Shevchenko Resigns as Ukraine manager

   

Ukraine's Andriy Shevchenko has left his role as manager of the men's national team, he said in an Instagram post on Sunday, a few weeks after guiding his country to the knockout stages of the European championship. "Today, my contract with the Ukrainian Football Association came to the end," he wrote on Instagram.

Man City make £100m bid for Jack Grealish

   

     Manchester City football club has tabled a £100 million ($140m) bid for Aston Villa midfielder Jack Grealish, according to a report by The Telegraph.

  The Citizens have been linked with the England international for some time, and have now made the bold transfer move ahead of a Premier League title defense in 2021-22.

Trent Alexander-Arnold signs four year deal with Liverpool

 

    Trent Alexander-Arnold has become one of Liverpool’s highest earners after signing a lucrative new four-year contract with the Merseyside club.

  The club began negotiations this week with Jurgen Klopp keen to recognise the 22-year-old right-back’s immense importance to his side. The academy graduate, who has been with his boyhood club since the age of six, has made 179 appearances since making his debut nearly five years ago.

10 Nigerian Athletes Banned From 2020 Tokyo Olympics

   

    Ten Nigerian athletes have been declared ineligible to compete at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) said on Wednesday.

AIU, an independent body created by World Athletics to manages all integrity issues – both doping and non-doping, noted that eight athletes from other countries were also declared ineligible while two others were replaced prior to the submission of their entries to World Athletics.

It explained that the affected athletes, who represented some ‘Category A’ Federations, were disqualified from the final entries for the Olympics for failing to meet the minimum testing requirements under Rule 15 of the Anti-Doping Rules.

This comes in spite of the improvements in the domestic testing programmes in various countries. Part of the statement read, “Under the framework of Rule 15 governing National Federation Anti-Doping Obligations, which came into force in January 2019, National Federations are accountable for ensuring appropriate anti-doping measures are in place in their respective jurisdictions.

“Among other things, the Rule sets out minimum requirements for testing on the national teams of ‘Category A’ federations deemed to have the highest doping risk and considered as a threat to the overall integrity of the sport.

'I rejected Real Madrid' - Juventus coach, Max Allegri

 

     Juventus coach, Max Allegri has revealed he turned down the chance to manage Real Madrid in order to have a second spell in charge of Juventus. Allegri was unveiled as Juventus manager for the second time on Tuesday, July 27, returning two years after he departed.

   The club had hired Maurizio Sarri and Andrea Pirlo since Allegri's departure but none have been able to perform well at the Allianz Stadium dugout. Madrid wanted to sign Allegri when Zinedine Zidane departed at the end of last season, however, he now says he rejected the chance to move to Spain in order to try and get Juve back to the top of Serie A after they lost their league crown to Inter.

Man Utd agree fee with Real Madrid for Raphael Varane

    Manchester United have agreed a fee of £41m with Real Madrid for defender Raphael Varane. The price for the France international is believed to be £41m including add-ons and the deal is set to go through, subject to a medical.

   Having already signed England international Jadon Sancho for £73m from Borussia Dortmund, the acquisition of Varane would be a further statement of intent from United.

Christian Eriksen will not be allowed to play football in Italy again following his cardiac arrest

   

The Italian Football Association has confirmed that Christian Eriksen will not be allowed to play for Inter Milan again unless the defibrillator installed after his cardiac arrest while on Denmark duty is removed. 

   The 29-year-old collapsed during his country's Euro 2020 opener against Finland on June 12 and required urgent CPR treatment from pitch-side medics. Eriksen was brought back to life on the pitch but the remainder of his football career remains in doubt.  

Italy Win Euro 2020, Deny England First Trophy In 55 Years

 

  Italy have beaten England on penalties to win the Euro 2020, denying the Three Lions their first major trophy in 55 years. 

Nigerian youngster, Tino Anjorin signs five-year contract with Chelsea

  

 

   Tino Anjorin has committed his long-term future to Chelsea by signing a new five-year contract with the Premier League club. The 18-year-old midfielder, born to a Nigerian father and English mother in Poole will now be tied to the Blues until June 2025.

   ‘It’s a brilliant feeling,’ the England Under-19 international told the official Chelsea website after putting pen to paper on the new deal. ‘I’ve been at the club since I was six years old so to get to this stage and then be offered another five-year contract on top of that is amazing.

    ‘I had no hesitation but to take it straight away because to play for the club I always dreamed of playing for is really special for me.’

  ‘It’s been a really crucial season for young players here,’ Anjorin went on. ‘Frank, Jody Morris and Joe Edwards have taken us on board and really committed themselves to bringing young playe

Odion Ighalo Considers Super Eagles Return

 

  Nigeria forward Odion Ighalo says he is open to a return to international football with the three-time African African champions – Super Eagles.

  Ighalo who is performing brilliantly with Manchester United announced his retirement from international football after the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt. The Manchester United striker was the top scorer in the competition with five goals, while the Super Eagles finished in the third position.

   Speaking to Brilla FM, Ighalo said: “I am still in contact with Gernot Rohr and Amaju Pinnick, and they congratulated me on my loan deal. I am still thinking about returning to the national team, but right now I want to concentrate on my club career. I left the national team because of the distance between Nigeria and China, but now that I am in Manchester and just like life and in my career, you never can tell.”

Odion Ighalo vows to take Man Utd ‘higher and higher’

  

    Odion Ighalo has vowed to take Manchester United “higher and higher” after signing up for another six months.

   The Nigerian’s loan from Shanghai Shenhu has been extended until January 2021 after his original agreement was set to end last weekend. Ighalo scored four goals in eight games after joining the Red Devils at the start of the year.

  But he was set to return to China before the resumption of the Premier League later this month. However, United have agreed to pay £10million to keep Ighalo at the club for a while longer. And the forward says he’s ready to help Ole Gunnar Solskjaer bring the good times back to Old Trafford. He said: “I’m really happy. It’s a dream for me to be here. I’m buzzing and ready to go. “Since the first day I arrived, I made it clear that I wanted whatever it takes to continue that work.

  “Like I’ve said, since I was young, I’ve been supporting this club and playing for it is a dream. “Now I’ve extended my loan, it makes it even more clear and I’m committed as I know, in my head, I’m here until January. “I just want to work hard and enjoy it, support the team and do whatever I can to make us go higher and higher.”

Manchester United 'fail to agree on Odion Ighalo loan extension'

   

   Manchester United have reportedly failed to extend the loan period of Shanghai Shenhua forward Odion Ighalo.

With the Nigerian having contributed four goals from eight appearances since his arrival in January, United have been keen to retain his services until the end of the campaign.

Over the weekend, it was claimed that the Premier League giants were likely to keep the 30-year-old for the remainder of 2020, providing that the player penned a new contract with his parent club. However, The Sun says that the respective teams have failed to finalise a fresh deal, leaving Ighalo to return to China.

Japanese wrestler and Netflix star, Hana Kimura dies at 22

 

  Professional Japanese wrestler Hana Kimura who was part of the cast in Netflix’s reality show Terrace House has died after complaining about being cyber-bullied.

The cause of her death is not immediately known. Stardom Wrestling, the organisation that promotes women wrestlers including Kimura, issued a statement on Saturday (May 23) to confirm her death.

“We are very sorry to report that our Hana Kimura has passed away,” it said. “Please be respectful and allow some time for things to process, and keep your thoughts and prayers with her family and friends.”

Before her death, the 22-year-old had posted photos on social media showing self-harm with a troubling note that implied she had been cyber-bullied. She posed with a cat in her latest Instagram update on Friday, with a caption that read “goodbye”.

Kimura allegedly had been receiving hate messages after losing her temper on the set of Terrace House when a castmate, comedian Kobayashi Kai, ruined her expensive wrestling outfit while doing his laundry, unaware that it was among his clothes.

The reality TV show follows three men and three women as they temporarily live together in a house in Setagaya, Tokyo. Filming has been halted due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Wrestling journalist Adam Pacitti calls the death of Kimura “an absolute tragedy”. “I hope this serves as a reminder that interactions on social media can have a serious effect on the mental health of anyone, no matter who they are,” he tweeted.

TVC

Bayern Munich appoints Klose a Assistant coach

  Germany’s all-time leading scorer, Miroslav Klose has been appointed Bayern Munich assistant coach for next season. The 41-year-old has been a youth coach at the club for the past two years after retiring as a player in 2016.

  He spent four seasons as a player with Bayern from 2007, winning league and cup honours. Bayern head coach Hansi Flick, who signed a contract extension last month, was Germany assistant coach when a side featuring Klose won the 2014 World Cup.

  Klose scored 71 goals in 137 games for Germany between 2001 and 2014. He also played for Kaiserslautern, Werder Bremen and Italian side Lazio.

TVC

NBA star Dinwiddie to play for Nigerian team

 

  NBA star Spencer Dinwiddie is reportedly acquiring a Nigerian passport to play for the national team, D’Tigers. Dinwiddie plays for Brooklyn Nets as guard.

   News about Dinwiddie’s switch to Nigeria was reported by Shams Charania, an NBA insider and analyst for The Athletic and Stadium. He broke the news in a tweet that has gone viral. Acquiring a passport to play for another country is common for players who play in domestic leagues overseas.

Nigerian footballer Ifeanyi George dies in ghastly accident

 

    Ifeanyi George, Enugu Rangers International striker, has died in an accident on his way to Lagos from Enugu on Sunday.

Former Aston Villa and Cardiff star Peter Whittingham fighting for his life in hospital

 

   Cardiff City legend Peter Whittingham is fighting for his life in hospital. South Wales Police confirmed the former Bluebirds midfielder, 35, is alive after rumours of his death spread on social media. Police were unable to give further details, but it is understood that Whittingham is in critical condition in Cardiff's Heath Hospital.

PHOTOS- Nigerian Footballer, Emenike And Wife Welcome Their Newborn Baby

 

   Nigerian footballer, Emmanuel Chinenye Emenike and his wife, Iheoma Amanda Nnadi welcome their second child. Emenike took to his instagram account to post the first photo of his father-child moment with his newborn baby as he simply captioned it with love emojis “❤ ❤”

EPL Suspended Over Coronavirus Pandemic

   

  The English Premier League (EPL) has been suspended until April 4th, 2020, following the outbreak of the coronavirus, according to a statement from the organisers on Friday.

Ronaldo quarantined in Portugal

   Cristiano Ronaldo will remain in his native Portugal indefinitely as he undergoes self-isolation after his Juventus teammate Daniele Rugani was confirmed as having tested positive for coronavirus.