Sports
Chelsea, Arsenal Chase Europa Glory In Baku, Today
Chelsea and Arsenal will conclude their packed 2018-19 seasons today as they face off for Europa League glory in Azerbaijan.
Ignoring for now the problems associated with staging the final in Baku, neither side can be said to have had a trouble-free time of things over the past 10 months or so.
Maurizio Sarri and Unai Emery have, in some respects, enjoyed success in their first seasons in charge, but each man is facing concerns that will be magnified should they end up on the losing side today.
The climax of the Europa League will deliver the defining verdict on their first seasons in charge for Arsenal manager Unai Emery and his Chelsea counterpart Maurizio Sarri.
The final will shape how their campaigns are viewed – although for Italian Sarri there is no guarantee that even victory will see him handed a second season at Stamford Bridge.
A major European trophy is at stake. Sarri’s job may be at stake. On the other hand, Arsenal’s future is at stake, as they know only victory will lead them to the riches of the Champions League next season.
The final may mean little more than a successful conclusion to a complex, contradictory season for the chain-smoking Sarri,, who arrived at Chelsea after his work at Napoli drew glowing references from the cream of the coaching crop, including Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola.
It may yet rank as only something Sarri leaves for Chelsea to remember him by.
Sarri’s season at Chelsea has been conducted against the backdrop of discontent among supporters who grew tired of his predictable substitutions.
For Arsenal’s Emery, the final means a return to familiar territory for the man who has made this tournament a spectacular speciality, winning it three times in succession at Sevilla, the last time when impressively outmanoeuvring Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool in Basel in 2015.
Emery has shown the sure touch of an expert in guiding Arsenal past Napoli and Valencia in the knockout stages and, from a personal point of view, winning in Baku would simply strengthen the confidence of the Gunners’ hierarchy that they have the right man to move the club forward after the 22-year reign of Arsene Wenger.
In many respects, however, overcoming Chelsea today will mean more to Arsenal’s long-term future than to Emery’s, who will be given time and patience to shape the club irrespective of the outcome in Azerbaijan.
Arsenal risk falling further adrift of the Premier League elite if they are out of the Champions League for another season – especially with neighbours Spurs, who lived in their shadow for so long, contesting the Champions League final with Liverpool in Madrid on Saturday.
For Emery, securing his status as the man to win Arsenal’s first European trophy since the 1994 European Cup Winners’ Cup will increase his own confidence and that of those who employed him.
Sports
CAA Wants Ghana To Host 2026 Athletics Champions
The Confederation of African Athletics has invited Ghana to bid for the hosting rights of the 2026 African Athletics Championships, following a successful athletics event at the just concluded 2023 African Games.
President of Ghana Athletics, Bawa Fuseini, stated this and expressed confidence in the transformative potential of the Legon Stadium for athletes and Ghana’s bid to host international competitions.
With a capacity of 11,000, the Legon Stadium played a pivotal role in the recent African Games, hosting both the opening and closing ceremonies as well as various sporting events including athletics, football, and rugby.
Fuseini highlighted the success of the athletics events held at the stadium, which contributed to Ghana winning six medals.
“We have already started getting requests from the Confederation of African Athletics to bid for the 2026 African Athletics Championships.
“When they came and saw what we have put in place and the level of organisation, they told me that for the last 20 years, they’ve never seen any organisation like this before. We did three official courses. And the last one, we had 110, all of them passed. We had a lot of officials and equipment.”
Since its establishment in 1979, Ghana has never hosted the African Athletics Championships, with Nigeria being the host country twice, in 1989 and 2018.
This year, Cameroon will take the reins as the host nation, with the event set to be held at the Olembe Stadium.
Sports
Onigbinde Not Sacked – Chairman
Chairman of Doma United, Suleiman Umar, has said head, coach Akinade Onigbinde was not relieved of his duties after the club announced former Kwara United, Niger Tornadoes and Katsina United coach, Abubakar Bala, as an addition to their technical crew.
Bala was announced as the technical adviser by the club on Wednesday.
According to the club, Bala’s appointment was necessitated by the dwindling fortunes of the team in the second stanza of the Nigeria Premier Football League, which has seen them drop to 13th in the table with 34 points after 27 matches.
“The appointment of Coach Bala is imperative given our recent challenges in the second half of the season. We believe his extensive experience in managing teams within the league will significantly contribute to our objective of maintaining our status,” Umar said in a statement.
“It’s worth noting that coach Bala will be collaborating closely with Coach Onigbinde and our dedicated coaching staff. The technical department is not open to all, and we caution against unwarranted meddling as we remain focused on our objectives.”
The Savannah Tigers are winless in eight matches since the start of the second stanza with their last win in the league being their 2-0 win over Katsina United in January.
Their performance is a stark contrast to the first half of the campaign, when they ranked in the top three.
With 11 matches to the end of the season, Bala and Onigbinde must find a way to rescue the club as they sit just three points above the relegation zone.
Sports
‘I’m Not Under Pressure To Coach Eagles’
Finidi George, head coach of the Nigeria Premier Football Leagues side, Enyimba, has stated that he is not losing any sleep over getting the Super Eagles job on a permanent basis.
Early this month, the Nigeria Football Federation declared the position of the Super Eagles’ head coach vacant, following the exit of Portuguese Jose Peseiro, who led the side to a second-place finish at the 2023 Africa Cup Nations in Ivory Coast in February.
In an advertisement on its website calling for applications with a March 13 deadline, the football governing body stated that the prospective Eagles coach “must have proven experience at the elite level of football.”
The former Ajax man, who also applied for the job, was appointed Eagles interim coach for the international window with the former winger picking a win and suffering a defeat.
In an interview with Tidesports source, the 52-year-old tactician said he was not desperate for the job permanently.
“I felt really good when I was told to take charge of the team. I have been with the team for almost two years, I know all the players, their strengths, and their weaknesses but I am only here to serve Nigeria the way I know how to do stuff.
“I will just take these two games and go back to my club. Whatever the decision is taken after, so be it. I’m not under pressure to say I must get the role permanently.”
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