Jose Mourinho made the “wrong” move when he chose to sign on for a second tour as Chelsea manager, Sir Alex Ferguson says. After managing the Blues from 2004-2007, Mourinho returned to Stamford Bridge in 2013 and won the Premier League title. But the honeymoon didn’t last and he was sacked last December following a poor start. But he’s found a new home with Man United, where Ferguson became a legend over 26 years in charge at Old Trafford. At a charity event shown by Sky Sports, Ferguson backed his friend Mourinho to succeed with his new club but also…
Author: David Folami
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho will be a “massive improvement” on predecessor Louis van Gaal, according to former Old Trafford boss Alex Ferguson. Mourinho was appointed in May, three years after Ferguson quit following 26 years in charge during which the club won 13 Premier League titles and two Champions Leagues. “I think he’ll be a massive improvement, I really do,” Ferguson told Sky Sports television on Tuesday. Portuguese Mourinho was fired by Chelsea in December, seven months after winning the Premier League crown in his second spell at the London club. “I thought Jose was wrong to go back…
English Premier League sides Chelsea and Spurs saw their fines for the unseemly brawls that peppered their highly charged London derby last season reduced on appeal by the Football Association (FA) on Tuesday. The 2-2 draw on May 2 – which ended Spurs’ title hopes and confirmed Leicester City as champions – saw two mass brawls break out as the Spurs players lost control with some over exuberant tackling as their hopes of the crown slipped away. The nadir of the night’s behaviour was reached in the tunnel when there was another brawl and the Chelsea manager, Guus Hiddink, was…
Renato Sanches swapped clubs at the tender age of nine for €750 and 25 footballs, so many scoffed when Bayern Munich paid a cool €35 million for the Portuguese prodigy’s services nine years later. Benfica signed Sanches in 2006 for a nominal fee from Lisbon minnows Aguias Musgueira, kindly also throwing in a large bag of balls to seal the deal. Fast forward 10 years and Portugal’s hottest prospect since Cristiano Ronaldo has the world at his feet and is currently outshining CR7 at the Euros, grabbing two straight man of the match awards. Sanches caught the eye during exciting…
After the disappointment of missing out on Leicester star Jamie Vardy earlier on this summer, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has wasted little time in targeting two more strikers. The Sun reports that Alexandre Lacazette of Lyon and Everton’s Romelu Lukaku are the duo in the Gunners’ sights and that Wenger “spoke to Lyon, Everton and the representatives of both forwards last week.” It adds that the manager is keen to bring in at least one new face in attack before Arsenal kick off their preseason schedule later this month. The Sun quotes an Emirates Stadium source as saying that he…
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho thinks that strikers Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Marcus Rashford can complement each other. The Portuguese’s comments bring into question Wayne Rooney’s role in the side, as Mourinho has invested heavily in the wages of Ibrahimovic and is under pressure to support young players such as Rashford. With another attacking player Henrikh Mkhitaryan on the way to United and Anthony Martial already on the club’s books, there will be competition in the attacking positions. Rooney’s prospects are not helped by Mourinho’s admission, in his opening news conference as United manager on Tuesday, that he does not see…
Harry Kane is close to signing a new five-year contract with Tottenham Hotspur, a source close to the player have said. Kane, 22, netted 25 goals to win the Premier League’s Golden Boot in 2015-16 but failed to find the net for England in a disappointing Euro 2016 campaign. The striker only signed a new deal worth around £50,000-a-week back in February, but has now agreed terms on a contract that will see him commit his future to the club until 2021 and double his wages. Spurs also closing in on the signing of AZ Alkmaar striker Vincent Janssen and…
Jose Mourinho has suggested that Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney will not play in midfield for him next season. Rooney, 30, had been used in a deeper midfield role for United and also England at Euro 2016 but, speaking at his first news conference as manager at Old Trafford, Mourinho hinted that was not where he saw his future. “There are many jobs on the field. The most difficult to find is one to put the ball in the net,” he said. “It is normal that a player at his age will change a little bit. “One thing that will…
Super Eagles striker Kelechi Iheanacho believes Pep Guardiola has the credentials to bring silverware to Manchester City. Guardiola was appointed as Manuel Pellegrini’s replacement at City and he has since been unveiled to the club’s supporters. The 19-year-old Nigerian, who finished last season with the best minutes-to-goal ratio in the Premier League, believes Guardiola has the credentials to bring silverware to the Etihad Stadium. “He’s a great manager. “He’s coached great teams – Barcelona, Bayern Munich. “He’s done great for all the teams. “I didn’t think (I’d ever play for him) but now I’m under him and I can’t wait…
Brown Ideye already sounds ready to go up against Algeria, Cameroon and Zambia ahead of the 2018 Fifa World Cup qualification scheduled to start in October this year. The Olympiakos forward calmly explained that it was always expected that the final round of World Cup qualification in Africa would pitch some of the powerhouses on the continent in the same pool as Nigeria have now found themselves in Group B. The 27-year-old made it clear that Nigeria’s Super Eagles cannot afford to “cut corners” this time against very sturdy opponents in Algeria, Cameroon and Zambia. The former West Bromwich Albion…
Swansea City have signed Netherlands midfielder Leroy Fer on a three-year contract to complete a permanent move to the Liberty Stadium from Championship side Queens Park Rangers, the Premier League club said on Tuesday. The 26-year-old, who played and scored for his country at the 2014 World Cup, joined the Welsh club on loan in January and made 11 league appearances to help them finish 12th last season. “Swansea City have completed their first business of the summer after signing Holland international Leroy Fer from Queens Park Rangers for an undisclosed fee,” the club said in a statement on their…
Jose Mourinho said the Manchester United job had come at just the right time in his life and he would be targeting legend Alex Ferguson’s two Champions League trophies. The 53-year-old self anointed ‘special one’ — who replaced the sacked Louis van Gaal as united boss at the end of last season – was facing the media on Tuesday for the first time since taking the reins at Old Trafford. “I don’t hide. I chase Sir Alex’s record in Champions League matches,” said the Portuguese. The former Chelsea, Real Madrid, Inter Milan and Porto boss added the departure last weekend…
He is the big-name forward yet to score at Euro 2016, but Thomas Mueller says his main concern is helping Germany beat France in Thursday’s Euro 2016 semifinal. Mueller, top scorer at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and who hit 32 goals for Bayern Munich last season, has yet to open his account at the European Championship finals. The self-confident forward says his sole concern is helping Germany win in Marseille in their bid to add the European crown to their 2014 World Cup title. Mueller said Germany are at the contest as world champions “and the chance…
The Commissioner of Police in Kogi, Mr Usman Yakubu, on Monday confirmed the arrival of a 50-member police special strike team in the state over incessant crises. Yakubu told newsmen in Lokoja that the special force was deployed from Police Headquarters in Abuja on Sunday in fulfilment of the promise of the Acting Inspector-General of Police, Mr Ibrahim Idris. He said that the team was sent to boost the ongoing clamp down on kidnappers and armed robbers who had held the state and its people to ransom for many months. Yakubu said that members of the special squad had been…
The Nasarawa State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), has deployed over 1,000 personnel to ensure hitch free celebration of Eid-el-Fitri in the state. The state Commandant of NSCDC, Lawan Bashir-Kano made the announcement on Monday in Lafia, while briefing newsmen on the preparedness of the corps to ensure security of lives and properties during the festivity. He said the deployment was in compliance with a directive issued by the headquarters of the NSCDC that its personnel be deployed to strategic locations and flashpoints across the state. He said that the 1,000 personnel including those in…
The FCT police command has arrested some suspects in connection with the murder of Mrs Olufunke Omotuyi, acting Registrar, Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria and Sunday Yusuf. Omotuyi and Yusuf, a former Nigerian Ambassador to South Africa, were murdered on June 13 and June 9 at their residences in Apo and Wuse Zone 5, Area of the FCT respectively. The FCT Commissioner of Police, Mr Alkali Usman, made the disclosure on Monday in Abuja while fielding questions from newsmen. He said that investigation was being conducted in all the recent murder cases in the territory. “All the cases are…
The Nigerian Army troops have foiled a suicide bomb attack near Monguno Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camp, Borno state, while the people were fetching water in the morning. According to the Army spokesman, Colonel Sani Usman, the attempted attack which was carried out by three female suicide bombers, occurred on Monday, July 4, at about 6:15am. Usman said the vigilant troops detected and killed two of the terrorists instantly, but the explosive they were strapped with exploded and injured two civilians nearby, he said. He explained that the third suicide bomber, who followed a different route, detonated hers some distance…
The Nigerian Prisons Service (NPS) has suspended 14 officers in connection with the recent Kuje Prison break. This is contained in a statement issued on Monday, July 4, in Abuja by Mr Francis Enobore, the NPS spokesperson and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN). The affected officers and men are: DCP Musa Tanko; SIP Buhari Dogo; PIP Stephen Edogbanya ; PIP Patrick Teru; IP Usman Peter; IP Dennis Makum. Others are: IP Fassan Akin; SPA Daka James; SPA Adamu Luka; SPA Zakari Yunasa; PA Asnamal Samuel; PA Ejegwa Patrick; PA 11 Isah Ibrahim, and PA 11 Ngede…
The committee on staff screening and verification in Kogi has discovered 9,720 ghost workers in the payroll of the state government. The Chairman of the committee, Mr Jerry Agbaji, announced the development during a stakeholders meeting in Lokoja. Agbaji said that the figures represented the number of workers in ministries and local governments who did not show up at all for the screening. He said that the figure comprised of 4,060 state government workers, 3,054 teachers and 2,936 local government workers. Agbaji, who is currently the acting permanent secretary in the ministry of information, arts and culture, said the committee…
The Federal Government has declared Wednesday, July 5, and Thursday, July 7, as public holiday to mark the Eid el-Fitr celebration following the non-sighting of the moon on Monday. The Minister of Interior, retired Lt.-Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau, made the declaration on Tuesday in a statement signed by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Mr Bassey Akpanyung. He said the declaration became necessary following the directive by the President General, Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III to the effect that the Ramadan fast would continue on Tuesday as a result of the non-sighting of the moon. The…