Sports
Chelsea Spanks Spartak Of Moscow
Chelsea all but sealed their place in the next round with a ruthlessly impressive Champions League display on a plastic pitch in freezing Moscow.
Russian Yuri Zhirkov scored his first goal for the Blues with a spectacular long-range effort in the 23rd minute.
Nicholas Anelka then slotted a superb second just before half-time.
Spartak pressed after the break, but Chelsea – without Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard – stood strong in Carlo Ancelotti’s 100th Champions League tie.
The Italian’s vast experience in Europe’s premier club competition is the chief reason Chelsea employed him as manager last year – and convincing displays like this offer compelling evidence that he can repeat the Champions League success he achieved with AC Milan.
Chelsea now tops group F with three wins in three games, and a point from their next three games will guarantee qualification for the second round.
For the west Londoners, a trip back to the cavernous Luzhniki Stadium meant returning to the scene of their greatest disappointment – Manchester United defeated them in painful fashion after a penalty shoot-out in the 2008 Champions League final.
With the mercury touching freezing amid a virtual full-house of nearly 80,000 fans cheering Russia’s best-supported club on boisterously, some teams might have found it an intimidating environment.
But Chelsea, full of nous and understated confidence, made light work of a team who had won both of their previous group F matches.
Fourth in the Russian League table, Spartak did make a strong start as Dmitri Kamborov slashed just over after a brilliant surging run from Sergei Parshivlyuk sliced through Chelsea’s backtracking rearguard.
Brazilian striker Welliton – the Russian league’s top goalscorer – then swivelled in the box under close attention from Branislav Ivanovic to force a neat reaction stop from Petr Cech, who kicked the ball away from his near post.
But Chelsea soon got their foot on the ball to dominate a team quite clearly missing their playmaker and captain Alex.
A couple of decent long-range shots from Soloman Kalou and Michael Essien should have served as a warning, but Spartak’s failure to shut down space on the edge of the box proved costly in the 23rd minute.
John Mikel Obi pumped the ball long and, with the ball bouncing invitingly from a loose Spartak header, former CSKA Moscow player Yuri Zhirkov sprinted towards it to lash a looping volley high into the net above Andriy Dykan’s desperate dive.
With Anelka leading the line superbly in the absence of Drogba while his midfielders dominated their territory behind him, Chelsea eventually managed to quieten the incredible din from the stands.
With the club’s Russian owner Roman Abramovich watching, Essien’s cross was deflected away from danger just after the half-hour as Spartak struggled to make an impact with Welliton stranded alone in attack.
After squandering a good chance when one-on-one with Dykan, classy Anelka brilliantly notched his 50th goal for Chelsea – and his fourth in three Champions League games this season – just before half-time.
Essien rampaged through the heart of Spartak’s midfield before slipping a neat pass inside the channel his French team-mate was lurking in.
Anelka then accelerated forward before turning back inside the hosts captain Parshivlyuk with ease, confidently curling his classy low right-footed shot into the far corner.
Admirably refusing to give in, Spartak came out on the attack in the second half.
Kombarov, Welliton and Aiden McGeady all fired shots towards Cech’s goal, the Czech having to push the former Celtic winger’s effort over the bar after a vicious deflection.
Chelsea did manage the odd surge with Anelka the outlet – but Cech proved their busiest and most important player as Moscow pinged pacy passes together and pressed: two solid saves from Ibson around the hour mark clearly stung the hands of the visitors keeper.
Essien screwed a good chance wide in the 72nd minute after Kalou, soon replaced by young midfield hopeful Josh McEachran, had pulled the ball back with cool accuracy from the bye-line.
John Terry had not trained properly ahead of the match, but with him in typically defiant form, Spartak could not find a way though the determined wall of blue – and a determined Chelsea made plain their lofty Champions League intentions.
The Nigeria Football Federation has defended the recent quarter-finals draw for the 2025 President Federation Cup, saying it was conducted in line with best global practices.
A member of the NFF Executive Committee Board, George Aluo, stated that criticism over venues for the quarterfinals was unfortunate.
Going by the fixtures released on Saturday by the football body, Abakaliki FC will take on Nasarawa United in Benin, Wikki Tourists will clash with Ikorodu City in Bwari, Abuja, Akwa United and Kwara United will fight it out in Enugu, just as Area 3, Abuja, will host the encounter between Rangers International and Plateau United. All matches are scheduled for May 3rd for the emergence of semifinalists in a leg affair.
However, there have been criticisms over the Ikorodu United vs Wikki Tourist tie billed for Abuja, with a section of the press saying the venue is skewed in favour of the Bauchi team.
Aluo, also the Chairman of the Nigeria National League (NNL), said: “Some of our media men need better education, and newsmen should not be like the fans out there on the streets. In the English FA Cup, it is always a one-legged pairing that can see a club like Arsenal host Manchester United at home”.
A new contract that will see Act Sports Di Oyibo Limited managing the career of Nigerian teqball specialist, Victor Oyemade, has been signed in Lagos.
The deal gives exclusive rights to Act Sports to manage, and exercise power of attorney over issues relating to the player’s welfare as it concerns his transactions, engagement for professional, promotional, sponsorships, endorsements, and exhibition purposes.
In signing the document, both parties also agreed that proper safeguards would be put in place to protect and promote the player’s interest at all times.
Director of Act Sports, Di Oyibo Limited, Pastor Samuel Robinson Oyibo, excited about the deal, said it would benefit both parties in the area of spreading the message of the sport, as well as laying a firm foundation for his new client’s future.
“Teqball is one of the world’s fastest-growing ball sports, and Victor Oyemade is the face of the sport here in Nigeria and Africa. That is why we are excited about this partnership that gives Act Sports official authorisation to manage his career, just as it will lay the foundation for its rapid growth in our country,” Pastor Oyibo said.
Oyemade was no less excited about the deal, saying it would help his growth in the sport.
Coaches of Nigeria’s U-18 and U-20 women’s handball teams have released their final lists of 14 players ahead of the IHF Women’s Trophy Zonal Phase, which will be held in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, that commenced yesterday to end 24th of this month.
The two teams have been training at the Rowe Park Sports Centre, Yaba, Lagos, for close to two weeks and departed for the competition on Thursday.
Coach John Uzor of the national U-18 team has included Omole Joy of Defender Babes and her sister Omole Shola alongside Ojie Princess of Funad Academy alongside right back Faisat Balogun in the mix while Success Duru, Chetachi Ngaodurubie of COAS Babes and Sharon Okonkwo make the cut, amongst other players.
In the U-20 team, Coach Shittu Agboola has largely stuck with the players he has been grooming since their U-18 days. The team is led by Captain Chidera Ogbusimba alongside, her Rima Queens teammates the Samuel Sisters, Amina Mohammed and Joy Peters.
Israel-based Rahima Bello, Kehinde Babatunde of ASPAC HBC of Benin Republic and Esther Mathew, who is also based in Benin Republic, keep their places.
Coach Shittu believes his team will make Nigeria proud just as they did previously at the U-18 level.
“I am really upset that Taiwo Babatunde will not be part of the team for this competition as her school, Yaba College of Technology, insisted that they will not release her for national service because of examinations.
“We did everything humanly possible to secure her release and they didn’t care that it is a national service for the interest of Nigeria and the growth of sports. We have other players who are also students and they got a release from their schools but for no tangible reason, Yabatech refused to release Taiwo despite the fact that we did everything possible to secure her release. It’s sad and I hope the Federal Ministry of Education and the National Sports Commission will work in tandem so that schools will support our goal in making Nigeria proud in sporting events”.