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Mutiu Adepoju: It is wrong to call young players next Lionel Messi or Austin Okocha
AOIFOOTBALL.COM Former Super Eagles midfielder, Mutiu Adepoju, says it is wrong to call young players the next Lionel Messi or Austine Jay Jay Okocha since it puts them under lots of pressure. Adepoju, who is also nicknamed the “headmaster” in his playing days disclosed this when he spoke with BBC Sport. According to him, local media and fans must stop as it is not good for the growth of the players. He said: “I believe calling young players in the youth teams as the next Messi or Jay-Jay Okocha is unfair and unnecessary. “Indulging in this comparison is setting them up for failure because the weight of expectations will definitely affect these players mentally. “It’s the main reason some players refused to work hard and be themselves because they easily get carried away by what the press ...
Big Sam develops goose pimples over West Brom poor show
West Bromwich Albion manager, Sam Allardyce, believes the team cannot concede easy goals if they want to stay up. The Baggies endured a poor 3-0 home defeat to rivals Aston Villa during the first match of Allardyce’s time at the club. Matters were not helped by Jake Livermore getting a red card early in the game. “Yes I am upset – I couldn’t be anything else other than upset,” Allardcye told reporters when asked about Livermore’s red. “When I arrived one of the first things I said to the players was ‘lads one thing we can’t have is any more sendings off.’ “So it really is very disappointing. “They had a couple before I arrived. I’ve done my homework. That can’t happen again if we want to get out of trouble. “And we have got to stop letting in easy goals – which Villa’s first one was. It wa...
Pep Guardiola: No new striker for Manchester City due to coronavirus impact
Manchester City’s strikers will have to rediscover their scoring touch because reinforcements will not be signed in January, manager Pep Guardiola has said. Guardiola explained that even with the backing of their Abu Dhabi owners, City were subject to the same financial pressures as their rivals due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. City have scored only twice in their last three league games but hope to welcome back Brazilian striker Gabriel Jesus for Tuesday’s League Cup quarter-final with Arsenal. However, the League Cup holders’ record goalscorer Argentinian Sergio Aguero is sidelined by an undisclosed issue having had knee and illness problems already this season. Asked about the prospect of new blood coming to the club, Guardiola replied: “No I don’t think so because the eco...
Liverpool star set to leave on free transfer at end of the season
Liverpool midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum is reportedly expected to leave the club on a free transfer at the end of his contract in the summer. The Netherlands international has been a hugely important part of Jurgen Klopp’s squad for some time now, but it looks like he’s now heading for the Anfield exit instead of landing a new deal. This is currently looking the most likely scenario, according to The Athletic, who report on how Liverpool tend to have a firm stance on new contracts for players over 30. Wijnaldum is surely still an important part of this squad and many fans would surely rather he stayed for a little while longer, even if it might not be the most sensible financial decision. Liverpool have plenty of other options in midfield so should be in a strong position in that departme...
Luis Suarez admits he had preliminary agreement in place with Juventus before joining Atletico Madrid
Luis Suarez has told Italian authorities that he had a preliminary agreement in place with Juventus last summer according to Il Corriere dell’Umbria and carried by Football Italia. The Uruguayan striker ended up joining Atletico Madrid instead, but even went through an Italian citizenship exam in an effort to grease the wheels and make the move happen. This exam has become a great controversy. The 33 year-old has admitted that he was informed of the questions of the exam as well as that he reached a preliminary agreement with the Italian club at the end of August. Perugia’s Prosecutor Office confirmed at the beginning of the month the suspension for eight months from the exercise of pubic offices for the Rector of the University Giuliana Grego, the University’s CEO Simone Olivieri and prof...
Joe Aribo helps Rangers extend Scottish Premiership unbeaten run
Joe Aribo provided an assist to help Rangers extend their unbeaten run in the Scottish Premiership following a 3-1 victory over Motherwell on Saturday. The midfielder was handed his 11th league appearance as a second-half substitute and made a vital contribution for his side. Rangers started the game unimpressively, allowing their visitors to open the scoring as early as the sixth minute of the encounter through Callum Lang. The Gers struggled to level proceedings as Motherwell frustrated their efforts before respite eventually came their way when Kemar Roofe found the back of the net in the 73rd minute. Eight minutes before full-time, Cedric Itten handed Steven Gerrard’s men the lead for the first time in the game after benefitting from Ianis Hagi’s assist. Aribo then set up Roofe to scor...
Jose Mourinho drums support for under-fire Steven Bergwijn
Tottenham Hotspur coach Jose Mourinho said the team are supporting Dutchman Steven Bergwijn who missed two clear chances in Wednesday’s top-of-the-table clash at Liverpool and received criticism on social media after the 2-1 defeat. “I don’t know what I can do apart from the player knowing in this club we are all together,” Mourinho told a news conference ahead of Sunday’s game at home to Leicester City. “We lose, we win and we draw all together. So he has us and we have him. In here we don’t feel any individual criticism, we never feel it that way, it is always about us, so no problem. “He’s one of my boys, period. There is no point to boo, to individualise. He’s a good professional, he works hard for the team, he gives everything he can.” Second-placed Spurs slipped three points behind L...
Taiwo Awoniyi keen to get Super Eagles chance
Taiwo Awoniyi hopes he will get the chance to play for the Super Eagles any time soon. Awoniyi has represented Nigeria at youth levels but he is yet to get the chance to play for the senior side. The forward has impressed on loan so far at Bundesliga club Union Berlin, with three goals and one assist in 10 league appearances. The 23-year-old is keen to maintain the impressive scoring form which he believes will help him gain recognition at international level. “The national team question for me is a big thing. I remember in the U17 and U20 days, the pride to wear the national colours is massive,” Awoniyi said. “I understand that the country has talents in abundance, But I also have to stick to my principle of time and season and continue to work hard. When it’s my time I’ll take the opport...
Wuhan’s coronavirus survivors share lessons one year on
In late 2019, Wuhan businesswoman Duan Ling and her surgeon husband Fang Yushun began to hear snippets in hospital chat groups about a disease emerging in the city’s respiratory wards. Duan didn’t pay much attention at first. Fang had that year returned from a stint studying in the United States, and the pair, both 36-years-old, were planning a family, starting a costly round of fertility treatments. “But as more and more news came, we began to realise this was something different from previous infectious diseases,” said Duan. In just over a month, Fang would become one of the first people in the world to contract what came to be known as COVID-19, which has since infected over 74 million worldwide and killed more than 1.5 million. During the early days of the outbreak, the city’s hospital...
PSG confirm Neymar’s ankle injury
Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain say an initial assessment of key forward Neymar’s ankle injury has been “reassuring”. The Brazilian striker was stretched off in Sunday’s loss to Olympique Lyonnais, with the Paris side saying on Monday that he had sprained his left ankle, adding that further examinations will be carried out in the next 48 hours. In the extra time of the tie, the 28-year-old went down screaming in agony and clutching his ankle after a poor challenge from Lyon midfielder Thiago Mendes, who was thereafter sent off with a straight red. “The medical examinations carried out on Neymar are reassuring following his twisted ankle in Sunday’s game against Lyon,” PSG said. The club, and Neymar in particular, will hope the damage is not too deleterious and does not rule him out of t...
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer must avoid Jose Mourinho’s mistakes to succeed
Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has arguably fallen into the Jose Mourinho trap and needs to sort things out before they get out of hand. Sir Alex Ferguson often spoke about how, when setting his teams up, he would mostly focus on his own side and only a little attention was spent on the opponent. The legendary Scotsman made it a point to reiterate the balance was delicate and couldn’t sway too much in the other direction or it’d become dangerous. Mourinho often set United up on a match by match basis and it was why he was accused of not having any real tactics, philosophy or style at the club. When Solskjaer came in it was clear what he wanted the team to do and it was just a case of making the players do it better to show progression. It was partly why he won the job- for hav...
Pep Guardiola: Manchester City miss Sergio Aguero
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola opened up on his side’s goal scoring troubles after a goalless draw against Man United. He also talked about missing star striker Sergio Aguero. He said: “We miss Sergio but for the last six months, not just today, he was injured a lot of times. One step at a time, he still isn’t fit”. “Other players are working hard. Today he had a problem in his stomach and couldn’t make a session. He was at home”. “Of course, we miss Sergio, he is the best striker in Manchester City’s history”. “In the next short time, we will go without him and I am sure when he is fit, he will be back.” Sergio Aguero missed the Manchester derby due to sickness. The Argentine has been absent for much of City’s season till now. He was carrying an injury into the start of the new sea...
