Sports
Director Gets Query Over Doha Show Of Shame
Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) Technical Director, Sunday Adeleye, has been queried by the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development to explain his role in the initial disqualification of sprinters, Divine Oduduru and Blessing Okagbare following their failure to show up for the 100m event at the ongoing 17th IAAF World Championships in Doha, Qatar.
The athletes’ non-appearance after they were duly registered for the race contravened IAAF competition rule 142.4 and they were duly banned from further participation in the championships. They were, however, reinstated after an appeal was lodged. Tide source reports that the IAAF considered their pleas that it was revealed Adeleye, who was accredited as the technical delegate for Team Nigeria and whose duty is to confirm Nigeria’s entries during the championships was informed about the athletes decision to pull out of the 100m event.
The international disgrace this act of negligence brought upon Nigeria necessitated the Technical Director’s recall by the Sports Minister, Sunday Dare.
Upon Adeleye’s arrival in Nigeria and after presenting himself at the Ministry as directed by the Honourable Minister in his recall letter, the former Police Corporal was issued a query last Wednesday and asked to respond within 24 hours.
Tide sports gathered that the Sports Minister directed the Permanent Secretary, Olusade Olusola to issue Adeleye the query after which a committee will be constituted to get to the root of the matter and prevent future occurrences.
“The Honourable Minister is quite serious about this because he believes the way this is handled will set the tone for what is expected of all officials in the discharge of their duties,” disclosed a source close to the Minister.
Tide sports also gathered that the Minister is determined to ensure qualified and competent personnel’s are deployed in positions for efficiency.
“What happened in Doha has exposed the problems in most of the sporting federations and the Minister, a stickler for excellence wants square pegs to always be in square holes,” added the source. Athletics watchers had in 2017 queried the move by AFN president, Ibrahim Gusau to make Adeleye the technical director of the federation, arguing that the position is meant for trained officiating officials and coaches.
“One of the roles of a technical director is to evaluate performances as well as programmes of coaches registered with the federation. If you are not a trained coach, how do you evaluate performances or programmes drawn up by coaches? It is like elevating a bank clerk to the position of Central Bank Governor. It is an abnormal and I hope the Honourable Sports Minister can help correct this so that we can see the sport grow,” said Patience Itanyi, a trained coach and former African champion in the Heptathlon who also represented Nigeria at the Sydney Olympics.
From left: Deputy Director, Gender Division, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mrs Blessing Obidegwu; Chairman, Outreach and Partnership Committee (OPC), INEC, Dr Adekunle Ogunmola, and Director, Voter Education and Publicity, INEC, Mr Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi, during a review of the 2019 General Elections from Gender Perspective in Abuja on Thursday (26/9/19).
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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