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La Liga: Atletico Bring Real Back To Earth

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Atletico Madrid scored five goals against city rivals Real for the first time in nearly 75 years when they fought back from behind in a pulsating derby.

It was only the fourth time Atletico had scored at least five in a Madrid derby, the last occasion being a 6-3 victory in November 1950.

Real lost for the first time this season, having won all six of their opening La Liga matches as well as their first Champions League tie, a 2-1 victory over Marseille.

The last time Real conceded as many in La Liga was a 5-1 defeat by Barcelona in October 2018.

Robin le Normand’s header had given Diego Simeone’s side an early lead that was overturned by superb goals from Kylian Mbappe and Arda Guler.

But Alexander Sorloth levelled the game at 2-2 in stoppage time at the end of the first half.

And the hosts took charge after the break when Julian Alvarez, who had hit the post in the first half, converted from the penalty spot before curling home a brilliant free-kick.

Atletico went into their shell, but held their cross-city rivals at bay until Antoine Griezmann grabbed their fifth goal deep into stoppage time.

The result maintained an impressive record against Real in La Liga for Simeone’s side, who have not lost in their past six league encounters with Los Blancos.

PSG Regain Top Position In France (7)

Paris St-Germain returned to the top of Ligue 1 with a comfortable victory over Auxerre at the weekend.

Illia Zabarnyi scored his first goal for the club since his summer move from Bournemouth when he volleyed in at the back post from Vitihna’s cross at the Parc des Princes in Paris.

The home side doubled their lead when Lucas Beraldo headed home from Senny Mayulu’s cross.

PSG moved above Marseille, who beat them on Monday, as they made it five wins from their opening six league matches.

Auxerre had their chances, with a fierce shot from Kevin Danois striking the woodwork and Sekou Mara having a header cleared off the line.

There were further opportunities for Luis Enrique’s side but Achraf Hakimi’s dink was ruled out for offside and Bradley Barcola sent a header over the bar.

Auxerre are 13th in the table with four defeats from six matches.

PSG travel to Barcelona on Wednesday in their second Champions League group stage match.

Before the PSG match, Marseille scored two late goals to move level on points with hosts Strasbourg and go top of Ligue 1 on goal difference.

Strasbourg looked on track to move four points clear at the top until the 78th minute as Abdoul Ouattara’s goal had them ahead.

But former Arsenal and Chelsea striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang grabbed the equaliser, and Amir Murillo completed the turnaround as the clock ticked into added time.

Aubameyang was first to the rebound following his own shot to level the score after goalkeeper Mike Penders spilled the initial shot.

Penders, on loan from Chelsea, seemed to have done better in stoppage time when he tipped substitute Robinio Vaz’s header onto the crossbar, but the rebound landed with Murillo.

Marseille were top with five teams all on 12 points, including Strasbourg who were in fifth place.

Kane Sets Elite Scoring Record With Bayern  (5)

Harry Kane scored twice in Bayern Munich’s win over Werder Bremen last Friday to become the fastest player this century to reach 100 goals for a club playing in one of Europe’s top five leagues.

The England captain won and converted a penalty on the stroke of half-time, before firing home from close range in the 65th minute to reach the century mark in just 104 games.

The previous record of 105 games was set by Cristiano Ronaldo while playing for Real Madrid in 2011, and matched by Manchester City striker Erling Haaland last year.

Former Liverpool winger Luis Diaz had opened the scoring when he deflected in a Jonathan Tah flick from a corner, while Konrad Laimer slipped home a late fourth as leaders Bayern preserved their unbeaten start to the season.

Kane broke two other records in his side’s 4-1 victory against Hoffenheim last weekend, during which he scored a hat-trick.

He reached 70 Bundesliga goals in just his 67th game in the competition, faster than anyone else in the league’s history.

Previously, the 32-year-old broke the record for the most goals scored in 50 Bundesliga games (54 goals), and the fewest number of games needed to reach 50 goals in the competition (43 matches).

On Friday, Kane also became the first player in Bundesliga history to convert their first 18 penalties, as well as score 18 consecutive spot-kicks.

Kane was the first player in Bundesliga history to finish top scorer in both his first two seasons, and the only player to score 25 or more goals in their first two campaigns in the competition.

He has started this campaign with 15 in eight games in all competitions – including two hat-tricks in five Bundesliga games, with Vincent Kompany’s side top of the league table with a 100% record.

Kane is the highest scoring Englishman in Champions League history (42 goals), and scored against all 20 teams he has faced in the Bundesliga.

Only Miroslav Klose has played against more sides, while scoring against all of them (28).

Kane joined Bayern from Tottenham Hotspur in a £100m transfer in 2023, having scored 280 goals in 435 games in all competitions for the Premier League club.

He has two years remaining on the four-year contract he signed with the Munich outfit, although he has recently been linked with former club Spurs and Manchester United.

But when asked on Friday if he was thinking of a Premier League return, Kane said: “No, not at the moment. I’m really happy here. I have two years left on my contract.

“I’m enjoying every moment. That is not in my thought process. I’m enjoying it with the team, with the coach, and hopefully we continue to be successful.”

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Lewandowski Leads Top Stars Missing From W/Cup Roll Call 

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Gianluigi Donnarumma

Gialuigui Donnarumma (Italy and Man City)

One of the greatest strikers of the past 15 years, Poland’s Robert Lewandowski, is among the big names who will not be playing at the 2026 World Cup in Canada, the United States and Mexico.

The 37-year-old Barcelona striker, who has scored 89 goals for his country, was not able to inspire his side as they lost 3-2 in Stockholm against Sweden in Tuesday’s play-off final.

Lewandowski, who won the German Bundesliga title on 10 occasions, twice with Borussia Dortmund and then in eight successive seasons with Bayern Munich, before winning La Liga twice with Barca, may have played in his last major international tournament.

Lewandowski captained Poland at the World Cup in 2018, but did not score in Russia as his country came bottom of the group. He had a better tournament four years later in Qatar, scoring twice as Poland reached the last 16 before losing to France.

He netted four times in Group G in 2026 qualifying only for Poland to finish three points behind the Netherlands, before losing to Sweden on Tuesday.

Gianluigi Donnarumma

Gialuigui Donnarumma (Italy and Man City)

Another star that will be missing in action at the mundial is Gialuigui Donnarumma of Italy.

Italy lost in the World Cup play-offs for a third successive qualifying tournament

Gianluigi Donnarumma has been one of the best goalkeepers in the Premier League this season since he moved from Paris St-Germain for £26m in September, after helping the French club win the Champions League last season.

Despite being player of the tournament as Italy won the 2020 European Championship, he misses out on a World Cup again after Italy lost 4-1 on penalties to Bosnia-Herzegovina on Tuesday.

Serhou Guirassy

Serhou Guirassy (Borussia Dortmund and Guinea)

Serhou Guirassy is Fourth in the list of Bundesliga top scorers this season

Serhou Guirassy has established himself as one of most prolific strikers playing in Europe, with 62 goals in the German Bundesliga over the past three seasons, while no player scored more than his 13 goals in the Champions League in 2024-25.

But he will not be at the World Cup as his country Guinea went out in the first round of African qualifying, finishing fourth in their group, with only four wins and three draws from their 10 matches.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (Georgia and PSG)

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia helped Paris St-Germain become European champions last season, scoring in the 5-0 final win over Inter Milan, and he came 12th in the 2025 Ballon d’Or awards.

But Georgia had a miserable campaign in World Cup qualifying as they only picked up three points from a group that contained Spain, Turkey and Bulgaria.

Victor Osimhen

Victor Osimhen (Galatasaray and Nigeria)

Victor Osimhen has scored 26 goals for club and country this season

Victor Osimhen helped Napoli win Serie A in 2023 before moving to Galatasaray, where he grabbed 26 goals in 30 games to take them to the Turkish title last season.

Nigeria drew five of their 10 matches in the first group phase as they finished one point behind winners South Africa, but then had a second chance in the following play-off.

With Osimhen already substituted, Nigeria lost on penalties to DR Congo to miss out on the World Cup.

Dominik Szoboszlai

Dominik Szoboszlai (Liverpool and Hungary)

Dominik Szoboszlai has scored 12 goals for Liverpool this season

Liverpool and Hungary midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai has impressed this season and scored some stunning long-range goals.

But he will not be at the World Cup after his country let a 2-1 lead slip in their final group game with the Republic of Ireland scoring twice in injury time to clinch a spot in the play-offs and eliminate Hungary.

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Para Games: Team Rivers Wins 53 Medals On Day 5 … Director Praise Athletes 

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Rivers para team has been impressive in the third edition of the competition. The first-timers have made a significant impact on the games.
Speaking at the event, the State Director of Sports, Obia Inyingikabo, who is the leader of the contingent, has praised her athletes for their commitment and determination to make the state proud.
According to her, the impressive performance of the athletes is unprecedented despite the fact that they relatively prepared late for completion.
“I am not in doubt that team Rivers in this competition will finish tops,” Inyingikabo said.
Meanwhile, below are the medals won by the para team Rivers.
Para table tennis:
14 gold, 6 silver, and 5 bronze,
Shooting, 1 gold, 3 silver, and 3 bronze. Cycling: 1 gold, 2 silver, and 2 bronze. Swimming: 1 gold, 2 bronze, Badminton: 1 gold and 1 silver. Para powerlifting: 1 gold and 1 bronze; para athletics: 1 gold, 4 silver, and 3 bronze.
Tonye Orabere

 

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Ondo Women Shine At Gov Diri Wrestling Classics

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Female wrestlers in action at Governor Diri Wrestling Classics. 

Ondo State wrestlers dominated the women’s events on Day six of the fourth Governor Douye Diri Wrestling Classics in Yenagoa on Monday, claiming gold medals in two of the four women’s freestyle categories.

African champion Khadijat Idris of Ondo State led the charge in the 55kg division, defeating rising talent Mary Ayeloh of Bayelsa State by technical superiority to claim gold. Happiness Soso of Delta State and Augustine Rhoda of Lagos State took bronze medals in the category.

Damola Ojo also flew the Ondo flag proudly in the 76kg event, retaining her title after defeating all opponents in a round-robin format. Nigeria Army wrestler Laide Ojo settled for silver, while Juliet Ogo of Bayelsa State and Mercy Alison of Abia State each claimed bronze.

In the 62kg category, Patience Kakanda of Bayelsa State produced the upset of the day, defeating Nigeria Army’s Precious Tieberi 3-1 in the final to be crowned the new champion. Isioma Abojei of Delta State and Blessing Apah of Dynamite Club won bronze medals.

Rivers State’s Esther Asaolu also retained her title in the 59kg division, overcoming all her opponents in the round-robin format, with Patience Opuene of Bayelsa State finishing as runner-up.

In the men’s events, Solomon Ulabo of Bayelsa State claimed gold in the 79kg category, with Kpum Ayibasisei of Edo State taking silver and Rasheed Saliu of Ondo State and Ebisindei Okorie of Dynamite Club winning bronze. NewLife Ebikeme of Bayelsa State won the 92kg gold, ahead of Perezidei Obaze of Edo State in silver position, while Tobechukwu Udeh of the Nigeria Army and Timilehin Adekanmi of Ondo State claimed bronze medals.

 

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