Serena Pulls Out Of Madrid Open

Serena Williams has pulled out of the Madrid Open, which begins this weekend after getting down with flu.

"Unfortunately, I have to withdraw from Madrid because I've been battling the flu and I'm not 100 percent. I look forward to returning soon" , the World number one said in a statement released by the organizers.

The 34-year-old has won twice in Madrid, in 2012 and 2013. She was defeated in the semi-finals last year by Czech Republic's Petra Kvitova.

In Willim's absence, Poland's  Agnieszka Radwanska, who had been seeded two, will become top seed.

Welbeck Seals 3 Points For The Gunners Amidst Wenger Out Rants From Fans

Danny Welbeck spared Arsene Wenger's blushes as Arsenal deepened Norwich's relegation fears amid fan's protests with a 1-0 win at the Emirates Stadium.

It took Welbeck just three minutes to seal victory for Wenger on the Frenchman's 750th Premier League game at the club, rifling home an Olivier Giroud's knock down on 59th minutes.

Disgruntled supporters voiced their concern at the club's stagnation and trophy-less runs.

For Norwich, defeat sees them remain 19th in the table and staring relegation in the face after positive results for Newcastle and Sunderland earlier on in the day.

Arsenal, with this win leapfrog Manchester City into third, and moves just within two points of north London rivals, Tottenham.

Defoe's Injury Time Penalty Earns Point For Sunderland

Jermain Defoe scored a penalty in the final minute of stoppage-time as relegatuion-threatened Sunderland salvaged a dramatic 1-1 draw against Stoke on Saturday.

Desperate for points to boost their survival hopes, the Black Cats struggled to create clear-cut chances and it looked like Marko Arnautovic's second-half goal for stoke would consign them to a defeat.

But, with tome running out, Defoe won and calmly converted a penalty after a lengthy delay to keep Sunderland fans dreaming of survival.

With Newcastle's home win over Crystal Palace, Sunderland dropped into the bottom three, but have a game in hand, thus a ray of hope cast.

Sunderland fielded the same starting line-up for the fifth match in a row, while Stoke made five changes, having shipped four goals in each of their three previous games.

Roma Legend, Francesco Totti Meets Fan With Giant Tattoo Of Him

39 year old Francesco Totti, who has played for Roma all his life, made the dream of a die-hard fan who had a tattoo of the footballer on his back, come through by meeting up with him. Thomas Jonsson of Sweden, an ardent Roma supporter since the age of six, got a giant tattoo of his favourite footballer Francesco Totti on his back.

Alicia Keys To Perform At Champions League Final

Alicia Keys is set to become the first celebrity musician to perform live at the opening ceremony of the Champions League final. UEFA has confirmed.

The American superstar and multiple Grammy Award Winning singer, will perform in front of 80,000 people in Milan's Stadio Guiseppe Meazza on May 28. The final is billed to be watched by audiences in over 200 countries.

UEFA added that Keys' inclusion "heightens even further the appeal of the match".

Reacting to the announcement, Keys told the BBC; " My mother's family is from Italy, so whenever I go, I always feel the most loved. I feel like it's a homecoming of love in a lot of ways."

UEFA said Keys' performance will usher in a new live entertainment era for the final, which intends to "merge the worlds of world-class music, entertainment and sports, as well as celebrate design and fashion as a nod to the host city, Milan.

" This is going to be a powerful moment in history, and one that represents the spirit of all the similarities we share no matter where we live and who we are," Keys said.

Real Madrid Coach, Zinedine Zidane's Trousers Tear, Again !

With the recent wave of trousers getting torn during matches, questions have been posed. Who makes Zidane's Clothes ? Could there be a need for him to change his tailor ? Or is it that he's simply just fattened up in recent days ? Or is it that Champions League just doesn't agree with his clothing ? LOL

Zinedine Zidane, Real Madrid's coach suffered another wardrobe malfunction when his trouser ripped at the back while he was ranting and raving on the touchline, during the club's UEFA champions League fixture against Manchester City.

A similar incident happened during Real Madrid's Champions League Match against Wolfsburg. At this rate, i think the coach should just consider sitting permanently during subsequent matches. LOL!!!

Vincent Enyeama Wins Ligue 1 Team Of The Year Award For Best Goalkeeper

Lille Osc and ex Super Eagles Goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama took to Instagram today to showcase the Ligue 1 team of the year award he won for having a wonderful season at Lille. He captioned the post;

Mahrez Wins PFA Player Of The Year Award

Leicester City's Riyad Mahrez, has been named the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) Player of the year.

The Algerian has scored 16 goals and made 11 assists, as Claudio Ranieri's men continue to lead the Premier League table with just three games left to play.

Mahrez, 25, pipped his team-mates Jamie Vardy and N'Golo Kante to the award.

he dedicated the award to his father, before adding: 

"It's extra special because if the players vote for, its because they've seen I've been great this year, so I'm happy. Without my team-mates, I wouldn't get this award. 

" We are like brothers, it's everywhere on the pitch. That's our strength".

" If sometimes we are not good, we know we are getting to run and make efforts for our team-mates. That is the secret of our success".

EPL: The Race For The Title

In what has appeared to be the most unpredictable season in the history of the EPL, that sees Leicester City, a team that barely escaped relegation last season become the team at the top of the EPL table. Many have come out to predict the end of the season matches, and indications already point to Leicester ending the season's run as the most favored team to win.

After last weekend's matches, it appears Arsenal and Manchester City are officially out of the race to be crowned Premier League champions this season.

The Gunners who ended their weekend match with a 0-0 draw with Sunderland on Sunday, a day after City hammered Stock City 4-0 at the Etihad.

Following Leicester City's 4-0 drubbing of Swansea on Sunday, both teams can no longer win the title.

Claudio Ranieri's men are now top with 76 points, 12 points clear of both Arsenal and City who are both on 64 points. Leicester City are only 8 points ahead of Tottenham, who take on West Brom on Monday.

Sakho Facing One-Year Ban For Failing Drug Test

Liverpool defender, Mamadou Sakho, could be banned for up to a year, after failing drugs test.

The France international is under UEFA investigation for breaking doping regulations and was left out of Saturdays 2-2 draw with Newcastle  in the Premier League.

It is understood that Sakho failed the test following the Reds' win in the Europa League over Manchester United last month.

Traces of a banned fat-burning substance are believed to have been detected in his sample. 

UEFA will now conduct analysis of a "B" sample on Tuesday.

Sakho faces a ban of up to two years if found guilty of any offence-although similar offences have been punished with between six and 12-month penalties.

This will make the 26-year-old unavailable for Liverpool and rule him out of the Euro 2016.

Renowned Female Wrestler And WWE Legend Found Dead In Her Home

WWE legend Chyna, whose real name is Joanie Laurer was found dead on Wednesday April 20th in her Redondo Beach, California apartment, by her friend who hadn't heard from her for a few days. According to TMZ, her death is being investigated by the Police as a possible overdue due to her history of abusing drugs.

Her friend went to check on her and found her unresponsive in the bedroom of her home and made the call to the police, who arrived at the apartment at about 7:30pm Wednesday. Prescription bottles were found in the home, but there were no illegal drugs.....The cops are reporting no signs of foul play.

Chyna was 46 years old.

Jose Mourinho Was Sacked Because He Trusted Us Too Much - Cesc Fabregas

Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas, has come out to say that former coach Jose Mourinho was scaked last year by the club's board because he trusted his players too much.

Mourinho lost his job in December last year after overseeing a poor stretch of form, performance and poor results despite being the club's most successful manager in it's 110 years history, winning three league titles, FA cup, Community Shield and three League Cups.

Fabregas, who insists he remains on good terms with Mourinho, says he and his Chelsea team-mates were to blame for taking advantage of Mourinho's trust.

" I have huge respect for him, we still keep in touch right now, " Fabregas said on Sky Sports Monday Night Football. " The biggest problem was he trusted us too much, gave us more holiday becauses we were champions and we let him down. That was the main reason he had to go - and for that myself and the team feel bad for it.

Aston Villa's Directors Resign

Two of Aston Villa's directors; David Bernstein and Mervyn King, on Monday, resigned for the board of the club following the club's relegation from the Premier League.

Bernstein, the former chairman of teh Football Association, only joined the club's board last month, while the former governor of the Bank of England King was appointed in February.

In his resignation letter, King insisted that he had not taken " this course of action lightly. As a supporter of over 55 years, how could I ? But it is no longer possible to carry out the role I was asked to perform".

Oscar Pistorius To Be Sentenced In June For Murder

South Africa's former Olympic track star Oscar Pistorius appeared briefly in a Pretoria court where a judge scheduled five days in June to determine his sentence for murdering his girlfriend.

The sentencing hearing for Pistorius will be held from June 13th to 17th at the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria.

The 29-year-old double amputee sprinter, who was found guilty of murdering Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine's Day 2013, was greeted by a small group of vocal supporters outside the court.

The sentencing hearing will be heard by Judge Thokozile Masipa, who presided over Pistorius's trial and found him guilty of manslaughter, a verdict that was overturned by a higher court that found him guilty of the more serious charge of murder.

Pellegrini Blames Guardiola For City's Failure To Win The EPL

Manchester City manager, Manuel Pellegrini, has claimed that their season fell apart after Pep Guardiola was announced as his replacement.

The Premier League club confirmed in February, that Guardiola would take over after this season. City went on to lose two home matches against title rivals, Leicester City and Tottenham in the following two weeks. 

" Of course for different reasons we lost important games in February, against Leicester and Tottenham, two games which do not allow us to be involved in the title," Pellegrini said.

" At the start of February, there was news about the change of the manager, about players who will not continue here next season, about a lot of things that involved the minds of all the players. Its not easy for players when you read in newspapers all the things that will happen next season, all the players who will go out, all the players that will come in. Its not easy for the players to focus their minds". 

Barcelona Loses To Valencia

Barcelona slipped to a third successive league defeat as Valencia blew the La Liga title race wide open with a 2-1 win at the Camp Nou.

Barcelona endured a nightmare first-half, with Ivan Rakitic diverting the ball past the despairing dive of Claudio Bravo after 26 minutes to give Valencia the lead, before Santi Mina stunned the Nou Camp with another goal in the first-half stoppage time, giving Valencia a 2-0 advantage over Barcelona.

Yannick Bolasie Earns A Point For Crystal Palace Against Arsenal

Arsenal missed the chance to go third in the Premier League table after they were held 1-1 by Crystal Palace at the Emirates Stadium.

Alexis Sanchez put the Gunners ahead on the stroke of half-time. The Gunners after this, struggled ans squandered several opportunities before Yannick Bolasie secured a point for the visitors. Bolasie's goal is his fifth league goal of the season.

The winger cut inside on the 81st minute through a pass from former Arsenal player, Emmanuel Adebayor, and caught Petr Cech by surprise with a low drive from the edge of the box that found the corner of the goal post.

Shooting Stars Players Are Hungry And Unhappy - Ikhana Laments

Coach Kadiri Ikhana of Shooting Stars Sports Club of Ibadan on Saturday appealed to the Oyo State Government to pay the club's players their outstanding five-months salaries.

Ikhana told newsmen in Ibadan after his team defeated visiting Heartland Football Club of Owerri 2-1, that his players' morale was down as a result of the situatuion.

" The players have been going out there to play matches on empty stomachs and I am appealing to the Government to do more on the unpaid salaries.

The News Agency of Nigeria, reports that 3SC scored through Muyiwa Lawal and Seun Akinyemi in the 51st and 70th minutes respectively to win the match.

Nadal Claims Monte Carlo Masters

Nadal overcame a spirited Gael Monfils to win the Monte Carlo Masters. This win sealed a record 9th title for Nadal.

The Spaniard won 7-5 5-7 6-0 in the capital of Monaco to bring up a 13th consecutive season with a clay court title. His 28th Masters 1000 crown draws him level with Novak Djokovic at the top of the all-time list.

Nadal put in his best against French Ace Monfils who was equally at his best playing in front of his home crowd in the Principality.

Both men struggled to assert themselves when serving, making for a tit-for-tat encounter with break points ominously looming around every corner.

Bye-Bye Villa

Aston Villa's relegation to the Championship has now been confirmed after the team lost 1-0 to Manchester United at Old Trafford.

United's win came as a result of a lone goal scored by Marcus Rashford, who converted a low cross from Antonio Valencia in the 32nd minute.

The win by United sealed Villa's relegation as the team has lost 24 matches this season, with only four games left to the close of the season.

Aguero's Hat-trick Keeps Hopes Alive For City

Sergio Aguero struck a treble against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge to help keep Man City in the 3rd spot on the EPL table.

The visitors controlled the first half of the match and went ahead through Sergio Aguero to claim a well deserved 3-points.

The Argentine International finished a City counter-attack as his second goal, and sealed his hat-trick for the evening from the penalty spot after Fernandinho was tripped by Thibaut Courtois, and saw the Chelsea goalkeeper sent off.

The victory, moves City a point above Arsenal, who host Crystal Palace on Sunday, while Chelsea remains 10th with just one win from their last eight Premier league home games.

Atletico and Bayern Qualify For UCL Semi-Final

Antoine Griezmann scored twice to move Atletico Madrid into the Champions League Semi-Finals on Wednesday night.

Barcelona traveled to the Calderon in Madrid with narrow 2-1 win from the leg and a huge hope of making it past Atletico in the next stage, but the night ended on a sorry note for Luis Enrique and his team, when Atletico were the victorious team of the tie, making it the second time Barcelona is loosing in the quarter-final to Atletico in 2 years.

Bayern's night in Portugal ended in a 2-2 draw that saw Pep Guardiola's team qualifying on a 3-2 aggregate.

Atletico and Bayern will now join Manchester City and Real Madrid in Friday's draws for the Semi-Finals.

Super Falcons Qualify For Africa Women's Cup Of Nations

The Super Falcons of Nigeria, has qualified for the 2016 African Women's Cup of Nations. The Falcons claimed victory over Senegal by winning 2-0 at the Abuja National Stadium on Tuesday evening.

The win, sealed qualification, as the Falcons qualified 3-1 on aggregate score.

The game started on a rather gloomy side as Asisat Oshoala missed a penalty early in the game, but the game soon picked up when Rita Chikwelu opened scoring, and Igbinovia Osarenoma soon scored the second goal and sealed victory for the Falcons. 

The team who are reigning champions  joined the likes of Egypt, Kenya, Equatorial Guinea, Zimbabwe and hosts Cameroon. 

Ronaldo's hat-trick Sends Madrid Into Semis, As City Edges Past PSG

Cristiano Ronaldo once again proved to be Read Madrid's main man, after his hat-trick saw the La Liga giants defeat Wolfsburg 3-2 on aggregate to qualify for the semi-finals of the Champions League.

The Spanish club were beaten in Germany a week ago and needed a big performance and possible scoreline at the Santiago Bernabeu in order to avoid been dumped out of the competition.

Ronaldo's quick-fire in quick succession earlier in the first half of the match leveled the tie on aggregate.

AC Milan Sacks Coach, Announces Immediate Replacement

AC Milan, has announced the immediate sack of its coach; Sinisa Mihajlovic, and announced Cristian Brocchi, the coach of the club's young as immediate replacement.
Mihajlovic left his role as Sampdoria's coach and replaced Fillipo Inzaghi last June.
Mihajlovic's last game in charge of the club was the 2-1 loss to league leaders Juventus on Sunday. The loss extends Milan's win less run to five matches and leaving them 15 points adrift of a Champions League placement, with them occupying the 6th position on the Serie A table.
A statement on the club's official website read: " Sinisa Mihajlovic has been relieved of his role as AC Milan Coach. The club would like to thank Mihajlovic for the dedication and hard work carried out this season".

Siasia Calls Up 30 Man Squad In Preparation For 2016 Olympics

The head coach of the National U-23 men's football team; Samson Siasia, on monday released a list of 30 players fo camping in preparation for the Rio 2016 Olympic games.

A statement by the NFF revealed that the invited players are expected to arrive at the Starview Hotel in Abuja on Tuesday with their International Passports, and that training will commence immediately on Wednesday.

The 2016 Olympic Games will hold in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from August 5th to August 21st. 

See full list of the 30 man squad invited to camp;

1. Emmanuel Daniel (Rangers)
2. Yusuf Mohammed (Kano Pillars)
3. Daniel Emmanson (Awka United)
4. Omasteye Alex (First Bank)
5. Sincere Seth (Rhapsody FC)
6. Ododuwa Segun (Nath FC)
7. Obanor Erhun (MFM FC)
8. Ahamefule Chizoba (Abia Warriors)
9. Ndifreke Effiong (Abia Warriors)
10. Chima Akas (Enyimba FC)
11. Timothy Danladi (Katsina United)

FIFA Threatens To Ban Nigeria Over Pinnick's Sack

The Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA), has warned the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), that it will be suspended if Amaju Pinnick is removed ad President.

In a letter addressed to Pinnick dated April 11th, 2016, FIFA warned that if last week's decision of the Federal High Court in Jos is allowed to stand, it will be considered as an interference in the internal affairs of the NFF.

" The decision of the Federal High Court in Jos, if implemented, would likely be considered as an interference in the internal affairs of the NFF and the case would be brought to the highest authorities of FIFA for consideration of sanctions, including the suspension of the NFF" the letter read in part.

" We would like to remind you that according to articles 13 and 17 of the FIFA statutes, all member associations have to manage their affairs independently and with no influence from third parties. In addition and according to article 68 of the FIFA statutes, recourse to ordinary courts of law is prohibited unless specifically provided for in the FIFA regulations.

" Furthermore, it is the duty of each member association to ensure that these provisions are implemented by its members and possibly take sanctions against those which fail to respect these obligations". 

It further announced it will begin hearing into the case brought against the NFF on May 30th.

NFF Given Tuesday Deadline To Pay Oliseh's Assistant

The Nigerian Football Federation (NFF), has been issued an ultimatum, to pay off Sunday Oliseh's assistant coach, Jean Francois Lusciuto, or the matter will be taken before FIFA. The Ultimatum expires at midnight on Tuesday.
Lusciuto worked with Oliseh  during his stint as coach of the Super Eagles, before the former Nigeria International announced his resignation from the role in Fevruary 2016.
The belgian's lawyers have now issued a deadline to the NFF and Lusciuto is demanding that he is paid the remainder of his contract sum, as the NFF has breached his contract.

Nigeria's Dream Team VI Seeded in Pot 2 For 2016 Olympics Draws

Nigeria's Dream Team VI, has been seeded in the second pot for the draws of the Men's football event at Rio 2016.

The seeding was done based on a cumulative matrix of how each country performed in the last five editions.

Hosts Brazil are in pot 1 with Mexico, Japan and Argentina.

" All 28 slots at the Olympic Football Tournaments Rio 2016, have now been filled and the nations involved are surely waiting with baited  breath for the draw, to be held at the Maracana on April 14th, 2016 at 10:30am local time ( 3:30pm ), a statement from FIFA read.

"Hosts Brazil, will take the lead spot in Group A ( men's tournament ) and Group E ( women's tournament ), with the men's teams allocated into four pots based on a rankinng taking into account performances at the past five Olympic Football Tournaments", it added.

The draws will see the teams divided into four groups of four teams.

Continue to see full seeds ;

We Will Beat Senegal In Abuja - Oshoala

Super Falcons striker, Asisat Oshoala, is confident that they will beat Senegal in Abuja, when both teams face each other on Tuesday.

The Terranga Lionesses held Nigeria to a 1-1 draw in Dakar on Friday, in the first leg of their Women's Africa Cup of Nations qualifier.

Chioma Wogu opened scoring for the Falcons, before Senegal equalized in the 52nd minute.

" Its not over yet, we all should understand how it works, away games are not easy" Oshoala told reporters in Lagos.

" Its African football, at least we got an away goal which is most important". 

" We tried our best and I'm confident we shall beat the Senegal ladies in Abuja. Football is a game that puts smiles on the faces of Nigerians and we are ready to do this for Nigerians".

Sunday Oliseh Appointed Into FIFA's Technical Department

Former Super Eagles Player and Coach, Sunday Oliseh, has been appointed to be a part of FIFA's Technical Department. He announced the news on twitter. 

Congratulations to him.

Fury Vs Klitschko Rematch Confirmed For June 9th

Tyson fury will dfend his WBA Super and WBO World Heavyweight title in a rematch with Vladimir Klitschko on July 9th.
Fury, shocked boxing buffs in November, when he defeated Klitschko via a unanimous decision in Dusseldorf.
Lengthy negotiations for a rematch saw the possibility of staging it in Dubai, but the decision moved for the rematch to be in Manchester, England.
Fury's trainer, Peter Fury said via social media: " 9th July @Tyson_Fury Vs Klitschko is coming to Manchester UK. Official announcement coming 12noon.
Klitschko held the WBA Super, WBO and IBF titles and was undefeated in 11 years before losing to Fury last year.

Spurs Keep Title Chase Alive By Beating Utd 3-0

Tottenham responded to Leicester City's victory over Sunderland with one of their own as they beat Manchester United 3-0 on Sunday to close the gap at the top to seven points. 

The result leaves Manchester United four points off rival Manchester City, who occupy the 4th spot.

Tottenham, with this win, reaffirmed their strengths and readiness in the race for the EPL title.

Leicester City Officially Qualify For European Football

Leicester City, will play in Europe next season, no matter how their season ends.

following their top flight performances and the recent defeat of Sunderland at the stadium of light, they have successfully booked their place in next season's European football.

The club now comfortably tops the English Premier League table with 72 points. This means, they cannot finish lower than 5th place, which still guarantees them a place in the group stage of the Europa League.

Leicester City, last played in Europe in the 2000/2001 UEFA cup. when they were knocked out 4-2 on aggregate by Red Star Belgrade.

Should they go on and be crowned Premier League champions, they will be seeded in next season's Champions League group stage draw, along with the champions of Spain, Germany, Italy, France, Portugal, Russia and the title holders.

Nasri Scores on Return As City Wins

Samir Nasri scored a second-half wnner on his return to the starting line up as Manchester City beat West Brom 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium.

West Brom took the lead after Stephane Sessegnon beat Joe Hart at his near post with a superb effort aerly on, before City equalized tgrough Sergio Aguero's penalty.

Nasri who was making his first premier league start since September 2015 after an injury, converted from close range to make it 2-1, and City held the three points needed.

Andy Carroll's Treble Halts Arsenal's Title Challenge

Andy Carroll's hat-trick dealt a fresh blow to Arsenal's faint title hopes as West Ham held them to a thrilling 3-3 draw.

The Gunners looked on course to keep in touch with leaders Leicester City, when Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez struck inside 35 minutes to put the visitors in firm control at Upton Park.

Carroll's treble turned the game around and gave West Ham an edge over the Gunners, but it was soon to be leveled when Arsenal's captain Laurent Koscielny, hit back in the 70th minute, rescuing a point for the Gunners.

BREAKING NEWS: Federal High Court Sacks Pinnick As President, Upholds Giwa's Election

A Federal High Court sitting in Jos on Friday granted the prayers of Yahaya Adama and Senator Obinna Ogba, to relist the case which among other things had sought to nullify the Warri General Assembly and the subsequent elective congress that turned in Amaju Pinnick as President of the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF). 

Justice Musa Haruna Kurya, while delivering his ruling on teh matter went ahead to also sustain all the previous orders of the court, effectively making Ambassador Chris Giwa the Head of the federation until the final determination of the suit.

By the court orders today, the Minister of Sports is compelled to recognize the Giwa-led Board of the NFF as the recognized board by the law.

Balotelli Likely To Make Return To Liverpool From Ac Milan

Mario Balotelli is likely to return to Liverpool after AC Milan Chief Executive Adriano Galliani claimed the player is not meeting expectations.

The Italy International is on a season-long loan deal at the San Siro, but has scored just three times in 17 appearances for Milan.

Balotelli's present form, has made Galliani to believe that the 25-year old has much to do in the remainder of the campaign to convince Milan to make his deal permanent.

Galliani said; " We really like Mario, but he has to convince us to earn a permanent deal. Mario is feeling well, he is desperate to stay here at Milan, but like I have said before, he does not merit a permanent deal at the moment.

I Wont't Stop Iwobi From Representing Nigeria At The Olympics - Wenger

Arsenal Manager, Arsene Wenger, has insisted he will not stop Alex Iwobi from playing for Nigeria at this year's Olympic Games in Rio.

The competition, runs from August 3rd - 20th, and could see the youngster miss the start of the 2016/2017 season, but Wenger is not ready to block his participation.

" He had the choice between England and Nigeria and in the end he chose Nigeria". Wenger told reporters ahead of the Gunners clash against West Ham.

" We respect that, and also the possibility that he will go to the Olympic Games, and travel a bit more than he would have done here".

Wenger also confirmed that the 19-year-old is in talks with the club, to sign a new deal that will see him earn around  £30,000 per week.

FIFA Rankings: Nigeria Now 14th In Africa And 67th In The World

The Super Eagles are now 67th in the World with 532 points in the latest rankings of National teams for April released by the World's football governing body, FIFA. They were 62nd in the previous ranking for March, but have now dropped five places to 67th. 

In Africa, the Eagles occupy the 14th position behind the likes of Ghana, Algeria, Cape Verde, Tunisia, Congo Democratic Republic and Senegal, with Algeria being the highest ranked African team in the world having moved from 37th to 33rd in the World. 

In the 34th position is reigning African champions Cote d'Ivoire who moved two places.

New FIFA Rankings: Argentina Displaces Belgium At The Top Spot

South American football power house, Argentina has recaptured its number one position in the monthly FIFA rankings released on Thursday, April 6th. In Thursday's rankings, Argentina displaced Belgium, while Copa America champions, Chile rose to an all-time high to occupy the third place.

Having won all three of their 2018 World cup qualifiers, Argentina returned to the top, just five months after they were supplanted by Belgium.

The rankings saw Chile which was formerly occupying the 5th position move to 3rd place, while Colombia climbed from 8th to 4th and also Uruguay move back into the top 10 having started their South American qualifiers strongly.
Continue to see the top ten teams as ranked by FIFA;

Super Falcons Arrive Dakar, Ahead of AWCON Qualifiers

The NFF posted a picture of the Super Falcons team as they arrive at the International Airport in Dakar Senegal, ahead of the African Women Cup Of Nations Qualifier on Friday April 8th. The post, was captioned;

" Our Super Falcons are in Dakar. They'll have their first feel of the Stade Demba Diop later today. #SoarSuperFalcons".

PANAMA REPORT : Swiss Police Raid UEFA Headquarters

The Federal Swiss Police yesterday, raided the office of UEFA, European football's governing body after FIFA president Gianni Infantino's name was dragged into the Panama papers report for his role in a TV deal, signed while he was in his previous role as UEFA director of legal services.

The FIFA president, along with European football's governing body, have been linked to individuals now acussed of bribery.

Documents leaked from the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca included a television rights contract bearing Infantino's signature.

UEFA confirmed in a statement yesterday that Swiss authorities raided their Nyon offices on Wednesday despite Gianni Infantino's denial of any wrongdoing.

"UEFA can confirm that today we received a visit from the office of the Swiss Federal Police acting under a warrant and requesting sight of the contracts between UEFA and Cross Trading/Teleamazonas.

" Naturally, UEFA is providing the Federal Police with all relevant documents in our possession and will cooperate fully"

The Swiss police authorities have insisted no specific individual was the target of the raid.

Man City Grabs Crucial Away Goal In Paris

Manchester City on Wednesday night puts themselves in a strong position going into the Champions League quarter-final second leg after a 2-2 draw at PSG.

Kevin De Bruyne and Fernandinho grabbed two crucial away goals while Joe Hart saved a Zlatan Ibrahimovic penalty in an enthralling tie at the Parc des Prince, in Paris.

De Bruyne put City ahead in the 38th minute after a swift breakaway but Ibrahimovic atoned for his scuppered spot-kick by capitalizing on a mistake by Fernando and equalizing in the 41st minute, right before half-time.

PSG fought back and took the lead in the 59th minute through Adrien Rabiot's tap-in but Fernandinho made it 2-2 in the 72nd minute when his deflected effort from close-range beat goalkeeper Kevin Trapp.

Wolfsburg Stun Real Madrid

German side Wolfsburg beat Real Madrid 2-0 in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday night at the Volkswagen Arena.

Ricardo Rodriguez struck a penalty and Maxi Arnold added a second in the first half as they gave themselves a huge advantage at the halfway point in the tie.

The result leaves Zinedine  Zidane's side with a real mountain to climb in the second leg at the Bernabeu next Tuesday night.

For Wolfsburg , though it was a glorious night in their first ever meeting with Real and their first ever Champions League quarter-final.

No Foreign Coach For Eagles; Group Cries Out

Sports Marketers Association of Nigeria, has rejected the move to hire a foreign coach for the Super Eagles by president of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Amaju Pinnick.

The group, also asked Pinnick to resign, after the country failed to qualify for next year's AFCON in Gabon.

Members of the group conducted a peaceful protest at the Abuja National Stadium on Tuesday, while the Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung was meeting with the NFF board.

" We are not basing this on the players and the coaches alone, the managerial aspect of this whole thing must be taken care of as well. We are asking that they should take the path of honor and resign, especially the president of the NFF".

Iwobi Eager To Play For Nigeria At 2016 Olympic Games

Arsenal midfielder, Alex Iwobi has admitted that he is keen on representing Nigeria at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

The 19-year-old was first invited by coach Samson Siasia to play for the U-23 team in the qualifying series, but could not play due to his involvement with England's youth team.

However, he eventually committed his future to Nigeria when he made his competitive debut in the AFCON 2017 qualifiers against Egypt.

" I am looking forward to the forthcoming Olympics and if I am invited, I will do my best to make a meaningful contribution," he told Goal.

" I believe that Nigeria has a crop of excellent players who are capable of doing great things at the Olympics. Coach Samson Siasia deserves a lot of praise for securing a place for the nation at the Olympics".

Suarez Puts Barca On Top

Luis Suarez struck twice to help Barcelona come from behind to secure a 2-1 first-leg advantage against 10-man Atletico Madrid in the UCL quarter-final tie on Tuesday night.
Fernando Torres put Atletico ahead at the Nou Camp after just 25 minutes, but the game turned when the former Chelsea striker saw red for two yellow cards in quick successein before half-time.
Suarez, who appeared to kick out at Juanfranc in the first half but escaped sanction, tapped home Jordi Alba's volley after 65 minutes to level.
And the Barca striker headed home 11 minutes later to ensure Luis Enrique's side take a narrow advantage to the Vicente Calderon for the second leg on April 13.
The match was a highly contested one that saw German referee Felix Brych hand out 11 yellow cards as Barca fought to avoid consecutive home defeats the first time since April 2003.

' Lionel Messi Isnt't Human, Cristiano Ronaldo Is Best Of The Human' - Garard Pique

Barcelona's defender, and Messi's teammate, Gerard Pique, has come out to throw a shade at Cristiano Ronaldo. This comes following Madrid's 2-1 win against Barcelona at the Nou Camp,over the weekend.

In a rather subtle shade,  Pique says Messi is definitely in a league of its own.

" I think they are both amazing" Pique told BT Sport. " We are talking about two of the best players, not just in the world but in the history of this sport. I always said that Messi has some talent that no one has. I mean, he has the ball and his speed controlling the ball. The ball doesn't go two meters far from his foot, it's always there, It's impossible to catch him, this talent i didn't see from anyone"