Belgium
Tottenham speak to two Bundesliga managers as they hunt for new boss
Reuters Tottemham Hotspur have reportedly stepped up their search of finding a new manager by speaking to Hansi Flick and Ralf Rangnick. The North London side currently have former midfielder Ryan Mason at the helm on an interim basis following the sacking of Jose Mourinho last month. Mason has won three out of his four Premier League matches in charge – helping Spurs climb to sixth in the table. And with European football looking all-but secure for next season, Daniel Levy is now turning his attention to finding a permanent boss to take over in the summer. Tottenham were keen on luring Julian Nagelsmann away from RB Leipzig, but it has been confirmed that he will take over from Hansi Flick at Bayern Munich. According to the Guardian, Spurs have spoken to Flick about him potentially moving...
Belgian Government Signals Return of Tomorrowland, But Will Require “Corona Passport”
As the 2021 edition of Tomorrowland hangs in the balance, the Belgian government has expressed confidence that large music festivals will return this summer. However, the path to Tomorrowland 2021 could prove to be a complex one. Tomorrowland organizers on May 11th shared a statement in reaction to comments made by Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, who asserted in a recent tweet that large festivals should be possible in the second half of the summer. De Croo’s remarks arrived after the Flemish government presented its “Freedom Plan,” a proposal to relax COVID-19 restrictions month by month and reopen various economic sectors. “We are delighted and grateful to hear that the Belgian Government has given a realistic perspective for large ...
Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona stars could beat Lewandowski for 2021 Ballon D’Or
The Ballon d’Or is arguably the most prestigious individual award in modern football, celebrating the beautiful game’s best player from the previous year. Now it is worth noting that the Ballon d’Or is not the be-all-and-end-all of football. It’s often biased towards those who shine in the Champions League. Media hype, big moments, and trophies won usually take precedence in the voting over individual performances. In fact, all Ballon dOr winners since 2007 has either won the Champions League or been the competition’s top goalscorer, and all since 2007 have reached at least the semi-finals stage. With no obvious standout, however, this summer’s international tournaments could be decisive. Lionel Messi and co. will compete in the Copa America, while Europe’s finest battle it out at the Euro...
Over 130 Belgian Venues Reopen Illegally in Protest of Government Restrictions
On April 30th more than 130 venues in the Belgian cities of Brussels and Wallonia opened their doors, breaking government protocols instated due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The venues are hosting events for the general public for nine consecutive days in protest of the restrictions, IQ Magazine reports. Campaign group Still Standing For Culture is the body behind the protest events which span entire cities and will conclude on May 8th, when government restrictions are eased to allow open-air events with a maximum capacity of 50 individuals. “We will do this without underestimating the dangerousness of the virus, but we recall that experiments and studies show that the opening of cultural places has only a minimal impact on the contamination curves in the face of the effects ...
Super Eagles midfielder Mikel Agu acquires Portuguese citizenship
Nigeria midfielder Mikel Agu has acquired Portuguese citizenship after a decade of residency in the European country. According to Portuguese law, an individual is eligible for citizenship through naturalisation after six years of residence. That is the process Agu has gone through to get acquire his Portuguese passport. The 27-year-old took to the social media to share the news on Tuesday. “What God cannot do does not exist, now a Portuguese,” he posted on the social media, while holding his Portuguese passport. Agu linked up with Portuguese giants FC Porto in 2011 made just two league appearances for the senior side. The talented midfielder spent time on loan at another Portuguese club Vitoria Setubal, Club Brugge of Belgium and Turkish Super Lig outfit Bursaspor. Currently on the books ...
Paul Onuachu speaks on missing Belgium goals record
Paul Onuachu may have emerged the Goal King of Belgium, but he came a goal shy of matching the goals record in the Belgian top league. Onuachu netted a brace to finish on 29 goals, a goal short of the record set by Wesley Sonck. The Super Eagles striker insisted he did not play to reach the record Saturday night at Antwerp. “I was not doing that at all today (Saturday),” he told Het Belang Van Limburg . “I played for the team and tried to use my qualities for them. “By getting two goals that worked well. Unfortunately it was not enough for a win and second place (for Genk).” Genk lost 3-2 at Antwerp. The striker was also a booking away from suspension, but he said he was suspended after about an hour because he was struggling with his knee. “I did not think about that yellow card. I had so...
5 games to watch during the international break
It’s international break time, much to the dismay of fantasy football players all around the world. The international break tends to divide opinion. There are some who love watching their national side, while others just can’t wait for club football to return. If you’re on the latter side of that debate, maybe these games are something you ought to be keeping an eye on. Here are five games to watch over the international break. Belgium vs Wales (Wednesday 24th March, 19:45 GMT) Wales pulled off one of the shocks of the tournament, knocking out Belgium World Cup qualifying in Europe is tougher than it seems. While it feels like the usual suspects make it through with ease every time, there’s always potential for an upset. There are ten qualifying groups, and only the group winners gain auto...
Minister: When Nigeria receives coronavirus vaccines doesn’t lie in our hands
Since the beginning of January 2021, Nigeria has been expecting the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines, but nothing has happened to date. The World Health Organisation, WHO and GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, CEPI, came up with the COVAX initiative to ensure that low and middle-income countries have access to vaccines. But COVAX has not given a precise date for when it will begin distributing the vaccines. Nigeria has put all its hopes on the COVAX Facility. The federal government is also expecting some vaccines from the Africa Union arrangement, expected to deploy from March. This development has attracted criticisms about the government’s readiness and commitment towards ensuring the timely vaccination of Nigerians against the dreaded pande...
Minister: When Nigeria receives coronavirus vaccines doesn’t lie in our hands
Since the beginning of January 2021, Nigeria has been expecting the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines, but nothing has happened to date. The World Health Organisation, WHO and GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, CEPI, came up with the COVAX initiative to ensure that low and middle-income countries have access to vaccines. But COVAX has not given a precise date for when it will begin distributing the vaccines. Nigeria has put all its hopes on the COVAX Facility. The federal government is also expecting some vaccines from the Africa Union arrangement, expected to deploy from March. This development has attracted criticisms about the government’s readiness and commitment towards ensuring the timely vaccination of Nigerians against the dreaded pande...
China joins calls for IWF to publish list of election candidates
Nations from around the world have written to the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) to express their dismay at the governing body’s failure to publish the list of candidates for forthcoming elections. There have been complaints of poor governance, a lack of transparency, and giving an unfair advantage to certain candidates on the current IWF Executive Board who have the information that is denied to others. For the last elections in 2017 the list was published five days after the nominations deadline. This year, eight days have passed already and there is no sign of the IWF naming the candidates for President, first vice-president, vice-president, and a place on the Executive Board. The IWF is entitled, under current regulations, to wait until 30 days before the elections – Febr...
Ex-Golden Eaglet defender Joins Georgian club Saburtalo Tbilisi
Former Nigerian Under-17 international left-back, Ogaga Oduko, has completed a winter transfer to FC Saburtalo Tbilisi, one of the elite football club-sides in Georgia. Saburtalo, league champions in 2018, Georgian Cup winners in 2019 and also Georgian Supercup winners in 2020 snapped up Oduko on a two-year contract until January 2023. Ese Oduko, the adoptive father of the ex-Golden Eaglets player said his son “signed a two-year deal and might go to Belgium in the summer before moving to England.” England-based football scout, Ese Oduko who is also the CEO of Fresh Talents Football club/academy further said: “But we are hopeful for the future for him (Ogaga).” The 18-year-old who played for Nigeria at the U-17 African Cup of Nations hosted by Tanzania in 2019 has already played a friendly ...
Pfizer, BioNTech to limit delays of vaccine shipments to one week
Pfizer and BioNTech said Saturday they will limit the delays of their vaccine deliveries to just one week, after fears in Europe that shipments of the jabs could be slowed for up to a month. The US drugmaker and its German partner “have developed a plan that will allow the scale-up of manufacturing capacities in Europe and deliver significantly more doses in the second quarter,” they said in a joint statement. “As a result, our facility in Puurs, Belgium will experience a temporary reduction in the number of doses delivered in the upcoming week.” Pfizer and BioNTech pledged that deliveries would be back to the original schedule to the European Union from the week of January 25, with increased delivery from the week of February 15. “To accomplish this, certain modifications of production pr...
