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How African Stars Played In Europe

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This concludes our cov
erage for Saturday, 27 August. Please join AfricanFootball tomorrow for more coverage of the continent’s best players in Europe at the weekend.
Full time in the Ligue 1 matches, where Thievy Bifouma’s Bastia went down 2-0 away to Caen, Benoit Assou-Ekotto has made a sub appearance for Metz in a 2-0 win over Angers, Ryad Boudebouz provided an assist for Montpellier in their 1-1 draw with Rennes, Mustapha Diallo scored for Guingamp in a 2-0 win at Nancy and Yassine Benzia provided an assist for Lille in their 1-1 draw at Nice.
Closing in on full time in France’s Ligue 1, while we’re half an hour away from kick-off in the late La Liga game which sees Leganes (who have Algeria’s Carl Medjani on the bench) host mighty Atletico Madrid.
News of another goal for Faouzi Ghoulam and Kalidou Koulibaly’s Napoli, who are now 2-0 up against AC Milan thanks to a second goal from Arkadiusz Milik.
Past the hour mark in the Ligue 1 games, Mustapha Diallo has scored to put Guingamp 1-0 up away to Nancy.
News of a goal in Italy, where Arkadiusz Milik has scored to put Faouzi Ghoulam’s Napoli 1-0 up at home to Italy. No further goals in the second half in France’s Ligue 1.
Back underway in the second half in the Ligue 1 games, while in Italy it’s still 0-0 between Kalidou Koulibaly’s Napoli and AC Milan.
Half time in France, no African goal scorers as yet, here are the scores so far: Caen 0-0 Bastia, Metz 1-0 Angers, Montpellier 1-0 Rennes, Nancy 0-0 Guingamp and Nice 1-1 Lille (where Algerian Yassine Benzia provided an assist for the latter’s goal).
Ten minutes from the second and last Serie A game of the day which sees Napoli host AC Milan. The former feature Faouzi Ghoulam and Kalidou Koulibaly in their starting XI.
Finished in the Premier League, where Eric Bailly’s Manchester United snatched a late, late 1-0 win over Hull City. In the Bundesliga, Ibrahima Traore’s Monchengladbach beat Bayer Leverkusen 2-1.
We’re also finished in Spain’s early games, where Aymen Abdennour’s Valencia lost 1-0 at Eibar, while Real Sociedad won 2-0 at Osasuna. Kicking off now is the third La Liga match, Real Madrid v Celta Vigo, which has no African involvement.
Done and dusted in Italy, where Kwadwo Asamoah, Mario Lemina and Mehdi Benatia have helped Juventus win 1-0 at Lazio.
We’re underway in France’s Ligue 1 evening games, where we are sure to have a few African scorers…
Nancy v Guingamp sees Guy N’Dy Assembe and Youssouf Hadji start for the former, while Mustapha Diallo features for the latter. Nice have Jean-Michael Seri in their XI for the visit of Lille, who feature Adama Soumaoro, Younousse Sankhare, Vincent Enyeama and Yassine Benzia.
Kwadwo Asamoah’s Juventus have a lead at Lazio thanks to Sami Khedira’s goal, while Aymen Abdennour’s Valencia are 1-0 down at Eibar. Further team news from France: Montpellier feature Ryad Boudebouz and Steve Mounie for their home match against Rennes, who have Rami Bensebaini, Giovanni Sio and Sitoe Mexer in their XI.
Let’s start looking ahead to French Ligue 1 matches kicking off at 20h00. Caen feature Syam Ben Yousseff for their home clash with Bastia, who have Thievy Bifouma and Mehdi Mostefa in their starting XI, while Georges Mandjeck and Cheick Doukoure start for Metz at home to Angers, who have Karl-Toko Ekambi, Cheick N’Doye and Ismael Traore in their run-on team.
Half time in the Premier League, Ahmed Elmohamady’s Hull are holding Man United 0-0. In the Bundesliga, Ibrahim Traore’s Monchengladbach are 1-0 up against Leverkusen.
Not many goals at the moment… still 0-0 between Hull and Eric Bailly’s Man United in the Premier League, as well as between Lazio and Juve in Italy, and Ibrahim Traore’s Monchengladbach and Bayer Leverkusen.
Full time in the early Ligue 1 game, where Dijon have beaten Lyon 4-2 at home. The victors featured two African goal scorers: Julio Tavares of Cape Verde and DR Congo substitute Dylan Bahamboula.
Almost up to half time in Serie A, where Kwadwo Asamoah’s Juventus are being held 0-0 at Lazio.
Underway in both the Premier League and Bundesliga, while in France’s Ligue 1 Nicolas N’Koulou’s Lyon are 3-2 down away to Julio Tavares’ Dijon with about 20 minutes to play.
Fifteen minutes until the final Bundesliga game of the day, where Ibrahima Traore starts for Borussia Monchengladbach at home to Bayer Leverkusen.
In five minutes we have the first two La Liga matches of the day kicking off in Spain. Tunisian defender Aymen Abdennour starts for Valencia at Eibar, while Osasuna host Real Sociedad in the other fixture.
The six Premier League matches have wrapped up, here are the full time scores: Chelsea 3-0 Burnley, Palace 1-1 Bournemouth, Everton 1-0 Stoke, Leicester 2-1 Swansea, Southampton 1-1 Sunderland and Watford 1-3 Arsenal. The final game of the day in England kicks off in half an hour and sees Hull City host Manchester United. Ahmed Elmohamady starts for the former, while the latter have Ivorian defender Eric Bailly at centre-back.
Julio Tavares has scored for Dijon, who are holding Lyon 2-2 at half time in the early Ligue 1 game.
Victor Moses has a goal for Chelsea, making it 3-0 over Burnley as we approach full time in the Premier League matches which kicked off at 16h00.
We’re done and dusted in the Bundesliga, with the highlight from an African perspective the two goals from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to see Dortmund win 2-1 against Mainz. Here are the other results: Koln 2-0 Darmstadt, Augsburg 0-2 Wolfsburg, Frankfurt 1-0 Schalke and Hamburger 1-1 Ingolstadt. Modou Barrow has provided an assist to see Swansea pull a goal back against Leicester, it’s 2-1 to the champions at King Power Stadium.
The first Italian Serie A match of the day kicks off in 25 minutes and sees Lazio host champions Juventus. The home side has Angolan Bastos in their starting line-up, while Juve’s run-on XI features Moroccan Mehdi Benatia as well as Mario Lemina and Kwadwo Asamoah of Gabon and Ghana respectively.
Lyon lead 1-0 away to Dijon, with Clorentin Tolisso scoring to put Nicolas N’Koulou’s team ahead in the early Ligue 1 match. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has a second goal for Dortmund today, netting from the penalty spot to give them a 2-0 lead against Mainz.
Riyad Mahrez has just had a penalty saved, it remains 2-0 to Leicester against Swansea, while Watford have a goal back against Arsenal, with Odion Ighalo playing a role in a strike from Roberto Pereyra.
Everton lead 1-0 against Mame Biram Diouf’s Stoke after a penalty from Leighton Baines, while Wes Morgan has scored to put Riyad Mahrez’s Leicester City 2-0 up against Swansea.
We’re back underway in the second half of the Premier League matches, while in Germany Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s Dortmund remain 1-0 up against Mainz thanks to the Gabon attacker’s goal.
We’ve hit half time in the Premier League matches, here are the scores at the break: Watford 0-3 Arsenal, Chelsea 2-0 Burnley, Southampton 0-0 Sunderland, Leicester 1-0 Swansea, Everton 0-0 Stoke and Crystal Palace 0-0 Bournemouth. No African scorers as yet.
It’s not a great day for Odion Ighalo’s Watford, who now found themselves 2-0 down at home to Arsenal, while Victor Moses’ Chelsea have gone 2-0 up at home to Burnley.
Riyad Mahrez’s Leicester City have the lead at home to Swansea, with Jamie Vardy netting his first Premier League goal of the new season.
We have some early team news from the first Ligue 1 match of the day, which will see Dijon host Lyon at 17h00. Morocco’s Fouad Chafik and Cape Verde’s Julio Tavares start for the home side, while the visitors have Cameroonian Nicolas N’Koulou in their XI.
We have our first goals in the Premier League, with Eden Hazard putting Chelsea ahead against Burnley, while Nordin Amrabat gave away a debatable penalty which has seen Arsenal take a 1-0 lead at Watford.
We are underway across the Premier League matches, let’s hope for plenty of African goals and assists in England’s top flight this afternoon…
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored for Dortmund to give them a 1-0 lead at home to Mainz. The Gabonese striker is continuing where he left off last season…
Let’s move onto team news ahead of the 16h00 Premier League matches. Victor Moses is on the bench for Chelsea, who host Burnley; Pape Souare starts for Crystal Palace at home to Bournemouth, who have Max Gradel on the bench; Yannock Bolasie and Idriss Gueye start for Everton at home to Stoke, who have Mame Biram Diouf playing up front; Leicester City feature Riyad Mahrez and Daniel Amartey in their XI (Ahmed Musa’s on the bench) at home to Modou Barrow’s Swansea; Southampton host Sunderland, who have Steven Pienaar, Lamine Kone and Papy Djilobodji in their starting team and Wahbi Khazri on the bench; and finally Watford feature Nordin Amrabat, Adlebe Guedioura and Odion Ighalo (with Isaac Success on the bench) against Arsenal, who have Mohamed Elneny waiting in reserve.

We’re 10 minutes into five Bundesliga matches, here is the African involvement: Tunisia’s Anis Ben Hatira starts for Darmstadt away to Koln, Gabon’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will come up against Nigerian defender Leon Balogun for Dortmund v Mainz, Cameroon’s Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting starts for Schalke at Frankfurt and his compatriot Marvin Matip features for Ingolstadt at Hamburger.

We begin with news from the Premier League, where Kenyan Victor Wanyama played the full 90 minutes for Tottenham as they were held 1-1 at home by Liverpool, who had Senegal’s Sadio Mane and Cameroonian Joel Matip in their line-up. We have a further six matches in England’s top flight coming up at 16h00…

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Hammers Beat Burnley To Boost Survival Chances

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West Ham boosted their Premier League survival aspirations with a vital win at Burnley, whose own hopes appear increasingly forlorn.

While the Hammers remain 18th in the table, they are now just three points from safety with second-bottom Burnley 11 adrift of 17th-placed Nottingham Forest.

Given Burnley have now failed to record a top-flight victory since 26th October, a sequence stretching back 16 games, and have managed just three all season, it would take a remarkable reversal of fortunes for Scott Parker’s side to avoid an immediate return to the Championship.

Meanwhile, West Ham will take heart after this success, which always seemed likely once Crysencio Summerville clipped the ball over advancing home goalkeeper Martin Dubravka, to give them a 13th-minute lead.

It continued the Dutch winger’s rich vein of form as he registered his fifth goal in as many games in all competitions and ensured Nuno Espirito Santo’s team capitalised on their superiority.

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U-20 WWC: Falconets claim qualifier win

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Nigeria’s Falconets secured a crucial 1-0 victory over Senegal in their FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup qualifier, but the result was overshadowed by a serious injury to star forward Janet Akekoromowei, Tidesports source reports. 

The first half was goalless but intense, with Nigeria carving out the clearer chances. The Falconets’ best opportunity came in the 33rd minute when Shakirat Moshood surged in from the right flank, skipped past two Senegal defenders and fired narrowly wide.

A minute later, Moshood turned provider, slipping the ball to Akekoromowei inside the six-yard box, but the forward also failed to hit the target.

The defining moment of the match arrived in the 38th minute. Akekoromowei embarked on a solo run, dribbling through the same channel she had exploited moments earlier before releasing a pass to Moshood.

As play continued, Akekoromowei went down in visible pain. Moshood, bearing down on goal, crossed into the area but Senegal’s packed defence managed to clear.

It soon became apparent that Akekoromowei had suffered a dislocated ankle. Medics rushed onto the pitch, and she was stretchered off, prompting gasps and anxious scenes among players and supporters close to the touchline.

She was immediately placed in an ambulance and taken to the hospital, with Folajomi Olabiyi introduced as her replacement.

Nigeria went into the break at 0–0, their momentum disrupted and the mood visibly subdued following the injury to one of their most influential players. Despite the setback, the Falconets regrouped after the interval and went on to edge the tie, keeping their World Cup qualification hopes firmly alive.

The Falconets regrouped after the break and finally broke the deadlock six minutes after the restart. From a well-delivered corner kick, Kindness Ifeanyi rose highest to power a header beyond Adji Ndiaye, giving Nigeria the lead. The goalscorer nearly doubled the advantage in the 66th minute, but the Senegal goalkeeper stretched full length to push her effort away.

Nigeria maintained their pressure as Senegal struggled to cope with the high tempo. A dangerous free kick from the edge of the box sailed just over the crossbar, while Moshood was again denied from close range in the 73rd minute. Three minutes later, Adeshina struck the crossbar directly from a corner kick on the right as the Falconets pressed for a second goal.

Despite their dominance, Nigeria had to settle for the lone goal, which they successfully protected until the final whistle.

Akekoromowei’s injury was keenly felt by her teammates. Captain Joy Igbokwe admitted the incident shook the side but praised their resolve.

“Yes, we missed her because she is one of our key players, and when the injury occurred, we almost fell apart, but our coach encouraged us that we just had to continue no matter what,” Igbokwe said after the match.

“We miss her so much, and I am using this medium to wish her a speedy recovery.”

Head coach Moses Aduku said an update on the forward’s condition would follow once further assessments had been carried out.

“For Janet, there is no information yet because we just finished the game,” Aduku said. “When we get back to the hotel, I think we will get the information.”

Akekoromowei’s absence would be a major blow for the Falconets. The Bayelsa Queens forward is the reigning Nigeria Women Football League most valuable player and one of the brightest prospects in Nigerian women’s football.

She has attracted interest from several European clubs, including Barcelona, Benfica and Paris Saint-Germain, and has been central to Nigeria’s qualification campaign, having already scored in the earlier rounds against Rwanda.

At just 18, Akekoromowei has enjoyed a rapid rise, starring for Nasarawa Amazons last season before moving to Bayelsa Queens, and gaining experience at the previous U-20 World Cup in Colombia.

Nigeria will now await news on her recovery as they balance the satisfaction of victory with concern over the fitness of one of their most prized assets, as the two sides will meet again in Dakar on Saturday, with the aggregate winner advancing to the final round of the qualification series.

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Youth Olympics preparation Gears up

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Preparations for the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games have entered full delivery phase, with venue works and operational readiness advancing as the Games year begins.

The update was presented to the 145th International Olympic Committee Session by Dakar 2026 Organising Committee President Mamadou Diagna Ndiaye and General Coordinator Ibrahima Wade.

Coordination Commission Chair Humphrey Kayange highlighted the great progress and tangible momentum towards the Games while noting that priorities would be monitored and systematically addressed.

Venue renovations are designed to support long-term access for young athletes, while the Youth Olympic Village will subsequently be turned into student accommodation.

“We are now in Games year, with exactly 270 days to go until the Opening Ceremony,” Ndiaye told IOC members, stressing that preparations are underpinned by strengthened governance and close-monitoring framework established with the IOC and Games delivery partners.

Wade expressed confidence in meeting deadlines, saying the Olympic Village, track and field stadium, and swimming facility will be ready by March, with venuisation set for May.

“The excitement is there for the continent. I think it’s monumental that the Games are coming to Africa for the first time,” Kayange said.

He noted that government support increased significantly at the end of last year, with different ministries coming together to ensure work is monitored on a weekly basis towards completion.

Public engagement continues to build through milestone celebrations, including the One-Year-To-Go festivities and the fourth edition of the Dakar en Jeux festival.

The Dakar 2026 OMEGA countdown clock now provides a daily reminder in the heart of the capital.

Through the Dakar 2026 Learning Academy, nearly 200 of the 400 available places are currently filled, with participants from 25 African National Olympic Committees set to join the organising committee.

The Jambaar26 volunteer programme, launched in December, aims to mobilise 6,000 volunteers across Senegal.

“Beyond the sports venues and accommodation, the legacy of Dakar 2026 will be formidable, trained young human capital across Africa,” Kayange said.

The arrival of the Olympic flame in September will be marked by a nationwide tour across all 14 regions of Senegal and local celebrations across the continent.

Dakar 2026 will take place from October 31 to November 13, 2026, bringing together around 2,700 young athletes aged up to 17 across three host zones: Dakar, Diamniadio and Saly.

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