Sports
Stakeholders Seek Take-Off Of PH Real Madrid Academy
Passionate appeal has gone to the Rivers State Government for the commencement of the prestigious Port Harcourt Real Madrid academy conceived and established by the Governor of the State Chief Nyesom Wike.
The academy was designed to promote, develop sports and create employment not only in Rivers State but Nigeria at large.
Consequently, Nigerians, mostly parents and students that have been admitted has sent passionate appeal to His Excellency Governor Nyesom Wike through the State Commissioner for Sports to start academy session to fulfill the aims and objectives.
The academy which had one of the best sporting and skills acquisition facilities in Africa was scheduled to commence full academy session precisely last year September.
Speaking to one of the best grassroots coach in Rivers State, John Adikisam, said the immediate take off will attract sports tourism to the State and economic advancement.
“ As a coach I am appealing to the State Government to start the academy because the children have almost forfeited one academic session after their admission and is not good for the children and other employees that are patiently waiting.
“It is not in doubt that the students and employees are fraustrated due to the delay. Even we coaches are also worried because the zeal of training young lads is gradually going down.
“ We will be very happy if the Governor Kick start the school before he leaves office, honestly it will be one of the best legacies of Governor Wike’s administration”, Adikisam said.
Grassroots footballer in Port Harcourt, Okon Andrew, has also appeal to the State Governor to kick start the school, saying that hoodlums have started to vandalise the facilities as it seemed to be abandoned.
“You know if a facilities is not in use there are tendencies of been vandalised by hoodlums and thieves they will see it as their source of revenue.
“I join other meaningful Nigerians to passionately appeal to Rivers State Government to commence the school”. he said.
It will recalled that the commissioner for sports in Rivers State, Barrister Christopher Green, precisely August last year reiterated that academy activities of the school will start September 2022, saying that 40 boys and 20 girls within the ages of 9-12 will start the school.
“Our academic session will start September, it will run normal Nigerian school calendar and those who passed the screening will start orientation at the end of this month (August 2022).
“I want to tell you that the facilities in the Real Madrid academy in Port Harcourt are of world class standard, especially, the security network system which can be rated as one of the best in the world.
“The Governor of the state, Chief Nyesom Wike, is a nationalist, that is why the screening was open for all Nigerian children,” Hon. Green said.
The commissioner further revealed that the academy would send 11 exceptional players to Europe every year and that admission process will also be done annually.
“Apart from football, there is also vocational department for students who may not cope to learn skills,” he stated.
By: Tonye Orabere
Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy has said that criticism that he and other players chased money by moving to Saudi Arabia is wide of the mark.
The 33-year-old left Chelsea for Al-Ahli in a £16m ($21.4m) deal in 2023, and in May the Africa Cup of Nations winner helped his Saudi club win the Asian Champions League, making him one of the few players to win both that competition and its European equivalent.
But, like many others, Mendy has been criticised for playing for money rather than prestige in the lucrative Saudi Pro League.
When asked about such criticism, Mendy told a Tidesports source, “Al-Ahli’s project came along and they made me feel I had a big role to play.
“Two years later, we won the Champions League for the first time in the club’s history. So yes, that validates my choice. And I hope the coming years will validate it even more.”
He added: “Some people will quickly jump to conclusions and say the only reason is money. From the start, I always said that when I left Chelsea, I knew I was joining another team where I could win everything , which was no longer the case at Chelsea.”
The Blues have since won the Conference League, Europe’s third-tier club competition, under the ownership of Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital.
But it comes after the regime’s trophyless first two years, a period which has frustrated some supporters after the success enjoyed under Roman Abramovich’s stewardship in the previous 19 years.
Mendy has also been celebrating what he describes as a historical win with Senegal against England at Nottingham Forest’s City Ground, but days earlier he had been in Dakar delivering a different kind of win.
He is the sponsor of Yakaar, a school in Keur Massar, which seeks to improve funding and access to digital learning tools for local children from underprivileged backgrounds.
Famously, as Mendy grew up in France, he was unemployed, aged 22, while struggling to find a club, with members of his family still living on the outskirts of Dakar.
That is why Yakaar, a word meaning “hope”, was chosen, a word Mendy has carried with him in his career.
“Hope is what kept me going. When I was without a club, it was the hope of getting that first professional contract.
“Then the hope of playing for the national team. The hope of making my family proud by doing the job I had always dreamed of.
“Indeed, hope is the best word to describe my career.”
Mendy was also asked whether the responsibility of being an African goalkeeper had weighed heavily on him.
“Of course. When I was in England, there weren’t many African goalkeepers in top clubs,” he admitted.
“Whether nationally or internationally, I had that responsibility. It’s the same for other African goalkeepers like Andre Onana [Manchester United] or Yassine Bounou (Al-Hilal).”
The entire refereeing committee has been fired by the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), with structural reforms soon set to follow.
According to sources, the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has dismissed the entire refereeing committee in response to mounting pressure from clubs demanding structural reform. A major shake-up aimed at modernising Spanish refereeing from top to bottom has now been set in motion.
Head of the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA), Luis Medina Cantalejo and Head of VAR, Carlos Clos Gomez, have been removed from their positions. They are joined by several senior officials, including Antonio Rubinos Perez and three vice presidents, who are also stepping down. A new leadership model will be introduced, led by a CEO and a sporting director, aiming to overhaul how refereeing is managed covering assessments, promotions, and daily operations. While the leadership changes are sweeping, the current pool of referees in La Liga and the second tier will remain, ensuring continuity on the field during the transition.
Cristiano Ronaldo has signed a new two-year contract with Al-Nassr that means he will stay with the Saudi Pro League club until beyond his 42nd birthday.
The Portugal captain, 40, joined the Riyadh-based team in December 2022 after leaving Manchester United in acrimonious circumstances, having criticised the club and said he had no respect for manager Erik ten Hag.
Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr deal had been due to expire at the end of June and there was speculation he could leave, but that has now been quashed.
In a post on X, Ronaldo wrote: “A new chapter begins. Same passion, same dream. Let’s make history together.”
Although Al-Nassr have not added to their nine domestic titles during Ronaldo’s time at the club, they have benefited from a flood of goals from the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.
Ronaldo scored 35 times in 41 matches across all competitions last term and was the league’s top scorer for a second consecutive season.
He has managed 99 goals in appearances overall for Al-Nassr and is well on his way to reaching 1,000 senior goals in his career, with a current tally of 938 for club and country.
Having helped Portugal win the Uefa Nations League a little over two weeks ago, the former Manchester United, Real Madrid, Sporting and Juventus forward will almost certainly now be targeting a sixth World Cup appearance next summer.
Only a month ago, Ronaldo posted on social media to say “the chapter is over”.
That came after the Saudi Pro League wrapped up with Al-Nassr finishing third and trophyless once again.
The comment fuelled rumours that Ronaldo was ready to leave the league where he reportedly became the best-paid player in football history with an annual salary of £177m when he joined.
Fifa president Gianni Infantino raised the prospect of Ronaldo joining a team involved in the Club World Cup after Al-Nassr failed to qualify for the extended tournament which is being held in the United States.
Ronaldo said he had received offers from participating teams but had turned them down.
The decision to stay until at least 2027, which is certain to be highly lucrative, appears to rule out any future prospect of Ronaldo returning to play at the highest level in Europe.