AFOLABI

AFOLABI

Erling Haaland has finished as the English Premier League (EPL) top goal scorer for a second consecutive season as Manchester City beat West Ham 3-1 to win a fourth consecutive title.

 

The Norwegian striker was absent for two months of the season through injury and struggled to match the heights of his debut campaign at City when he struck 52 times in all competitions, including a Premier League record 36.

 

The 23-year-old failed to add to his 27 Premier League goals on the final day but still proved decisive in the run-in to help City secure an unprecedented fourth consecutive English top-flight crown.

 

Haaland scored nine times in his final seven Premier League appearances of the season to help City edge Arsenal to the title by two points.

 

Chelsea’s Cole Palmer, who himself started the season at City, was second in the top scorer standings with 22 goals, one ahead of Newcastle striker Alexander Isak.

EPL Top Goal Scorer Chart

27: Haaland (Man City)

22: Palmer (Chelsea)

21: Isak (Newcastle)

19: Foden (Man City), Solanke (Bournemouth), Watkins (Aston Villa)

18: Salah (Liverpool) 

17: Son Heung-min (Tottenham)

16: Bowen (West Ham), Mateta (Crystal Palace), Saka (Arsenal) 

14: Jackson (Chelsea), Wood (Nottm Forest)

13: Havertz (Arsenal)

12: Cunha (Wolves), Hwang (Wolves), Trossard (Arsenal), Wissa (Brentford) 

11: Alvarez (Man City), Eze (Crystal Palace), Gordon (Newcastle), Morris (Luton), Nunez (Liverpool), Richarlison (Tottenham)

10: Adebayo (Luton), Bailey (Aston Villa), Fernandes (Man Utd), Hojlund (Man Utd), Jota (Liverpool), Olise (Crystal Palace)

Manchester City are champions of the 2023/24 English Premier League season after defeating West Ham 3-1 at the Etihad on the campaign’s final day. 

 

The Citizen clinched the title after finishing just two points over Arsenal, who defeated Everton 2-1 at the Emirate Stadium.

The latest title triumph is Man City’s fourth consecutive title, a record-setting achievement for Pep Guardiola’s side.

It is also the club’s 10th EPL title and the sixth since Guardiola took over the team in 2016.

 

A Phil Foden brace and Rodri’s shot in second-half ensured Man City ended the season with 91 points over Arsenal’s accumulated total of 89.

The two teams’ performances took the title race to the season’s final day, and the Citizens executed their plans to perfection.

 

Arsenal had to come from a goal down against Everton, but their effort proved short of the indefatigable champions.

Idrissa Gueye put Everton ahead early in the first half after his freekick was deflected past David Raya by Declan Rice into the net. The Gunners struck back three minutes later when Takehiro Tomiyaso stroked the ball home after Martin Odegaard teed him up.

Kai Havertz completed the come-back for Mikel Arteta’s side with one of the final kicks of the game.

Elsewhere, Jurgen Klopp got a winning farewell in his final game at Anfield, thanks to a Liverpool 2-0 victory over ten-men Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Chelsea confirmed their return to European football next season with a 2-1 win over Bournemouth, while Manchester United will hope to win the FA Cup for a chance to play European football next season after finishing eighth in the league despite a 2-0 win at Brighton.

 

Luton join Burnley and Sheffield United to be relegated from the EPL following a 4-2 loss to Fulham at home.

 

RESULTS

  • Arsenal 2-1 Everton
  • Brentford 2-4 Newcastle United
  • Brighton 0-2 Manchester United
  • Burnley 1-2 Nott. Forest
  • Chelsea 2-1 Bournemouth
  • Crystal Palace 5-0 Aston Villa
  • Liverpool 2-0 Wolves
  • Luton 2-4 Fulham
  • Manchester City 3-1 West Ham
  • Sheffield Utd 0-3 Tottenham

Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian was also among those killed, along with seven others.

 

His death comes at a fraught moment in the Middle East, with war raging in Gaza.

 
 
 

The helicopter crashed weeks after Iran launched a drone-and-missile attack on Israel in response to a deadly strike on its diplomatic compound in Damascus.

 

Hardliner Raisi became president in a historically uncompetitive election in 2021. Previously the chief justice, he oversaw a period of intensified repression of dissent in a nation convulsed by youth-led protests against clerical rule.

Raisi was the second-most powerful person in the Islamic Republic’s political structure after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khomeini. The Iranian Constitution mandates that, in the case of the president’s death, the first vice president assumes office with the approval of the Supreme Leader.

Iran was thrown into uncertainty Sunday as search and rescue teams scoured a fog-shrouded mountain area after President Ebrahim Raisi’s helicopter went missing in what state media described as an “accident”.

Fears grew for the 63-year-old ultraconservative after contact was lost with the aircraft carrying him as well as Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and others in East Azerbaijan province, reports said.

The supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, urged Iranians to “not worry” about the leadership of the Islamic republic, saying “there will be no disruption in the country’s work”.

“We hope that Almighty God will bring our dear president and his companions back in full health into the arms of the nation,” he said in a nationally televised address as Muslim faithful prayed for Raisi’s safe return. 

Expressions of concern and offers to help came from abroad, including Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Russia, and Turkey, as well as from the European Union which activated its rapid response mapping service to aid in the search effort.

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani expressed gratitude for “governments and international organizations for their sympathy and offer of help in the search and rescue operations.”

State television first reported in the afternoon that “an accident happened to the helicopter carrying the president” in the Jolfa region.

“The harsh weather conditions and heavy fog have made it difficult for the rescue teams to reach the accident site,” said one broadcaster, as the massive search effort later continued into the night.

Iran’s Red Crescent chief Pirhossein Koolivand told state TV the area of the accident “has yet to be identified” and that the situation remained “difficult”. 

Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi said the helicopter “made a hard landing” in bad weather and that it was “difficult to establish communication” with the aircraft.

He urged people to get their information “only from state television”, and not listen to foreign media channels Iran deems hostile to the Islamic republic.

– Massive search effort –

Iran’s cabinet held an emergency meeting led by Vice President Mohammad Mokhber after the incident, IRNA reported.

Raisi’s convoy had included three helicopters, and the other two had “reached their destination safely”, said the Tasnim news agency.

 

More than 60 rescue teams using search dogs and drones were sent to the mountainous protected forest area of Dizmar near the town of Varzaghan, the IRNA news agency reported.

Air passengers travelling through Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Lagos, and Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, NAIA, Abuja, can now use free Wi-Fi, Vanguard has gathered.


Special Assistant to the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Tunde Moshood, on Sunday, confirmed the development.

Moshood also said plans were in progress to have free Wi-Fi services installed at other airports across the country, saying access to free internet services at the country’s airports conforms with Keyamo’s third agenda.


Moshood, in a chat with Vanguard, said: “Both local and international flyers can now enjoy free Wi-Fi in Lagos and Abuja, at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport and Murtala Muhammed International Airport (Terminal 1 & Terminal 2). Stay connected, surf the web and make your journey smoother.

“Look for the NCC Free Airport Wi-Fi, and get connected. Your life does not have to pause while at the airport. Use the Wi-Fi to enjoy all your latest music and download your favourite Netflix programmes.

“Other airports are presently on course. This actually complies with the agenda of the Minister, which is to improve infrastructures across all airports and the aviation industry as a whole.”

Recall that Keyamo had attributed the absence of airport Wi-Fi to bureaucratic hurdles between the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, and the Nigeria Airspace Management Agency, NAMA, which he swiftly resolved by allocating Wi-Fi provision to NAMA.

Collaborating with the Ministry of Communication, Keyamo said he was ensuring imminent access to complimentary Wi-Fi at airports, with discussions underway with international firms for in-flight Wi-Fi.

He said the initiative aligned with global aviation standards, which is to enhance passenger connectivity during flights.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) President, Prof Emmanuel Osodeke, has reacted after the Federal Government ignored the union’s ultimatum to reconstitute the governing councils of universities across the country and released a list of new members for 111 tertiary institutions.

Naija News reported that President Bola Tinubu had last week approved the appointments of 555 persons to serve as Pro-chancellors/Chairmen and members of the Governing Boards of 111 Federal Universities, Polytechnics and Colleges of Education.

An advertorial signed by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Didi Esther Walson-Jack, showed the appointment of a chairperson and four members for each institution.

The advertorial stated that the Inaugural/Retreat for the Chairmen and Members of the Governing Councils of Tertiary Institutions will take place on Thursday, May 30th, and Friday, May 31st, 2024.

Notable among the members of the councils include the former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Attahiru Jega, two prominent Nigerian lawyers and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Wole Olanipekun and Yusuf Alli, former Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission, Peter Okebukola, and labour activist, Issa Aremu.

Reacting to the development, the ASUU President, in an interview with PUNCH, said the Federal Government was expected to reinstate the ‘illegally’ dissolved governing councils and not to constitute new ones.

Osodeke also stated that the union’s demand was not limited to the dissolved governing councils of tertiary institutions, adding that the Federal Government should implement other ASUU requests.

He said, “It is not just about the governing council alone, it is just one of them. Secondly, we said they should reinstate the illegally dissolved governing council. We didn’t say they should constitute a new one. As far as we are concerned, they have not met any.”

 

No fewer than 386 people, mostly women and children, have been rescued by the Nigerian Army in Sambisa forest 10 years after their abduction.

The acting GOC 7 Division, Brig. Gen. AGL Haruna, made this known while speaking to newsmen at the outskirts of Sambisa forest in Konduga LGA after welcoming the troops that conducted the 10-day operation.

Haruna said that the operation tagged “Operation Desert Sanity 111” was to clear Sambisa forest of the remnants of all categories of terrorists, as well as provide some of them, eager to surrender as observed, the opportunity to do so.

 

“Our effort is to ensure that we clear remnants of terrorists in the Sambisa and give those willing to surrender the opportunity to surrender.

“With this operation, we envisage many of them will surrender as they have started.

“We also rescued some civilians; as of yesterday, we rescued 386 and I am sure the number will increase by today,” Haruna said.

The GOC, who addressed the troops on the message of the Chief of Army Staff, lauded their performance and professionalism exhibited during the operation and urged them to sustain the tempo.

Some of those rescued, who spoke, said they have been in captivity for the past 10 years.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that troops from 21 Special Armoured Brigade, 26 Task Force Brigade, and 199 Special Forces participated in the operation.

British heavyweight fighter, Tyson Fury has expressed his frustration over his split decision loss to Ukrainian fighter Oleksandr Usyk, implying that sympathy for Usyk’s war-torn country influenced the judges’ verdict.

The undefeated Ukrainian became the first undisputed world champion of the century after a closely contested fight against Fury in Saudi Arabia on Saturday night.

Usyk, donning his national colours, dedicated his historic win to the people of Ukraine in the aftermath of the judges’ announcement in Riyadh. 

He had temporarily returned to Ukraine following the Russian invasion in February 2022 before resuming his boxing career.

Fury, visibly disappointed, suggested that the ongoing conflict in Ukraine may have swayed the judges.

“I believe I won that fight. He won a few rounds, but I won the majority of them,” Fury stated in the ring after the fight.

“We both put on a good fight. His country is at war, so people are siding with the country at war. Make no mistake, I won that fight in my opinion.”

Former Katsina State Governor, Aminu Masari, has criticized the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) for regretting supporting President Bola Tinubu during the last general election.

Recalls that the NEF spokesman, Abdul-Azeez Suleiman, in a statement last month, said the North made a mistake in voting Tinubu to the presidency in 2023.

Suleiman said it is unlikely that they will repeat the same error in the future.

However, Masari, in an interview with Daily Trust, said the Northern elders endorsed Tinubu based on expectations rather than principles.

The former governor said it was too early in the administration’s first year for most of the criticisms it has suffered.

He said, “Those who say they are regretting supporting him (Tinubu) are saying it because they did not support on principles. They supported him on expectations, and when those expectations were not met for them, then they could say they regretted it.

“The problem is that some of us stood for principles (in supporting Tinubu), and a government that has come to serve for four years has served for six months, nine months, and you are passing judgments on it; that is absolutely wrong.”

Reacting to the presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, and his Labour Party (LP) counterpart, Peter Obi, who have been very critical of the APC-led government’s policies, Masari said there was no magic the opposition could have performed to alleviate the pains Nigerians are going through within the period Tinubu has been in power.

He added that the other leading contestants in the 2023 presidential election equally promised to remove the fuel subsidy that has plunged the country into untold hardship during the campaign.

He said, “Some of the people who are talking now, their own would have been worse. Since during the campaign, all the political parties, including those who are talking now, didn’t they promise that they would remove subsidy?

“Is there any political party that did not campaign on subsidy removal? Let us not go there. Because we are Nigerians, we are bad losers. And sometimes, the winners are supposed to be more accommodating and patient. That’s the price of leadership.”

The National President of the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF), Shettima Yerima, has praised the credibility of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).


He stated this while reacting to a recent comment by former Anambra governor, Peter Obi.

 

Naija News recalls that Obi had stated that justice in Nigeria is “commodified” and “goes to the highest bidder”.

 

He opined that the biggest problem in Nigeria’s democracy is the Judiciary, not the INEC.

 

Sharing his thoughts on Obi’s submission, Yerima, in a statement on Saturday, expressed his firm belief that INEC is a reputable institution that consistently upholds the principles of fairness, impartiality, and transparency in conducting elections in the country.

 

According to him, Obi’s acknowledgement that the Judiciary, rather than INEC, posed the greatest challenge to Nigeria’s democracy further strengthened his conviction in the integrity of the apex electoral umpire in the land.

 

The AYCF has long maintained that INEC is a credible, impartial, and unbiased institution that consistently conducts credible elections.

 

He said, “Peter Obi’s remarks have vindicated our stance and affirmed that INEC is not the primary obstacle to democratic electoral practices in Nigeria.

“We emphasized the importance of strong institutions like INEC in ensuring the integrity of Nigeria’s electoral process.”

An unidentified middle-aged man has reportedly died while watching a football match in Lagos State.

Naija News understands that the unfortunate incident occurred on Thursday, May 16.

According to Punch, the deceased, who is said to be a regular customer of the open bar, walked in, sat down, and started to watch a football match until he fell asleep.

However, all efforts to wake the deceased when the match ended were abortive, as he was found motionless.

The state Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, confirmed the incident, saying it was reported to the Elere Police Division.

According to him, “The owner of a bar located along Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway reported at Elere Division that at about 6:15 pm on Thursday, one of his male customers in his 50s, whose name and address are yet unknown, came into the open bar to sit and watch television.

“He was later observed to be sleeping on the chair and in an attempt to wake him up, it was discovered that he was lifeless. The scene was visited by detectives of the division, and the deceased was seen lifeless on the chair without any mark of violence.

The body has been removed to the Mainland General Hospital mortuary, Yaba, Lagos State for autopsy. Efforts to trace his family are in progress.”