Author: Chief Editor

Chelsea announced the signing of German international forward Timo Werner from RB Leipzig on Thursday in the first major move of the summer transfer market. Werner, 24, who has scored 32 goals in all competitions this season, had a 60 million euro (£53 million, $67 million) release clause in his contract with the German club. He will remain at Leipzig for the remaining two Bundesliga games of the season. However, Werner will not be available for the end of Leipzig’s 2019/20 Champions League campaign in August as he is set to join Chelsea in July. “I am delighted to be…

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said he is “embarrassed and ashamed” at the historic treatment of black people as the Premier League’s return was marked by protests against racial injustice on Wednesday. Players and coaches from all four sides in action took a knee prior to kick-off to show their support for the Black Lives Matter campaign. The action came in response to worldwide protests after the killing of African American George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis. Black Lives Matter was also emblazoned on the back of shirts instead of player names. “We should send a thousand million…

The Police Command in Kano State said it has recorded 42 rape cases in the state between January and May. The Command’s Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Abdullahi Haruna, made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), on Thursday in Kano. Haruna disclosed that the command investigated 42 alleged rape cases within the period, adding that the suspects had been charged to courts in the state. He said statistical analysis of the cases indicated that 33.3 per cent of the rape incidents were committed in uncompleted buildings and 17.7 per cent at farmlands. “15.6 per…

Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp has urged supporters to stay home and not gather at stadiums as the Premier League leaders prepare to resume their quest for a first English top flight title in 30 years. The league is set to return later on Wednesday following a three-month break due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Liverpool need six points from their remaining nine games to win the title and could even secure it on Sunday if they beat local rivals Everton and second-placed Manchester City lose to Arsenal later on Wednesday. Games will be played without fans present in the stadiums and…

Champions League, suspended since March because of the coronavirus pandemic, will be completed in a ‘Final Eight’ in Lisbon in August, UEFA said on Wednesday. Europe’s top club competition will be decided by a series of one-off matches beginning in the Portuguese capital on August 12, with the final on August 23, European football’s governing body confirmed. Similarly, the Europa League will be completed with a ‘Final Eight’ across four German cities including Cologne, with the final there on August 21. The closing stages of the women’s Champions League will go ahead in Bilbao and San Sebastian at the end of…

Robert Lewandowski said Bayern Munich had proved they are the best club in Germany after securing their eighth straight Bundesliga title on Tuesday as the Poland striker’s first-half volley saw them claim a 1-0 win at Werder Bremen. Bayern was confirmed German champions for the 30th time in the club’s proud history to maintain their iron-grip on the Bundesliga shield in recent years. “We have shown that we are the best team in Germany,” said Lewandowski. Lewandowski struck two minutes before the break with a brilliant chest and low strike, but Bayern had to endure a nervy final 11 minutes…

Lionel Messi was rugby tackled and then scored a penalty as Barcelona put the pressure back on Real Madrid by easing to a 2-0 victory over Leganes at an empty Camp Nou on Tuesday. Messi was hauled to the ground in the first half by a diving Unai Bustinza wrapping two arms around his waist and he was knocked over again in the second, this time earning a penalty, which he converted. After 33 appearances, Messi now has 26 goals this season. In his last eight games, he has seven goals and eight assists. The 17-year-old Ansu Fati had earlier…

Lagos State needs help, as the state is literally convulsing and in the worst state of disrepair. It has never been this bad, our roads are in a deplorable state, a journey from Maryland to Ikorodu which ordinarily would take less than 20 minutes now takes four to five hours. People are dying in their large numbers certainly not from COVID-19, but stress, occasioned by bad roads that the government has neglected. It is the same situation, name it, all over Lagos. While this is going on, the governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, is busy chasing shadows, giving daily briefings on the…

Dr Ama Onyerinma Dear Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, It was announced that the Federal Government of Nigeria through a circular dated June 10, 2020, with reference number BW/20/CIR.LET/III/2020 intends to adopt a new COVID-19 measure of retaining the passports of all in-bound travellers except those with diplomatic immunity. Whilst I am certain this policy was thoroughly evaluated prior to its release, it is worrisome that passports which are the legal property of the issuing country would be taken from the legally assigned bearer which is a violation of their rights. It is true that Nigeria is a sovereign country thus it can…

Jide Ojo Politics, globally, is an interesting game. It can make or break.  There are those who have been very lucky in the game, just as there are many have suffered irreversible losses as a result of not knowing when to leave. There are those who learn the rope and serve under the tutelage of a politically savvy leader, yet, there are those who just got lucky because they have strength of courage and boldness to throw their hat into the ring even at a time considered most inauspicious. In politics, if you’re afraid of throwing a dice, you will…