Author: Chief Editor

Osun Government has denied a report that six patients who tested positive for COVID-19 have escaped from the Ejigbo isolation centre in the state. Mr Ismail Omipidan, the Chief Press Secretary to Gov. Gboyega Oyetola, in a telephone interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday debunked the story, describing it as a mere fabrication. Omipidan said the report which has been circulating around that six persons escaped from the Isolation centre in Ejigbo did not emanate from government. “There is nothing like that. The report is not true. “The statement being circulated around is not from the state…

With more than a third of the global population confined to their homes to slow the coronavirus pandemic, many are worried how long they will be cooped up. But being quarantined can be “a good thing” and something “to enjoy,” says veteran Russian cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin. The 61-year-old, who has made five flights to space spending a combined 671 days aboard the International Space Station, says the main thing is to stay positive. Here are his five tips for surviving quarantine: – Get some air – On the ISS, cosmonauts work “in an alien environment, surrounded by metal and plastic,”…

Before the Premier League starts up it must ensure all clubs resume training on the same day, Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti, told a French magazine in an interview published on Friday. The Premier League is on hold because of the coronavirus pandemic and is scheduled to resume on May 3. But Ancelotti said the situation would be clearer after a meeting between clubs and league officials on Friday. “One of the important things is that all the clubs resume training at the same time, that there are no disparities, that no one has an advantage over the others,” the 60-year-old…

Uruguay star Luis Suarez complained on Thursday that he has been “hurt” by criticism of him and fellow millionaire Barcelona players for the time it took to agree to pay cuts to help out other club employees. Argentine superstar Lionel Messi announced on Monday that Barca’s players had agreed to a 70 percent pay cut and to make contributions to ensure the club’s non-playing staff could be paid in full during the state of alarm in Spain caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Footballers across Europe’s top leagues have come under fire as some clubs have made cuts to their non-playing…

Highly-paid Premier League players are coming under pressure to follow the example of some of their fellow professionals at the biggest clubs in Europe and take a cut in salary during the coronavirus pandemic. Leading politicians have weighed in while discussions are ongoing between the Premier League, Football League and the players’ union over the highly-charged issue. Some observers fear that if the standoff continues much longer, it could cause damage to the brand of the Premier League, Europe’s wealthiest league. Premier League club chairmen are likely on Friday to push back further the date for a resumption of the…

UEFA and Europe’s top clubs have stated their determination that the current football season should be played to a conclusion and threatened that teams may be excluded from the next Champions League if their domestic competitions are ended prematurely. In a joint letter released late on Thursday, UEFA, the European Club Association (ECA), and the European Leagues body representing nearly a thousand clubs in 29 countries, said that they were working on the possibility of playing on into July and August if need be. The Champions League and Europa League — both of which are frozen in the last-16 stage…

Football has ground to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic, and the immediate concern is the simple survival of many clubs because of the financial impact, but there is hope that the global game could ultimately emerge better from this crisis. “We are living through something none of us were used to and which will change us profoundly,” Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti told Corriere dello Sport. Not since World War II has the sport been forced to stop across Europe. The sudden interruption has exposed the deficiencies of a system intoxicated by huge sums of money. Cutbacks are inevitable…

The public response in donating to charity to help feed deprived children after an appeal by Marcus Rashford has impressed the Manchester United forward. The 22-year-old England international teamed up with FareShare, a food distribution charity, after schools in the Manchester area were closed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Donations as of Wednesday totalled £134,000 ($167,000) surpassing his initial target of £100,000. The latter amount — which Rashford said was a “massive figure” — would feed around 400,000 children. FareShare distributes food to 10,943 charities including schools, community centres and breakfast clubs. Rashford wanted to ensure children now restricted to…

Limited global stocks of two anti-malarial drugs could wreck plans to use the medicines, currently in clinical trials, to treat COVID-19, doctors cautioned on Thursday. Around the world, countries are expanding access to chloroquine (CQ) and hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), which are used to treat malaria and are known to have anti-viral properties. The medicines have shown early promise against the COVID-19 illness in studies in France and China. CQ, which is the less toxic of the two, is also used as an anti-inflammatory to treat conditions like rheumatoid arthritis and lupus, purposes it is primarily known for outside the tropics. Writing…

President Donald Trump cast doubt on the accuracy of official Chinese figures on its coronavirus outbreak after US lawmakers, citing an intelligence report, accused Beijing of a cover-up. “How do we know” if they are accurate, Trump asked at a press conference. “Their numbers seem to be a little bit on the light side.” Trump insisted that “the relationship with China’s a good one” and that he remained close to President Xi Jinping. However, the controversy around Beijing’s transparency has strained ties, adding to bad feelings triggered by a conspiracy theory in China that the US military was to blame…