Author: Adejuyigbe Francis

England won their opening match of the Women’s World Cup against Haiti but were given a stern test against the tournament debutants in Brisbane. Georgia Stanway’s pinpoint re-taken penalty gave England victory despite an underwhelming performance by the Lionesses. The midfielder kept her cool after the Video Assistant Referee adjudged Haiti goalkeeper Kerly Theus had stepped off her line too early as she saved her first attempt. Much like their display in the opening match against Austria in Euro 2022, which England went on to win, Sarina Wiegman’s side looked short of creativity and sharpness. Haiti, ranked 53rd in the…

Ajax and Fulham have reached an agreement over the transfer of Calvin Bassey. The total value of the deal is €21m, according to Dutch website, vi.nl. A resale percentage is also included in the deal. Fulham expressed interest in the player last week and have moved quickly to beat Brighton & Hove Albion to the versatile defender. Bassey only joined Ajax from Scottish giants, Rangers last summer. According to vi.nl, he was initially not willing to join Fulham but changed his mind after he was informed of Ajax’s decision to sell him. He scored once in 25 league appearances for…

Japan got their FIFA Women’s World Cup campaign off to a perfect start with a dominant win against debutants Zambia. Hinata Miyazawa’s two goals were separated by a Mina Tanaka strike before Jun Endo added a fourth. Zambia goalkeeper Catherine Musonda got a second yellow card for conceding a late penalty in Hamilton, New Zealand. Her replacement Eunice Sakala saved Riko Ueki’s penalty but was ruled to have come off her line and the Japan striker slotted home the second effort. Japan move top of Group C, above Spain on goal difference. Futoshi Ikeda’s side’s late spot-kick means there has…

The United States launched their bid for an unprecedented third consecutive world crown with a comfortable win against Women’s World Cup debutants Vietnam in Auckland. Sophia Smith struck twice before half-time for the four-time world champions in front of thousands of travelling USA fans in a crowd of 41,107. Smith, one of 14 players in the squad appearing at their first World Cup, fired the number-one ranked team in the world ahead with a low drilled finish from an angle. Her second was awarded following a lengthy check by the Video Assistant Referee for an offside before captain Lindsey Horan,…

Lionel Messi made a Hollywood start to his American adventure, scoring a last-second winner with a curling free-kick in his debut game for Inter Miami on Friday. Deep in the fourth minute of stoppage time, with the Leagues Cup match against Mexican club Cruz Azul standing at 1-1, Messi won a free-kick just outside the box, in perfect range for his famous left foot. The script had been written and Messi delivered his line perfectly. The seven-times Ballon d’Or winner took a glance at the position of Cruz Azul goalkeeper Andres Gudino, then put his head down before curling his…

The Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Education has increased the school fees of new students into Federal Government Colleges otherwise known as Federal Unity Colleges to ₦100,000. This was contained in a directive from the Office of the Director of Senior Secondary Education Department of the Federal Ministry of Education, reference number ADF/120/DSSE/I, dated 25th May, 2023, and addressed to all Principals of Federal Unity Colleges. According to the circular entitled, “Approved fees/ charges for Federal Unity Colleges (1st Term) for new students“, signed by the Director of Senior Secondary Education, Hajia Binta Abdulkadir, new students are expected…

Paris Saint-Germain have dropped Kylian Mbappe from their preseason trip to Japan. The Ligue 1 champions have now put the 24-year-old up for sale. This was revealed by transfer expert, Fabrizio Romano. “Kylian Mbappé has been left out of the Paris Saint-Germain squad for the pre-season tour in Japan. “Decision made by PSG tonight. “Understand PSG consider Mbappé FOR SALE starting from today. “Paris Saint-Germain feel Kylian Mbappé wants to leave for free in 2024 — he did not communicate anything yet despite Al Khelaifi’s public statement. “PSG decided to EXCLUDE Kylian from Japan tournée,” Romano tweeted Friday night. They’re…

Marseille have signed Chelsea striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The 34-year-old Gabon forward scored just three goals in 22 appearances for Chelsea after joining from Barcelona in a £10.3m deal last September. Neither club have revealed whether Marseille have paid a fee for the France-born player. Aubameyang exits the Premier League for the second time in 18 months, having spent four years at Arsenal from 2018 before joining Barca in January 2022. He scored 13 goals in 23 matches in his six months in Spain, but was unable to replicate that form under three different managers during a season-long stay at Stamford…

Chukwuemeka Obioma is set to complete a move to Tunisian giants Esperance. According to the Tunisian website Estunis.net, the Nigeria Professional Football League’s top scorer is expected to arrive in Tunis on Saturday. The 24-year-old is expected to sign a two-year deal with the former CAF Champions League winner. Obioma was the top scorer in the NPFL last season with 16 goals. Obioma scored 16 goals in the just-concluded season to help Enyimba clinch their ninth NPL title. Enyimba recently offered a mouthwatering one million naira monthly salary to keep the striker at the club.

A group of thieves attacked Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma and his partner at their home in the French capital on Thursday night. The crime news site Actu17 revealed that the thieves forced open the door of the house, which is located in the eighth district, one of the most exclusive areas of the city, assaulted the couple and fled with goods worth an estimated 500,000 euros. They were tied up and held hostage. Later, they took refuge in a nearby hotel, where the employees alerted the police. The 24-year-old Italian international and his partner were then taken to a hospital for examination.…

Sensational Nigerian singer, Divine Ikubor, famously known as Rema, has achieved another milestone as his hit song ‘Calm Down’ becomes the most streamed African song in the United States of America, USA, history. ‘Calm Down’ displaced CKay’s ‘Love Nwantiti’ to achieve the feat. American music data compilation website, Chart Data disclosed this on Friday. The statistics firm tweeted, “@heisrema’s ‘Calm Down’ is now the #1 most streamed Afrobeats song in US history, surpassing @ckay_yo’s ‘love nwantiti’.” Both versions of the song have surpassed half a billion streams on Spotify and YouTube. ‘Calm Down’ became the highest-peaking Nigerian song on US…

The Nigerian contigent at English Premier League side Nottingham Forest has just increased by one with Ola Aina replacing Renan Lodi  at the club. Nottingham Forest houses super eagles duo Taiwo Awoniyi and Emmanuel Dennis, with both having joined last term but endured different fortunes. Awoniyi had a brilliant season netting ten goals in the league despite injury struggles which kept him out for  months. Dennis, on the other hand, had a not-so-good time soring just two goals as opposed to the eleven he scored for now relegated Watford in the 2021/2022 season. He has been linked with a move…