Sports
Coronavirus: CAF Keen To Keep 2021 AFCON Dates
The Confederation of African Football has no plans to cancel any of its forthcoming competitions because of the coronavirus pandemic, hoping it can reschedule all.
This would mean that the next Africa Cup of Nations will still be played in January-February 2021, despite this week’s 48 qualifiers being indefinitely postponed.
Meanwhile, great uncertainty surrounds this year’s Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, a competition which was in trouble prior to the outbreak, with no host selected and the competition earmarked to start in November.
Elsewhere, CAF is awaiting welcome developments regarding coronavirus prior to rescheduling dates for both Africa’s leading club competitions as well as the African Nations Championship (CHAN).
“As of today, no competition has been cancelled and there is no plan for that,” Acting Secretary General Abdel Bah said on Monday.
“We are working on different options to reschedule the competitions impacted.”
This week should have witnessed the third and fourth of the six rounds of qualifying required to determine which teams will contest the 2021 Nations Cup in Cameroon.
Instead, no football has been played after CAF put all competitive matches on hold following the coronavirus outbreak, which has now reached over 40 African nations.
“We clearly hope that the crisis will be over by August,” added Bah, one of few staff to be working at CAF’s headquarters in Egypt, since many are working from home.
“If it’s confirmed, we could then play the Nations Cup qualifiers between September and November, and keep the dates of the Nations Cup.”
CAF had scheduled a round of Nations Cup qualifiers apiece in both June and September, by when the 23 team joining hosts Cameroon should have been determined.
The international windows in October and November set aside for 2022 World Cup qualifiers are now likely to give way to the delayed Nations Cup qualifiers.
World Cup qualifying for Qatar would then start in 2021, possibly continuing into early 2022, with April of that year the current date for the World Cup draw.
With uncertainty surrounding the ends of 2019-20 seasons in Europe and the possibility of shortened 2020-21 seasons too, staging the Nations Cup in January is likely to reintroduce the clubs-versus-country rows that have often preceded the tournament.
In contrast to the next men’s Nations Cup, the next women’s tournament is fraught with logistical complications and questions.
Even before the coronavirus struck, not one qualifier had been played in a tournament that is not only expanding to 12 teams for the first time but which also, with less than eight months to go, lacks a host.
However, two nations have expressed an interest in staging the event.
“We have received proposals from Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea,” said Bah, who became Acting Secretary General earlier this month after the surprise resignation of Mouad Hajji.
“ CAF has asked for additional documents from these two member associations, which we are still awaiting today.
“Basically, for both of them, we have asked for additional guarantees from the highest authorities of their countries.”
Governments tend to have to express their willingness to fund major tournaments in writing before CAF hands out hosting rights, with Bah saying ‘it could be long’ before such documentation arrives.
Congo were originally named as hosts of the Women’s Nations Cup, whose first qualifying round had been set for next month, prior to pulling out in July 2019.
CAF had aimed to stage both the CHAN, the tournament for African footballers based in their own leagues, and the decisive stages of its club competitions in April and May respectively.
However, the CHAN – once set to run between 4-25 April in Cameroon – and both the Champions League and Confederation Cup semi-finals and finals, due to take place in May, have all been delayed indefinitely.
Sports
Inter Best Juventus To Maintain Serie A Lead
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.
Sports
Szoboszlai’s Real Madrid Dream Sparks Concern At Liverpool
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.
Sports
Wolves Beat Man Utd Conquerors
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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