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Cristiano Ronaldo has said that he was not bothered about scoring another hat-trick but cares more about his team.
The veteran Portuguese forward scored his 66th hat-trick of his career and it’s 52 goals in 52 games this season.
Ronaldo reduced his tally to just 10 goal to reach 900 career goals as Al-Nassr beat Al-Wehda 6-0 in the Saudi Pro League on Saturday at Al-Awwal Stadium.
The Portuguese icon scored his 50th goal of the season with his first one in the match along with netting his 66th career hat-trick.
He, however, said his priorities lie with the team rather than individual achievements.
“I don’t care about scoring a hat-trick as much as I care about the team,” the 39-year-old said after the game.
Ronaldo is just 10 goals away from 900 career goals and when asked about that post-match, he said:
“I always say, numbers come naturally, so I don’t attach numbers, they come.”
Super Eagles head coach, Finidi George has said it is important for the Super Eagles to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Finidi insisted that he will do his best to ensure the Super Eagles didn’t miss out on a place at the mundial for the second consecutive edition.
Recall that the Super Eagles failed to qualify for the last edition of the global soccer fiesta hosted by Qatar.
The three-time African champions face a tough task of making it to the 2026 World Cup finals after drawing their opening two matches against Lesotho and Zimbabwe.
The Super Eagles will face South Africa and Benin in their next two games in the qualifiers.
Finidi said he would need the prayer and support of all Nigerians to succeed on the job.
“The World Cup qualification matches against South Africa and Benin Republic is a collective responsibility for all Nigerians.
“I know I am in charge now and the heavy responsibility is on me to win the two world cup matches,” Finidi told reporters during his visit to Nigeria Football Federation’s office in Abuja.
“I will do my best to ensure success and qualify for the World Cup. I am also in touch with the players and they are ready and willing to give their all having missed out in the last edition held in Qatar.
“In terms of having knowledge of our opponents, I have been following them.
“The world today is a global village, one can monitor anything in the comfort of his/ her sitting room.
“We need prayers and support from everybody, this is our own, we can do it and do it well. I watch our players weekly as they play in their various clubs.
“Honestly my target is to win the two matches and not to be judged with the two international friendly games played.”
Finidi’s appointment as Super Eagles head coach was confirmed by the NFF last week.
The appointment of Finidi George as the new head coach of the Super Eagles was a huge surprise in some quarters.
Of course, it was apparent that the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, was leaning towards an indigenous coach for the national team.
It is almost a pendulum with these appointments. When a local coach is not performing well with the Eagles, there will be calls for a foreigner. A yearning for a more tactically savvy handler.
When the foreigner fails – like Jose Peseiro did – the argument flips. You begin to hear talk of us encouraging Nigerian coaches, how they know these players more than anyone else and of course, the chance of harvesting talents from the Nigerian Premier Football League, NPFL.
The two names that were expected to be picked from this time around were Finidi and Emmanuel Amuneke.
A lot of observers expected the NFF to appoint Amuneke.
He won the hearts of the nation as coach of Nigeria’s U17 team, leading them to glory at the FIFA U17 World Cup.
On the continent, he qualified Tanzania for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations – their first in nearly 40 years.
However, Amuneke’s record with Egypt’s Misr Lel Makkasa and Zambia’s Zanaco left much to be desired.
The 53-year-old also failed to help the Nigeria U20 team qualify for the AFCON in 2017.
But Ayodeji Adegbenro, a Sports Administrator, insists the NFF has made the right choice.
“Finidi is miles ahead of Amuneke. He has won the league with Enyimba, has two seasons CAF Champions League experience. He also assisted Peseiro for 20 months,” Adegbenro tells DAILY POST.
“Amuneke has failed at every coaching position since he won the U17 in 2015. He’s one of the major reasons we didn’t qualify for Qatar. He shouldn’t be anywhere near the Super Eagles job,” he added.
Many have argued that Finidi represents the debris of Peseiro’s time in charge.
Adegbenro explained, “If we wanted Peseiro’s shadow looming over us in the shape of Finidi, why didn’t we just keep the Portuguese?
“He wanted more money to stay. We couldn’t afford it.
“However, my point is that, given a choice between Finidi and Amuneke, Finidi is way better.”
It could also be that Amuneke did not have enough backers in the room where the decision was made.
An insider tells DAILY POST the story of how Amuneke seemingly bungled the Eagles’ chances of playing at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The source said: “He was drafted in by the Minister. On the morning of the second leg (against Ghana) in Abuja, he convinced Eguavoen to switch formation and play Osimhen as lone striker.
“Even though they trained with two strikers, Osimhen and Ighalo all week.”
All that is in the past. Looking to the future, Finidi has been saddled with the task of ensuring Nigeria qualify for the 2026 World Cup.
Already, the three-time African champions find themselves in third place in Group C of the qualifying series, behind Rwanda and South Africa.
Their next fixture will be at home against Bafana Bafana.
“I think the expectation is for him to navigate the World Cup qualifying group. That is his immediate assignment.
“Having said that, I expect the NFF to give him the same support they would have given a foreigner. Allow him to pick the assistants he will work with.
“You might not pay him as much as you’re paying the expatriates. But pay him well. And pay him when due.
“And do not undermine his position before the players he is supposed to manage. Very important,” Adegbenro added.
Following Chelsea’s commanding 2-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday, manager Mauricio Pochettino showered praise on Noni Madueke for his exceptional performance, particularly highlighting his support for youngster Alfie Gilchrist on the right flank.
Goals from Trevoh Chalobah and Nicolas Jackson secured a comfortable win for the hosts, with Pochettino emphasising the significance of a strong response after a string of disappointing results.
In contrast, Spurs endured a lacklustre display, prompting frustrations from manager Ange Postecoglou, who was visibly irked with Cristian Romero and Pape Matar Sarr during the first half.
Amidst the action, Gilchrist, making only his second Premier League start, showcased his talent on the right side of Pochettino’s defence, effectively neutralising the threat of Son Heung-min.
Reflecting on the match in his post-match interview, Pochettino commended Madueke’s impact, stating: “If you see today, Noni Madueke was amazing in the way, the effort that he helped the full-back. The midfielders and the whole team in both phases were connected.”
His words underscored the collective effort that propelled Chelsea to victory and showcased Madueke’s pivotal role in supporting the defensive line.
[DailyPost]
Real Madrid manager, Carlo Ancelotti, has confirmed that he will start two different goalkeepers for their next two matches.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Ancelotti revealed that Thibaut Courtois will start this weekend’s LaLiga clash with Cadiz.
Courtois has been out with ACL and meniscus injuries, but is now fit and available for selection.
However, Ancelotti will start Andriy Lunin for next week’s Champions League semi-final second leg against Bayern Munich.
“Courtois will play tomorrow, Lunin will play vs Bayern on Wednesday,” Ancelotti said.
When asked who will play a potential Champions League final, he replied: “I don’t know.”
[DailyPost]
Fresh facts about how Finidi George beat fan favourite Emmanuel Amuneke and other applicants to the Super Eagles job have emerged, The PUNCH reports.
Monday, the Nigerian Football Federation approved the recommendations of its Technical Committee to appoint Finidi as coach ahead of over 60 other local and foreign applicants.
Some of the other coaches who applied are US U-19 coach Michael Nsien, Spain-based former Katsina United coach Henry Makinwa, Sylvanus Okpala and Daniel Amokachi. Former Cameroon coach Antonio Conceicao and Dutchman Danny Bujis also reportedly applied for the job.
A member of the NFF Technical Committee, who spoke to our correspondent on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the matter, said some stakeholders had tried to influence their decision in favour of their candidate.
He said Technical Committee members, however, resolved to stick to their guns and pick the best candidate for the position no matter whose ox was gored.
“Some of these people think they are the masters of the game, but they don’t know that some of us have been in this game for some time too. Do you know they set up a WhatsApp platform to decide and influence who will become the coach of the Super Eagles. But we snubbed them,” our source said.
“It could have been the other way round and we would still move on and support whoever the NFF picked.
“We know that some candidates that were not picked for the job would complain, that’s life for you. The important thing now is to support who is there and see how we can qualify for the World Cup. Now we have a manager, he’s going to coach the team, he has the desire to coach and he’ll definitely sit down with the federation officials to sort out his contract.”
On how they arrived at Finidi as the best choice for Eagles, our source said with just weeks to the crucial World Cup qualifiers against rivals South Africa, they needed someone who had an in-depth knowledge of the squad, and not a new coach who would come with a new philosophy alien to the players.
He added that Finidi, having served for 20 months under Peseiro, emerged the right man for the job, while his knowledge of domestic and continental football as current NPFL champions Enyimba also gave him the nod.
Our source added, “Finidi, with due respect to him, has been on ground, and he’s in tune with the dynamics of the modern game, and that for us is a big plus. He’s working with Enyimba, won a league title for them, has coached on the continent and he’s been busy coaching in recent years.
“At the national team level, he’s been with the Eagles as assistant and we know we have some tricky World Cup qualifiers ahead. A new coach might come in with tactics that the players will struggle to adapt to. We don’t need that now.
“Also, as a coach who understand the domestic league very well, his experience in this regard will come in handy when selecting players for the home-based players.”
The Technical Committee member added monetary considerations also played a role in Finidi’s choice for the job.
“Who will pay a foreign coach $70,000 in today’s Nigeria? The money is just not there,” our source added.
Meanwhile, some of the applicants have spoken on the process that led to the appointment of the new coach.
Even though Emmanuel Amuneke described the process as “fair”, he admitted that there was no interview to select the best candidate for the job.
“There was no interview (for the job), neither was there any talk about the job with the federation. There was no contact from the federation nor was there an offer to take the job. They have chosen a new coach, who is one of us, we just need to move on and support him,” Amuneke said.
When asked if he thought the process of selecting the candidate for the coaching role was transparent, US U-19 coach Michael Nsien, who also applied for the job, said, “It depends on people’s standards of process. There weren’t interviews, which I think is basic, it would give the appearance (that it was transparent) at least.”
Nsien, a former U-23 national team star, is positive Finidi will get a competent backroom staff to work with.
“Hopefully he is surrounded with good staff,” he said.
Another applicant, Sylvanus Okpala, who won the AFCON title in 1980 as a player and as an assistant coach in 2013, declined comments on the process that saw Finidi emerge as the winner but congratulated the former Ajax star.
He said, “The important thing is that Finidi has been selected and he is there now. All he needs is the support of everyone to excel, but the biggest support he can get is the one he gives to himself to be successful and take the Eagles to where they belong.
“I feel okay with Finidi’s appointment as the new Super Eagles coach because all of us cannot be there and obviously only one person will be appointed among us. I congratulate him and I wish him the best, hoping that he will take the Eagles to the next level.”
Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has been ruled out of Euro 2024, national team coach Domenico Tedesco said Tuesday.
Real Madrid’s Courtois has missed the entire season with a knee ligament injury and suffered a further setback in March which required another knee operation.
Capped 102 times since his international debut in 2011, Courtois said last December that he was giving up on playing at the European Championship in Germany due to his left knee injury.
“On this topic, everything has already been said. I don’t want a tit for tat situation,” Tedesco told German media on Tuesday.
Courtois has been on frosty terms with Tedesco since June 2023, after being overlooked as captain following an injury to Kevin De Bruyne, with Romelu Lukaku instead chosen to wear the armband.
Tedesco pointed out that by announcing his decision in December, Courtois had allowed the Belgian staff to prepare other options.
“We are focusing on players who are in good shape,” he said.
The 31-year-old Courtois returned to the Real Madrid group on Monday ahead of the Spanish club’s Champions League semi-final first leg at Bayern Munich.
Real coach Carlo Ancelotti has said he hopes to have Courtois back for Saturday’s league game against Cadiz ahead of the Champions League second leg.
[Vanguard]
The talented Nigerian international goalkeeper, Chiamaka Nnadozie, has made an indelible mark in the annals of history by becoming the first African and Nigerian player to be honoured as the top goalkeeper in the French D1 Arkema (women’s league).
Naija News reports that throughout this season, the 23-year-old Super Falcons goalkeeper has showcased her exceptional skills, particularly in saving penalties, solidifying her position as one of the finest goalkeepers on the global stage.
Nnadozie triumphed over fierce competition from Christiane Endler of Olympic Lyon and Katarzyna Kiedrzynek of Paris SG, emerging as the deserving recipient of this prestigious individual recognition.
“It’s very pleasing because she deserves it and she achieved an exceptional Champions League and not only on penalties.
“She is adorable. It is deserved. We know that she will be courted this summer, but we will try to keep her,” said Pierre Ferracci, the president of Nnadozie’s club, Paris FC.
Naija News reports that Nnadozie has been unrivalled in saving penalties this season, leading Europe with an impressive seven saves.
Recall that Nnadozie was also awarded CAF Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year in 2023.
Paris FC is currently in third place in the league standings with 42 points, trailing Paris Saint-Germain by eight points and Lyon by 11 points.
After winning the French D1 Arkema Goalkeeper of the Year award, Nnadozie expressed her gratitude on social media platform X, stating that she was thrilled to have received this honour.
“A big thanks to everyone who voted for me, and also a special appreciation to my coaches and teammates for all the support and encouragement, to my amazing family, and to Naija fans Una too much. GOD DID,” she added.
Former African Footballer of The Year, Victor Ikpeba, believes the appointment of Finidi George as Super Eagles coach will be a blessing to home-based players.
After waiting almost two months, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) announced Finidi George as the head coach of the Super Eagles.
Before his appointment, Finidi served as the Super Eagles’ assistant coach for 20 months and was the head coach of Enyimba of Aba.
Ikpeba, a member of the Nigerian Football Federation Technical Committee that endorsed Finidi for the Super Eagles coaching job, said the former Nigeria international, who won the NPFL with Enyimba last season, will provide opportunities for homegrown players.
“Being actively involved in Nigerian football, Finidi understands the local talent pool,” Ikpeba said on Monday Night Football aired on SuperSport.
“As the coach of NPFL champions Enyimba, he’s in touch with the domestic scene and will provide opportunities for homegrown talents, just as he once emerged as a star player himself.”
Reports claimed that Finidi George signed a one-year contract with the NFF with a one-year extension option. His first assignment is to lead the Super Eagles to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The journey to that goal will commence on June 3 when the Super Eagles take on South Africa in their third game of the qualification series. After the game in Uyo, the Eagles will fly to Abidjan in Ivory Coast to take on Benin Republic on June 10.
Nigeria is currently third in Group C, a point behind second-placed South Africa, and two points below first-placed Rwanda. Hence, the Eagles are expected to win their games this June to increase their chances of qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
“In the upcoming matches against South Africa and Benin in June, Nigeria faces crucial fixtures that could define our World Cup aspirations,” Ikpeba said.
“We find ourselves in a challenging position having drawn our initial qualifiers, so securing victories in the upcoming games is imperative. With the talents at our disposal, if Finidi can extract the best from the players, qualification is within our reach.”
Everton have already established contact with Wilfred Ndidi over a summer move.
Ndidi has less than two months on his contract with Leicester City and is not expected to sign an extension.
A number of clubs have already expressed interest in signing the defensive midfielder.
Anticipating they could face stiff competition for the Nigeria international, Everton have decided to send their proposal to the player early.
Ndidi, according to reports, is yet to decide his destination.
The 27-year-old played a crucial role in Leicester City’s promotion to the Premier League.
The Foxes won the Sky Bet Championship title after a 3-0 victory over Preston North End on Monday.
More...
Finidi George has been appointed as the new head coach of the Super Eagles.
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) announced Finidi’s appointment in a communique on Monday.
More to follow…
[TheCable]
Real Madrid president, Florentino Perez, blocked manager Carlo Ancelotti’s request to sign Harry Kane from Tottenham last summer, according to Relevo.
Ancelotti had made Kane his top target ahead of this season.
It is believed signing the England captain was even a bigger priority for him than landing Jude Bellingham from Borussia Dortmund.
Ancelotti was looking to replace Karim Benzema, who left as a free agent for Al-Ittihad in Saudi Arabia.
But Perez refused to sanction the move, as he has set his sights on signing Kylian Mbappe this year.
Peres was willing to let Madrid play without a real number nine, before signing Mbappe on a free transfer.
Kane ended up joining Bayern Munich and has scored 42 goals in as many games in all competitions, helping Thomas Tuchel’s team to the Champions League semi-finals, where they will come up against Madrid.
Paris St Germain, PSG, were crowned Ligue 1 champions for a record-extending 12th time on Sunday, as their third straight title was wrapped up.
This was following another dominant domestic campaign when second-placed AS Monaco lost 3-2 at Olympique Lyonnais.
PSG, who missed the chance to secure the title on Saturday when they drew 3-3 draw with Le Havre, have 70 points, 12 ahead of Monaco with three games remaining.
“Winning the league is fantastic, but winning Ligue 1 for the twelfth time is even more special for everyone connected to Paris Saint-Germain.
“We’re going to enjoy this moment as a family. And also keep working hard, game after game, until the last moment of the season,” PSG President Nasser Al-Khelaifi said on the club’s website.
Monaco were the only side left who could prevent PSG lifting the title, but their faint hopes were extinguished in Lyon as they fell to their first defeat in nine games, despite taking an early lead.
The visitors scored with a little over 20 seconds on the clock, with Wissam Ben Yedder tapping home Takumi Minamino’s cross at the back post.
But Monaco were 2-1 down within 25 minutes through goals from Alexandre Lacazette and Said Benrahma.
Ben Yedder brought the sides level again on the hour mark, heading home a floated ball into the box by Youssouf Fofana.
But it was Lyon who found a winner six minutes from time with Malick Fofana scoring from outside the area.
After Saturday’s draw which kept the champagne on ice, PSG manager Luis Enrique was unconcerned, safe in the knowledge that their far superior goal difference meant the title was all but assured.
“We’re champions. I don’t care if there’s a party or not.
“We have a goal difference of plus 29 on the second place, I already feel like champions. Even if we don’t score any more points, we’ll be champions,” the coach said.
The Spaniard, who took over at PSG at the end of last season, was proved right, as they secured their 10th title in 12 seasons without having to play another game.
The champions have suffered just one league defeat this season, against Nice in September and while they made a slow start to their campaign, once they took top spot after matchday 12, they never looked back.
PSG went 3-1 down to relegation battling Le Havre, but a Goncalo Ramos goal late in added time salvaged a point, and extended their unbeaten league run to 26 games, but the manager said that didn’t concern him.
“I don’t care if I’m undefeated. That goal gave us the title.
“That, and for the rage I had because we didn’t play much. We’re missing two titles, we’re going to do everything we can to get them,” Luis Enrique said.
PSG are still involved in the Champions League, and they also have the Coupe de France final against Lyon to come, in what could turn out to be the club’s finest ever season.
Striker Kylian Mbappe is leaving at the end of the campaign, and would love to bow out on a high, and this season is already his best in terms of goals scored, netting 43 times in all competitions.
It has long been PSG’s goal to win the Champions League, but few expected it in the manager’s first season.
Now that the league title is secured, the treble-bid is on, beginning on Wednesday with the semi-final first leg against Borussia Dortmund. (Reuters/NAN) (www.nannews.ng)
Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola, has said their remaining two away fixtures at Fulham and Tottenham will be “difficult.”
Guardiola was speaking after they beat Nottingham Forest 2-0 on Sunday.
The result keeps City one point behind leaders Arsenal, although they have one game in hand.
On the remainder of the season, Guardiola said: “Everything can happen, Liverpool have dropped points in the last few games but that can happen to us, can happen to Arsenal, so tough games for everyone. Fulham away and Spurs away will be difficult.
“I would prefer not to have a long week [off] and to play the Champions League semi final.
“But in the circumstances we have two or three days to recover and prepare for all the finals that we have.”