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Lmc Declares 2017/18 Npfl Season Concluded

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Nigeria’s League Management Company (LMC) has declared the 2017/18 Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) season concluded at match-day 24.
This is after an emergency joint consultative meeting of the LMC, the 20 NPFL participating clubs and members of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Executive Committee resolved amongst many other far-reaching decisions to declare Lobi Stars as the country’s representative in next season’s CAF Champions League.
According to an LMC statement, the meeting was called against the backdrop of the adverse circumstances in the administration of football in the country, which resulted in the indefinite suspension of the resumption of the (NPFL) leading to huge fixture congestion for both league and cup competitions. The second of the six point resolution of the meeting was that none of the 20 NPFL clubs shall be relegated to the lower league.The meeting also agreed that four clubs shall be promoted from the Nigeria National League(NNL) to bring the number of the NPFL clubs for the 2018/19 season to 24.
“It was also resolved that the 2018/19 PFL season will commence in November 2018 with a total of 24 participating teams which shall be divided into two groups of 12 teams each. The 2018/2019 season commencing November 2018 will be played on 22 match days ending with a playoff to determine the winner by May 2019. Also resolved at the meeting was that three teams from each group (a total of six) will be relegated from the NPFL after the conclusion of the 2018/2019 season, while two teams will be promoted to the NPFL from the NNL 2019 season. This will allow the NPFL to revert to the normal structure of 20 teams as from the 2019/2020 season.”
“To achieve harmony in the overall national football calendar, the NFF endorsed the 2019 AITEO CUP to commence from September 2018 and to end on October 14, 2018. The NPFL teams would be seeded for the cup competition and the winner to represent Nigeria in the 2019 CAF Confederation Cup starting November 2019.
The decisions according to the communique signed by Shehu Dikko, the Chairman of LMC and NFF 2nd Vice President were reached to address “the situation which has made it practically impossible to meet up with the deadline for the submission of the list of the country’s representatives to CAF Inter-Club Competitions and also the need to commence the 2019 season in earnest to meet with the CAF new calendar that runs from August to May of the following year.”
“It became imperative for us to put into consideration the health of the NPFL players who would have to go through the rigours of tortuous travels, hectic games schedule and of course the club finances which has been thrown off balance by the unforeseen circumstances imposed by the crisis in football administration that led to the situation”, the LMC Chairman further clarified.

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Inter Best Juventus To Maintain Serie  A Lead

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Andrea Cambiaso scored at both ends during the first half of Saturday’s Derby d’Italia, before Pierre Kalulu’s red card forced Juventus to play the entire second half a man light.

Substitute Francesco Pio Esposito got Inter back in front with a bullet header, then Manuel Locatelli’s pinpoint finish looked to have salvaged a point for the Bianconeri, before Zielinski struck on the cusp of stoppage time.

Juventus made the brighter start, but they were masters of their own downfall in the 17th minute, when Cambiaso deflected Luis Henrique’s cross beyond Michele Di Gregorio.

Cambiaso atoned within nine minutes, catching Henrique on his heels when Weston McKennie’s cross squirmed through to the back post and applying a side-footed finish.

But after Bremer cleared Zielinski’s dinked effort off the line, Juve’s hopes were damaged when Kalulu received his second yellow card for a 42nd-minute pull on Alessandro Bastoni, though the Inter centre-back appeared to go down theatrically.

Di Gregorio made a remarkable stop to thwart Hakan Calhanoglu, but as Juventus dropped ever deeper, they were punished when substitute Esposito guided Federico Dimarco’s searching cross into the far corner with 76 minutes on the clock.

It looked like Inter would have to settle for a point when Locatelli whipped a wonderful finish into the bottom-left corner in the 83rd minute, but Zielinski had the final say as his 20-yard drive fizzed through Locatelli’s legs and beat Di Gregorio.

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Szoboszlai’s Real Madrid Dream Sparks Concern At Liverpool 

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A cloud of uncertainty has settled over Liverpool after comments from Hungary head coach Marco Rossi reignited speculation about Dominik Szoboszlai and Real Madrid.

Rossi, who has worked closely with Szoboszlai since his teenage years, revealed that the midfielder’s lifelong ambition is to play for the Spanish giants.

“Because of the very close and direct relationship I’ve had with Dominik since he was a child, Real Madrid has always been his dream,” Rossi said.

For a Liverpool side building around Szoboszlai as a centerpiece of Arne Slot’s project, those words landed hard.

Within hours of Rossi’s remarks, Szoboszlai interacted on social media with two Real Madrid players, applauding posts from Vinicius Junior and Trent Alexander-Arnold following Madrid’s win over Real Sociedad.

His reaction to Vinicius’ post drew particular attention. The exchange with Alexander-Arnold, his former Liverpool teammate, was seen as less surprising.

Still, in the hyper-connected world of elite soccer, even a digital thumbs-up can carry weight. On Merseyside, fans and pundits quickly began dissecting the meaning behind the interactions.

Szoboszlai, Hungary’s captain, has become one of Liverpool’s most influential players. That status is precisely why Rossi’s comments triggered such an intense reaction in England.

The midfielder had just delivered on the field as well, scoring in Liverpool’s 3-0 FA Cup fourth-round victory over Brighton & Hove Albion at Anfield.

After the match, Mohamed Salah heaped praise on his teammate, calling Szoboszlai “the best player in the world.” Slot struck a slightly more measured tone but echoed the sentiment.

“I think there are many elite players in the world, but I definitely agree with Mo that he is one of them,” Slot said. “He is very important for us.”

Szoboszlai is under contract at Liverpool through 2028. However, the club is reportedly eager to open extension talks in the coming months to secure his long-term future.

The player himself addressed the situation recently with notable candor.

“There’s nothing yet, to be honest. Nothing from now on. It’s not in my hands. That’s how it works,” he said. “There’s no progress, but if the right offer comes, we’ll see.”

He was equally clear about his affection for Liverpool.

“We’ll see what happens. Hopefully everyone will be happy in the end. Of course I want to stay. I like the city, I like the club, I like playing with these guys. I love Anfield, I love the fans. Let’s see what the future brings. It’s not my fault. I’d love to stay. We’ll see.”

 

Inter’s dramatic victory boosted their lead over rivals AC Milan to eight points, ahead of the Rossoneri hosting Como on Wednesday. Juventus, meanwhile, could drop out of the top four as Roma visited Napoli last night.

The last four Serie A matches between Inter and Juventus have produced a total of 21 goals (an average of 5.25 per game), compared to just nine in the previous six (1.5 per game).

Cambiaso became the first player in Derby d’Italia history to score and put through his own net in the same match between these old rivals, but it was Zielinski’s fifth Serie A goal of the season that proved decisive.

Inter will argue they were deserved victors after amassing 21 shots and 1.88 expected goals (xG), while Luciano Spalletti’s visitors mustered 10 shots and 0.92 xG – though the Bianconeri actually attempted six of their shots while down a man in the second half.

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Wolves Beat Man Utd Conquerors

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Premier League strugglers Wolves overcame resolute Grimsby Town in challenging conditions at Blundell Park to reach the FA Cup fifth round at the expense of the side that eliminated Manchester United in the last round.

Santiago Bueno scored from Wolves’ only shot on target with an hour played, diverting Joao Gomes’ cross past goalkeeper Jackson Smith with his thigh to end the League Two club’s resistance.

Unrelenting rainfall caused heavy ground underfoot and one penalty area in particular- that of Grimsby’s Smith in the first half – was already a quagmire before kick-off.

Charles Vernam shot narrowly wide from the edge of the box with just 43 seconds on the clock as Grimsby sought to catch their top-flight visitors cold.

Wolves had to wait until the 17th minute for their first opportunity of note, forward Tolu Arokodare firing over with a first-time attempt.

The white paint of the pitch markings soon blended and blurred with the mud as the surface rapidly deteriorated, and both sides struggled to stitch together cohesive attacks as passes travelled unpredictably across the sodden ground.

 

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