Author: Chronicle Editor

Birmingham City have appointed Harry Redknapp as their new manager. The ex-West Ham, Tottenham and QPR boss succeeds Gianfranco Zola, who resigned on Monday after a 2-0 defeat by fellow Championship strugglers Burton Albion. Blues are 20th in the table, three points above the relegation zone with three games left, and travel to local rivals Aston Villa on Sunday. “Birmingham are a proper football club but they are in a precarious position,” Redknapp, 70, told Talksport. Redknapp’s appointment was announced just 16 hours after Zola’s departure, and he says he will initially take charge until the end of the season.…

Eight gunmen on Sunday kidnapped a Trader, Alhaji Nuhu Isa, in Lambata village of Gurara Local Government Area of Niger. The Commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in the state, Mr Philip Ayuba, disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Minna on Tuesday. Ayuba said the gunmen had already used the victim’s cell phone to call his family and demanded N1 million ransom. He said the kidnappers came with sophisticated weapons shooting indiscriminately in the village before taking the trader away. He said the command had already swung into action to rescue the…

UK Prime Minister Theresa May has announced plans to call a snap general election on 8 June. She said Britain needed certainty, stability and strong leadership following the EU referendum. Explaining the decision, Mrs Theresa May said: “The country is coming together but Westminster is not.” There will be a Commons vote on the proposed election on Wednesday – Labour have said they will vote with the government. The prime minister needs Parliament’s backing to hold a vote before the next scheduled date of 2020. Explaining her change of heart on an early election, Mrs May said: “I have concluded…

When the 2017/2018 Premier League season resumes, we could well be having Brighton & Hove Albion playing Tottenham Hotspur in the opening weekend. With three games to spare, Chris Houghton’s have secured promotion to the big league and will be playing with the big boys for big money. While Newcastle continue to stutter, Brighton continued to soar. The Championship leaders Brighton were promoted after they beat relegation-threatened Wigan, and Huddersfield then drew at Derby. Brighton had to wait on the result at Pride Park, before their return to the top flight after 34 years was confirmed. Glenn Murray’s crisp strike…

The Foxes must solve their defensive crisis and limit Antoine Griezmann’s impact on the game if they are to reach the semi-finals. Against all the odds, Leicester City remain in with a reasonable chance of reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League. Having defied all expectations to win the Premier League last season, they now stand on the verge of even more history. As they did in the last 16, Leicester head into the second leg of their tie needing to win to have any chance of continuing their progress in the competition. Having held firm in Madrid to limit…

Troops on clearance operations on Monday at Jarawa village in Kala Balge Local Government Area of Borno, rescued 1,623 captives held by remnants of Boko Haram terrorists after they neutralised 21 terrorists. According to a statement issued by the army spokesman, Brig.-Gen. Sani Usman, the troops also recovered 3 AK-47 Rifles with registration numbers 565222414, 563729686 and UF 3646, a 36 hand grenade, 12 cutlasses and four motorcycles. “The rescued persons have been escorted to Rann Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Camp, while all the children were vaccinated,” Usman said. He said the troops of 3 Battalion, 22 Brigade also cleared…

The Seagulls will be playing top-flight football in 2017-18, with the club having come a long way since finishing 91st in the League pyramid in 1997. Brighton and Hove Albion have been promoted to the Premier League for the first time in their history. Chris Hughton’s side beat Wigan Athletic 2-1 on Monday to stay top of the Championship and put a 15-point gap between themselves and third-place Huddersfield Town. Huddersfield then failed to defeat Derby County in the later match – Jacob Butterfield netting a late leveller for the Rams – meaning Brighton’s top-two finish is mathematically assured with…

One crew member died and two others were injured after a U.S. Army Blackhawk helicopter crashed at a golf course in Leonardtown, Maryland, during a “routine training flight” shortly before 2 p.m. EST today, officials told ABC News. The survivors, in critical and serious condition respectively, were transported to the University of Maryland R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, the Army said. The cause of the crash remains under investigation, the Army said. “We are deeply saddened by this loss within our community,” said Maj. Gen. Bradley A. Becker, commanding general, Joint Force Headquarters National Capital Region and…

The Delta state police command on Monday said its operatives had killed a notorious suspected armed robber simply known as “Tompolo”. The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Andrew Aniamaka, who confirmed the death of the suspected robber, however, added that three of his accomplices escaped with bullet wounds. Aniamaka said police detectives from Enerhen division in Uvwie local government area near Warri, foiled a robbery attack following a distress call and in the ensuing gun duel, killed Tompolo, on April 9. He said, “I got a distress call that one suspect has been gunned down by men of the…

Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil gave Arsenal a 2-1 win over Middlesbrough that lifts them back into the Premier League’s top six. Mesut Ozil’s second-half strike secured an unconvincing 2-1 win for Arsenal away to relegation-threatened Middlesbrough that keeps their top-four hopes alive. The Germany international’s seventh Premier League goal of the season sealed the victory after Alvaro Negredo had cancelled out Alexis Sanchez’s stunning set-piece opener. Arsene Wenger’s side slumped to a 3-0 defeat to Crystal Palace last time out, prompting the manager to experiment with a 3-5-2 system at the Riverside Stadium – with Rob Holding in a…