Author: David Great

Newcastle United have made contact with Philippe Coutinho in a bid to thwart Aston Villa’s attempts to sign the 29-year-old Brazil attacking midfielder on a permanent deal from Barcelona. (Goal) Coutinho is still tied to a contract at Barcelona and is expected to return to the Spanish club after his loan deal. West Ham are lining up a summer move for Aston Villa and England striker Ollie Watkins, 26, with the Midlands club likely to demand a £50m fee. (Guardian) Barcelona are targeting Liverpool forward Sadio Mane, who has been linked with Bayern Munich. The 30-year-old Senegal international is reportedly…

The number of teams in the Champions League group stage will rise from 32 to 36 from 2024-25 under changes approved by UEFA. Under the new Champions League format, each team will play eight games over 10 match weeks. But a plan to give two Champions League places to individual clubs solely on the basis of their past European performance has been abandoned. UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin said “the dream to participate will remain for all clubs”. Instead, two of the four extra places will be awarded on the performance of a country’s clubs in Europe over the previous season.…

Millions of hard-up Britons are skipping meals because they cannot afford to eat in the deepening cost-of-living crisis, a bleak report revealed Monday. Some 6.8 million adults have cut back portion sizes or missed food altogether because they were unable to pay for or “get access to food”, according to a YouGov survey for the Food Foundation. A total of 4.6 million adults have not eaten despite being hungry, while 2.4 million have not eaten for a whole day because of affordability, the online study of 10,674 British adults shows. Around one in seven adults (13.8%) live in households where…

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo says improving the quality of education for young people and creating job opportunities are some of the reasons that made him to join the 2023 presidential race. Osinbajo said this when he paid a courtesy visit to the Emir of Bauchi, Alhaji Rilwanu Sulaimanu, on Tuesday at his palace in Bauchi. The Vice President was in the state as part of his consultations with All Progressives Congress (APC) stakeholders, ahead of the 2023 presidential election. Osinbajo said, “Our concern as a government has always been how to ensure that the common man is given a fair…

Real Madrid have completed a deal to sign Chelsea centre-back Antonio Rudiger on a four-year deal, according to reports. The 29-year-old German is out of contract at Stamford Bridge in the summer. And Spanish giants Real Madrid have now finally secured his services after snapping up the free transfer on a four-year deal. Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano tweeted: “Everything is now done between Real Madrid and Toni Rudiger. The deal has been completed, club sources confirm: he will play for Real. “Contract until 2026, there’s no option for further season. “Official announcement: end of the season. Here we go confirmed.”…

Manchester City have reached an agreement to sign Norway striker Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund. Haaland, 21, will join in July after City activated a 60m euro (£51.2m) release clause in his contract. The deal ends the club’s hunt for a successor to their all-time top scorer Sergio Aguero, who joined Barcelona on a free transfer last summer. “We can confirm that we have reached an agreement in principle for the transfer of striker Erling Haaland,” City said. “The transfer remains subject to the club finalising terms with the player.” Manchester City can confirm that we have reached an agreement…

A former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, on Monday evening vowed to give Lagos state special status if elected president in 2023 as he wooed Lagos PDP delegates ahead of the May 28 and May 29 presidential primary. Saraki, who along with his team, met with PDP leaders at Ikeja, said that if elected as the next president, Lagos State would be given a special attention as an investment destination in the country. The former governor of Kwara said that Nigeria needed a president with action and courage to stand and take some very bold decisions to reposition the nation. “Please,…

A school proprietor in Kano, Abdulmalik Tanko, who is under trial with others over alleged kidnap and murder of his pupil, Hanifa Abubakar, on Monday opened his defence and denying committing the offence. Tanko, 34, alongside Hashimu Isyaku, 37 and Fatima Musa, 26, all residents of Tudun Murtala Quarters, Kano, are standing trial before a Kano High Court. They are being tried on a five-count charge of criminal conspiracy, attempt to kidnap, abetment, kidnapping and concealing dead body of the five year-old pupil Led in evidence by M.L. Usman, his defence counsel, Tanko said himself and two other defendants did…

Ms Samuela Isopi, the Ambassador to the EU Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, has put the trade volume between the bloc and Nigeria in 2021, at 28.7 billion euros. The envoy said this at the Europe Day celebration, which was held at the EU Residence in Abuja. The Europe Day is a day set aside for celebrating peace and unity among the European countries that form the EU since 1950. The theme of the 2022 Europe Day celebration is: “Peace, Cooperation and Unity. The celebration holds every May 9 after Robert Schuman Declaration which launched the European projects. Isopi said…

The Nasarawa State House of Assembly Speaker, Ibrahim Abdullahi, is optimistic that Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will takeover from President Muhammadu Buhari in 2023. Abdullahi who was speaking at the Vice President’s official residence at the Presidential Villa on Sunday evening during a dinner with Speakers and Deputy Speakers of a number of State Houses of Assembly said Osinbajo’s track record is known to all Nigerians. “We appreciate your capacity and intelligence. And we are thankful that we have somebody like Mr. Vice President in this country. We don’t need to be reminded that even Mr. President trusts you so…