Sports
PDP Warns Sheriff Against Chairmanship Claims
As the supremacy battle in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lingers on, the Senator Ahmed Markarfi-led faction has come out with strong words, denouncing Senator Ali Modu Sheriff as the chairman of the party, and threatening him with jail time.
In a statement, yesterday, the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Dayo Adeyeye, said the continuous claim by Sheriff that he remains the chairman of the party was a continuation of plans to sustain mayhem in the party, which was evident in the elections in Edo and Ondo states.
According to the full statement: “Our attention has been drawn to another set of garbage and tissues of lies put together by the discredited loyalists of Senator Ali Modu Sheriff in the name of a press statement on Monday, November 28, 2016, wherein, the group tried to sustain it’s illegal claim to the leadership of our party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
“The National Caretaker Committee, which has been confirmed severally by the court as the authentic body saddled with the task of providing leadership for the party pending the hosting of an elective National Convention, would have ignored the ranting of these men of dishonour but leaving them to continue deceiving Nigerians at this time would not be in the interest of democracy.
“First and foremost, we wish to state categorically that in consonance with judgment of various courts, which Ali Modu Sheriff and his team of confused travellers have not bothered to appeal, the former Borno State governor is not the chairman of our party, the PDP. His consistent claim to the office is a continuation of their plans to sustain mayhem in our party, but nature and fair justice have taken care of his desperation.
“We wish to draw the attention of all Nigerians to the judgment delivered by Justice Valentine Ashi of FCT High Court in Apo, Abuja on June 29, 2016, which states clearly that Senator Ali Modu Sheriff was never and is not the PDP national chairman; and equally, this judgment was upheld by the ruling of Justice Nwamaka Ogbonnaya also of the FCT High Court in Kubwa, Abuja on August 17, 2016.
“It is instructive to note that Senator Modu Sheriff and his team of circus performers have not deemed it fit to appeal the court judgments. It is tripartite in law that a judgment not appeal is binding on the defendant. The courts have spoken, and their pronouncements are binding. However, those who wish to spend the rest of their lives behind prison bars may continue to utter heresy against the court.
“We hope their children would be proud to bear the family names of convicts. It is also morally wrong to accuse the National Caretaker Committee of being the reason why the party is facing challenges in terms of unfavourable election results especially in Edo and Ondo states. Everyone knows the real enemies of the PDP. We won’t also forget in a hurry the ignoble role Barrister Jimoh Ibrahim played in scuttling our campaign for the Ondo election.
“We also know those who pushed him forward for the hatchet job. We are amused that the agents of darkness used by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to cause confusion and frustrate our campaign for the Ondo election, can accuse the National Caretaker Committee of impunity. However, we simply want them to define what impunity is, using their acts of betrayal as a case study.
“What they are doing is the worst form of impunity, lawlessness, greed and avarice. Their call on the National Caretaker Committee to self disband is uncharitable and unconstitutional. If they have any shame, they are the ones that should quietly disband. But honours can’t be expected from impostors. No matter what they say, we are determined as a political party to forge ahead and put our house in order even without their inputs.
“The National Caretaker Committee has not called for their expulsion against the claims they are making, the time for that has not come. But the rain of vengeance will not hang forever in the clouds.
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.