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Pillars Boss Happy With Draw

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Kano Pillars coach Salisu Yusuf was pleased with both the endeavour and the result from his side’s opening day 1-1 draw at Kaduna United.

Ali Rabiu put the northern aristocrats in front before they were pegged back by Siman Yusuf’s mean volley into the roof of the net.

But Salisu was happy to come away with a point on the road

“I am happy with the draw. Normally every first game of the season is difficult, especially when it is an away match,” Salisu told the NPL’s official website.

“To pick a point in the first away match is no mean feat. We are surely going to improve on the performance.

“By the time we played up to three matches, the team would have picked up. I don’t have any doubt in my mind that we have the crop of players that will make us proud this season,” Salisu said.

Neighbours Kaduna United and Kano Pillars opened the 2010/2011 Nigeria Premier League season with an entertaining 1-1 draw at the Kaduna Township Stadium on Saturday.

Rabiu Ali volleyed Pillars in front after 28 minutes, and Siman Yusuf found parity for the hosts eight minutes before the interval.

A near full house in Kaduna witnessed the kickoff of a season which has suffered multiple postponements.

NPL chairman Davidson Owumi led a glittering cast of ex internationals, including Daniel Amokachi and Victor Ikpeba who witnessed the opening day of the season.

They were not to be disappointed by the passion and desire of the their successors, if not the quality of football.

Both sides had early chances to open the scoring, but Pillars looked the stronger side, and it was no surprise when they went in front.

Ali found himself on the end of an inch perfect ball from deep, and just had time to turn before lashing in on the half volley under Kaduna goalkeeper Richard Ochayi’s despairing dive to his bottom left hand corner.

Falling behind sparked the home side into life, and they laid siege to the visitors half.

Reward quickly followed endeavour. And it took barely eight minutes.

If Ali’s goal was of perfect quality to open the season, the leveler was even better. Sani Aruwa turned on a coin halfway into the Pillars half, and played an excellent ball into the right channel for Siman Yusuf.

Just like Ali before him, Yusuf allowed the ball to run in front of him, then unleashed a thunderbolt to the roof of Theophilus Afelokhai’s net.

Both sides could have added to their tally in the second period, but the profligacy that afflicts players in the domestic game continued, with Kaduna’s Jude Aneke the villain of the piece.

In the end, it finished with no further goals, and the biggest relief will be among the fans. At least, the season is finally underway.

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Gyokeres Situation, Transfer Under Cloud At Sporting

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Sporting have not received an offer for striker Viktor Gyokeres and there is no gentleman’s agreement for him to leave for £59million, says club president Frederico Varandas.
Sweden international Gyokeres, 27, has been heavily linked with Manchester United and Arsenal after scoring 97 goals in 102 matches during two seasons in Portugal.
He has a 100m euro (£85m) release clause in his contract.
It has been widely reported that, after staying at Sporting last summer, Gyokeres and Sporting agreed he could leave for 70m euros (£59m) this summer.
However, Varandas said the club’s only promise to Gyokeres was that they would not demand his full release clause.
“I can guarantee that Viktor Gyokeres will not leave for 60m euros plus 10m euros because I never promised that,” Varandas said.
“To this day Sporting has not had an offer for Gyokeres, neither today nor last season.”
Gyokeres spent three seasons with Coventry City in the Championship before joining Sporting under Ruben Amorim.
Manchester City director of football Hugo Viana was sporting director at Sporting last summer, when Gyokeres’ agent sought assurances about his leaving if a suitable offer arrived.
“One of the agent’s biggest concerns was whether we would demand the termination clause,” said Varandas.
“He wanted to guarantee certain things. And what was agreed? That Sporting would not demand a release clause now.
“For one reason: he was going to be 27 years old and no player leaves Portugal at 27 for 100m eurors or 90m euros.
“In that same meeting the agent wanted to anchor the exit to a value. I said this sentence: ‘It’s not worth us setting a value because I don’t know what will happen in a year’s time. I don’t know if it will be 40m euros, 60m euros or 80m euros. What I can guarantee is that I will not demand 100 million euros.’”

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Concacaf Opposes 64-Team W’Cup Plans

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Concacaf President Victor Montagliani has criticised a proposal to expand the 2030 men’s World Cup to 64 teams.
The plans, put forward by South American governing body Conmebol, have also drawn opposition from Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
The tournament will be hosted by Spain, Morocco and Portugal, after the opening matches are held in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.
The 2026 World Cup, which will take place across the United States, Mexico and Canada, has already been expanded from 32 to 48 teams.
But Conmebol said it wanted to add more participants to mark the competition’s 100-year anniversary.
“I don’t believe expanding the men’s World Cup to 64 teams is the right move for the tournament itself and the broader football ecosystem, from national teams to club competitions, leagues, and players,” Montagliani told Tidesports source
“We haven’t even kicked off the new 48-team World Cup yet, so personally, I don’t think that expanding to 64 teams should even be on the table.”
Concacaf is the governing body of football in North America, Central America and the Caribbean.
The decision to expand the 2026 World Cup to 48 teams was taken in 2017 following a unanimous vote at a Fifa congress.
Fifa’s 75th congress will be held in Paraguay on 15 May, when Conmebol’s proposal could be discussed.
If the proposal is accepted, the 2030 edition would consist of 128 matches, double the number played under the 64-game format used from 1998 and 2022.
In March, Ceferin described the proposal as a “bad idea” while AFC president Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa said it would cause “chaos”.
“If the issue remains open to change, then the door will not only be open to expanding the tournament to 64 teams,” said Salman.
“But someone might come along and demand raising the number to 132 teams. Where would we end up then? It would become chaos.”

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Brazil Edge Paraguay, Book W’Cup Spot

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Brazil qualified for the 2026 World Cup this week with a 1-0 win against Paraguay in South American qualifying to give Carlo Ancelotti his first win as manager.
Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jnr scored from close range in the second half, finishing after fine work from Manchester United-bound playmaker Matheus Cunha.
The victory, Ancelotti’s first after a 0-0 draw against Ecuador on his debut last week, means Brazil has now qualified for every edition of the World Cup.
“We needed to win and qualify for the World Cup,” said Vinicius Jr.
“Now the coach will have more time to work. Of course today wasn’t one of our best performances, but the important thing is always to win.
“Now it’s time to celebrate qualifying.”
Elsewhere, World Cup holders Argentina played out an entertaining 1-1 draw with Colombia in Buenos Aires.
Liverpool winger Luis Diaz opened the scoring with a fine individual goal, dancing through three defenders before finishing past Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.
Argentina was reduced to 10 men with 20 minutes remaining when Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez was sent off for a high-boot challenge on Colombia’s Kevin Castano.
But Lionel Messi’s side found an equaliser nine minutes from the end through Lyon’s Thiago Almada, leaving Colombia four points clear of seventh-placed Venezuela.
Ecuador, Argentina’s nearest challengers, booked their spot at next summer’s tournament in Canada, Mexico and the United States after a 0-0 draw away at Peru.

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