₦airaland Forum

Manchester United will increase their efforts to bring Real Valladolid defender Mohammed Salisu to Old Trafford this summer.

According to reports from ESPN, United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wants to sign new centre back as competition for Victor Lindelof.

The Premier League side have been consistently linked with a move for the Ghanaian centre back, as a cut price squad option for the 2020-21 campaign.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/10/7065manchester-united-taregt-la-liga-van-dijk/

Barcelona and Real Madrid are both planning to reduce their first team squad salaries by 30% ahead of the 2020-21 La Liga season.

According to Sunday’s front page of Diario AS, the El Clasico pair are both considering major cuts as part of financial restructuring this summer.'
Clubs from across the Spanish top flight are expected to be severely impacted by the ongoing La Liga suspension due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Barcelona are reportedly aiming to recoup an estimated €230m due to the reductions, with transfer budgets also reduced and big name arrivals restricted this summer.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/10/7059barcelona-real-madrid-plan-30-player-wage-cuts/

A former Chelsea manager, Guus Hiddink, has claimed that the Blues’ 2009 UEFA Champions League semi-final defeat to Barcelona might have been fixed.

Hiddink said that the officiating of the encounter by referee Tom Henning Ovrebo was the worst he has ever seen.

Chelsea was denied a spot in the Champions League final after Ovrebo made a series of blunders.
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https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/10/7029hiddink-claims-chelsea-2009-champions-league-semi-final-against-barcelona-was-fixed/

Arsene Wenger has backed Kylian Mbappe to become the best player in world football in the post-Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi era.

Ronaldo and Messi have dominated world football over the previous decade and are widely considered as two of the best players of all time.

Both Juventus superstar Ronaldo and Barcelona captain Messi are heading towards the late stages of their respective careers.

And fans have already started to speculate who will be the next big star to ascend to the top of world football.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/10/7038wenger-reveals-ronaldo-messi-successor/

Chelsea and Cote d’Ivoire legend Didier Drogba has been voted by French fans as Ligue 1’s best striker of the last 20 years.

Drogba’s choice as the league’s top marks man in the last two decades was announced on Ligue 1’s verified Twitter handle on Saturday.
“Congratulations, @didierdrogba !

“The former @OM_English and @EAGuingamp striker has been voted by you, the fans, as Ligue 1’s top striker of the last 20 years!”

During his time in the French league, Drogba player for Le Mans, Guingamp and Marseille.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/09/7002ivorian-legend-drogba-voted-ligue-1s-top-striker-of-the-last-two-decades/

Atletico Madrid Brazilian full-back Renan Lodi has reportedly tested positive for coronavirus following squad-wide tests this week.

Diego Simeone and his players returned to the club’s Ciudad Deporutiba Atletico. de Madrid training ground after lockdown measures in Spain were relaxed Monday.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/09/6842atletico-madrid-defender-tests-positive-for-coronavirus/

Nosa Igiebor has revealed why he has not been playing for the Nigeria national team, suggesting he was frozen out by coach Gernot Rohr.

The 29-year-old was involved in the German tactician’s opening two games but was dropped to the bench against Zambia during the 2018 World Cup qualifying game.

The former Maccabi Tel Aviv midfielder explained he met with Rohr to know why he was not involved in the match, and the 66-year-old responded that he should move to a better league as the Israeli Premier League was not competitive enough.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/08/6772afcon-2013-winner-igiebor-reveals-reason-why-he-stopped-playing-for-nigeria/

Son Heung-min has passed his compulsory military training in South Korea with flying colours, and has been awarded a prize for best performance.

The 27-year-old was forced to report for national service – a requirement for all South Korean males – and has been based on Jeju Island for the past three weeks.


And it seems Son was not just making up the numbers in camp, impressing chief staff with his skills.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/08/6789tottenham-star-son-receives-award-as-he-completes-military-training-in-south-korea/

FIFA have given the Premier League the green light to scrap VAR as part of Project Restart.

Lawmakers IFAB have sent out two key changes to allow a maximum of five substitutes during matches and also to stop using video technology.


However, the Premier League wants to continue using VAR and has even factored officials and operators into the numbers allowed for behind-closed-doors.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/08/6785fifa-gives-premier-league-green-light-to-scrap-var-as-part-of-project-restart/

FIFA will approve an increase from three to five substitutions per match, when football returns amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Referees, chief, Nicola Rizzoli, feels football’s governing body will accommodate the requests of individual associations.

It is believed that an increase in replacements, will reduce the strain on players with fixture lists across the globe set to become more congested.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/07/6704fifa-to-increase-substitutions-to-five-ahead-of-football-return/

Five players in Spain have tested positive following the initial results of coronavirus tests undertaken this week.

As outlined by RAC1 via El Mundo Deportivo, three of the players are in La Liga while two more are in the Segunda – Spain’s second tier.

It should be noted that this number is likely to rise further over the next day or so as only a handful of clubs have received the results of the tests, which were carried out earlier this week.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/08/6720five-la-liga-players-test-positive-to-covid-19/

Lionel Messi and his Barcelona teammates returned to training for the first time in two months on Friday morning after undergoing tests for coronavirus.

All players and staff undertook the tests on Wednesday and tested negative, as reported by RAC1, and were put into individualised training sessions on Friday.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/08/6719photos-as-messi-barcelona-stars-return-to-training-after-covid-19-tests/

FIFA will approve an increase from three to five substitutions per match, when football returns amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Referees, chief, Nicola Rizzoli, feels football’s governing body will accommodate the requests of individual associations.

It is believed that an increase in replacements, will reduce the strain on players with fixture lists across the globe set to become more congested.

Games will also be played in higher temperatures than normal, with the Premier League hoping to restart in June and continue throughout the summer.

“I believe FIFA intend to allow five substitutions.

“In a phase of the season with many games one after the other and in elevated temperatures, we’ll have to all take a step forward to help everyone,” Rizzo, who reffed the 2014 World Cup final, told Sky Italia.

Rizzo also revealed the changes referees will need to make, including a reduction in the number of officials in the VAR booth – and the protective equipment they will need to wear.

https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/07/6704fifa-to-increase-substitutions-to-five-ahead-of-football-return/

Minister of Sports, Mr Sunday Dare said plans are ongoing to reward the mother of later Super Eagles stars Rashidi Yekini and Sam Okwaraji, although the details will remain confidential.

It was widely reported by some sections of the media on Wednesday that both mothers of the later Super Eagles forwards have been placed on 10, 000 naira monthly stipends by the Sports Ministry, but the Minister has now come out to set the record straight and claimed nothing is official yet.



“The Mothers of Rashidi Yekini and Sam Okwaraji will enjoy more benefits and renumeration as soon as the Ministry works out other details. The final details will be privately communicated. What government has done is to reach out and recognize the labors of these soccer heroes.” Sunday Dare said in a tweet.


It would be recalled that the representative of the Minister Olaitan Shittu visited the mother of Rashidi Yekini Alhaja Sikiratu Yekini,in Ijagbo, near Offa in Kwara on Wednesday.



She was presented with some food items and the sum of 50,000 naira for Ramadan.

https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/07/6706sunday-dare-reject-claims-of-placing-rashidi-yekini-okwaraji-mothers-on-n10000-monthly-stipends/

Former England manager, Sven-Goran Erikson, has revealed that he rejected the chance to become the Super Eagles coach at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

Erikson stated this in an interview with Branschen.se.

According to him, he turned down the offer after he was told by a Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) official, that his salary would be paid into two different bank accounts.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/05/01/ex-england-coach-sven-erikson-reveals-why-he-declined-super-eagles-job/

D’Hooghe did not only call for a stop to the act but also wants those caught in the act to be handed a yellow card.

“This is a common practice in football and it is not very hygienic,”

“So when we start football again I think we should have to avoid that at maximum. The question is whether that will be possible.

“Perhaps they can give a yellow card. It is unhygienic and a good way to spread the virus. This is one of the reasons why we have to be very careful before we start again. I am not pessimistic but I am rather skeptical at the moment.”D’Hooghe told The London Telegraph.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/28/6438medical-expert-propose-yellow-card-for-players-spitting-during-match/

France’s Ligue 1 has ended with immediate effect.

This comes after the country’s Prime Minister, Edouard Philippe, made it clear there will be no professional football in the country until September at least, because of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Philippe spoke on Tuesday at the National Assembly, while unveiling France’s plans to exit social distancing.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/28/6459coronavirus-french-football-seasons-called-off/

Former Arsenal striker Emmanuel Adebayor has said that he will not be swayed into action by those who have called him out for not donating money to his home country, Togo.

The former Tottenham star said this amid the global coronavirus crisis, adding that he will not be parting with his money purely because others wish him to do so.

Many footballers have spent their time helping to raise funds or awareness for charities that directly benefit those on the front line of the fight.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/24/6105adebayor-blasts-critics-for-telling-him-to-donate-like-drogba-etoo-amid-coronavirus-crises/

The Premier League is considering screening some behind-closed-doors matches on free-to-air television in Britain when the season restarts, the culture secretary has said.

Sky Sports and BT hold the UK television rights for live Premier League matches in what remains of the 2019/20 season, which is currently suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said there had been “productive conversations” with sporting bodies about how they would resume activity in the event of restrictions being relaxed.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/23/epl-matches-to-return-on-free-to-air-tv/

The Union of European Football Association, UEFA, has reportedly revealed that the Champions League qualification for next season will be decided on “sporting merit” if the current campaign cannot be concluded due to the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19) across the world, according to The Times.

The decision was made during UEFA’s crunch meeting on Thursday morning to decide the fate of the season.

The decision means the current top four teams in the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, and Ligue 1 would qualify for the 2020/20 Champions League.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/23/6057clubs-next-season-champions-league-spot-will-be-on-sporting-merit-uefa/

Getafe midfielder Oghenekaro Etebo has admitted that the exit of Mikel Obi and Odion Ighalo from the Super Eagles has left the team short of leaders in the dressing room.

Both players retired from the Eagles after featuring at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/23/6092etebo-reveal-what-super-eagles-are-missing/

Villarreal winger Samuel Chukwueze says his main target is to be crowned Africa’s best footballer in the near future.

The 20-year-old Nigerian winger has impressed since breaking into Villarreal’s first team in 2018, and is now one of the most in-demand youngsters in La Liga.

Rashidi Yekini, Emmanuel Amuneke, Victor Ikpeba and Nwankwo Kanu are the Nigeria stars with the distinction of being named the CAF African Player of the Year.
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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/23/chukwueze-eye-african-best-title/

Amaju Pinnick Led NFF recently released the clause involve in extending the super eagles coach contract Gernot Rorh is due to be over by June. The Nigeria Football Governing body have received mixed reactions From Nigeria Sport loving persons.

Recently a former Chairman of Lagos State Football Association, Wahidi Akanni, also had he say he was quoted saying the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has been unfair to Gernot Rohr, the Super Eagles’ Head Coach.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/20/5853rorh-contract-nff-pinnick-unfair-to-rorh-ex-international-akanni/

Nigerian-American and Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie has confirmed his intention to acquire a Nigerian passport to be eligible to play for D’Tigers at the 2020 Olympics Games billed for next year.

Dinwiddie, who did not receive a Team USA Olympic invite in spite of finishing 10th in All-Star voting for Eastern Conference guards and recording a career-high 41 points in December – will now join the Nigeria roster under Mike Bown that also includes Al-Farouq Aminu, Josh Okogie, Chimezie Metu and Ekpe Udoh.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/20/5893nets-spencer-dinwiddie-confirms-interest-to-represent-nigeria-at-next-year-olympics/

Arsenal players and coaches have agreed to take a voluntary pay cut to ease financial difficulties during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis.

The North London club agreed 12.5 percent pay cuts with players and coaching staff that will take effect this month.

Arsenal disclosed this in a statement on their official website on Monday.

“We are pleased to announce that we have reached a voluntary agreement with our first-team players, head coach and core coaching staff to help support the club at this critical time,” a club’s statement read.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/20/coronavirus-arsenal-players-coaches-agree-pay-cut/

Serena Williams Coach is planning is set to hold a ‘risk-free’ tennis tournament in May.Patrick Mouratoglou says he wants the Ultimate Tennis Showdown to start in May.

Getting live tennis back on TV and fighting for a more equal distribution of wealth in the sport are two subjects that Serena Williams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou has been thinking a lot about during lockdown.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/20/5885serena-williams-coach-mouratoglou-planning-risk-free-tennis-tournament-in-may/

Tottenham Hotspur’s South Korean striker Son Heung-min began his three-week military training at a marines boot camp on Monday, a report said, with the Premier League on hold over the coronavirus pandemic.

All able-bodied South Korean men are obliged to serve in the military for nearly two years, making up the bulk of Seoul’s 600,000-strong forces — who face off against North Korea’s army of 1.3 million.

But Son was among the

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/20/5881tottenham-star-son-begins-three-week-compulsory-military-training-in-south-korea/

Former Barcelona president, Sandro Rosell, has explained why Lionel Messi is keen for Neymar to return to Barcelona, while he has also said that he would move for the Brazilian again if he were still in charge at the club.

Rosell was in charge at Camp Nou when Neymar initially signed for the Blaugrana in 2013 before going on to score 105 goals in 186 outings for the Blaugrana.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/19/5810messi-wants-neymar-reunion-at-barcelona-rosell/

Liverpool striker, Mohamed Salah, has made a huge donation to his home village in Egypt.

He has donated thousands of tons of food and fresh meat to families in his hometown of Nagrig.

The Egyptian sent the supplies to poverty-hit residents along with advice on how to stay safe during the coronavirus outbreak.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/19/5822liverpool-star-salah-makes-massive-donation-to-his-hometown/

Brighton owner Tony Bloom believes that relegation should be scrapped if the Premier League season cannot be completed, claiming it would be “unfathomable” that a club could be doomed by “0.2 points”.

The Premier League, in common with leagues throughout Europe and beyond, has been suspended for over a month due to the coronavirus outbreak.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/19/brighton-owner-wants-relegation-scrapped-if-premier-league-season-is-not-completed/

Super Eagles and Leicester city Forward Kelechi Iheanacho is set to leave the English premier league side Leicester to make a move to Mikel Obi former club Trabzonspor.
According to Turkish outlet, Fotospor, Trabzonspor wants Iheanacho to join the club this summer transfer window after terminating Mikel Obi’s contract in March when the former Super Eagles captain refused to play amid the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

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https://sportingrave.com/2020/04/19/5784mikel-obi-former-club-trabzonspor-targets-iheanacho/