The Police Command in Benue has confirmed that the Divisional Police Officer, DPO, in charge of Otukpo, Chief Superintendent, CSP, John Adikwu and three other police officers lost their lives in bloody Friday afternoon bank robbery in Otukpo Local Government Area (LGA) of the state.

SP Sewuese Anene, Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the command, confirmed the development to PM News on Saturday.

A gang of armed robbers in a coordinated operation on Friday attacked branches of five different banks in Otukpo town.

The affected banks are: Access Bank, First Bank, Zenith Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Stanbic IBTC Bank.

Men of the Benue command engaged the suspects in a gun battle along Otukpo-Taraku road and neutralized two of the criminals in the process.

Giving update on the attack, Anene confirmed that other members of the criminal gang abandoned their vehicles and ran into the bush.

The PPRO said: “The Otukpo Divisional Police Officer, CSP John Adikwu and his team in the area engaged the suspected robbers in a gun duel but were unable to prevent them from attacking the banks.

“More police teams in collaboration with other security agents were later deployed to Otukpo to assist in stabilising the area and prevent these robbers from escaping.

“The robbers were later intercepted along Otukpo-Taraku road by our men and engaged them in a gun duel.

”Two of the robbers died in the process, but other members of the gang abandoned their vehicles and escaped into the forest.

”We are still going after them.

“Our DPO in Otukpo who sustained a gunshot injury on his stomach and three other police officers have been confirmed dead at the hospital.

“Other persons who sustained injuries during the operation are currently receiving treatment at the hospital. Investigation is still ongoing to unravel all those involved in the criminal act.”

The Israeli government has reportedly approved emergency regulations that grant the authority to close the office of Al Jazeera news channel in Israel.

These regulations, Naija News learnt, also allow for the confiscation of all equipment belonging to the news channel. Israeli public broadcaster, KAN, noted in a publication on Saturday that the Al Jazeera office is facing strict action due to concerns that its coverage poses a threat to Israel’s national security.

The Israeli i24 news website has also quoted an Israeli statement claiming that Al Jazeera broadcasts propaganda in support of Hamas in both Arabic and English, reaching audiences worldwide.

Though Al Jazeera has refuted these allegations, it has yet to respond to the latest decision made by the Israeli government as of the time of filing this report.

It is worth noting that Al Jazeera, based in Qatar, is recognized as one of the primary media networks providing comprehensive coverage of the situation in Gaza, Israel, and southern Lebanon.

The first batch of the beneficiaries of the Kano State Foreign Postgraduate Scholarship numbering 150 out of the 1001 departed Nigeria to India yesterday.

Addressing the beneficiaries at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), Kano, the State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, urged them to concentrate on their studies and make Nigeria and Kano proud.

He said the scholarship award was in fulfillment of campaign promises in building on Kwankwasiyya ideology to resume scholarship awards to the best students in the state.

“This singular effort by his administration has produced many professionals and Ph.D. holders, thousands of Masters, Degree holders, thousands of professionals in medical sciences, engineering, natural sciences, pilots, maritime specialists.”

The governor said apart from the foreign scholarship scheme, the Kano State Government is committed to improving state-owned tertiary institutions through the provision of increased funding and infrastructure development for effective learning, teaching, and research.

He implored the beneficiaries of the scholarship to make the best use of the golden opportunity to excel in their fields of study by remaining committed and respecting the laws of the land as well as norms, values, and cultures of their host communities.

Earlier in his speech, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, the presidential candidate of the party in the February election, praised the effort of the state government for continuing along the same path.

He called on the beneficiaries to ensure that they live up to their expectations and become useful to their parents, relations, and the country at large.

Condemns alleged attempts to frustrate petitions at Lagos tribunal 

The Julius Abure-led Labour Party has sent a petition to the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu,  over what it called alleged “acts of dishonour and infamy” being perpetrated by officials of the commission, acting on behalf  of agents of the All Progressives Congress, (APC), to frustrate ongoing petitions at the tribunal in Lagos.

National Publicity Secretary of the Labour Party, Obiora Ifoh,  addressing the press in Abuja yesterday, noted the alleged acts of INEC Legal department to frustrate on going court processes by legal department of the commission 

 Ifoh said that the face-off between two legal luminaries at Appeal Court in Lagos on Thursday, in a case involving a House of Representatives seat in Abia State is a plot to buy time and frustrate the legal proceedings.

Ifoh said, “Mr. Chairman sir, we therefore bring to your notice an ugly incident that happened yesterday, 19th day of October, 2023 at Lagos State, venue of the Appeal Court on the Appeal No. CA/OW/HR/AB/06/2023 between the Labour Party candidate, Hon. Amobi Ogah, who is the plaintiff and the All Progressives Congress candidate, Nkiruka Onyejeocha, who is the Respondent. INEC is also a Respondent in that matter.

“Hon. Ogah of the Labour Party contested and won with a large margin the Federal House of Representatives seat for Isikwuato/Umunneochi Federal Constituency, but his victory was annulled at the Election Tribunal, hence the resolve to approach the Appellate Court.

“Sir, what played out yesterday, 19th day of October, 2023, was unbelievable, hence we call on you to nip the development in the bud to avoid a messy situation. INEC had engaged a Senior Counsel, J.O. Asoluka (SAN), as its lawyers with a letter of authorisation to represent the commission.

“But at the commencement of the hearing at the Appeal Court, another lawyer surfaced with another letter of authority to take over the case of the self same INEC without prior notice to J.O Asoluka (SAN), that the new counsel had been engaged. They also did not see any need to inform the Plaintiff of the development as required by law. When the matter thus came up,  a squabble ensued between the two counsels as to who had the authority of INEC to represent it in the case.

“Consequently, present at the venue of the Appeal Court were some expelled members of Labour Party under the headship of Lamidi Apapa. Also present were some leaders of the APC who openly fraternize with the Apapa cohorts and who were openly boasting that they will purchase judgement at all cost. They also attempted unsuccessfully to hijack the legal representation of the Labour Party.

“Chairman sir, it has now dawned on us that the change of legal guard without properly notifying the interested parties  was carefully orchestrated by the Commission in alliance with our opponents with the intention to stall proceedings at the Court of Appeal and frustrate our candidate’s appeal that was due for hearing on Thursday.”

He further said, “We are raising this alarm because time is of essence, even though, the collaborators achieved their intentions as the appeal could not be heard and was adjourned by the court to enable INEC put its house in order and determine who of the two counsels, has her authority to represent her in the appeal.

“We are therefore using this platform to urge you to investigate the inglorious roles which the legal department of the commission is playing and sanction erring officials. The role of INEC in this matter is simply to defend the outcome of the election which it conducte

In response to my September 30 column titled “Thought Subsidy Was Bad. Why is Tinubu Bringing it Back?” a Facebook follower of mine by the name of Anas Mundi asked, “So why is SLS [i.e., Sanusi Lamido Sanusi] always agitating for fuel subsidy removal? I still don’t get it really!!”

My curt, perfunctory, irritated response was: “Because his entire life—from birth to now—has been subsidized, so he lacks empathy. He thinks only he and his ilk deserve subsidies. He is a spoiled, bratty sadist.”

For some reason, this offhanded but accurate response, which I’ll provide evidentiary proof for shortly, resonated with a broad spectrum of people, particularly from the North.

A few days ago, a friend who read my response to Mundi forwarded a news story to me titled, “Why Tinubu Shouldn’t Be Blamed for Nigeria’s Economic Hardship – Sanusi Lamido” where Sanusi basically exculpated Tinubu from any complicity in the unbearably agonizing adversity Nigerians are going through now. He also doubled down on his habitual, mean-spirited, intellectually impoverished, and anti-people evangelism against petrol subsidies.

“It’s injustice for anyone to blame the Tinubu administration for the current economic hardship because there is no other alternative than the removal of the fuel subsidy,” Sanusi said. “After all, Nigeria cannot even afford to pay the subsidy.”

He placed the blame for the current downturn in the economy not on the removal of subsidies but on Buhari’s refusal to completely remove subsidies. “The economy was poorly managed, and they [were] not willing to take advice,” he said.

Recall that in December 2016, Sanusi advised Buhari to “firmly and unequivocally eliminate fuel subsidies” in a presentation that I characterized in my December 10, 2016, column titled “Dangerous Fine Print in Emir Sanusi’s Prescriptions for Buhari” as a hopeless “maze of pseudo-scientific economic gobbledygook.”

Now that Tinubu has “firmly and unequivocally eliminated fuel subsidies” and people are squirming in way worse existential torment than they had ever experienced, Sanusi murdered logic and common sense by insisting that it was the previous government’s repudiation of his recommendation to “firmly and unequivocally” remove petrol subsidies that’s instigating the current mass suffering.

“I can only plead with the people to endure the hardship, and those who have the means to help the downtrodden should do so,” he said. “I am also pleading with commoners to live according to their earnings; we must not peg our lives above our earnings in this difficult situation where people are looking for what to eat.”

Notice that Sanusi is only appealing to the victims of his economic policy prescriptions to learn to “endure the hardship” the policies cause them. He never said anything about the Tinubu government’s unexampled profligate and corrupt expenditures.

For the first time in Nigeria’s history, we now have nearly 50 ministers—with all the avoidable waste that entails. State governors have taken a cue and have enlarged their cabinets, too. The government is growing while the people are groaning, but that’s not a problem for Sanusi.

It recently came to light that President Bola Tinubu spent $507,384, which is equivalent to nearly 400 million naira for his hotel accommodation in New York when he attended the UN General Assembly in September. We also learned that the federal government has requested a $1.5 billion loan to buy new cars for government officials, including SUVs for each of 360 members of the House of Representatives that will cost N160 million per car.

These are merely minor examples of major eyewatering squandermania that is happening in governance, which critics of subsidies that benefit the poor never talk about.

How about the unconscionably outrageous trillions of naira that Nigeria spends on its refineries that don’t work? We learned in May this year that the government spent N11.350 trillion to rehabilitate Nigeria’s three refineries that have never refined a single drop of petrol in decades. But that doesn’t worry people like Sanusi.

Sanusi’s concerns about government expenditures are activated only when the expenditures might benefit poor people. He has a deep-seated loathing for everyday folks and doesn’t have the skills or the intellectual gift to hide it.

In 2012 during the OccupyNigeria protests sparked by the removal of petrol subsidies (which Sanusi helped inspire), Femi Falana told Sanusi at a forum that removing subsidies from petrol would lead to an increase in the cost of transportation, which would trigger inflation that would inflict incalculable hurt on the lives of millions of Nigeria.

“That is not an economic argument,” Sanusi said in response to Falana, as if an “economic argument” were some unquestionable, arcane, and divinely ordained dogma that only he and his fellow neoliberal evangelists could understand and that the rest of us must simply believe in.

Nevertheless, in October 2019, as emir of Kano, Sanusi tearfully narrated the story of a mother in Kano who couldn’t afford the equivalent of $5 to save the life of her child. “This is what happens every day in this country,” he said. “Children die because their parents cannot afford five dollars, that a mother will watch her child die because she does not have five dollars.”

But I thought that wasn’t “an economic argument,” the most important thing that matters in this world. Sanusi has actively encouraged governments since 2012 to implement policies that activate a multiplication of the example of the woman that caused him to cry in public in 2019.

This is a Sanusi that raided the treasury of the Kano Emirate Council like a conscienceless bandit. In an April 8, 2017, investigation by Jaafar Jaafar titled “A word for Emir Sanusi,” we learned that Sanusi inherited more than N1 billion in the treasury of Kano Emirate Council and squandered it “on exotic cars, unnecessary ‘restructuring’ of the palace, frequent foreign travels, chartered flights, customised sets of Christian Louboutin spiked shoes and Moroccan costumes, Internet bills, among others.”

As soon as he became an emir, he paid himself a monthly salary of N12m. “Mr Sanusi’s predecessor, Ado Bayero, was paying himself an average of N1.5 million,” Jaafar Jaafar pointed out. Sanusi also “spent N7m on Internet in ONE month” in 2017. From June 29, 2015 to February 9,” 2015, he spent N37,054,192.06 “on Airtel”. As Jaafar pointed out, “this amount alone could build a modest school or a cottage hospital with equipment as a way of matching his words with action.”

Jaafar’s exposes about Sanusi’s corruption as emir, which he couldn’t deny, caused the Kano State’s anti-corruption agency to probe him and had wanted to use the outcome of the probe to dethrone him but for the intervention of elder statesmen from the North.

A person with this sordid record and elite subsidies thinks the miserly subsidies that make life a little bearable for ordinary people are too much and must be eliminated.

Re: Ignorance of America that Atiku’s Lawyers and Supporters Betray

Your piece on the Tinubu Certificate saga was highly readable and rigorous as usual. But it has at least one not-so-minor flaw. Read Chapter 8, Part IV, Section 318 of the Nigerian Constitution on “Interpretation”. The section which is in four sub-sections (a) (b) (c) & (d), defines “School certificate or its equivalent.” Sub-section (c) lists “Primary Six School Leaving Certificate or its equivalent” as sufficing, provided it is accompanied by (i) service in a public or private sector acceptable to INEC, and (ii) attendance at courses and trainings for up to a total of one year at any institution acceptable to INEC, and (iii) ability to read, write, understand and communicate in English to the satisfaction of INEC.

Sub-section (d) is even more telling. It simply says, “any other qualification acceptable to the Independent National Electoral Commission.”

What all this means is that even if Daley College rescinds President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s associate degree & his bachelor’s degree from Chicago State University automatically follows, he may still have a leg to stand on. Such is the liberality of our constitution on academic qualification. In other words, it is much more liberal on this issue than most Nigerians imagine, apparently including politicians who gratuitously claim certificates they do not need to qualify as candidates.

Have a great week ahead.

Note: This is my personal opinion & not INEC’s position. And you are free to publish it.

Malam Mohammed Haruna, INEC Commissioner

Chief Emeka Anyaoku, a former Secretary-General of the Commonwealth has described the current situation in Nigeria as “lamentable” saying the way forward is for the country to get a new constitution to salvage the situation.

Anyaoku made the assertion while delivering the 2023 Convocation Lecture of Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, titled, “Management of diversity: A major challenge to governance in pluralistic countries” in Ado Ekiti on Friday.

According to him, under the Constitution, before military intervention, there was security of life and property, and there was a faster pace of economic development in the regions, adding that healthy competition among the regions facilitated rapid development across the country.

“In contrast, today if truth be told, the situation in our country is lamentable. There is an unprecedented level of divisiveness and a declining sense of national unity; the economy is in the doldrums, with 133 million of our population in multidimensional poverty.

“There is great insecurity throughout the land as we hear every day of killings and kidnappings by unknown gunmen and marauding bandits; all our infrastructure, including power supply, roads, and educational and health facilities, are in a poor state.

“Added to all this, there is a complete bastardisation of our society’s ethical values and an unfathomable level of corruption evident in the often reported massive looting and mismanagement of the country’s resources, including the continuing unbridled theft of our crude oil,” he lamented.

However, despite these, he said, “Nigeria is still salvageable” adding that “the country can still be restored to greater peace, greater security, a renewed sense of national unity, greater political stability, and a more assured pace of economic development”.

The former governor of Zamfara State, Bello Matawalle has denied allegations claiming that he embezzled billions of naira from the abandoned Cargo Airport in Zamfara State.

Naija News reports that the incumbent administration of Governor Dauda Lawal Dare had accused Matawalle’s administration of embezzling public funds.

However, speaking via a statement issued by Ibrahim Dosara, former Commissioner of information, the governor noted that the accusations against him were calculated mischief and diversionary tactics of his successor.

He insisted that the governor specialises in diverting people’s attention from his insensitivity, failure and inability to fulfil his campaign promises.

The statement read in part, ”The attention of the immediate past Government of Zamfara State under Hon (Dr) Bello Mohammed Matawllen Maradun MFR, has been drawn to a press statement issued by Governor Dauda Lawal Dare in which the Governor accuses the immediate past administration of former Gov Matawalle of embezzling public funds in billions.

“It is in response to this baseless and unfounded claim and allegation, and in order to put matters on record in their true perspective, that I wish to submit the following facts on the cargo Airport project contract:-The immediate past Government under Hon. Bello Mohammed Matawallen Maradun inherited the Cargo Airport Project from its predecessor. As the government is a continuous process, former Gov Matawalle saw the need to consider completing the project for its numerous benefits to the people of the state and beyond. I want to bring to the attention of the general public that it is only Zamfara State that has had no Airport of its own, up to the time of this press statement.

“After due deliberations in council, it was agreed that the project be continued. As a follow-up to the state Executive Council’s resolution and decision on the project, contractors were invited to bid for the contract to execute the Cargo Airport Project. After reaching an agreement and in consultation with the Federal Airport Authority the Matawalle government immediately mobilized the contractors to the site to handle the project to its timely completion.

“How can the former Gov being an honest and sincere great leader who saved the state government resources in this project, be accused of embezzlement of public funds in this project? This is indeed, nothing but a calculated mischief and diversionary tactics of Gov Dauda Lawal as he specialises in diverting people’s attention from his insensitivity, failure and inability to fulfil his campaign promises on tackling security concerns bedeviling the state immediately after his assumption of office.

“This campaign of calumny embarked upon by Gov Lawal Dare cannot save him from the slumber of his administration. We therefore condemned in its entirety, this criminal way of governance. It is a complete irresponsibility of the highest order by the Lawal Dare administration to divert people’s attention from his government incompetence, failure, lack of vision, mission and direction.”

“Rather than concentrating on massive drive and efforts towards finding lasting solutions to the lingering security concerns of the state, the Governor is now chasing wild goose in search of ways to tarnish the hard-earned reputation of the former Governor and his government.”

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Youth Net­work has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to avoid subjecting Nigerians to an­other round of heartaches in the Bayelsa Governorship election scheduled for November 11, 2023.

The Coordinator of the group, Mr James Oputin said in a state­ment on Friday that the discor­dant tunes coming from INEC on the issue of the electronic trans­mission of results is generating so much doubts and tension.

Oputin said that while the State Resident Electoral Com­missioner, Ofiong Efanga, jolted Bayelsans by saying that INEC would adopt manual transmis­sion of election results, the Chair­man, Prof Mahmud Yakubu has come out to overrule him.

Yakubu had said penultimate Saturday that the results of the November 11 governorship elec­tions in Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi states would be transmitted elec­tronically.

Oputin said that the people are doubtful of INEC’s conflict­ing declarations from the state and the federal level on the sensitive issue of the electronic transmission of results which is expected to reduce drastically the disturbing incidence of electoral violence in the state.

He noted that Nigerians have not forgotten how the same INEC under Prof Yakubu abruptly opt­ed to transmit the Presidential election result manually after weeks of intense media reas­surances to Nigerians that the election would be transmitted electronically.

He urged Prof Yakubu to pre­pare the minds of the Bayelsa voters and stakeholders on what to expect as most people seem to have dismissed his statement as yet another ambush on Election Day.

Oputin also called on the Bayelsa REC, Efanga to address the press on the disturbing con­flict on the issue of the planned deployment of electronic trans­mission of results.

He said that it is a difficult task to convince a person who has been a victim of trust-related dis­appointment to believe someone carrying an albatross of trust.

Oputin, who called on Nigeri­ans especially the media to hold INEC accountable to its promises also urged the electoral umpire to be conscious of the corrosive effects of failed promises and dampened expectations on its image.

The PDP youth leader said that what the party and indeed Bayelsans expect from INEC is an impartial conduct of the forth­coming election.

He stressed that the over­whelming popularity of the Governor Douye Diri who has executed projects his opponents once considered impossible is what the party needs to retain the Creek Haven, Yenagoa, Gov­ernment House.

Oputin said that Bayelsans are pleased with Diri who has ensured stability in the state apart from projects such as the Nembe- Brass Road, the Central Senatorial Road and continua­tion of many huge projects he inherited from his predecessor, Senator Henry Seriake Dickson.

“The PDP Youth Network has observed with serious concern the conflicting remarks about the issue of the deployment of elec­tronic transmission of results in the Bayelsa governorship elec­tions scheduled for November 11.

“We note that the INEC Chair­man, Prof Mahmoud Yakubu and Resident Electoral Commis­sioner in the state are not on the same page in this issue. If there is anything they know that seems to impede their preparation and the more efficient electronic transmission of result, they should speak out now.

“Bayela is a largely riverine state and we are of the view that electronic transmission of re­sults would reduce or erase the ugly incident associated with results snatching witnessed in previous elections.

“We call on the Nigeria public to hold INEC accountable to its words. We also challenge Prof Mahmud and his team to ensure that promises made to Nigerians are not seen as attempts to lay am­bush on Election Day.

“As a party, we only need the soaring popularity of Governor Douye Diri who has performed above expectations to retain po­litical control in the state.”

• Competition: Premier League
• Date: 21.10.2023
• Kickoff: 17:30 UK / 18:30 CEST
• Venue: Stamford Bridge (London)

Chelsea vs Arsenal: ARSENAL TO WIN WITH AH 0 

Chelsea seem to be finally starting to find their footing in the last couple of weeks, during one of their worst starts to a season in 20+ years. After a long time, Chelsea scored 4 goals against any opponent, like in the previous visit to Burnley. Wins against Fulham and Brighton and the EFL Cup could herald better days ahead. Poketino is a little calmer now, but the placement for the club from West London is still very bad, because the 11th position in the Premier League is a real debacle for a club like this.

Arsenal has been playing consistently well since the beginning of the season in the Premier League, and in some rounds they copied very good performances from the previous season. In doing so, they silenced many analysts who predicted that they would not be able to be in the race for the title this season alongside the superior Manchester City. If Arsenal wins this match, it is very likely that they will remain in 1st place together with city rival Tottenham. This is an opportunity to write history as well because this match is an opportunity for the 4th consecutive clean sheet on the road and the "Gunners" have never opened the season in this way.

This is a huge London derby that almost always brought matches full of intensity and energy. Chelsea will especially need that fighting spirit and team chemistry to get a positive result. This is an expensive team that still doesn't seem as homogeneous as Arsenal. Arteta has gradually brought this team up the ladder and now it is definitely a finished product. This could be the season that launches this squad very high.

The just mentioned excellent defensive record of Arsenal can decide in this match. Chelsea has problems gaining possession of the ball against superior teams, and it will be especially difficult against this rival against whom they have lost in the last 3 matches at Stamford Bridge. In our opinion, Arsenal to win with AH 0 seems like a smart option. In case of a draw, we get the stake back.

• Competition: Spain - LaLiga
• Date: Saturday, 21st, October 2023
• Kickoff: 17:30 UTC +1 / 18.30 CEST
• Venue: Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan (Sevilla)

 Betting Tips: Real Madrid to Win | OVER 2.5 | DC X2 | FT 2

Sevilla is gearing up to kick off a new chapter under the leadership of their new head coach, Diego Alonso, and what better way to do it than against the current La Liga leader, Real Madrid, at Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in Matchday 10 of La Liga.

Just three and a half months after leading Sevilla to their record seventh title in UEFA's second-tier competition, the UEFA Europa League, defeating Roma in the final in Budapest on penalties with a score of 4-1, and also saving them from relegation from La Liga, Jose Luis Mendilibar has been relieved of his duties as the head coach. The decision was made due to the fact that the Andalusians had little reason to celebrate in the current top flight season. With just two victorious outings and a meager eight points from as many rounds, Los Nervionenses find themselves a mere two points above the red zone.

This weekend, Andalusia will play host to one of the top contenders for the LaLiga title at the end of the season, the Real Madrid squad. So far, Carlo Ancelotti's chosen ones have shown the most among the teams in the Spanish top-tier, rightfully perched atop the table with 24 accumulated points, two ahead of LaLiga sensation Girona and three more than their fierce rivals, Barcelona, who currently stand third. Motivated by their exceptional recent results, Jude Bellingham and his campanions are resolute in their determination to secure the maximum from their visit this Saturday, ensuring they enter the next weekend's El Clasico from a leading position.

Sevilla's newly appointed coach, Diego Alonso, who is taking on his first European managerial role after previous stints with clubs like Penarol, Pachuca, Monterrey, and Inter Miami, among others, is in for a baptism of fire this Saturday, as his debut match will be none other than against Real Madrid. The unveiling of the Uruguayan coach has arrived at a particularly difficult moment, as his team finds itself in the midst of a significant downturn, having won only one of their previous six matches across various competitions. Another cause for concern is the defense, which was once the "trademark" of the Andalusian outfit but now appears porous, as evidenced by just two clean sheets from the beginning of the season.

In contrast, Los Blancos are entering Matchday 10 of LaLiga in superb form because, with the exception of the 1-3 loss to Atletico, they have solved all their fixtures in the current season in their favor. Moreover, Carlo Ancelotti's squad has displayed an exceptional reaction after the defeat in the Madrid derby, clinching four consecutive wins and scoring a remarkable 12 goals during this run - an average of exactly three per match. Real Madrid, with a steadfast goal of heading into El Clasico as the league leaders, will strive to claim all three points this weekend, which shouldn't pose much of a problem given their recent dominance over Sevilla - securing eight triumphs from the previous nine top-flight encounters. Weighing up all these elements, in addition to Diego Alonso's lack of experience in European club management, we foresee Real Madrid, with superstar Belingem leading the charge, to capture their fifth consecutive triumph.