IN ENGLAND
Tottenham Manager, Ange Postecoglou says his team is short in a couple of areas and need to reinforce during the January transfer window.
Spurs lost three of its past four Premier League games to slip to 11th in the table, and was beaten six-three at home by Liverpool.
Speaking before the club’s trip to fourth-placed Nottingham Forest on 26th December, Postecoglou confirmed the club intend to strengthen in January.
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Former Premier League official David Coote will not appeal against his dismissal from referees’ body the PGMOL.
Coote was sacked earlier this month following a thorough investigation nto his conduct by the PGMOL (Professional Game Match Officials Limited).
The organisation is continuing to offer support to Coote, having previously said it was committed to his welfare.
Coote is also under investigation by the Football Association and Uefa over his conduct.
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Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has admitted that Marc Cucurella has adapted to his style of play.
Maresca stated that he appreciates the wing-back’s attitude and willingness to adapt to his system.
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Manchester United star, Leny Yoro, says he has no regret joining the Red Devils this summer.
Yoro’s start to life at Old Trafford was hampered by a foot injury he sustained in pre-season against Arsenal.
The Frenchman finally made his long-awaited return to action during United’s two-nil defeat to Arsenal, when he came on as a second-half substitute.
Yoro has since started two games and was on the pitch for forty-five minutes against Bournemouth.
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Fleetwood Town has appointed former Oldham Athletic, Halifax Town and Barrow manager Pete Wild as their head coach.
The 40-year-old has agreed a deal of undisclosed length with the League Two club following Charlie Adam’s exit at the weekend.
Wild will take over on 27th December with current first-team coach Matt Lawlor in charge for the Boxing Day visit of Chesterfield.
Fleetwood sacked Adam after just under a year in the job following a run of one win in eleven league games.
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IN NIGERIA
Home-based Super Eagles coach Daniel Ogunmodede says history has not been good to Nigeria when they face rivals Ghana.
The home-based Eagles will host the Black Galaxies of Ghana in Uyo on Saturday in the play-off of the CHAN qualifier.
Speaking ahead of the crucial encounter, Ogunmodede said they are not bothered about what has happened in previous encounters.
In the first leg played in Accra at the weekend, the home-based Eagles held the Black Galaxies to a goalless draw.
A score draw would be enough for the Ghanaians to advance while the home-based Eagles need an outright win to qualify for the 2024 CHAN.
Black Galaxies of Ghana head coach Didi Dramani says his team must keep a clean sheet against Nigeria in the second leg of their 2024 African Nations (CHAN) qualifier.
Ghana and Nigeria battled to a goalless draw in the first leg at the Accra Sports Stadium.
The reverse fixture will hold at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, Uyo on Saturday.
The winner of the tie will qualify to compete at next year’s CHAN tournament that will be held in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
The director-general of National Sports Commission (NSC), Bukola Olopade, says prioritising the plight of the country’s special athletes is one of the integral commitments of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s ‘Renewed Hope’ in the sports sector.
Olopade stated this at the final of the maiden Elite Wheelchair Basketball Championship held at the National Stadium in Lagos, reiterating that every sport will get its required attention from the National Sports Commission.
According to him, the mandate given to the commission by the President was to ensure a sustainable sports economy built with the maximum potential of every sport.
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Genk head coach Thorsten Fink has labelled Nigerian international Tolu Arokodare a top striker.
Arokodare has scored regularly for the former Belgian Pro League champions this season.
The 24-year-old was the hero of the Smurfs two-nil victory over Anderlecht.
The Nigerian has netted eleven times in the league this season.
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Sky Bet Championship club, Watford is interested in Super Eagles star who plays for Sevilla Kelechi Iheanacho.
Iheanacho linked up with Sevilla as a free agent in the summer after severing ties with Leicester City.
The Nigeria international has however failed to live up to expectations at the club.
Spanish club Las Palmas is also reportedly interested in the striker.
Tyson Fury has set his sights on a blockbuster clash with Anthony Joshua following his unanimous decision loss to undisputed heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk in Saudi Arabia.
The bout, estimated to generate £250m in pay-per-view and box office revenue, has been dubbed “the biggest fight in British boxing history” by promoter Eddie Hearn.
Hearn, who manages Joshua, emphasised the global appeal of the potential clash.
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Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker has backed Nigeria’s Israel Adesanya to defeat Nassourdine Imavov in their upcoming non-pay-per-view clash in Saudi Arabia.
Speaking to MMArcade, Whittaker, who has faced Adesanya twice, offered insights into why he believes the Nigerian will emerge victorious despite acknowledging Imavov’s formidable skills.
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Nigeria will target more international success following Rita Ogene and Israel Jegede’s bronze medal-winning performances at the 11th Commonwealth Karate Championship in Durban, South Africa.
Karate Technical Director, Dave Jegede says Ogene claimed bronze in the women’s -68kg category, while Israel Jegede secured his medal in the men’s -84kg category as Nigeria was represented by five athletes alongside two coaches, one referee, a board member, and the Secretary-General at the championship.
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OTHER LEAGUES
Rangers say the team has contacted the Scottish Football Association to express serious concerns and ask several questions after the two Video Assistant Referees (VAR) at the League Cup final were reinstated for December fixtures.
SFA head of referee operations Willie Collum had said Frank Connor and Alan Muir made a really really poor and unacceptable decision not to award Rangers a spot-kick against Celtic in the final on 15th December, with the Bhoys winning the match on penalties after a three-all draw.
Connor will be one of the assistant referees for Kilmarnock v Aberdeen on Thursday and Celtic v St Johnstone on Sunday, while Muir will be on VAR duty for St Mirren v Dundee on Sunday.
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La Liga strugglers Valencia has made an official approach for West Bromwich Albion head coach Carlos Corberan.
However, Valencia was said to be willing to pay the 41-year-old Spaniard’s release clause at Championship club Albion, believed to be between three to four million pounds.
The Spanish club sacked head coach Ruben Baraja on Monday after just two wins in seventeen league matches this season.
Valencia, Corberan’s hometown club, are four points from safety, sitting second-bottom of La Liga.
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Four rioters have been given short jail terms for violence against football fans visiting Amsterdam for a Europa League match between Ajax and Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv.
Sefa Ö, was handed the longest sentence of six months in jail by Amsterdam district court, while another man was given ten weeks and two others a month’s detention each.
A fifth defendant was given a community service order under the Netherlands’ juvenile law.
The judge said a prison sentence for the four was appropriate given the seriousness of the actions and the context in which they took place.
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OTHER SPORTS
In Cricket, India will face Pakistan in Dubai on 23rd February as the International Cricket Council released the Champions Trophy fixtures on Tuesday.
The eight-team tournament will be held in host country Pakistan and neutral venue Dubai from 19th February to 9th March.
Defending champions Pakistan and India were drawn alongside New Zealand and Bangladesh in Group A while England will face Australia, South Africa and Afghanistan in Group B.
The tournament opener will see Pakistan face New Zealand in Karachi on 19th February while India take on Bangladesh in Dubai the following day.
As a result, India’s three group fixtures and the first semi-final on 4th March will be played in the United Arab Emirates.
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In Rugby, Ireland wing Jacob Stockdale has ended speculation over his future by signing a new two-year deal with Ulster, keeping him at the club until 2027.
The 28-year-old had been linked with a move to France, but has committed his future to the Belfast-based club for the duration of the current World Cup cycle.
Stockdale enjoyed a strong 2023-24 season with nine tries in sixteen United Rugby Championship games and has added three this term, leading to his Ireland return in last month’s Autumn Nations Series win over Fiji.
The 2018 Six Nations Grand Slam winner and player of the tournament has made one hundred and twenty-seven appearances for Ulster having broken into the team in 2016.
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FOOD FOR THOUGHT.
A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives…words from Jackie Robinson.
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