $200 billion of investments due to its inability to legislate the proposed reform in oil and gas. PENGASSAN said this in a position paper sent to the Chairman and members of the Senate Joint Committee in the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill in Abuja. The union came out with the position paper signed on Wednesday in Lagos at the end of a seven-man committee meeting headed by Chika Onuegbu. According to the paper, the country loses 15 billion dollars annually in investments withheld or diverted by investors.…
The Federal High Court on Wednesday in Abuja struck out defamation suit filed by President Muhammadu Buhari against DAAR Communications, operators of the African Independent Television (AIT). Justice John Tsoho held that the court was compelled to strike out the suit because it appeared abandoned. According to him, no representations from the parties have been entered since the matter was assigned to the court. “This is against the rules of court, all opportunities given for the plaintiff and the respondents to put life in the suit have failed. The suit is hereby struck out,’’ Tsoho said. Buahari had filed the…
The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) said on Wednesday that it would embark on a three-day warning strike in 2017 if oil and gas companies failed to address workers’ welfare. NUPENG President, Mr Igwe Achese, who did not disclose the date in a statement signed in Lagos, said the union took the decision after its National Executive Council meeting. According to Achese, the union issued a 21-day ultimatum for the Federal Government intervention in the labour issues with multinationals operating in the oil and gas sector. He said among contending issues was the non-payment of terminal…
Ibrahim Magu’s confirmation hearing as substantive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) should have taken place today. However, information filtering into our newsroom suggest that the Senators aren’t keen on getting Magu confirmed. Magu’s confirmation hearing wasn’t listed on the Senate Order Paper for the day’s business, leaving members of the EFCC who had thronged the National Assembly complex for the occasion, to exit the premises in droves. During Wednesday’s plenary, Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu announced that Magu’s confirmation hearing will take place on Thursday (today). In June this year, the Presidency had written the Senate,…
Three new judges were on Thursday sworn-in by Gov. Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun at a ceremony held at the Executive Council Chamber of the Governor’s Office at Oke Mosan in Abeokuta. The News Agency Nigeria (NAN) reports that the newly appointed judges are Mr John Olatokunbo, Mrs Abiodun Shobayo and Mrs Eniola Fabamwo. Amosun urged the judges to uphold the principles of fairness and equity in the administration of justice in the state. He added that they should see their appointments as a call to service, adding that the assignment was coming with greater dedication and commitment. “I appreciate the…
First Lady, Aisha Buhari has urged Nigerians to stop bringing her gifts adding that she will not accept them. Mrs Buhari made the comment on Wednesday, December 7, during the launch of an anti-corruption campaign titled “Women Against Corruption.” “People have been trying to bring some gift items to me but I have not been collecting them,” she said. “Right from when I was campaigning with the Wife of the Vice President for our husbands, we did not take a dime from anyone and we have continued like that till today. “I have never collected any gift and I am…
Hollywood star Brad Pitt is reportedly going to court to keep his custody battle with Angelina Jolie private. Sources tell TMZ Brad’s motivation is to stop Jolie from harming their children with a public trial. TMZ reports Brad filed documents on Tuesday, December 6, 2016, in family court, requesting an emergency hearing. The entertainment site reports he asked the judge to seal all documents and proceedings related to his and Angelina’s ongoing battle for custody of their 6 kids. TMZ also reports the actor claims Angelina filed the custody documents because she feared Brad was going to change their temporary…
Timi Dakolo is back with his girlfriends! The singer took to Instagram on December 7, 2016, sharing a photo with his adorable girls.”MY GIRLFRIENDS…..” he captioned the photo of himself in the middle of his two angels. Timi has proved time and again that he and his kids are best friends. A quick glance at his Instagram page and you can tell he is a family man. The singer who got married to his lovely wife, Busola Dakolo, in 2012, has been blessed with three adorable kids, a son and two daughters. The soul singer once mentioned that the highest…
Apparently, marrying a Kardashian doesn’t mean you can use their surname! TMZ reports the Kardashian sisters, Kim, Khloe and Kourtney, are going to war to block Blac Chyna from cashing in on their family name. According to documents obtained by TMZ, Kim, Khloe, and Kourtney’s companies are opposing Chyna’s request to trademark “Angela Renee Kardashian”, which according to them, she was trying to use while working in entertainment, and also on social media. The document states if Chyna gets the trademark they’ll “suffer damage including irreparable injury to their reputation and goodwill.” They also claim Chyna is “deliberately seeking to…
Contrary to report circulating on the internet, Reality star Kim Kardashian and rapper, Kanye West are not getting a divorce. Just yesterday, December 7, 2016, US Weekly reported the marriage of the pair reached a rocky surface after some series of events, especially West’s recent dramatic outburst which landed him at the hospital. Now, Keeping Up With The Kardashians official Twitter handle has dispelled the false news. According to them, Kim and Kanye are not getting a divorce. Recall that US Weekly reported that Kardashian may soon distance herself from her husband and take up the challenge of a single…
Rapper, Kanye West, may soon be in the single market following reports of an imminent divorce with his wife, Kim Kardashian. The marriage of the pair has reached a rocky surface after some series of events, especially West’s recent dramatic outburst which landed him at the hospital. vUS Weekly reported that Kardashian may soon distance herself from her husband and take up the challenge of a single mother. According to Global Grind, a source revealed that she does not wish to stay married to the rapper who often gets involved in controversies. “It will take some time before she can…
Popular actress Toyin Aimakhu wants you to see what’s been under those wraps. The actress took to photo sharing app, Instagram, on December 7, 2016, showing off her wrap dress. We couldn’t help but notice her tattoo as she gave fans a free for all look. “TB #WORLDBEST #TOYINTITANS #THISBREEZESEF,” she captioned the shot that has faced heavy criticism from fans and followers. It’s been a tough year for the actress as she’s had her fair share of up and downs. First, it started with her marriage scandal, with estranged husband, Adeniyi Johnson, which shook the entertainment industry. She accused…
Liverpool centre back Joel Matip has returned to full training, handing manager Jurgen Klopp a welcome fitness boost ahead of Sunday’s Premier League visit of West Ham United. The 25-year-old Cameroonian sat out Sunday’s Bournemouth game with an ankle injury as Liverpool opened a 3-1 lead only to suffer a stunning defensive collapse and lose 4-3 away. The club’s Senegal winger Sadio Mane, who limped off midway through the second half, also trained normally with the first team squad during Liverpool’s break in Barcelona this week. Klopp took his players to Spain on a two-day bonding trip after the Bournemouth…
Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane is hoping to avoid a return to Juventus in the Champions League last 16 after the holders blew a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 against Borussia Dortmund and qualify second from group F. A double from Karim Benzema had Real well on course to leapfrog the Germans into top spot, but Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang halved Dortmund’s deficit before teeing up Marco Reus for the equaliser two minutes from time. However, that late goal could well benefit Real as they now can’t face the likes of Bayern Munich, Manchester City or Paris Saint-Germain in Monday’s draw. Instead,…
Manchester United midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan understands that competition for places kept him out of manager Jose Mourinho’s plans but is determined to show he deserves a first-team spot. The Armenian import from Borussia Dortmund started in the Community Shield season curtain-raiser against Leicester City but was dropped after a four-game Premier League run ended with a poor display in a 2-1 loss to Manchester City on September 10. “I was thinking that I would be here as a starting line-up player but… I saw that there were 25 players fighting for their place and I understood that it wasn’t going…
Borussia Dortmund set a new Champions League scoring record in a 2-2 draw against Real Madrid on Wednesday while FC Porto and Sevilla claimed the two remaining last-16 spots. Dortmund made sure of top spot in Group F after fighting back from 2-0 down against defending champions Madrid, leaving the Spanish giants with theoretically a tougher draw to make the quarterfinals. Marco Reus was the star of the late show at the Santiago Bernabeu, hitting the equaliser two minutes from time. A double from Karim Benzema looked to have Real well set to leapfrog the Germans and secure a home…