Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho singled out some of his players for stinging criticism following their 2-1 loss to derby rivals Manchester City. The United manager hauled off Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Jesse Lingard at halftime and said it was only because he did not want to “destroy them” that he did not substitute them earlier. But he saved his most trenchant remarks for centre-backs Daley Blind and, in particular, Eric Bailly, saying some players had shown signs they did not possess the requisite big-game temperament. “We had problems with poor performances,” Mourinho told reporters at Old Trafford on Saturday. “We…
Author: David Folami
Pep Guardiola rocked old foe Jose Mourinho as Premier League leaders Manchester City extended their perfect start with a 2-1 win at Manchester United, while Liverpool crushed champions Leicester 4-1 on Saturday. City manager Guardiola inflicted the first defeat of Mourinho’s United reign and collected his eighth win in 17 encounters with his nemesis in a pulsating encounter at Old Trafford. Guardiola’s side took the lead in a sweet moment of revenge for Kevin De Bruyne, acrimoniously sold by Mourinho when the pair were together at Chelsea, as the Belgium midfielder punished Daley Blind’s uncertainty to slot past David de…
Newly promoted Alaves stunned Spanish champions Barcelona by winning 2-1 at the Camp Nou on Saturday as boss Luis Enrique paid a heavy price for starting Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez on the bench. Barca now trail Real Madrid by three points at the top of the table after Cristiano Ronaldo took just five minutes to score on his return from a two-month injury layoff in a 5-2 rout of Osasuna at the Bernabeu. Enrique made seven changes from their last outing – a 1-0 win at Athletic Bilbao two weeks ago – with Messi recovering from a groin problem…
Super Eagles striker, Kelechi Iheanacho has spoken about his happiness following his impressive displays in Saturday’s Manchester derby at Old Trafford. Iheanacho scored the winner and created the assist for City’s opener as Manchester United lost the derby 1-2 at Old Trafford. The 19-year-old explained that taking part in the Manchester derby represented “a dream come true” while voicing his happiness at a performance for the ages. “It means the world to me because it was a dream come true for me to play in the Manchester derby. “It was also important to score the winning goal in the game…
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has implored fans to stop singing his name during matches to help his side stay focused and avoid complacency. A vibrant Liverpool ran out 4-1 winners over champions Leicester City at a newly-renovated Anfield on Saturday, with the home supporters serenading their manager during the second half. The German appreciated the sentiment but called on fans to hold off until the final whistle in the future, reminding them that games can turn if players switch off and lose concentration. After Liverpool took a 4-1 lead in their Premier League opener against Arsenal, the travelling supporters serenaded…
Manchester City cannot afford to get distracted by their rivalry with Manchester United, Belgian international Kevin De Bruyne has warned. All eyes will be on Old Trafford on Saturday as the two clubs meet for the first this season — both with 100 percent records in the Premier League to protect. The relationship between the two clubs is set to become even more intense after the appointments of Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho following their bitter relationship over the years. And City and United have invested heavily in their squads over the summer with Mourinho breaking the world transfer record…
Arsene Wenger remains convinced that Jack Wilshere has a bright future at Arsenal — as a player, as a future captain and maybe even as a manager. Wilshere, an academy product long seen as a future talisman of the club, has gone on loan to Bournemouth this season in search of regular football after his long list of injuries pushed him to the back of Wenger’s first-team plans. But Wenger said that even if Wilshere finds more success away from the Emirates, he doesn’t think it will tempt the midfielder to push for a permanent move. “I think he’s a…
Paris Saint-Germain have confirmed they are withholding Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s final bonus payment amid a dispute with their former striker. Swedish newspaper Expressen reported on Friday that Ibrahimovic is still waiting for his final payment from PSG, with legal representatives on both sides attempting to negotiate a settlement. PSG then informed French newspaper Le Figaro that they are waiting for a document from Ibrahimovic in order to release his money. “The club has always respected its commitments. Forty-eight months of wages have been paid on time,” the club statement said. “We are now waiting for a document the player is contractually…
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique insisted Lionel Messi is fit enough to face Alaves on Saturday, but may be protected with a run of seven games in 22 days to come for the Spanish champions. Messi missed Argentina’s World Cup qualifier with Venezuela in midweek due to a groin problem, while the return of Neymar for the first time this season after winning Olympic gold with Brazil increases the temptation for the Barca boss to hand Messi an extended rest. “Yes,” insisted Enrique when pressed on whether Messi was fit to play. “During the week he was able do part of…
Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane is confident the team’s results will not suffer from a one-year transfer ban imposed by Fifa for breaking rules regarding the signing of under-age foreign players. Fifa rejected the appeals by Real and Atletico Madrid against the punishment which prevents the two La Liga clubs from registering new players during the next two transfer windows. “I don’t think the ban will affect us because I’m very happy with the team that I have,” Zidane told a news conference on Friday. “I have a big roster. I’m happy with the players and they are happy with…
Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski made amends for several glaring misses when he scored a late goal and set up another as the German champions ground out a 2-0 win at battling Schalke 04 on Friday. The Poland striker, who netted a hat-trick in a 6-0 home demolition of Werder Bremen on the Bundesliga’s opening weekend, spurned several chances in either half before he found the back of the net with a trademark clinical finish in the 81st minute. He then ripped through the home team’s defence in stoppage time before squaring a perfect pass for substitute Joshua Kimmich, who sealed…
Goalkeeper Claudio Bravo could be given a baptism by fire by making his Manchester City debut against Manchester United in Saturday’s derby clash after manager Pep Guardiola confirmed that the Chilean was fit to play. Bravo was signed from Guardiola’s former club Barcelona in the close season after City’s new manager professed himself unconvinced by England international Joe Hart’s ability with the ball at his feet. “Claudio is OK, he had a little bit of a problem in his leg but he’s trained the last two days,” Guardiola told reporters on Friday, while dismissing the notion that nerves might affect…
Pep Guardiola played down his bitter feud with Jose Mourinho on Friday and insisted he will accept a post-match drink from his opposite number — if he is offered one. Guardiola’s City visit Mourinho’s United on Saturday in the first Manchester derby since the high-profile pair took charge of their respective clubs in the close season. The pre-match focus, with both Manchester teams having won their first three Premier League games of the season, has firmly been on the duo and the rivalry that has developed between them since they became two of the most successful managers in the modern…
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho played down the focus on his rivalry with Manchester City counterpart Pep Guardiola on Friday and said Saturday’s derby would be decided by the players. This weekend’s encounter has been billed as a grudge match between Mourinho and Guardiola, who had several stormy encounters during their time in charge of Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively. It is three years since they last faced off in a match, but Mourinho said the on-pitch action at Old Trafford will be more important than what happens on the touchline. Asked whether the presence of Guardiola in the opposition…
In an iconic image, Mourinho raced across the Camp Nou pitch in celebration, his right hand provocatively raised in the air. Mourinho’s appointment by Real Madrid that year brought him into regular confrontation with Guardiola. Mourinho’s first Clasico ended in a humiliating 5-0 defeat and during a sequence of four encounters in two weeks later that season, the rivalry between the men turned ugly. In the build-up to their Champions League semifinal, Mourinho’s acerbic comments prompted an angry, foul-mouthed response from the usually placid Guardiola. That year’s Spanish Super Cup witnessed a new low in the relationship between the clubs…
United manager Jose Mourinho and his City adversary Pep Guardiola sought to deflect attention from their sulphurous personal rivalry on the eve of Saturday’s mouthwatering Manchester derby. Friends who became foes, the two men represent opposite ends of football’s ideological spectrum and came to be seen as sworn enemies during their time in Spain. With both teams yet to drop a point in the Premier League, the contest at Old Trafford is an early opportunity to assert supremacy, but both men are reluctant to fan the flames. “You want me to give you headlines and I want to go for…
The Lagos state Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode joined a campaign sponsored by men against rape and domestic violence. According to Daily Post, Ambode led the men on a walk to support the cause, while calling on security agencies to provide evidences against people accused of crimes against women. The Governor also assured Lagosians that his administration will deal with anyone found guilty of rape of domestic violence, no matter how highly placed. He said “I will like you to join hands with me to say no to rapists, say no to women beaters and wherever they are. “We know that the…
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, on Thursday called on Niger Delta militants to shun violence and embrace diplomacy. Mohammed made the call in his address at the command screening of the movie, “Oloibiri’’, in Abuja. “It is remarkable that the first thing we did when we came into power was to address injustice that has been perpetrated for so long in the Niger Delta. “We also started the Ogoniland cleanup not too long ago. “That is why I am here with the Minister of Environment, some members of the National Assembly and other relevant stakeholders,’’ he…
President Muhammadu Buhari will be celebrating the Eid-el-Kabir celebration in his hometown of Daura, Katsina State. According to a report by Daily Trust, the President will join other Muslims in Katsina to celebrate the Sallah. It was further reported that President Buhari is scheduled to depart Abuja for Daura today , Friday, September 9, 2016 after observing the jumaat prayers at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa mosque. President Buhari celebrated the 2015 Sallah by observing the Eid-el-Kabir prayer at Kofar-Arewa Eid Ground after which he and the Emir of Daura, Alhaji Umar Farouq slaughtered their rams. Before the celebration, the…
The Dangote Cement Plc, a subsidiary of the Aliko Dangote owned Dangote Group, has concluded plans to start mining coal at Ankpa, Kogi State, in November 2016. According to a report by Daily Trust, the company revealed that it had switched its plant lines to coal to minimise cost following the shortage of gas as a result of militants’ actions in the Niger Delta. Speaking on the move, the Chief Executive Officer of the Dangote Cement, Onne, van der Weijde, said: “These are challenging times for Nigeria and Dangote Cement but we are taking strong actions that will position the…