Manchester United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has said that Ronaldo was someone he tried to copy as a youngster because the Brazilian was capable of “magic.” Ibrahimovic, 35, followed in the footsteps of Ronaldo by playing up front for Barcelona, Inter Milan and AC Milan but they were never teammates. When Ibrahimovic started his career at Malmo, Ronaldo had already won the FIFA World Player of the Year twice and was a prolific scorer for Inter and Brazil. Ibrahimovic told United Review: “I think Ronaldo was phenomenal. He was the player that whatever he did it became ‘wow.’ He could do…
Author: David Folami
Manchester United have the highest wages in world football according to a global sports salary survey, produced annually by the Sporting Intelligence website. United’s first-team squad earn £5.77 million-a-year basic salary on average, which is £110,961-per-week. That is reportedly more than double the average basic first-team pay in England’s top division, which is £2,438,275-a-year or £48,766-a-week. The club are the fourth highest paid in world sport, behind Cleveland Cavaliers of the NBA (£6.54m average), New York Yankees of the MLB (£5.81m) and LA Clippers of the NBA (£5.78m). The next highest football clubs on the list of world sports teams…
Spain retained top spot in Group G after a 4-0 scoreline at home to Macedonia was matched by rivals Italy in Liechtenstein. Having missed a good chance to put Macedonia ahead, Darko Velkovski’s own goal broke the deadlock in the 34th minute and Vitolo doubled the lead after half-time before Nacho Monreal and Aritz Aduriz finished things off.
Italy were in cruise control after just 45 minutes against Liechtenstein, having scored four times in the first half of a competitive match since January 1987 when they put five past Malta in a European Qualifier. Andrea Belotti’s two goals sandwiched efforts from Ciro Immobile — his fourth in as many appearances for Italy — and Antonio Candreva. With the job done the second half was a less intensive affair and although Italy stay level on 10 points with Spain their goal difference is inferior by five.
Taraba Commissioner of Health, Dr Innocent Vakkai, said on Friday that 956,875 children in the state were vaccinated against poliomyelitis under the Third Polio Outbreak Response Campaign. Vakkai spoke in Ardo-Kola at the launching of the Fourth Polio Outbreak Response Campaign. According to him, the state was selected for the campaign, as Taraba was among the states with the high risk of contracting polio. Gov. Darius Ishaku, said his administration was committed to the ‘total eradication’ of the viral disease in the state. Ishaku, who was represented by the Head of Service, Mr Simon Angyu, said the state government would…
Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, on Wednesday, November 11, met with Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose and his Osun State counterpart, Rauf Aregbesola in Abuja. The trio were pictured while having a chat at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport. Atiku’s meeting with Fayose, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has led to insinuations that the men might be planning a political alliance. Aregbesola and Atiku are members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). Fayose has however denied planning a move to the APC saying only a mad man would make such a decision.
Former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus has said that Nigeria’s democracy is in danger. Secondus said further that the country’s democracy would crash if the conduct of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was not checked. He made the comments via a statement issued on Thursday, November 10. The statement reads: Events surrounding the electoral body since Prof Yakubu took over from Prof Attahiru Jega leaves one with no other conclusion than that it is not only incompetent but obviously a bias agency designed to dance the music of the ruling All Progressives…
Factional governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Eyitayo Jegede has said that no amount of opposition will stop him from becoming governor. Jegede made the comment via a statement released on Friday, November 11. The statement reads: “I remain indebted to the wonderful people of Ondo state who have always remained steadfast with us knowing fully well that this is one project that will succeed no matter the volume of opposition from any quarters.” “I again reiterate that I am absolutely committed to the rule of law, I have submitted my grievances to the courts and despite the…
Factional governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Jimoh Ibrahim, has promised to fix the electricity problem in some areas of the state. Ibrahim also accused Governor Olusegun Mimiko of negligence for failing to address the issue. He made the comments during his campaign in the Okitipupa Local Council area on Wednesday, November 9. “The issue of electricity is very embarrassing and shameful. The last time I checked with the BEDC, the company said the senatorial district owed a backlog of unpaid bills of about N300 million, which made it to cut off its electricity supply,” Ibrahim said. According…
Ekiti State governor, Ayo Fayose has accused the Muhammadu Buhari administration of destroying the Nigerian economy. Fayose also urged Buhari not to go ahead with plans to borrow $29.96 billion to finance the 2016 budget. The governor made the comments on Thursday, November 10, in Ado Ekiti, the state capital. “The current situation whereby the federal government is running after perceived opposition suggests that of a man that is interested in pursuing reelection rather than solving economic problems,” Fayose said according to Leadership. “A situation whereby government is borrowing far and above its external reserves means that the 2016 budget…
Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN), the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for Nov. 26 governorship election in Ondo State, has promised to revive the state, if elected. Akeredolu made the promise during his campaign in Okitipupa Local Government Area (LGA) of the state. He also promised to restore electricity in Okitipupa LGA given that the area has not had power supply for more than two years. “We are poised to revive Ondo State and make the state viable again and restore the state’s old glory. “The youths and women shall be empowered to take their rightful places. “We have taken stock of…
Former aide to ex-president Goodluck Jonathan, Reuben Abati has said that the future of the US is uncertain under President-elect, Donald Trump. Trump defeated former Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton in the November 8 elections. Read Abati’s article titled “The sad news of Trump’s triumph” below: “Democracy is tricky; it sometimes ends up as a parody of itself. When the people clamour for change, they can vote with their hearts, and prove impervious to plain sight reason, and overlook likely pitfalls. We can only hope that Donald Trump does not become the symbol of the change that Americans are seeking.…
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested one Damilola Fasakin for alleged love scam through the Internet. The commission spokesman, Wilson Uwujaren, said in a statement on Friday in Abuja that Fasakin is a French graduate of Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti. The suspect, according to him, poses as Anthony Miller, Dave Mason and Bright Washington to deceive and defraud unsuspecting ladies on the Internet. He alleged that Fasakin fleeced different unsuspecting victims to the tune of N2 million. “At the point of arrest, EFCC operatives recovered one Dodge Caliber Sxi car with registration number EKY-145EC and an NYSC…
Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola has said that the Goodluck Jonathan administration can’t claim credit for the growth of Nigeria’s economy during its time. Fashola added that the economic growth witnessed during the Jonathan era was due to high oil prices not government policies. “In the last decade or so, we experienced growth in the region of about seven, seven and a half, eight percent, but the commentary that followed those growth records was that people were still struggling, and ultimately, the public coined a narrative known as non-inclusive growth,” he said according to The Cable. “There…
President Muhammadu Buhari, on Friday, November 11, met with Senate President, Bukola Saraki behind closed doors. The secret meeting is said to have held at the Presidential Villa in Abuja and lasted for one hour. It’s believed to have been connected to a $29.9 billion loan request which was recently made by Buhari but rejected by the Senate. Saraki had also met with Buhari on November 4 but said that he only went to the Villa to pray.
Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola says the compulsory annual leave he ordered for all the directors in the state’s public service was not meant to retrench them. This is contained in a statement issued on Friday in Osogbo by Mr Semiu Okanlawon, the media aide to the governor. The governor said the directive was necessary in view of the constitutional right of every worker to benefit from leave annually as enshrined in civil service rules. Aregbesola, who described workers in the state as the live-wire of socio-economic development, said on no account had his administration contemplated reducing the workforce. The…
There’s this joke around town that FCT Minister, Mohammed Bello, only proves how useful he is when President Muhammadu Buhari is on his way out of the country through the international Airport in Abuja. Holding aloft an Umbrella as the rain beats against the tarmac in the background, Bello has come to epitomise just how underwhelming the Buhari cabinet has been. Buhari took six months to inaugurate his team; when the first six minutes of his Presidency would have sufficed. The list was made public following weeks of needless drama. When we eventually got hold of the list, the same…
Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers on Friday said an independent judiciary and respect for rule of law are fundamental for democracy to thrive. Wike made the assertion at the opening of the 2016/2017 Legal Year of the state’s judiciary in Port Harcourt. He said the rule of law and independence of the judiciary are twin values that defines the essence of true democratic society. “While the rule of law suggests equity irrespective of status or position to reflect the laws of the land, the judiciary must be independent and effective to enforce the universal application of the rule of law.…
Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, has just touched down in Nigeria after a two-week vacation abroad, Pulse can exclusively report. We were the first and only medium to report that the Kogi Governor had duly obtained permission from the State House of Assembly before proceeding on vacation abroad. The mainstream media and several other outlets had erroneously reported that the Governor was terminally ill and had fled his State unannounced. Days later, We posted the Governor’s letter seeking permission from the legislature to travel abroad. Bello had also handed over the reins to his deputy, Simon Achuba, before leaving…
The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh says the country has deficit in the supply of food commodities. The minister said this while receiving a team of Russian investors led by the country’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Udovicnenko Nikolai who visited him in Abuja on Friday. Ogbeh said that the present administration was ready to evolve flexible policies that would promote agricultural investments. He said that the country’s demand for rice was currently at seven million tonnes but the local production was at about 3.5 million tonnes, adding that there was a deficit of four million tonnes. The…