SPORTS
Anthony Joshua could revisit the Rumble in the Jungle as part of an “iconic” bout around the 50th anniversary of the legendary fight, says Eddie Hearn.
Promoter Hearn says talks have taken place over the heavyweight contender fighting in Africa, and that government backing for an event is available.
Joshua, 34, has Nigerian ancestry but has never fought on the continent.
“It’s something that would be iconic for the sport,” Hearn told BBC World Service’s Newsday of the proposals.
“When we’re visiting these countries, there’s government funding to stage these events.
“Sometimes that isn’t forthcoming in all areas but there have been discussions and I think it will happen in time.”
Muhammad Ali and George Foreman contested the heavyweight world championship in Zaire – now Democratic Republic of Congo – in October 1974 in one of the greatest fights of all time.
Both men were champions during the long careers that made them legends, with Ali knocking out Foreman in the eighth round to win the WBA, WBC and Ring titles.
Joshua held the WBA belt for a combined total of almost four years and has been IBF, WBO and IBO champion, although he is currently aiming to win back the titles he failed to regain from Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk in Saudi Arabia in August 2022.
[Thisday]
Popular Nigerian professional footballer, Asisat Oshoala has warned people against flooding her DMs to beg for money.
The Barcelona striker in a Snapchat post on Thursday cautioned that she would no longer condone individuals flooding her inbox with excuses like their wives just giving birth or wedding expenses.
Speaking on how much she has been of help to people, Oshoala urged netizens to make use of their common sense and set their priorities right.
“While I enjoy having fun here, there are certain things that should be common sense.
“I help a lot of people here, but there are situations I won’t condone or support, such as ‘My Wife Just Gave Birth,’ ‘I Want To Have a Wedding,’ and so on. Use your common sense. Set your priorities right,” she wrote.
[DailyPost]
Former Super Eagles number one goalkeeper and captain, Vincent Enyeama, has revealed that he lost the desire to follow the national team after he was forced to retire from the team in 2015.
Enyeama, who began his career spanning over two decades with Ibom Stars, is regarded as one of the best goalkeepers that have come out of Africa.
He made his Super Eagles debut at the 2002 World Cup in Japan and captained the team on several occasions. He won the Africa Cup of Nations in 2013, after winning bronze in the 2004, 2006 and 2010 tournaments.
As the Super Eagles continue to face goalkeeping problems after his exit, many fans have suggested that he be appointed a goalkeeper coach so he could mentor another shot stopper in his calibre, but Enyeama hinted that he lost touch with Super Eagles after the spat with coach Sunday Oliseh made him quit the team with 101 caps.
“Sincerely, I’ve not been following Nigerian football right from the day I left and with due respect, I was really treated like shh..,” he told Ufuoma Osusu, Hotsports executive producer in an interview.
“I mean I was treated like a piece of used material; so I decided to put a block between me and the national team and that went on for a long time. It’s now that I’m beginning to follow the goings-on from a distance.
“But I really put a stop to watching Nigerian football and the national team because I was deeply hurt. It’s now I am really becoming gradually at ease. I think I have made personal changes to move on and change chapters and pages to slowly reconcile myself with the system.
“To state the fact, I can’t really say much about the National Team and the goalkeeping and all of that because I am not watching them.”
He added that he was glad with his achievements in the sport.
“I feel accomplished. I feel very accomplished. It’s not easy to achieve the feat that I have achieved all these years. It’s not an easy feat. To God be the glory, I went through all these years, achieved the glories, achieved all the laurels, achieved everything that I’ve got and that makes me feel great.
“I had so many great moments in my career. The truth is that I can’t really specify or single out any particular one as special. But AFCON 2013 remains one of the best moments because we won that trophy and Enyimba 2003 and 2004 also paints a good memory in my career history because we emerged champions of the continent by winning the CAF Champions League twice. These are very memorable moments among other moments for me.”
[Guardian]
Nigerian duo Victor Osimhen and Asisat Oshoala have been nominated for the 2023 Globe Soccer best men and women player awards respectively.
The nominees for the awards were unveiled on Tuesday by the organisers with the Napoli star battling 29 others for the prize.
Other nominees for the men’s award are Nicolò Barella, Jude Bellingham, Karim Benzema, Yassine Bounou, Antoine Griezmann, Ilkay Gundogan, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, and Robert Lewandowski.
Lautaro Martínez, Kylian Mbappé, Lionel Messi, Kim Min-Jae, Luka Modric, Cristiano Ronaldo, Harry Kane, and Vinícius Jr are also in contention for the men’s best player prize for the award.
Last year, the Nigerian forward, who led Napoli to a first league title in over 30 years, got the Emerging Player of the Year gong in the Globe Soccer Awards.
Osimhen’s Year
Osimhen was ranked eighth in the 2023 Ballon d’Or awards, the highest-ever finish by a Nigerian player.
He is also in pole position to win this year’s African Player of the Year prize when the ceremony is held next year.
For the women’s category, Oshoala who won a treble with Barcelona last season including the Champions League, will battle teammate Aitana Bonmati among others.
Other nominees are Sam Kerr, Alexandra Pop, Olga Carmona, Esther Gonzalez, Patri Guijarro, Mapi Leon and Salma Paralluelo
In the coaching category, Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola headlines the list of nominees and is favourite to scoop the award after a treble-winning season with the English Premier League outfit last term.
But he has to contend with Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta, Lionel Scaloni, Carlo Ancelotti, Xavi Hernandez, Simone Inzaghi, Luis de la Fuente, Jonatan Giraldez, Marcel Koller and Sarina Wiegmann.
Already, online voting has started for the different categories and will run until December 7th. After this, a 30-member jury from the football industry will then pick the awardees.
The Globe Soccer Awards winners will be unveiled in a ceremony on January 19, 2024.
Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami will face Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr next February in the Riyadh Season Cup for what could be the final showdown of the global football icons.
Eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi, who joined the US squad in July and sparked a championship run in the Leagues Cup against US and Mexican clubs, is expected to meet Ronaldo, a five-time Ballon d’Or winner.
Messi, 36, led Argentina to last year’s World Cup crown and has long been a rival of Portugal captain Ronaldo, 38.
Inter Miami was named the guest international side and will join Saudi Pro League sides Al-Hilal and Al Nassr in next February’s Riyadh Season Cup, but no exact dates for matches at Kingdom Arena in the round-robin competition were announced.
Miami also features Messi’s former Barcelona teammates Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets who combined for five La Liga crowns.
Ronaldo, a five-time Champions League winner, is joined by former Liverpool standout Sadio Mane and former Inter Milan captain Marcelo Brozovic on Al Nassr.
Al-Hilal features Brazil all-time leading scorer Neymar, who is recovering from a knee injury.
Last January, Ronaldo made his first appearance in Saudi Arabia following his move to Al Nassr with a Riyadh All-Star XI that lost 5-4 to a Paris Saint-Germain side featuring Messi, Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Sergio Ramos.
Czech Republic coach Jaroslav Silhavy said Monday he was stepping down, only minutes after watching his side clinch automatic qualification for Euro 2024 with a 3-0 win over Moldova.
“Even though we are happy now, we had already decided before the game not to continue,” the 62-year-old coach told Czech Television in a post-match interview.
Silhavy took up the role in 2018, leading his team to the quarter-finals of Euro 2020 before failing to qualify for last year’s World Cup in Qatar.
The Czechs have now secured a spot at next year’s Euros in Germany but he has come under fire for the team’s lacklustre performances in Group E where they finished second behind Albania, winning only four out of eight games.
The Czech team was also hurt by last weekend’s scandal as West Ham defender Vladimir Coufal and two other players were sent home after spending Saturday night at a night club.
“The pressure was enormous, beyond comprehension at times. It was one of the factors behind our decision,” said Silhavy.
A former defender, Silhavy’s future was put in doubt after the Czechs crashed to a 3-0 loss in Albania in October.
The Czech Football Association did not fire him but trimmed his contract until November 30, with an option to continue if the Czechs qualify for Euro 2024.
Saturday’s party, however, was another nail in his coffin as Coufal, Aris Thessaloniki defender Jakub Brabec and Sparta Prague striker Jan Kuchta were photographed in a night club two days before the Moldova game.
The players apologised, but football pundits slammed the poor atmosphere in the team, pointing a finger at Silhavy.
The coach himself said the affair was “a big disappointment” as all three had been in the starting line-up for last Friday’s 1-1 draw with Poland in Warsaw.
“I won’t say whether I was successful or not,” Silhavy said on Monday.
“You can see we have done some work, we have been working here for more than five years and there’s nothing we should be ashamed of.”
He said he would travel to Germany as a fan.
“Germany is near (the Czech Republic). We will definitely go and cheer for the boys.”
AFP
A set of six jerseys that Lionel Messi wore during Argentina’s victorious 2022 World Cup run will be auctioned in December, Sotheby’s announced Monday, estimating their value at more than $10 million.
The football star donned these shirts during the first halves of the group-stage rounds against Saudi Arabia and Mexico, as well as later games against Australia, the Netherlands and Croatia — and the final against France.
Argentina’s winning run in Qatar last year was the final feather in the forward’s cap, having failed to secure the championship in four previous World Cups.
If the jerseys indeed fetch above $10 million, that could make the sale the most valuable collection of sports memorabilia ever auctioned off, Sotheby’s said.
The most expensive individual jersey ever sold at auction was one that basketball legend Michael Jordan wore during his NBA finals run with the Chicago Bulls in 1998.
It sold for $10.1 million last year.
Auction houses have increasingly taken note of sports memorabilia in recent years, considered a growing market.
The shirts are being brought to auction by US tech startup AC Momento, which helps athletes manage memorabilia collections.
A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the UNICAS Project, an initiative with a Barcelona children’s hospital that helps kids with rare diseases.
The jerseys will be available for free public viewing when they are up for auction, from November 30 to December 14.
Former Manchester City defender Benjamin Mendy is set to sue the Premier League champions after claiming he is owed millions of pounds in unpaid wages.
Mendy will take City to an employment tribunal in a bid to recoup what the French left-back believes were “unauthorised deductions from wages” after he was charged with rape and sexual assault two years ago.
The 29-year-old was cleared of the rape and attempted rape charges and left City when his contract expired in June.
It is alleged City stopped paying Mendy in September 2021 after he was initially charged and held in custody.
“Nick De Marco KC… is acting for the former Manchester City player Benjamin Mendy in a multi-million-pound claim for unauthorised deductions from wages,” a statement on behalf of Mendy told Sky Sports and The Guardian.
“Manchester City FC failed to pay Mr Mendy any wages at all from September 2021, following Mr Mendy being charged with various offences all of which he was subsequently acquitted of, until the end of his contract in June 2023. The claim will come before an employment tribunal.”
In January, Mendy was cleared of six counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, but the jury were unable to reach verdicts on two charges, leading to a retrial.
He was found not guilty on those two charges by a jury at the retrial in July.
Mendy, who was reportedly paid around £100,000 ($125,000) per week by City, is seeking the return of pay he is owed up until the end of his contract with the treble winners.
A three-time Premier League champion with City, Mendy last played for Pep Guardiola’s team in 2021 and joined French club Lorient at the start of this season.
Coach Justin Madugu has called 21 players to the Super Falcons’ camp ahead of next week’s 13th Women Africa Cup of Nations final qualifying round, first leg clash with the Senior Women National Team of Cape Verde.
The nine-time African champions will host the Cape Verdians at the MKO Abiola National Stadium, Abuja on Thursday, 30th November, before both teams trade tackles in a return leg in Praia on Tuesday, 5th December.
To be eligible for this final round, the Super Falcons accomplished a commanding 5-1 aggregate win over their counterparts from Ethiopia, with the first leg in Addis Ababa ending 1-1 before a 4-0 lashing of the ‘Lucy’ in Abuja.
All invited players have been advised to report to the team’s camp in Abuja between the 25th and 27th of November.
The Falcons have never failed to reach the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations since the competition was launched as the African Women’s Championship in Nigeria in 1998, and have swept nine out of 12 titles that have been contested so far.
ALL THE INVITED PLAYERS:
Goalkeepers: Chiamaka Nnadozie (Paris FC); Tochukwu Oluehi (Shualat Alsharqia FC, Saudi Arabia); Christiana Obia (Edo Queens)
Defenders: Osinachi Ohale (Pachuca FC, Mexico); Glory Edet (FCF TP Mazembe, DR Congo); Rihanat Kasali (Bayelsa Queens); Oluwatosin Demehin (Stade de Reims, France); Akudo Ogbonna (Remo Stars Ladies); Rofiat Imuran (Stade de Reims, France)
Midfielders: Christy Ucheibe (SC Benfica, Portugal); Esther Onyenezide (FC Robo Queens); Peace Efih (Sporting Club de Braga, Portugal); Rasheedat Ajibade (Atletico Madrid FC, Spain); Deborah Abiodun (University of Pittsburgh, USA); Toni Payne (Sevilla FC, Spain); Jennifer Echegini (Florida State University, USA)
Forwards: Omorinsola Babajide (Coasta Adeje Tenerife Egatesa, Spain); Asisat Oshoala (FC Barcelona Feminine, Spain); Esther Okoronkwo (Coasta Adeje Tenerife Egatesa, Spain); Uchenna Kanu (Racing Louisville, USA); Gift Monday (Coasta Adeje Tenerife Egatesa, Spain)
[DailyTrust]
The Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, would fire coach Jose Peseiro if they had the money to pay him off after two poor performances in World Cup qualifiers, according to executive committee member Nse Essien.
Nigeria’s qualification for the 2026 World Cup is already in serious jeopardy after they managed only two draws in their first two qualifiers against Lesotho and Zimbabwe.
Walter Musona scored direct from a free kick to put Zimbabwe ahead in the first half and Leicester forward Kelechi Iheanacho equalised midway through the second half.
Portuguese coach Peseiro has been singled out for criticism for the Super Eagles’ slow start to qualification.
“If we had the money (to pay for compensation), we will be willing to relieve him of his job. We’re not happy,” NFF member Essien told reporters.
“Everybody is asking for the sack of the head coach. It’s unfortunate that from a possible six points, we only have two points. We’re in a very precarious situation.”
South Africa lead Group C of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers with three points. And they will be expected to widen the gap on Tuesday when they visit Rwanda, while Lesotho host Benin in South Africa.
Nigeria, who failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, have two points from as many matches.
The qualifiers will resume in June 2024 with Nigeria hoping to make up lost ground when they welcome South Africa to the southern city of Uyo. Then, a tricky trip to Benin.
[Vanguard]
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Novak Djokovic won a record-breaking seventh ATP Finals title on Sunday after beating local hero Jannik Sinner 6-3, 6-3 in Turin.
World number one Djokovic moves clear of retired great Roger Federer in victories at the season-ending tournament after denying Italian Sinner a triumph on home soil.
Djokovic came into the Finals at the end of a year which has brought three Grand Slams, taking his total to an all-time best of 24, and a 40th Masters 1000 title.
And he has crowned an incredible season — in which he also reached the Wimbledon final — with yet another record, comfortably seeing off two of the game’s best young players in the process.
Sinner was bidding to become the first ever Italian to claim a Finals crown and looked like the right man to do it after his impressive group stage win over Djokovic.
But the 22-year-old, like Carlos Alcaraz in Saturday’s semi-final, simply could not handle Djokovic, a man on a mission who hit his best form at exactly the right time in the tournament.
It is a testament however to how far Sinner has come in the past year that he had Djokovic’s tournament fate in his hands at the end of the group stage, when defeat by Holger Rune would have sent the Serb home early.
Sinner saved Djokovic’s skin and in the end paid for it in the final, but the quality of his performances at the Pala Alpitour has been a cause for much optimism in Italy and suggests that he should be a Grand Slam contender next season.
– Djokovic in control –
Djokovic took control early in the match, breaking Sinner at the first opportunity in game four and then comfortably serving out the opening set.
Such was his dominance that Djokovic silenced a partisan crowd which has been rambunctious for all of Sinner’s matches, and he immediately broke serve again at the start of the second set.
He reeled off 14 straight points from the start of the final game of the first set into the third game of the second, which was eventually won by Sinner to just hold his serve.
Sinner looked like he was going to be walked over but he showed huge heart and brought the crowd to its feet when he held his serve in game seven, a 15-minute mini-epic in which Djokovic had two break points, to stay at 4-3.
However in the end he couldn’t stay with Djokovic and in the end surrendered the match in disappointing fashion with a double fault.
Earlier, Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury retained their ATP Finals doubles title on Sunday as they cruised to a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos.
The US Open champions kept hold of their crown with a near-perfect campaign in Turin, going unbeaten in their five matches.
American Ram and Briton Salisbury took their winning streak at the season-ending tournament to 10 matches after also sweeping to last year’s title undefeated.
Granollers and Zeballos missed out on the year-end top spot in the world rankings following the straight-sets defeat, with their eliminated Green Group opponents Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek remaining in first
Zimbabwe head coach, Baltemar Brito has said his side deserved more from Sunday’s 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying tie against the Super Eagles of Nigeria.
The Warriors were held to a 1-1 draw by their more illustrious opponent at the Huye Stadium, Butare.
The Southern Africans took the lead on 26 minutes through Walter Musona.
Leicester City forward, Kelechi Iheanacho, however, salvaged a point for Nigeria in the second half.
The Warriors and Super Eagles are yet to record a win in the qualifier having drawn their opening two games.
Brito believes they should have secured maximum points from the game.
“We started the game to win, we expected to win this game, unfortunately we drew,” Brito said in his post-match press conference.
“We had the ambition of winning this game, the players fought hard and this good performance is about them. They deserve all the credit for this good performance.
“We had the chance and in football it is about the team that creates chances and scores. We scored a beautiful goal, Nigeria maybe had one, two chances also they didn’t create many chances in our box.”
Zimbabwe’s next game in the qualifiers is against Benin Republic in June 2024.
Former Nigerian international Joseph Dosu has told Nigerians to hold Super Eagles coach Jose Peseiro responsible if Nigeria fails to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Dosu stated this as Nigeria drew 1-1 against Zimbabwe in a World Cup qualifier at the Huye Stadium, Butare, on Sunday.
Goals from Walter Musona and Kelechi Iheanacho ensured both Nigeria and Zimbabwe shared a point each.
Nigeria now has two points from two games after the Zimbabwe encounter.
“I really don’t know what to say again because, from the beginning, Nigerians came out to say a lot of things with the way the Super Eagles have been playing and Jose Peseiro said we are putting pressure on the team and that we should not put pressure so that the team will play very well,” Dosu told Complete Sports.
“So we have decided not to put pressure and we are still seeing the same thing. So whatever the federation [NFF] and the coaches want to do with our national teams, they should keep on doing it. If we qualify [for 2026 World Cup], fine, and if we don’t qualify, there is nothing anybody can do. We can’t hold anybody responsible except the head and the coach, Peseiro.”
Argentines voted Sunday in a nail-biter election pitting Economy Minister Sergio Massa against outsider Javier Milei, polar opposite candidates that have divided the country as it reels from triple-digit inflation.
Voters were gripped by fear, uncertainty and resignation as they cast their ballots, with few confident either candidate could put an end to decades of economic decline.
Massa, 51, is a charismatic and seasoned politician seeking to convince Argentines to trust him despite his performance as economy minister which has seen annual inflation hit 143 percent.
His rival Milei is an anti-establishment outsider, who has vowed to halt Argentina’s unbridled spending, ditch the peso for the US dollar, and “dynamite” the central bank.
Argentines are “on the edge of a nervous breakdown,” said political analyst Ana Iparraguirre of GBAO Strategies, describing tensions over what comes next.
[NaijaTimes]