Everton’s hopes of a top-four finish in the Premier League were dented by Michy Batshuayi’s 86th minute equaliser to salvage a 1-1 draw for Crystal Palace at Goodison Park on Monday. The Toffees were made to rue a string of missed chances either side of James Rodriguez’s opener as they only narrowly closed the gap on fourth-placed Chelsea to four points. Rodriguez’s return from injury for the first time since Everton ended a two-decade wait to beat Liverpool away in the Merseyside derby in February sparked a far more enterprising performance from Carlo Ancelotti’s men. Vicente Guaita was forced into fine saves from Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison in a dominant first-half display from the home side. Rodriguez finally broke the deadlock 11 minutes into the second-half when he fired hom...
Arsenal have been left breathing a huge sigh of relief after it was confirmed that the injury suffered by Martin Odegaard while on international duty is not serious. Gunners fans were left concerned on Wednesday night after the in-form Real Madrid loanee appeared to painfully roll his ankle before being substituted at half-time of Norway’s 3-0 World Cup qualifying win against Gibraltar. The absence of Odegaard for any extended period of time would have come as a sizable blow to Arsenal, with the 22-year-old having grown in influence since moving to north London in January and played a critical role in Sunday’s comeback draw against London rivals West Ham, afterwards attracting effusive praise from manager Mikel Arteta. But not only does it seem that Odegaard is now unlikely to miss key upc...
One woman was confirmed dead and 17 others were injured, in a road crash that occurred along Bauchi-Gombe road, on Wednesday, according to the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC). Yusuf Abdullahi, the Sector Commander, of the FRSC in Bauchi state, told newsmen, in Bauchi that the accident occurred in Dungulbi village, in Bauchi Local Government, when two vehicles collided with each other, as a result of wrongful overtaking. Abdullahi explained that a total of 18 people were involved in the accident between a Toyota Hummer bus with plate number FG25C04 and a commercial Ford vehicle, with a plate number KTG 808 TT. “The total number of people involved in this accident is 18, 11 males, five females, one male child and one female child, while the dead passenger is a female. “The probable cause of...
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Vaccine Taskforce has recommended compensation for citizens who suffer side effects or injury from the COVID-19 vaccination. Professor Stanley Okolo, the Director-General of the West African Health Organisation (WAHO), disclosed this at the 5th Regional Steering Committee meeting of the Regional Disease Surveillance Systems Enhancement (REDISSE) project on Saturday in Abuja. Okolo said that the recommendation was one of the resolutions adopted by the taskforce and presented to the ECOWAS Ministerial Coordinating Committee to encourage citizens to receive the vaccine. He explained during the REDISSE virtual meeting that the issue of indemnity was being taken up by the COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access, the global initiative aimed at equit...
Arsenal have this evening revealed a late update on the fitness of Emile Smith Rowe, ahead of their showdown with Burnley. Mikel Arteta’s men are set to return to action tomorrow afternoon, in a Premier League meeting with the Clarets. The Gunners will of course head into the Turf Moor clash with their tails up, on the back of a morale boosting pair of wins over the last couple of weeks. First, a last-gasp Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang header saw Arsenal get the better of Benfica, to book their spot in the Last-16 of the Europa League. And this was followed last weekend by a hugely impressive 3-1 downing of Leicester City at the King Power Stadium. The news, as a whole, proved of a positive nature, with only two players – including 3rd-choice goalkeeper Alex Runarsson – struggling as things st...
Wolves manager Nuno Espirito Santo is “totally confident” Mexico striker Raul Jimenez will be back from his fractured skull before the end of this season. Jimenez has been out of action since he suffered the horrific injury in a clash of heads with Arsenal’s David Luiz during Wolves’ Premier League win at the Emirates Stadium in November. The 29-year-old has now returned to light training and Nuno expects his star forward to feature before the season ends on May 23. “Totally confident, for sure,” Nuno said on Friday when asked about a likely return for the player this season. Jimenez scored 27 goals in all competitions for Wolves last season and has netted seven times in 15 appearances for club and country during the current campaign. Following Jimenez’s injury, Wolves won only one of thei...
Super Eagles and Napoli forward Victor Osimhen has said his 30 minutes of unconsciousness Sunday, ‘felt like a brain reset’ Osimhen was discharged to return to Naples on Monday after spending the night under observation at a hospital in Bergamo following an alarming collapse towards the end of the club’s 4-2 Serie A defeat by Atalanta on Sunday. Osimhen was knocked unconscious in a scary incident during the final minutes of the game after a challenge with Cristian Romero; he was stretchered off the pitch and taken directly to hospital. A close adviser to the player told ESPN that a disoriented Osimhen was shocked when he saw the video of the incident. “He could not believe it when they showed him the video from the incident,” the adviser said. “He said it felt like a brain reset.” Multiple...
Super Eagles center back Leon Balogun impressed in a right-back role as Rangers won in a seven -goal thriller in the Europa League round of 32 clash against Royal Antwerp at Bosuilstadion on Thursday night. With 24 minutes played, the Nigeria international came off the bench to replace Rangers skipper James Tavernier, who was not able to continue due to an injury. The right-back position is not entirely new to Balogun as he has played in that role for the national team, Mainz and Brighton & Hove. In fact, he made his debut for the Super Eagles as a right-back when he replaced Efe Ambrose in the second half of a pre-World Cup friendly against Mexico in March 2014. “I was back to an old role and I was happy I can still play it,” Balogun said at yesterday’s press conference. “I think the ...