IN UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE
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Aston Villa will take a three-one advantage into the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final tie against Bologna following a hard-fought victory in Italy.
After surviving a string of Bologna attacks, Villa led through a header from Ezri Konsa, which came against the run of play in the dying seconds of the first half, before Ollie Watkins doubled their advantage six minutes into the second.
Bologna’s English attacker Jonathan Rowe struck with a brilliant curling effort past Emiliano Martinez in the 90th minute before Watkins scored from a corner in injury time to restore their two-goal advantage before the return fixture.
Rowe reduced the deficit in the closing stages to give Bologna hope, which was dashed immediately by Watkins’ second in the 95th minute as the 1982 European champions took a big step towards a place in the semi-finals.
Porto star Martim Fernandes’ freak own goal gifted Nottingham Forest a route to a first European semi-final in over forty years.
The Porto defender passed it into his own net from forty-five yards with goalkeeper Diogo Gomes stranded to cancel out William Gomes’ early opener.
Now, victory at the City Ground – where they have already beaten Porto this season next Thursday will send Forest into their first European semi-final since 1984.
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Crystal Palace star Jean-Philippe Mateta scored his first goal in over three months as the team beat Fiorentina three-nil in the first leg of their Uefa Conference League quarter-final tie to close in on a first major European semi-final.
Mateta, making his first Palace start since a proposed move to AC Milan collapsed, converted from the penalty spot in the 24th minute after Evann Guessand was fouled by Fiorentina defender Dodo.
Tyrick Mitchell and Ismaila Sarr scored a goal each for Crystal Palace.
Palace will take a three-goal advantage into the second leg in Florence next week, with a semi-final tie against either Shakhtar Donetsk or AZ Alkmaar of the Netherlands awaiting the victors.
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Liverpool says the team’s star Andy Robertson will leave at the end of the season when his contract expires in the summer.
Robertson joined the Reds from Hull City in 2017 for eight million pounds and has won two Premier League titles and the Champions League during his time on Merseyside.
Robertson was a target for Tottenham during the January transfer window, with a deal agreed in principle between the clubs.
Liverpool are fifth in the Premier League table and face Fulham at Anfield at Saturday.
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Tottenham winger Mohammed Kudus may require surgery after suffering a setback in his recovery from a thigh injury.
The Ghana international has been out for more than three months after limping out of Spurs’ one-all draw with Sunderland on 4th January.
Kudus, a fifty-five million pounds signing from West Ham last summer, faces a race against time to be fit for Ghana’s World Cup squad.
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Arsenal are willing to listen to offers for both Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly in the summer transfer window, with an one hundred million pounds asking price set.
Both Nwaneri and Lewis-Skelly have struggled to cement themselves as guaranteed starters since they burst onto the scene with the Gunners.
Lewis-Skelly has lost his place at left-back to Riccardo Calafiori, while Nwaneri was sent out on loan to Marseille in the January transfer window.
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Premier League referees Michael Oliver and Anthony Taylor have been selected to officiate at this summer’s 2026 World Cup.
It is the second time Oliver and Taylor have been selected for the major tournament, after they both refereed in Qatar four years ago.
In total, England is represented by six on-field officials, with Gary Beswick, Adam Nunn, Stuart Burt and James Mainwaring chosen as assistant referees.
Six women have made the final list of match officials to oversee games but only two American Tori Penso and Mexican Katia Garcia will be part of the 52-referee team, compared to three female referees in 2022.
This year’s expanded World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico will feature forty-eight teams and begin on 11th June.
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England footballer Jarrod Bowen is to help pay for a much-needed new drainage system at non-league Hereford FC, the club he signed for twelve years ago.
Wet weather earlier this year has plagued the club’s pitch, and meant the team had to play home fixtures in Redditch and Worcester as postponed games piled up.
Bowen, who signed for the club formerly Hereford United in 2014 and whose uncle is the groundsman, said it was important to have consistent homes games, adding he wanted to give something back.
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Northern Premier League chairman Mark Harris is at the centre of investigations by the Football Association and his own organisation after he allegedly sent an abusive email to an FC United of Manchester fan over a controversial decision to change the venue for a crucial end-of-season game.
Aled Duckfield emailed Harris complaining about the NPL’s decision to switch the location of FC United’s match with Stockton Town to nearby Curzon Ashton on 21st April.
The game has been repeatedly postponed due to pitch issues with FC United’s Broadhurst Park ground.
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IN NIGERIA
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Former Nigerian international, Ifeanyi Udeze has advised the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, to start the rebuilding process for the Super Eagles ahead of the 2030 FIFA World Cup.
Nigeria has failed to qualify for the FIFA World Cup on multiple occasions, notably missing out on consecutive tournaments in 2022 and 2026.
Udeze, who expressed disappointment with the NFF, however, noted that the Super Eagles could not afford to miss a third World Cup in 2030.
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Former Nigeria international, Etim Esin has revealed that the current Super Eagles are still lacking a creative midfielder in the mould of legends like the late Henry Nwosu, Austin Okocha and himself.
Esin stated that Ademola Lookman was the closest player in terms of creativity in the Super Eagles but has not showed enough of it.
Esin who explained why it was important to have a creative midfielder in every team, said Lookman comes into that but not really for Nigeria.
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Former Nigerian international, Eric Ejiofor believes Wrexham goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo will give healthy competition to Stanley Nwabali and Maduka Okoye in the Super Eagles.
Okonkwo, who was born in Camden to Nigerian parents, previously featured for England across several youth levels during his time at Arsenal, including the Under-18 side.
Having switched allegiance to represent the Super Eagles, Ejiofor, stated that Okonkwo’s addition to the senior national team would be a welcome development.
He noted that with Nigeria now rebuilding for the 2030 World Cup, the Wrexham goalkeeper will put Nwabali and other goalkeepers on their toes.
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Super Eagles star, Taiwo Awoniyi has pledged to play a key role in helping Nottingham Forest avoid relegation from the Premier League.
The Tricky Trees currently occupy 16th position on the table, three points above the relegation zone.
Awoniyi struggled for consistent playing time this season, with summer signing Igor Jesus being preferred ahead of him.
Despite playing peripheral role at the club, the Nigeria international is determined to help Forest maintain their top-flight status.
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Super Eagles striker Paul Onuachu says he is more concerned about helping Trabzonspor win matches than nursing personal achievements in the Turkish League.
The Nigerian international has started twenty-four of the club’s twenty-five league games, contributing twenty-two goals and two assists in 2,152 minutes.
Onuachu stated that his priority was to help the club win their remaining matches in the league and hope for the best at the end of the season.
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Olympique Marseille head coach, Habib Beye has lavished praise on Nigerian international Tochukwu Nnadi, while also challenging the midfielder to elevate his performances further.
The 22-year-old linked up with Les Phocéens on a permanent transfer from Belgian Pro League outfit Zulte Waregem in January.
Nnadi has however struggled to make impact at the Ligue 1 club.
The Nigeria international has made just three league appearances for Marseille.
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Serie A club Lazio is willing to sell Fisayo Dele-Bashiru this summer.
The Biancolesti, want between fifteen and eighteen million euros for the attacking midfielder.
Dele-Bashiru arrived the Stadio Olimipco from Turkish Super Lig outfit Sivasspor in 2024 for a fee in the region of five million euros
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The Nigeria international has struggled for regular playing time at the club this season.
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Cape Verde have withdrawn from their planned international friendlies against Nigeria’s Super Falcons.
The fixtures were slated for Wednesday, 15th April, and Saturday, 18th April, at Remo Stars Stadium in Ikenne.
Reports indicate that the Nigeria Football Federation is now searching for a replacement opponent, although the short notice may make it difficult to secure one in time.
The Super Falcons are still expected to assemble in Abuja this weekend, with the matches intended to form part of their build-up to the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in July.
Justine Madugu’s team last faced Cameroon’s Indomitable Lionesses twice during the previous international window.
The African champions lost the first friendly one-nil, and bounced back with a three-one victory in the second friendly.
OTHER LEAGUES
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Barcelona have submitted a complaint to Uefa over a grave lack of VAR intervention during their two-nil Champions League defeat by Atletico Madrid.
Hansi Flick’s side was denied a penalty in the 54th minute of the quarter-final first leg when Atletico defender Marc Pubill handled the ball in the visitors’ box.
Barcelona players appealed for a penalty but referee Istvan Kovacs allowed play to continue and Video Assistant Referee Christian Dingert did not intervene.
The club has requested an investigation be opened, access to refereeing communications, and where applicable, official acknowledgment of the errors and the adoption of the relevant measures.
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Brazil assistant coach, Davide Ancelotti has tipped Chelsea’s 18-year-old winger Estevao Willian to be the surprise package at the summer’s World Cup.
Former Bayern Munich and Real Madrid assistant manager Ancelotti will be part of his father Carlo’s Brazil coaching staff at the tournament taking place in the United States, Canada and Mexico from 11th June to 19th July.
The highly rated teenager has scored eight goals and provided four assists in thirty-four appearances for Chelsea after joining from Palmeiras last summer for an initial fee of twenty-nine million pounds agreed in 2024.
Scotland have confirmed a friendly against Bolivia in New Jersey on Saturday, 6th June as their final warm-up game before this summer’s World Cup finals.
Bolivia missed out on qualifying for the tournament in the Americas after losing their inter-confederation play-off final two-one to Iraq in Guadalupe, Mexico.
They have two more chances to improve their results before their World Cup opener against Haiti on 14th June.
OTHER SPORTS
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In Tennis, Jannik Sinner has dropped a set at an ATP Masters event for the first time in 186 days but he still managed to book a spot in the Monte Carlo quarter-finals with victory over Tomas Machac.
The Italian lifted the past three Masters 1000 titles at Paris, Indian Wells and Miami without conceding a set.
His streak of 37 consecutive sets was suddenly snapped when he lost control in the second set and Czech Machac took advantage to win the tie-break.
It was the first time Sinner had dropped a set at that level since October’s Shangai Masters, when he retired injured against Netherlands’ Tallon Griekspoor.
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In Cricket, Brazil’s Laura Cardoso has become the first player ever to take nine wickets in a T20 international, recording figures of 9-4 against Lesotho.
The seamer achieved the feat in three overs as Lesotho were bowled out for 13 in 6.2 overs, chasing 203.
The 21-year-old now has the best figures in the format, besting the previous record held by Bhutan’s Sonam Yeshey, who took eight wickets for seven runs against Myanmar in a men’s T20 international in 2025.
In women’s cricket, Cardoso surpassed Indonesia’s Rohmalia Rohmalia’s figures of 7-0 against Mongolia in 2024.
In Formula one, Leading Red Bull engineer Gianpiero Lambiase has agreed to join McLaren from 2028.
The team said the Briton, who is most well known for being Max Verstappen’s race engineer, will become McLaren’s chief racing officer, reporting into team principal Andrea Stella.
McLaren’s confirmation of Lambiase’s new role came several hours after the news broke.
Red Bull also put out a statement confirming that Lambiase would leave the team in 2028, when his current contract expires.
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In Rugby, England utility back Helena Rowland will start at inside centre in a much-changed team for their Women’s Six Nations opener against Ireland at Allianz Stadium on Saturday.
Centre Tatyana Heard has been a regular under head coach John Mitchell and started the Rugby World Cup final win over Canada in September, but was ruled out of the Six Nations with a foot injury.
Rowland, who has played for her country in every backline position other than scrum-half, is one of eight changes to the starting team that won England’s first World Cup in eleven years at a sold-out 82,000-capacity Allianz Stadium.
In Cycling, New Zealander cyclist Kiaan Watts has been banned for twenty-five days by cycling’s global governing body after he punched a fellow rider in the head during a race last month.
Watts, hit out at Dutchman Marijn Maas with thirty-three kilometres to go as the pair competed at the front of the peloton at the Salverda Bouw Ster van Zwolle in the Netherlands on 7th March.
The Union Cycliste Internationale said Watts acknowledged the closed fist punch was in violation of the rules and has accepted his punishment.
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TODAY’S FIXTURES
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IN ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE
West Ham United vs Wolves
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IN SPANISH LA LIGA
Real Madrid vs Girona
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SOCCER ACTION CONTINUES THIS WEEKEND
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IN ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE
ON SATURDAY
Arsenal vs AFC Bournemouth
Brentford vs Everton
Burnley vs Brighton
Liverpool vs Fulham
ON SUNDAY
Crystal Palace vs Newcastle United.
Nottingham Forest vs Aston Villa
Sunderland vs Tottenham Hotspur
Chelsea vs Manchester City
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IN SPANISH LA LIGA
ON SATURDAY
Real Sociedad vs Alavés
Elche vs Valencia
Barcelona vs Espanyol
Sevilla vs Atletico Madrid
ON SUNDAY
Osasuna vs Real Betis
Mallorca vs Rayo Vallecano
Celta Vigo vs Real Oviedo
Athletic Club vs Villarreal
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IN ITALIAN SERIE A
ON SATURDAY
Cagliari vs Cremonese
Torino vs Hellas Verona
AC Milan vs Udinese
Atalanta vs Juventus
ON SUNDAY
Genoa vs Sassuolo
Parma vs Napoli
Bologna vs Lecce
Como vs Inter Milan
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FOOD FOR THOUGHT.
Goal setting is the secret to a compelling future….words from Tony.
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