Sports

Kante Prefers Chelsea Stay To Madrid, Barcelona Move

Published

5 years ago

April 16, 2020

N’Golo Kante remains keen to stay at Chelsea despite reports in the Spanish media linking him with a transfer to Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Kante has missed 20 of Chelsea’s 42 games this season due to a host of injuries to his hamstring, knee and ankle, and concerns over his long-term fitness have seen Mateo Kovacic and Jorginho strike up a good partnership in his absence.
Meanwhile, Billy Gilmour’s emergence and Ruben Loftus-Cheek’s return from injury add to Frank Lampard’s options with Ross Barkley and Mason Mount also in the squad.
Chelsea is also monitoring Lille’s 21-year-old midfielder Boubakary Soumare but he currently ranks lower on the club’s priority list than a left-back and another forward.
Manager Lampard is yet to signal to any of his first-team squad whether or not they will be surplus to requirements in the off-season as he bids to create a competitive training environment until the end of the coronavirus-hit campaign.
Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane has long been an admirer of Kante and is said to be looking for a back-up option for Casemiro, with Rennes’ 17-year-old wonderkid Eduardo Camavinga and Soumare also on the Blancos’ shortlist.
But Kante, who is currently Chelsea’s highest-paid player on £290,000 ($362k) per week, is unlikely to accept a back-up role.
Barcelona would interest Kante as well but only if he was told that Chelsea want to sell him ahead of the summer, with reports in Spain claiming the Blaugrana would be willing to offer Philippe Coutinho in exchange as part of a swap deal.
Kante is settled in London and he has three years left on his Blues contract but he previously harboured ambitions of playing for one of Spain’s big two clubs at one stage in his career.
Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain, along with Serie A giants Juventus, were interested in Kante when he signed for Chelsea from Leicester for £32 million ($40m/€36m) in 2016.
French champions PSG had wanted to create a homecoming story for the World Cup winner. However, he has been cautious about returning home due to off-field legal issues with his former agents.
Kante has denied allegations in the French investigative publication Mediapart which suggested that he was threatened at gunpoint to sack his agent Abdelkarim Douis by his former advisors in Paris.
The report goes on to say that the dispute was resolved upon Kante’s contract renewal in 2018, with an agent fee being shared between his current agent and his former advisors.
However, in February 2020, Kante’s ongoing legal battle with his former image rights advisor Nouari Khiari were detailed .
Meanwhile, like all their fellow Premier League clubs, Chelsea is training at home with advice coming in from the coaching team on routines to keep fit ahead of a return to action which will be in mid-May at the earliest.
Lampard has been in regular contact with his squad and he is using the increased amount of time to do some long-term planning for the club’s future.
“We have the good young players, we have had experienced players around them that have helped them this year, but we know there are little areas within the squad [we can improve],” Lampard toldTidesports source.

Sports

Nigeria To Host 2026 Golf AACT

Published

2 days ago

December 13, 2024

The Tide

Nigeria has won the bid to host the next edition of the prestigious All Africa Challenge Trophy in 2026.
The AACT is a biennial continental ladies’ golf championship in Africa that had its inaugural edition in May 1992 in Zimbabwe.
Nigeria hosted the AACT in 1996 at the Ikoyi Club 1938, while in 2010, the AACT was played at the IBB International Golf and Country Club, in Abuja.
This would be the third time Nigeria will be hosting the championship.
Interestingly, the West and Central Africa Challenge Trophy (a regional version of the championship) was held for the first time in Nigeria at the Lakowe Lakes Golf Estates and Resort, Lagos, in 2023.
Evelyn Oyome, the President of the Ladies Golf Association of Nigeria, who was the leader of the Nigerian delegation to the championship’s 16th edition in Morocco, said Nigeria emerged winner amongst the 20 countries that took part in the bidding process.
“Nigeria had earlier hosted the West, Central Africa Challenge Trophy in October last year at the Lakowe Lakes Golf Estate and Resort in Lagos, showcasing its outstanding golfing facilities, with no fewer than 10 countries participating.
“So, hosting that championship successfully last year gave us the edge amongst so many other countries that also bidded and winning was a huge victory for Nigeria,” she said.
Oyome revealed that the Federal Capital Territory would be the host city for the AACT 2026 edition, with no fewer than 30 countries expected to participate in the championship.

Sports

Musa, Shehu Ineligible For CHAN – Ilechukwu

Published

2 days ago

December 13, 2024

The Tide

Super Eagles B co-handler Fidelis Ilechukwu has revealed that Kano Pillars duo Ahmed Musa and Shehu Abdullahi were initially listed in the 30-man squad for the 2024 CHAN qualifiers double header clash against Ghana, but were dropped over their ineligibility.
Musa and Shehu, who made sensational returns to Kano Pillars this season, were conspicuously missing when the Nigeria Football Federation revealed the names of 30 Nigeria Premier Football League stars for the assignment.
The CHAN Eagles are currently camping in Ikenne, Ogun State. They will play the first leg of their encounter in Accra on Sunday, December 22 before returning to Uyo for the return leg on Saturday, December 28.
“I was told he (Musa) didn’t meet up with the conditions of playing in the CHAN tournament or qualifiers,” Ilechukwu told our correspondent.
“Ahmed Musa was on our list, there is no way we wouldn’t have included him in the list with his performances in the league but they told us to replace him due to eligibility.
When asked if the same applied to Shehu, the coach replied in the affirmative.
According to CAF regulations, only footballers playing in their country of birth are eligible.
While the above rule favours both Musa and Shehu, their participation was perhaps made difficult by another CAF regulation which says, “Only players with a permanent contract registered in a local club affiliated to their national association are eligible to participate in the African Nations Championship” – as both players are in the NPFL under the Elite Player Scheme.
According to section 9.91 of the NPFL Framework and Rules, “There shall be an Elite Player Scheme wherein each Club shall be allowed to register a maximum of two players who in the opinion of the NPFL will add value to the league.”

Sports

Nigeria Women Football League Set For Annual General Assembly

Published

2 days ago

December 13, 2024

The Tide

The Federal Capital Territory is set to host the 2024 Annual General Assembly (AGA) of the Nigeria Women Football League (NWFL) on Tuesday, December 17, 2024.
In a statement released yesterday, the Chief Operating Officer, Modupe Shabi, confirmed that all arrangements have been finalised for the AGA, which will take place at Fabino by Toprank Hotels, Abuja.
The AGA meeting promises to be a significant gathering in charting a way forward for the women’s football rising agenda and the women’s football leagues in Nigeria.
Key stakeholders, including board members and representatives of Premiership and Championship clubs, will review the successes and challenges of the outgone 2023/2024 season.
Notably, Edo Queens emerged champions of the NWFL Premiership for the first time, while Honey Badgers and Ibom Angels secured promotion to the Premiership from the NWFL Championship.
The AGM will also focus on sustaining the league’s growing credibility and improving operations while setting the calendar and start date for the 2024/2025 NWFL Premiership and Championship campaigns.
This pivotal meeting aims to further strengthen women’s football in Nigeria and lay the groundwork for the league’s continued growth.