Nations
PSG boss: Idrissa Gueye a pleasure to work with
Paris Saint-Germain manager Mauricio Pochettino has revealed his delight to work with Idrissa Gueye and praised him for his contribution to his side. The midfielder is currently spending his second season at Parc des Princes, having teamed up with the club from Premier League side Everton in the summer of 2019. Gueye has featured in more than 60 games since joining the side and in the current campaign, he has made 42 appearances, scoring two goals and providing one assist across all competitions. His performances ensured the Parisians to their second spot on the Ligue 1 table and their progression into the semi-finals of the Champions League. Pochettino has lauded the impact of the Senegal international to his side ahead of their encounter with the Maroons. “He’s a player with experience, ...
George Weah wants Liberia to host AFCON
Reuters Liberian President and football legend George Weah has stated that the West African country should host the Africa Cup of Nations tournament in the future. Weah, who has served as Liberia’s president since January 2018 and was FIFA’s World Player of the Year (now known as the Ballon d’Or) in 1995, revealed this ambition while speaking at the official commissioning ceremony of the Samuel K Doe Sports Complex practice pitch earlier this week. The 54-year-old believes that if Liberia can build new venues, hosting the AFCON is a realistic proposition. “Everywhere they’re hosting African Cup, the only reason we can’t host it they will tell you we don’t have so many fields, we don’t have the facilities but I can assure you, we will continue to advocate and make sure the facilities are bu...
Ohanaeze: No ‘no man’s land’ in Igbo land
The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, has warned non-Igbo indigenes residing in the South-East to erase ‘no man’s land’ from their minds. President General Of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Prof George Obiozor, stated this during a press briefing at the headquarters of Ohanaeze Ndigbo worldwide in Enugu on Thursday. He also welcomed the formation of South-East security outfit, Ebubeagu, while assuring the governors of the zone of his support. Obiozor said, “Once more, I state that there is no No Man’s land in Igbo land. Land is a very sensitive issue in Igbo land because land has owners including some Igbo Deities. Those encroaching on land in Alaigbo are provoking our people and our Deities.” Obiozor’s comment was a veiled reference to the herdsmen crisis rocking the nat...
Minister: Nigerian government worried about rising unemployment rate
Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has said the federal government is worried over the rising unemployment rate in the country. Speaking at the 2nd Shakeholders’ Meeting on Expatriate Quota Administration organized by the Citizenship and Business Department of the Ministry of Interior, the Minister said: “Anyone that is not worried about the unemployment rate in the country is not a patriot.” He lamented that the unemployment rate of 33 per cent released by the National Bureau of Statistics was indeed worrisome and a wake up call that something urgently needed to be done to keep Nigerians employed and drastically reduce the unemployment rate. The Minister, who called on all stakeholders at the meeting to ensure quality inputs were brought to the table that will lead to the produ...
Nigeria to benefit as G-20 approves extension of debt relief
Finance ministers of G-20 countries have approved an extension of debt relief for the world’s poorest nations till December 2021. David Malpass, World Bank president, made the announcement at the virtual spring meeting, on Wednesday. TheCable had earlier reported that the G-20 countries will meet this week to consider an extension of the debt freeze. The G-20, is a group of finance ministers and central bank governors from 19 of the world’s largest economies, including those of many developing nations, along with the European Union. G-20 countries had established a debt service suspension initiative (DSSI) which took effect in May 2020. Nigeria had benefited from the initiative which delivered about $5 billion in relief to more than 40 eligible countries. The suspension period which was or...
Manchester United’s Eric Bailly tests positive for coronavirus after Ivory Coast duty
Getty Images Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer confirmed Eric Bailly has tested positive for coronavirus after his international duty with Ivory Coast. Bailly missed the Red Devils’ 2-1 comeback win over Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday as goals from Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood extended their unbeaten run to 10 Premier League matches. Amad Diallo, who made his international debut for the Elephants during their 3-0 defeat of Niger on March 26, is back in Manchester and was an unused substitute at Old Trafford. Solskjaer, in his team’s update, disclosed that Bailly – who was an unused substitute in Ivory Coast’s final Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match against Ethiopia last Tuesday – is yet to return to England and will not be available for selection for the time...
Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan launch new Nile dam talks in DRC
A new round of African Union-mediated talks between Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan has begun aimed at resolving a years-long dispute over a massive dam built by Addis Ababa on the Blue Nile, a main tributary of the Nile river. The three-day talks that kicked off on Saturday are taking place in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the current chair of the AU. Foreign and irrigation ministers of the three nations were attending the talks over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), along with AU experts, according to Ethiopia’s Irrigation Minister Seleshi Bekele. A Sudanese diplomat was quoted as saying by The Associated Press news agency that the experts from the three countries and the AU met on Saturday, ahead of ministers who would meet on Sunday and Monday. He s...
AFCONQ: CAF confirms new date for Sierra Leone vs Benin clash
The Confederation of African Football has announced the postponed Africa Cup of Nations qualification encounter between Sierra Leone and Benin Republic will now take place during the June international window. The Group L fixture initially billed for Tuesday, March 30, at the National Stadium, Freetown did not take place owing to a Covid-19 controversy. However, both teams will now square up against one another in three months’ time – a game that will determine the last team to secure a place for Cameroon 2022. “The Africa Cup of Nations organizing committee has decided to postpone the above-mentioned match to the next Fifa international window scheduled for June 2021. We thank you in advance for your cooperation and understanding,” a post from Benin Football Federation Facebook page read....
AFCONQ: Super Eagles beat Crocodiles to end campaign unbeaten
Nigeria ended the 2022 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers with a 3-0 victory over Lesotho at Teslim Balogun Stadium. Victor Osimhen, Oghenekaro Etebo and Paul Onuachu strikes helped the Super Eagles to end the Afcon campaign unbeaten and finished at the top of the Group L table with 14 points. Nigeria headed into the encounter, having already secured their place at the biennial tournament, scheduled for Cameroon. Coach Gernot Rohr made a few changes to the team that started their 1-0 victory over the Republic of Benin at Stade Charles de Gaulle on Friday. The German tactician started Francis Uzoho Etebo and Tyronne Ebuehi who did not feature against the Squirrels in Porto Novo. Iwobi also returned to the starting XI after missing his side’s last outing as he tested positive for Covid-19 befo...
CAN: Skewed appointments polarising Nigeria
File Photo The National President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Reverend Dr Supo Ayokunle, has said the polarisation being experienced was triggered by “skewed appointments” made by leaders of the country. The lopsided appointment, according to him, is polarising the nation on daily basis. He said the worsening security situation has shown that our leaders are at a loss of what to do. This came just as the new nations of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, Bishop Francis Wale Oke frowned at those calling for negotiation with bandits who kill, kidnap, rape and demand huge ransom saying the government has to put its feet on the ground to prosecute them as the law demands. Rev Ayokunle said this at thanksgiving service marking the election of Bishop Francis Wale Oke as the 7th n...
NANS flays ‘commercialisation’ of tertiary institutions
The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), has decried an alleged clandestine move to commercialise public tertiary institutions stressing that it might deprive many the access to quality education. The NANS National President, Com Sunday Asefon, said this on Thursday at the Lagos State University (LASU), while speaking on the decadence of the Nigerian educational system. Asefon in a statement entitled : ‘Need to Perceive Education As a Social Service’ , and made available to newsmen in Ado Ekiti, on Friday, said any developing nation that views education from the prism of commercialisation would fail in giving the youth the right attitude to life. The students leader described education as a veritable weapon to rid the society of ignorance, criminality, and building of future l...
Thousands flee to Thailand after Myanmar army’s air strikes on villages
About 3,000 villagers from Myanmar’s southeastern Karen state fled to Thailand on Sunday following air attacks by the army on an area held by an ethnic armed group, an activist group and local media said. Myanmar’s military launched air strikes on five areas in Mutraw district, near the border, including a displacement camp, the Karen Women’s Organization said. “At the moment, villagers are hiding in the jungle as more than 3,000 crossed to Thailand to take refuge,” a statement from the group said. Thai PBS reported about 3,000 had reached Thailand. Thai authorities did not immediately respond to requests for comment. At least two soldiers from the Karen National Union were killed, said David Eubank, founder of the Free Burma Rangers, a relief organisation. “We haven’t had air strikes ther...
