Real Madrid’s James Rodríguez successfully underwent foot surgery on Thursday, the Spanish league leaders announced, with the Colombian star facing up to two months on the sidelines. . The attacking midfielder required an operation after fracturing the fifth metatarsal in his right foot in Wednesday’s 2-1 league win over Sevilla. . “The surgery was carried out with success,” Real reported. . Rodriguez, whose flying header opened the scoring against Sevilla, was forced off with less than half an hour played. . Real defender Sergio Ramos also picked up an injury in the game while the rated wing-back Marcelo picked up…
Author: David F.
Ghana secured their place in the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations final with an emphatic 3-0 win over Equatorial Guinea at the Nuevo Estadio de Malabo on Thursday evening. . Goals from Mubarak Wakaso and brothers Jordan and Andre Ayew helped the West Africans to their ninth Afcon final. . The win for Ghana sets up a repeat of the 1992 Afcon final which saw the Ivory Coast come out trumps following a lengthy penalty shootout. . After what was a frantic start, the game settled with chances few and far between in the opening half hour. . Andre Ayew…
Manchester City have made space for new signing Wilfried Bony in their Champions League squad by dropping Stevan Jovetic. . Uefa published lists of eligible squads on Thursday for the Round of 16, showing Man City preferred Ivory Coast forward Bony to Jovetic, who played in five group matches without scoring. . Uefa has limited the English champion to selecting from 21 senior players instead of 25 for overspending and breaking Financial Fair Play rules. . Man City host Barcelona first on February 24. . Real Madrid put 16-year-old midfielder Martin Odegaard on their 25-man A-list. Odegaard and fellow new…
Nigeria’s proposed international friendly with the Selecao of Brazil might not see the light of the day after the South Americans confirmed they will play fellow South Americans, Chile. . The Super Eagles were to meet the Brazilian national team on March 29 at the newly built Akwa Ibom International Stadium in Uyo, but Brazil have now made alternative plans. . The Selecao will meet Chile’s national team at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium in London, the Brazil Global Tour has confirmed. . Akwa Ibom State governor Godswill Akpabio had last year during the inauguration of the ‘Nest of ‘Champions’ stadium announced…
A Spanish judge has named Barcelona club president Josep Bartomeu a suspect in a tax fraud probe regarding the signing of Brazil striker Neymar. . In a court statement released on Tuesday, National Court judge Pablo Ruz accepted the request of a state prosecutor from the day before, to include Bartomeu in the ongoing investigation that started with former club president Sandro Rosell. . Bartomeu has been summoned to appear in court on February 13. . Neymar’s transfer fee has been under scrutiny since his presentation at the Camp Nou on June 3, 2013.
Since he first put on the Ghana shirt in 2010, Jordan Ayew has been under scrutiny from fans. . Black Stars coach Avram Grant says the constant critique of the France-based player is not healthy – and wants support for the young striker instead. . Jordan has been in the eye of critics ever since he was accused of being selfish at the last World Cup, especially in the crucial game against Germany when he went for glory on occasions when fans expected him to pass. . “People can speak about the mistakes they make but they need to respect…
The president of Equatorial Guinea Obiang Nguema Mbasogo wants the national team to finish off the Black Stars. . The Nzalang Nacional – or the National Thunder – have been described by the head of state as heroes for reaching the semifinals of the Africa Cup of Nations so far, but he wants more. . “We’ve won battles, but we must win the war and get the Cup of the CAN 2015.” . The military-laced admonition will certainly charge the team who beat Tunisia 2-1 in an ill-tempered quarterfinal on Saturday. . Thursday’s semi will be a first appearance at…
Dortmund slumped again in Wednesday’s 1-0 defeat at home to fourth-placed Augsburg, who played the last 20 minutes with ten men. . Borussia are desperately low on confidence and have just three league games before their Champions League last 16, first-leg clash at Italian league leaders Juventus. . The 2011 and 2012 German champions are facing their first relegation since 1972, but have another chance to claim some badly needed points at fellow strugglers Freiburg on Saturday. . Borussia’s passionate fans voiced their frustrations with a chorus of whistles after the Augsburg match as veteran goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller and captain…
Jos Luhukay became the fifth coach to be sacked in the Bundesliga this season when he was dismissed by Hertha Berlin, the club confirmed on Thursday. The 51-year-old was shown the door after Hertha’s 1-0 defeat at home to Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday left them second from bottom of the German league. . “We had a long night, we analysed everything and decided to part company with our team of coaches. We need a new impulse,” said Hertha’s sports director Michael Preetz. . The loss to Leverkusen was Berlin’s third straight defeat and Hertha are bidding to avoid their third…
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti confirmed that James Rodriguez and Sergio Ramos will miss the Madrid derby against La Liga champions Atletico on Saturday after suffering injuries in his side’s 2-1 win over Sevilla on Wednesday. . Ramos limped off with a hamstring problem after only eight minutes, while Rodriguez suffered an injury in his right foot after opening the scoring. . Ancelotti is short of defensive options with Portuguese international centre-back Pepe also currently sidelined due to a rib injury. . However, the Italian insisted he is confident that youngsters Raphael Varane and Nacho can handle the challenge posed…
Ruben Dario has been sacked from the Equatorial Guinea camp after absconding to chill out at night without authorization, according to local reports. . The 21-year-old who plays for local side Leones Vegetarianos has been axed by the Football Association of Equatorial Guinea (FEGUIFUT) for breaking camp rules on the eve of their Afcon 2015 semifinal clash with Ghana in Malabo. . Ruben’s conduct is allegedly not new as he is known to be a night party freak according to quotes attributed to Bienvenido Ateba Mango Nchama, the second vice-president of the Equato-Guinean Football Federation and a director of his…
Ghana have decided not to start Asamoah Gyan against Equatorial Guinea in their Africa Cup of Nations semifinal. . The game will be played on Thursday evening in Malabo and ends a frenzied build up in the speculation of the captain’s fitness. . The 29-year old suffered an abdominal injury after Guinean goalkeeper Naby Yattara hit him in the dying minutes of the quarterfinal last Sunday. . In his place will be Jordan Ayew, who will start upfront against Kwesi Appiah in attack at the Estadio de Malabo. Otherwise, the team is unchanged from the one which started against Guinea.…
Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino says Emmanuel Adebayor still has an important role to play after the Premier League club blocked the striker’s deadline-day move to West Ham United. . Adebayor has played only once in the Premier League since the beginning of November, in a 2-1 win over Sunderland on January 17, and looked set to leave White Hart Lane as the January transfer window came to a close on Monday. . A proposed move to West Ham, however, collapsed when Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy refused to loan the 30-year-old to their London rivals, who are two places and four…
Premier League giants Liverpool on Thursday announced that they have agreed the biggest kit supplier deal in their history with American sportswear manufacturer New Balance. . In 2012 Liverpool signed a six-year deal worth £25 million a season with Warrior Sports, whose parent company is New Balance. . Their kits will be made by New Balance from next season onwards in a deal reportedly worth up to £300 million. . “We are thrilled to announce this partnership with one of the world’s leading sportswear brands, which is a record-breaking deal for the club,” said Liverpool’s chief commercial officer Billy Hogan…
Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard will follow his 700th club appearance with his final outing in a Merseyside derby on Saturday and manager Brendan Rodgers says Everton will be glad to see the back of him. . Gerrard became the third player in the club’s history to reach the 700-game mark, behind Ian Callaghan (857) and Jamie Carragher (737), in Liverpool’s last gasp 2-1 win at Bolton Wanderers in an FA Cup fourth round replay on Wednesday. . It was another in a long line of remarkable achievements for the midfielder who joined the club as an eight-year-old schoolboy and went…
Yaya Toure remains much of an enigma at international level but glimpses of his club form at the African Nations Cup is a major boon for Ivory Coast as they prepare for Sunday’s final. . “Yaya has never before got his level for the national team,” said coach Herve Renard of his captain after their 3-1 win over the Democratic Republic of Congo in Bata on Wednesday saw the Elephants to their third final in 10 years. . “But he has worked, he has scored and he has played with a lot of determination. To have players like him, Gervinho,…
Crystal Palace snapped up South Korean attacking midfielder Lee Chung-yong and re-signed Manchester United winger Wilfried Zaha on a five-year deal before the transfer window closed on Monday. . Lee joined from English second tier side Bolton Wanderers for an undisclosed fee, while 22-year-old Zaha made his temporary move permanent by signing a five-year-deal. . Zaha was the last signing of the Alex Ferguson era, joining United from Palace in January 2013 for a reported 15 million pounds before being loaned back to the south London club. . He never started a Premier League game for United. . A short…
Tottenham Hotspur’s long-serving winger Aaron Lennon joined Everton on loan for the rest of the season on Monday. . Lennon, who joined Tottenham from Leeds United as a teenager in 2005 and has made 267 Premier League appearances for the club, has found it hard to nail down a first team spot this season under new manager Mauricio Pochettino. . At 27, however, England international Lennon is still highly-regarded and Everton manager Roberto Martinez apparently beat off interest from other clubs to sign Lennon. . He could make his debut in this weekend’s derby with Liverpool. . “We all know…
Bastia reached the French League Cup final by beating Monaco 7-6 on penalties after the game ended in a goalless draw after extra time on Wednesday. . Bastia will face holders Paris St Germain in the April 11 showdown at the Stade de France after the French champions beat Lille 1-0 away on Tuesday. . Monaco, who as usual relied on their steely defence, suffered an early setback when defender Wallace was forced off the pitch through injury. . Dimitar Berbatov had a clear chance midway through the first half of a dull encounter but he was denied from close…
Sampdoria coach Sinisa Mihajlovic said forward Samuel Eto’o had shown a “serious lack of respect” by missing an extra training session on Monday following their 5-1 Serie A defeat at Torino. . Mihajlovic had scheduled two training sessions on Monday, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, as a reprisal for his team’s performance. . But Eto’o, who only joined Sampdoria last week from English club Everton, left after the morning session without speaking to the coach and did not return, Italian media reported. . “I don’t know where he’s gone and I don’t know what the club…