SPORTS

SPORTS

The Champions League final in 2026 will be played in Budapest, Hungary.

UEFA confirmed this on Wednesday.

The European football governing body also delayed giving the 2027 final to Milan amid uncertainty over the future of San Siro.

The Puskás Arena and San Siro were the venues for the two finals scheduled to be awarded.

This year’s final between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund will be played on June 1 at Wembley Stadium in London.

Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena will host next year’s showpiece event.

[DailyPost]

Super Eagles coach Finidi George has emphasized his unwavering commitment to victory, regardless of tactical formations.

 

Finidi, who was appointed coach of the three-time African champions on April 19, was unveiled on Monday, May 13, by NFF President Ibrahim Gusau and Sports Minister Sen. John Owan Enoh at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja.

The 53-year-old, who is currently on a media tour, made this known in an interview on Brilla FM on Tuesday.

 

His words: “My philosophy is to win. For me, formation is not that important, because if players interpret when to attack and when to defend and do it well, there won’t be problems.

“You can play 2-5-2 or 4-4-2, but if the players know they have to attack or defend, the team won’t have problems. That is what Manchester City, Arsenal, and every other team do, but the difference is when players recognise this moment.”

In another interview, Finidi, who was a guest on Arise TV on Wednesday, addressed issues surrounding his contract as Super Eagles head coach.

Finidi stated that regardless of the number of years on his contract, performances on the pitch will determine whether he stays longer as coach, adding that the NFF is not being disrespectful with the terms of his contract.

His words: “It’s not a one-year deal,” he clarified. “It is based on how well we perform. Even if you have given me a five-year deal and I don’t perform, definitely, I will leave before that five years… My focus is on adding value, winning games, and playing attractive football. If I achieve that, the contract length becomes secondary. But currently, it’s a two-year performance-based deal.

“Personally, I don’t think so, even Peseiro who came was given a target; Nigeria has gotten to a level that you can’t bring a coach and say, let him stay for four or five years hoping he will turn things around.”

 

The Super Eagles will host South Africa in their upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying fixture at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo on Friday, June 7th.

The three-time African champions will travel to face Benin at the Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium in Abidjan three days later.

Names have been mentioned regarding the manager likely to replace Mauricio Pochettino at Chelsea.

DAILY POST reported on Tuesday that the Argentine gaffer left the Blues on mutual consent.

Chelsea witnessed a significant improvement towards the end of the season, finishing sixth in the Premier League table.

 

But the former PSG and Tottenham boss could not stay any longer at Stamford Bridge, as he is reportedly at loggerheads with the club’s owners.

Football transfer expert Fabrizio Romano reported that the Blues are looking for a dynamic manager.

He said that several candidates are being discussed internally with owners and directors involved.

“Thomas Frank is among the names mentioned internally; also Kieran McKenna but still all open. Seb Hoeneß, highly rated but fully focused on Stuttgart,” he said.

A talented Nigerian artiste, Olaolu Akeredolu-Ale, has designed the 2024 Emirates FA Cup trophy which final comes up this Saturday.

The 23-year-old British-Nigerian, popularly known as Olaolu Slawn was approached by the English Football Association to design a one-off special trophy after BRIT awards.

He designed the trophy alongside Thomas Lyte.

This was first disclosed by @whatsonshuffle via X writing, “After previous endeavors with the BRITs Awards, Slawn has been commissioned to create the design for the 2024 FA Cup Trophy.”

Olaolu Slawn’s video of the making of the FA Cup trophy was also posted.

Confirming the project on Monday via his Instagram handle, the Lagos-born designer wrote, “Biggest thing I’ve done yet. My tribute to the FA Cup trophy. Slawn and @ThomasLyte. Thank you @EmiratesFACup. Amen.”

The Emirates FA Cup reacted, “Can’t wait to see your tribute unveiled on Monday.”

Most of Slawn’s works include spray paint, large-scale pop art canvases, graffiti, caricatures and murals.

In 2023, he became the youngest person to design the Britannia statuette for the annual BRIT awards.

His latest work, the FA Cup trophy would be lifted by either side of the Manchester clubs in a derby final at Wembley Stadium, on Saturday, May 25, 2024.

first black UK consultant in kidney treatment
Pep Guardiola’s Manchester were crowned the EPL Champions of Saturday, and look forward to getting a better chance of their bitter rivals to do double.

Manchester United, managed by Dutch Erik ten Hag, are desirous of the England’s oldest cup to wrap up the season with a silverware and book a place for Europa League next season.

Mauricio Pochettino has left Chelsea by mutual consent after meeting with sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart, and co-controlling owner Behdad Eghbali over the course of two days.

LEADERSHIP can reveal that Pochettino agreed to his departure with Chelsea late on Tuesday morning, following the club’s end-of-season review that started on Monday.

There is no any bad blood between Pochettino and Chelsea, who will immediately start their search for a replacement with a young and progressive coach to be targeted.

Among the names likely to be considered will be Stuttgart’s Sebastian Hoeness, Girona’s Michel, Ipswich Town’s Kieran McKenna, who has been lined up by Brighton, and Leicester City’s Enzo Maresca.

Pochettino had met co-controlling owner Todd Boehly for dinner last Friday night, before, on Monday and Tuesday, spending several hours with Winstanley and Stewart, and meeting with Eghbali.

It means Pochettino leaves Chelsea after one year of the two-year contract he signed last summer and is in line to pocket a significant compensation fee.

 

The departure of Pochettino, which has been described as being ‘amicable’, makes him the third permanent head coach to lose his job under the Clearlake Capital-Boehly ownership after Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter.

Bruno Saltor managed Chelsea for one game last season, before Frank Lampard took interim charge, meaning a total of five managers have worked under Chelsea’s current owners in two years.

A run of five successive wins at the end of this season clinched European qualification for Chelsea under Pochettino, who also took the club to the final of the Carabao Cup and the semi-final of the FA Cup.

The Argentine has left with his head held high and his reputation intact. But, in the view of key figures at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea’s season, viewed as a whole, fell short of pre-season expectations and raised issues such as the crippling injury list.

[Leadership]

Arne Slot, the coach of Feyenoord will replace Jurgen Klopp.
 
Liverpool made the announcement on Monday.
 
Liverpool said in a statement that the Dutchman, 45, would take up the position of head coach on June 1, subject to a work permit.
 
The club did not specify the length of his contract in their statement but Sky Sports said it understood Slot had signed a three-year deal.
 
 
Slot’s arrival has been an open secret, with Liverpool reportedly agreeing a compensation deal worth up to £9.4 million ($12 million).
 
He confirmed Anfield was his next destination at his final pre-match press conference at the Eredivisie club on Friday.
 
Klopp announced his departure in January and took charge of his final game on Sunday, a 2-0 win against Wolves.
 
In his final speech to the Anfield crowd, the German urged fans to throw their full support behind Slot.
 
“You welcome the new manager like you welcomed me,” he said. “You go all-in from the first day. And you keep believing and you push the team.”
 
Slot moved to Feyenoord in 2021 after impressing in his first managerial role at AZ Alkmaar.
 
He led the Dutch giants to the inaugural Europa Conference League final at the end of his first season. They narrowly lost 1-0 to Jose Mourinho’s Roma.
 
Slot then delivered just a second league title in 24 years to De Kuip last season before penning a new three-year deal.
 
“You can see people are genuinely sorry you are leaving,” he said on Friday.
 
“You can say that with words, but when you see it in people’s faces, it affects me quite a lot.”
 
Feyenoord have enjoyed a strong season, winning the Dutch Cup and coming second to an all-conquering PSV Eindhoven side.
 
Liverpool captain and fellow Dutchman Virgil van Dijk has hailed Slot’s attacking mindset, saying it would suit the philosophy at Anfield.
 
Initially, Bayer Leverkusen boss and former Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso was the favourite to succeed Klopp at Anfield.
 
However, Alonso has committed to staying at Leverkusen after leading them to a first-ever Bundesliga title.
 
Liverpool won the League Cup in Klopp’s final season in charge and finished third in the Premier League, qualifying for next season’s Champions League.

Super Eagles head coach Finidi George says his team is focused on their next 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying fixture against the Bafana Bafana of South Africa.

The three-time African champions are yet to record a win in the qualifiers after drawing their opening two games against Lesotho and Zimbabwe.

The West Africans must beat Hugo Broos’ side to get their qualification campaign back on track.

 

Finidi is wary of the difficult task ahead of his team but is confident they can surmount the hurdle.

“We know Nigerians would love the team to win all the time, and we’ll just get the players focused on the game, one game at a time. We focus on the South African game and see how we can win that one before we talk about the Benin Republic game. For me, as a coach, it’s either you have a good result, or you don’t have a good result,” Finidi said in an interview with Eagle FM.

“One cannot be scared in life. Like I said, going through life is difficult, you walk through it with the difficulties that you know you’ll encounter. So that’s how I look at life and approach it that way, and football will not be any different. We will do our job and make sure we get the best out of that game, and apart from that, nothing else.”

Super Eagles of Nigeria midfielder, Alex Iwobi has stressed that he has no regrets for choosing his ancestral home over England in international football.

Alex Iwobi was born in Lagos, Nigeria but was raised in London and had his basic football education at Arsenal Football Academy. He graduated from the academy and started his professional football career at the club.

Due to his skills and enormous potential, Alex Iwobi represented England at Under-16, Under-17, and Under-18 levels. Despite that, he opted to play for the Super Eagles of Nigeria.

Iwobi made his international debut for Nigeria on March 25, 2016, against Egypt in an African Cup of Nations qualifier.

Since then, the former Everton versatile midfielder who now plays for Fulham has gone on to become one of the most prominent members of the national team.

“I wouldn’t say I have any regrets. I’d like to say I respected England, they gave me a lot of opportunities and I was able to do them proud,” Alex Iwobi told Hotsports Nigeria.

“But I feel more at home with Nigeria. I feel this is where I’m at home and where I represent, like my family, everyone. I’ve grown up in a Nigerian culture so I’d say that I have no regrets about picking Nigeria over England

“I’ve been here for a while now and I’m familiar with the team. Even from the first time I came here they always made me feel welcome.

“I’m always enjoying myself not just when we are playing matches but in training. In the camp, it’s like one big family so it makes it easier for me to express myself and join in.

“I’m enjoying my time and hopefully there’s more years to come as well.”

Kenyan man has allegedly committed suicide following the outcome of the 2023/24 English Premier League season, which Manchester City won on Sunday, May 19.

In a viral video seen by Pulse, the deceased, who was wearing an Arsenal FC jersey, was spotted in a position that seemed like he had hung himself to death.

It was gathered that the unknown man, whose identity is yet to be determined, was an Arsenal fan.

Man City and Arsenal entered the season's final day knowing that a slip from either of them would cost them the title.

However, Man City entered the final day of the season with a two-point advantage over Arsenal, with 88 and 86 points, respectively.

A win for Man City against West Ham at the Etihad would seal them a record fourth consecutive EPL title, while Arsenal also required a must-win against Everton at the Emirate stadium and a slip from Man City to secure their first EPL title in 20 years.

Man City eventually won the title after defeating West Ham 3-1, while Arsenal needed a late winner in stoppage time to defeat Everton 2-1.

However, the tragic video of the Arsenal fan who killed himself has sparked mixed reactions amongst netizens on social media.

Liverpool have officially confirmed that Arne Slot will be their manager from the 2024/2025 season.

The Dutchman replaces Jurgen Klopp, who took charge of his last game on Sunday.

Slot will resume work on June 1 with the Premier League side.

He emerged as Liverpool’s top choice, after they missed out on Xabi Alonso and Ruben Amorim.

In April, Slot disclosed that Feyenoord and the Reds were in talks over a compensation package.

It is believed Liverpool have paid around £9.4million (£7.7m plus £1.7m in add-ons) for the 45-year-old.

“Liverpool Football Club can announce Arne Slot has agreed to a deal to become the club’s new head coach, formally taking up the position on June 1, 2024, subject to a work permit.

“The 45-year-old will join the Reds from Feyenoord ahead of the 2024-25 season after a deal was reached with the Eredivisie club for his services,” Liverpool said in a statement on Monday.

 [DailyPost]