Sports
Athletes Shun Akure League Over Prize Money
Some track and field
athletes have threatened to boycott the Nigeria Athletics Federation (AFN) organised Golden League scheduled for Akure.
The athletes told newsmen in Lagos that the prize money for the two previous competitions in Abuja and Ilorin had not been paid.
The AFN’s league is organised every two weeks in different states to harness talents for national assignments.
The winner of the first position is to earn N40,000 and the second N30, 000, while the third and fourth positions are to get N20, 000 and N15,000 respectively.
The fifth placed athlete is to earn N10,000 and the sixth to get N5,000, while the first place winners in relay are to get N30,000, second N25, 000 and third N20,000.
Temidayo Oshunbanjo runs 100m hurdles, Eze Anayo who does 800m and Abike Egbeniyi for 1,500m women.
The athletes, who claimed to be speaking for their colleagues, said they were tired of unfulfilled promises by the organisers over their outstanding prize monies.
Oshunbanjo, a gold medalist from the Abuja event in April said: “As a professional, I am supposed to live from my career and not promise.
“From the kick-off of the league in Abuja, no prize money has been given to anybody, we all expected the money at the Ilorin event two Saturdays ago but to no avail.
“The Akure event will be a show down on individual basis devoid of conspiracy, the athletes are poised to down tool to drive home their demand,” Oshunbanjo said.
Anayo, also a gold medalist in the 800m of the league at Ilorin said: “We have had enough of their unfulfilled promises and we don’t live on pledges, they should pay us now.
“The consternation you see us express cut across the ranks of the participating athletes, it is quite regrettable that such a thing is happening now,” Anayo said.
Egbeniyi, a bronze medalist of the competition said that AFN should make the welfare of athletes their topmost priority.
“With the feelings around the athletes only all-comers will be at the Akure event.
“The professional athletes are tired of misleading promises from the organisers and will not be part of the third leg of the league in Akure unless we are paid,” she said.
Meanwhile, Uruemu Adu, Assistant Secretary, Athletes Coaches Association, said the issue of athletes prize money had been resolved by the AFN and that they would be paid at Akure.
Adu told newsmen that there was an issue about who should be handed over the cheque.
“The issue has been resolved by AFN without the knowledge of the athletes, the initial problem had to do with who should AFN hand over the cheque to.
“Because the coaches are entitled to some percentage of the prize money,’’ Adu said.
He said the federation was using the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) guideline of 25 per cent to coaches and 75 per cent for athletes to resolve the issue.
According to him, the issue was resolved after the Ilorin event with the athlete’s representative Falilat Ogunkoya.
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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