Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane has warned that his fast improving team have won nothing yet, while also revealing that winger Gareth Bale is now a doubt for next Tuesday’s Champions League semifinal at Manchester City. Saturday’s 5-1 stroll at Getafe was Madrid’s seventh straight La Liga win, which has helped the club move to within a point of stumbling Barcelona at the top of the table, and they will hope to continue that run when they host Villarreal on Wednesday. With just five games remaining, it is shaping up to be a pivotal week in the title race, with…
Author: David Folami
Vincent Kompany is not suffering any mental scars after almost continuous injury setbacks, according to Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini. The Chilean said the City captain was doing everything in his power to prove his fitness as the season draws to a close. City remain in the hunt for the Champions League after seeing off Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-finals but face a tricky tie against Real Madrid in the semis, while on the domestic front they are not assured of a top-four finish with Manchester United four points behind them. Kompany has not played since March 15 when he…
Former Real Madrid coach Fabio Capello believes Barcelona’s recent struggles are partially down to the absence of a charismatic leader like Carles Puyol, who hung up his boots in 2014. The Catalans are on a four-game winless streak in La Liga following Sunday’s 2-1 defeat against Valencia and are in serious danger of missing out on the domestic title following their poor run, while they also crashed out of the Champions League at the hands of Atletico Madrid. And Capello – who was coach of the Madrid team that pipped Barcelona to the title in 2006-07 after an impressive comeback…
Former Barcelona winger Luis Figo has called on Luis Enrique’s side to prove their mettle after Sunday’s loss to Valencia. The Liga leaders’ 2-1 defeat at Camp Nou means they are level on points with Atletico Madrid and one ahead of Real Madrid with five matches of the campaign to play. With three defeats in a row in La Liga and having lost to Atleti in the Champions League quarter-finals, pressure is mounting on the Catalans to recapture the form which saw them go 39 games unbeaten this season. Figo says that their slump is “not normal” and has challenged…
Valencia winger Santi Mina has acknowledged that an object was thrown in the tunnel following his side’s 2-1 win over Barcelona at Camp Nou. The 20-year-old scored Valencia’s second in a win which has blown the title race wide open in La Liga, with Barca now level on points with Atletico at the top of the table following three successive defeats. With tensions running high, Neymar appeared to slap Antonio Barragan on the head after the final whistle, and there are some reports that he thew a water bottle which struck the defender on the back in the tunnel shortly…
Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas has for the first time spoken about the sacking of former coach Jose Mourinho. Mourinho was sacked in December 2015, following a poor run of results at Chelsea while Guus Hiddink was appointed replace him temporarily. Fabregas said it was the players who had let Mourinho down and that the Portuguese’s was too generous to his squad after they won the title by eight points last term. “I love Jose and consider him my friend… He gave us more holiday because we were champions, he believed in us more, trusted us more, and we let him…
Tottenham Hotspur’s clinical display in Monday’s 4-0 Premier League thrashing of Stoke City showed they are ready to take advantage of any slip up by leaders Leicester City, manager Mauricio Pochettino said. Second-placed Spurs cut the deficit with Leicester to five points after their latest win but with just four games remaining the North London club, who are looking to end their 55-year wait for a league title, are running out of time. Pochettino said his players need to believe there was still hope. “The most important thing is the performance we showed was perfect,” the Argentine told British media.…
Manchester United need a figurehead in defence to marshal the host of young defenders coming through the club’s academy, former captain Nemanja Vidic says. United’s problems this season with injuries and indifferent performances, have led to manager Louis van Gaal handing debuts to teenage defenders Cameron Borthwick-Jackson, Timothy Fosu-Mensah, Joe Riley, Regan Poole and Donald Love. The relatively young backline, led by the ever-present Chris Smalling, has conceded just 30 goals in the club’s 33 Premier League games so far, only title-chasing Tottenham Hotspur have given up fewer. “I think it’s more difficult for defenders, especially when you have three…
Mr. Michael Wetkast, an operative of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has revealed that the Senate President, Bukola Saraki acquired some Federal Government properties falsely. Wetkast is also a key witness for the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), in the ongoing false declaration trial of the Senate President. He also revealed that Saraki acquired some assets from the Presidential Implementation Committee on Sale of Federal Government Properties using his company name. Reports say the rule of the committee requires an individual to only buy one property. Wetkast said “We invited the members of the Presidential Implementation Committee on…
Nigeria’s state oil company is in a standoff with energy giants ExxonMobil and Royal Dutch Shell over ownership of physical crude cargoes as the West African nation seeks to shore up its creaking budget. The dispute has delayed some of the country’s monthly oil export programmes and added to confusion over just how much crude Nigeria has at its disposal to exchange for gasoline, sell to fund its record 2016 budget or use as debt collateral. Discrepancies between NNPC and companies with production sharing contracts (PSCs) that entitle them to oil have always existed, but the crude price crash has…
House of Representatives majority leader, Femi Gbajabiamila has written a letter to the Chinese President, Xi Jingping, condemning Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti state. Gbajabiamila also made a case for President Buhari’s loan request. Governor Fayose wrote a letter to the President of China on Thursday, April 14, 2016, asking him not to grant Nigeria any loan. An excerpt of Gbajabiamila’s letter, obtained from Punch reads: “Mr. President, perhaps our governor is not fully seized on the way budgeting works at the federal level. The Federal Government of Nigeria has a three-year budget rolling plan captured under a Medium Term…
Mr. Warimopei Dudafa, who served as Special Assistant on Domestic Affairs in the Goodluck Jonathan administration, was arrested on Monday, April 18, 2016. Punch reports that Dudafa was arrested by men of the Department of State Services (DSS) at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos. The DSS subsequently handed him over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Reports say Dudafa fled the country when GEJ’s ex Aide-de-Camp (ADC), Col. Ojogbane Adegbe was arrested by the EFCC. Adegbe and Dudafa were accused of disbursing N10bn to Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) delegates. A source who spoke to Punch said “We…
The President of the Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki, has said that his trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal will not interrupt Senate proceedings, a statement said in Abuja on Monday. The statement was issued by Saraki’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Yusuph Olaniyonu. It said the president of the Senate spoke following the announcement of the tribunal Chairman, Mr. Danladi Umar, that proceedings in the trial would hold daily henceforth. The statement said: “It would be recalled that at the preliminary stage of the trial, senators had always accompanied the Senate president to the tribunal each time…
An EFCC witness, Michael Wetkas, on Monday, told the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) that Senate President Bukola Saraki used different bank drafts to buy properties in Ikoyi, Lagos. Saraki is facing a 13-count charge bordering on allegations of false asset declaration and money laundering. He had earlier pleaded not guilty to the charges. At the resumed hearing of the case, the EFCC witness, who was led in evidence by prosecution counsel Rotimi Jacobs (SAN) said Saraki bought the properties through his companies. He said investigation revealed that House No. 15, Macdonald Street, Ikoyi, Lagos and Block 15, Flat 1…
Nigeria called on OPEC members to find a consensus on a freeze on oil production after talks among producers collapsed in Qatar on Sunday, the oil ministry said on Monday. A deal to freeze oil output by OPEC and non-OPEC producers fell apart on Sunday after Saudi Arabia demanded that Iran to join in despite calls on Riyadh to save the agreement and help prop up crude prices. “We are just going to work on it,” Nigeria’s oil minister Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu said in a statement issued by his ministry. “It is a supply and demand issue and we need…
Bello, while congratulating all the newly elected FCT Area Council Chairmen and Councilors, promised to work very closely with them irrespective of their political parties. The minister gave the assurance when the officials of the FCT Press Corps led by its Chairman, Mr. Ikharo Attah met with him on Monday, April 18, 2016 in his office at Area 11, Garki I District, Abuja. “The FCT Administration under my leadership would work very closely with all the elected Council officials irrespective of political parties they belong to, in order to bring rapid development to the Area Councils of the Territory,” Bello…
The Senate has reportedly summoned the Chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), Justice Danladi Umar over allegations of corruption against him. Umar was summoned on Monday, April 18, 2016, by the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions and asked to appear before it by 2pm on Thursday, April 21, The Nation reports The invitation was contained in a letter sent by the Clerk of the Committee, Freedom Odolo. The letter reads: “Your letter with reference number CCT/HQ/ 126/S/ 111/ 515 dated 1st April, 2016 in which you requested for more time to enable you attend the…
The Chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), Danladi Umar has criticized senators who have been attending the trial of Senate President, Bukola Saraki. Umar further said that the Senate is not on trial before the tribunal hence there’s no need for the legislators to appear with Saraki every day. The CCT Chairman made the comment on Monday, April 18, 2016, when the Senate President’s trial resumed, The Guardian reports. “The Senate is not on trial. The senators should sit down and do their work. They don’t need to be here. It is shameful and disgrace to the nation,”…
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has condemned the recent purchase of 108 brand new Toyota Land Cruiser vehicles by the Senate. The NLC further described the purchase as a crime against the people due to the current financial crisis in the country. The union’s comments were contained in a statement released by president, Ayuba Wabba on Monday, April 18, 2016. The statement reads: We consider appalling, insensitive and greedy the decision of the Senate to acquire 108 Toyota Land Cruiser jeeps (one for each member less the Senate President) after collecting car “loans” in August last year for the same…
April 5, 2016, marked the 40th birthday of the wife of popular actor, Funsho Adeolu, Victoria. To celebrate his better half, the Ondo State-born actor posted the birthday cake he got for her on Instagram with a caption which reads: ‘Come and join the party. My wife is 40yrs already, it’s like a dream’. Funsho Adeolu and his wife, who celebrated their 11th wedding anniversary on December 13, 2016, are blessed with two lovely boys. Happy birthday Mrs. Victoria Adeolu.