Author: David Great

Top US diplomat Antony Blinken urged Israel and Hamas on Monday not to derail negotiations that he described as potentially the “last opportunity” to secure a Gaza truce and a hostage release deal. Blinken, on his ninth regional tour since Hamas’s 7th October attack triggered the war, stated that he returned to Israel “to bring this agreement to fruition.” “This is a decisive moment—probably the best, and maybe the last, opportunity to bring the hostages home, secure a ceasefire, and set everyone on a path to lasting peace and security,” Blinken said during a meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog…

Manchester United are not interested in pursuing a deal for England international Ivan Toney. (Sky Germany) Representatives of the Brentford striker Ivan Toney are in talks with Saudi Pro League club Al-Ahli to sign the 28-year-old. (Teamtalk) Nottingham Forest, Villarreal, Sevilla, and Valencia have registered interest in Aston Villa and Spanish defender Alex Moreno, 31. (Football Insider) Panathinaikos are in talks with Manchester United over a deal for 22-year-old Uruguay midfielder Facundo Pellistri. (Athletic – subscription required) Atletico Madrid have not ruled out a move for Valencia’s 21-year-old Spanish midfielder Javi Guerra as their deal for Chelsea’s England midfielder Conor Gallagher, 24, stalls. (Athletic – subscription required) Liverpool will wait until the January transfer window to sign a star midfielder…

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti was critical of his team’s lack of balance and bad defending in a 1-1 draw at Mallorca in their LaLiga season opener on Sunday. Ancelotti said his players lacked focus after taking an early lead through Rodrygo in the 13th minute but allowing Mallorca to rescue a point with a Vedat Muriqi header after the break. “Today I am not happy. I think we could have been done much better,” a visibly frustrated Ancelotti told a press conference. “We need to be more concentrated, work better as a group… It’s not a fitness problem, it…

Despite extending their unbeaten run in all competitions to 28 matches, Real Madrid were unable to start the 2024/25 LaLiga term with a win as they were held 1-1 by RCD Mallorca at the Estadi Mallorca San Moix. We are still in August, and yet Real Madrid already have one trophy to their name this campaign. They produced a fantastic second-half display to defeat Atalanta BC in the UEFA Super Cup, with superstar summer signing Kylian Mbappe netting his first goal for his new club. Unsurprisingly, the Frenchman was included in the starting line-up against Mallorca as Carlo Ancelotti’s men…

The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa has said that Africa’s sovereign debt has reached a staggering $1 trillion, plunging the continent into a deep fiscal crisis. The Executive Secretary of UNECA, Claver Gatete, issued the warning at the 44th Southern African Development Community Summit in Harare, Zimbabwe, as reported by Bloomberg on Saturday. Gatete revealed that over a third of African nations are either in or at high risk of debt distress. The crisis, Gatete noted, comes at a time when traditional financial lifelines — such as long-term concessional loans, official development assistance, and foreign direct investment — are…

The founder of Power City International Ministry, Pastor Abel Damina, has faulted the popular saying that ‘What God cannot do does not exist.’ He said the statement popularised by Pastor Jerry Eze of Streams of Joy International Ministry is not the truth. The pastor made the statements in a recent teaser released for a programme, the Honest Bunch Podcast with Nedu. Damina, known for his criticism of Nigerian pastors, clarified that his opposition to Eze’s teachings was not driven by jealousy but rather a desire to uphold the truth. He also questioned the authenticity of miracles performed by some pastors,…

The National chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Ganduje, has distanced himself from a poster circulating on social media that claims he will contest for the presidency in the 2027 election with Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State as his running mate. The poster bearing pictures of Ganduje adorned in blue Babariga as the APC presidential candidate and Uzodinma in white attire and a red cap as his running mate is captioned, “The Winning Team 2027. Vote APC 2027. For Nigerians, prosperity and human development.” In a statement issued by his spokesman, Edwin Olofu, in Abuja, on Sunday, Ganduje…

Former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) and the convener of the Take-It-Back movement, Omoyele Sowore, on Saturday commended the success of the 10-day #EndBadGovernance protests in Nigeria. During an X Space discussion titled “#EndBadGovernance in Nigeria Protest: What Next?”, Sowore highlighted the achievements of the protests, which he said were strategically planned and executed. Sowore, who also is the convener of #RevolutionNow Movement explained that the first 10 days of the anti-bad governance protests were announced almost a month in advance, giving the movement ample time to gain momentum. “The oppressed Nigerians succeeded before the protest, during…

Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas to “promptly disclose the exact amount of the monthly running costs of millions of naira currently being paid to and received by members of the National Assembly and the spending details of any such running costs.” SERAP also urged them to “promptly end the alleged practice by the National Assembly of fixing its own salaries, allowances and running costs, in conformity with the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended], and the country’s international obligations.” SERAP urged them “to end…

Manchester City are preparing to offer Spain midfielder Rodri a double-your-money pay-rise, topping up his weekly salary to £375,000, to keep the 28-year-old at the club. (Sunday Mirror) Rodri was banned by UEFA for his Gibraltar chants after Spain won Euro 2024 hosted in Germany. (Chronicle NG) Joe Gomez was left out of Liverpool’s squad for Saturday’s win at Ipswich as the 27-year-old explores a possible transfer, with Newcastle, Aston Villa, Fulham and Chelsea all previously showing an interest in the England defender. (Times – subscription required) Liverpool are understood to not be looking to actively sell Gomez though, with boss Arne Slot happy for the player to fight his way back into contention. (Liverpool…