Footballing great Diego Maradona believes Gareth Bale has contributed more to Wales’ progress than Cristiano Ronaldo has for Portugal at Euro 2016. Real Madrid team-mates Bale and Ronaldo will go head-to-head in a blockbuster semi-final in Lyon on Wednesday. Bale and Wales have taken the European Championship by storm, Chris Coleman’s men entertaining all the way to the final four, with the former’s three goals aiding their cause. The same cannot be said about Portugal, who have stifled their way to the semis, drawing all five games in regulation time. Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo has scored two goals, though he…
Author: David Folami
Manuel Neuer has acknowledged Olivier Giroud is a force to be reckoned with, but has stressed Germany do not fear the France striker ahead of Thursday’s semi-final. Giroud found a way past Neuer in both of the Champions League encounters between Arsenal and Bayern Munich in 2015-16, while also finding the net in France’s 2-0 friendly win over Germany in November 2015. He will be looking to score his fourth Euro 2016 goal on Thursday, but Neuer is confident Germany can cope with the 29-year-old. “Giroud is a very dangerous poacher inside the box,” Neuer said at a news conference.…
Manchester United have already added Eric Bailly and Zlatan Ibrahimovic this summer, and Henrikh Mkhitaryan is thought to be close to following them, but Jose Mourinho is reportedly desperate to land his fourth target this summer. Paul Pogba is rumoured to be the last of their four targets, and the Red Devils have stepped up negotiations with the France international’s representatives, according to the Guardian. It would be a transfer that would shock European football, but Juventus will be desperate to maintain Pogba for another season. However, securing Miralem Pjanic in addition to an extortionate fee for Pogba might allow…
Former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson believes that Wales have a great chance of continuing their stay at the European Championship. Chris Coleman’s Wales face Portugal in the first Euro 2016 semifinal on Wednesday evening, but Ferguson believes the Welsh have shown more than enough to suggest they can make it through to Sunday’s final. “Wales’ story is fantastic,” Ferguson told the BBC. “The best film director in the world couldn’t have fashioned what’s happened; they’ve been absolutely magnificent. “Now they’re into the semifinal the story’s not ended — they could beat Portugal, I don’t think there’s any doubt…
Borussia Dortmund left-back Marcel Schmelzer said the players were “surprised” to hear about Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s impending transfer to Manchester United. Dortmund had indicated on several occasions last season that Mkhitaryan, whose contract expires in 2017, was likely to commit his future to the club, but they confirmed at the weekend that they had accepted United’s offer for the 27-year-old. The attacking midfielder had joined Dortmund from Shakhtar Donetsk in 2013 but only hit top form last season, when he scored 23 goals and provided 32 assists across all competitions, and Schmelzer suggested the Armenia international had planned to stay on.…
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…
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…