Author: David Great

Chelsea have told Napoli they must pay £36m to sign 31-year-old Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku. (Gianluca Di Marzio) Napoli sporting director Giovanni Manna says 25-year-old Nigeria striker Victor Osimhen, who has been linked with Chelsea and Paris St-Germain, has asked to leave. (90 Min) Chelsea are planning to sell or loan out at least six senior players to reduce their squad to a manageable level before the transfer window closes. (Telegraph – subscription) Manchester United are weighing up a £50m move for Brighton’s 19-year-old Republic of Ireland striker Evan Ferguson amid concerns that Chelsea could try to sign him. (Daily Star on Sunday), external Manchester United could give English defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka, 26, a £5.6m pay-off to make up…

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Frontliners, an intra-party pressure group, has called on PDP’s National Working Committee to disband the caretaker committee in Kogi. The group made the call in Abuja on Saturday through a statement jointly signed by its president, Hussein Mohammed, secretary, Moses Abidemi, and publicity secretary, Dan Okafor. The group leaders commended the NWC for rejecting attempts to replace the credible ward and local government congresses’ results with another slated for August 10 by the state caretaker committee. They said it was worrisome that, despite the firm opposition of 18 out of the 21 local government chairpersons…

The Lagos State Government has announced that the Lagos Rail Mass Transit Blue Line will from Monday, August 12, 2024, increase its number of trips from 54 to 72 per day. In a related development, the government announced a 25 per cent discount in fare for commuters travelling on the Blue Line train within the off-peak period set at 10am and 4pm daily. “However, the current schedule for Sunday operations remained unchanged,” a statement from the state Ministry of Information and Strategy made available to our correspondent on Saturday read. According to the statement, the Managing Director of Lagos Metropolitan…

The United States claimed a record-extending fifth Olympic gold medal in women’s football after Mallory Swanson earned them a 1-0 win over Brazil in the final at Parc des Princes on Saturday. Following a goalless first half, Swanson broke the deadlock 12 minutes after the break to earn the U.S. their first Olympic title since London 2012. Brazil were dangerous in the opening stages and came close to scoring when Gabi Portilho drew a great save from Alyssa Naeher shortly before half-time. Naeher did well again in injury time to claw away Adriana’s header from point-blank range. Brazil great Marta…

West Ham United have signed French centre back Jean-Clair Todibo from Ligue 1 club Nice on a season-long loan with the option to buy in the summer of 2025, the Premier League club said on Saturday. The financial details of the transfer were not released by either party, although British media stated that the buy option is around 40 million euros ($43.66 million). Todibo completed his medical on Friday. The 24-year-old, who has twice played for France, began his career at Toulouse before joining LaLiga side Barcelona in 2019. Since signing with Nice in 2021, he has made 136 appearances.…

Yemisi Ogunleye, the German-Nigerian shot-putter, captivated the audience at the Paris 2024 Olympics, yesterday, not only by clinching the gold medal in the shot put but also by celebrating her victory with a touching tribute to her heritage. Ogunleye, 27, who has steadily risen through the ranks of European athletics, delivered a powerful performance with a throw of 20.00 meters, to win the gold medal in shotput event. Yemisi Ogunleye’s achievement marks her as one of the leading stars in the sport, showcasing her exceptional skill and dedication. The true highlight of the evening came after her victory, as Ogunleye…

The Lagos State Police Command has confirmed the death of a 17-year-old teenager, who was electrocuted while working with his step-father at a building construction site. The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Benjamin Hundeyin, confirmed this to the News Agency of Nigeria on Saturday. Hundeyin said that the mother of the boy, whose name was not given, reported the case to the Agbado Police Division on Aug. 2, at 1pm. He said that the woman reported that at about 12.30 p.m. on the same day, she received a phone call from her younger brother about the incident. According…

Dangote Refinery has addressed recent media reports alleging that the company acknowledged receiving 60% of its crude oil supply from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). In a statement released on Friday by its spokesman, Anthony Chijiena, Dangote Refinery clarified that it never accused the NNPC of failing to supply crude oil. Instead, the company expressed concern about the failure of International Oil Companies (IOCs) to follow the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission’s (NUPRC) instructions to enforce the domestic crude supply obligation fully. According to the refinery, its crude requirement for September is 15 cargoes, of which NNPC allocated only…

Chelsea have agreed to pay around £54 million for Wolverhampton Wanderers attacker Pedro Neto. The Portugal winger will undergo a medical before sealing a move to Stamford Bridge, which will push Chelsea’s summer spending over £200 million. After having two bids rejected, Chelsea finally agreed to a deal with Wolves for an initial £51.3 million plus £2.6 million in add-ons. The Blues’ player-plus-cash deal earlier this week, which included David Datro Fofana and Trevoh Chalobah, was rejected, while a straight cash offer was turned down on Thursday evening. Since joining Wolves in 2019 from Lazio, the 24-year-old has made 135…

Netherlands centre-back Matthijs de Ligt, 24, and Morocco full-back Noussair Mazraoui, 26, are expected to join Manchester United from Bayern Munich with progress being made in talks between the two clubs. (Sky Sports Germany) Manchester United are also reportedly planning a new bid for Everton’s 22-year-old English defender Jarrad Branthwaite – after learning their new signing, French 18-year-old defender Leny Yoro, is unlikely to play again this year. (Sun) American billionaire John Textor has made a bid to become the majority owner of Everton, which could end the saga around the sale of the club. (Guardian) Rodrygo’s future at Real Madrid is uncertain with the arrival of Kylian Mbappe and EndrickBrazil…