NIGERIA
The Nigeria Football Federation, has concluded arrangements to install Video Assistant Referee VAR in regional stadiums in the country as plans are underway to train and retrain referees to achieve the purpose.
Its President, Ibrahim Gusau, stated this in Ilorin at the National Elective Delegates Conference of the Nigeria Referees' Association.
Gusau charged the incoming leadership of the association to come up with development plans, to forecast, organise and ensure the future of Nigeria Referees are properly nurtured and watered towards the growth of the game.
Gusau who spoke through an official, Muhammed Ameenu, said installation of VAR is to the growth and development of football.
The new President of Nigeria Referees Association, Sani Zubair, has solicited the support of all stakeholders to succeed in his new assignment.
Zubair thanked all the delegates for the confidence reposed in him and promised not to take their support for granted.
He was elected in Ilorin after he polled fifty-three votes from the available fifty-four accredited delegates to beat Daniel Olokor.
Kelechi Mejuobi, was elected the new National Deputy President with forty-three votes to beat David Egho who scored ten votes.
The duo of Emmanuel Imiere and Ibrahim Fagge were elected unopposed as National Vice-President 1 and National Vice-President 2 at the Elective Congress.
Favour Daniel's goal in the second half handed Nigeria a positive start at the TotalEnergies U17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), Algeria 2023, after seeing off Zambia 1-0 at the Mohamed Hamloui Stadium in Constantine.
Despite a late penalty miss by Light Eke, the Golden Eaglets managed to see off the slim advantage to move top of Group B after their opening match.
It was a well fought contest from both sides, but on the balance of chances, Nigeria could have had more from the evening kick off.
Zambia's next match will be a COSAFA derby against South Africa while Nigeria take on Morocco, both games set for next Wednesday.
Super Eagles head coach, Jose Peseiro has sent a goodwill message to the Golden Eaglets ahead of their opening fixture at the 2023 Africa Under-seventeen Cup of Nations in Algeria.
Peseiro charged Nduka Ugbade's side to go all out and conquer the rest of the continent once again.
The Nigerian boys will face Morocco and South Africa in Group B.
The top four teams in the competition will represent Africa at the 2023 FIFA Under-seventeen World Cup.
Nigerian international,Taiwo Awoniyi who plays for Nothingham Forest, has constructed a modern day dressing room for Sheikh Abdulkadir College, Ilorin, the school at which he was discovered.
Awoniyi also renovated the pavillion of the school in an attempt to give back to the society that made him.
The Chairman of the organising committee for the striker's sponsored football tourney, tagged "Never Stop Dreaming Cup 2023", Coach Mustapha Olokode, said the gesture is one in many to come for the college.
Falconets' Head Coach, Chris Danjuma has called to camp thirty players as Nigeria begin preparations on Monday in Abuja for the upcoming WAFU B Under-twenty Women's Championship in Ghana.
Danjuma has included some players from the Nigerian team which reached the quarter-finals of the last FIFA Under-twenty Women's World Cup in Costa Rica.
He is also having some from the bronze medal-winning Flamingos which finished third at the 2022 FIFA Under-seventeen Women's World Cup in India, alongside a couple of new faces.
The WAFU B Under-twenty Women's Tournament will take place in Ghana from twentieth May to fourth June.
Bayern Munich Youths scouting programme in Nigeria has engaged more than ten Nigerian youths in training, to become professional footballers.
The Nigerian Director of the Bayern Munich Youth Cup, Victor Edeh, advised the players to see their selection as the beginning of a new journey in their career.
He said ten players were selected for the professional training while additional ten would serve as a standby team.
Shooting Stars manager, Gbenga Ogunbote, has warned impending opponents of Nasarawa United to be wary of the threats they pose in the remaining fixtures this season.
Ogunbote gave the warning after the Solid Miners defeated Shooting Stars one-nil on matchday sixteen at the New Jos Stadium.
The former Enyimba gaffer said Nasarawa United's current position on the log does not mean they are a poor side.
A former Nasarawa United Football Club Goalkeeper Trainer, Michael Jatau, has threatened to drag the State Government and the club to court over alleged unpaid nineteen point seven million naira entitlement.
Jatau made the threat in a thirty-Day Pre-action Notice addressed to the government and the club.
He accused the state government and management of the club of being insensitive to his well being and plight as a coach, after faithfully serving the state for four years.
World record holder Tobi Amusan is excited to compete among fellow record-holders Lamecha Girma and Mondo Duplantis at the Ostrava Golden Spike on twenty-seventh June.
While Neeraj Chopra will feature in a strong javelin field at the eleventh World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting of the season.
Amusan set her world one hundred metre hurdles record of 12.12secs in the semifinals of the World Athletics Championships in Oregon and went on to win gold in a wind-assisted time of 12.06secs.
ENGLAND
Manchester City beat Fulham to return to the top of the Premier League as Erling Haaland scored his fifty goal of the season in all competitions.
Haaland converted a third-minute penalty, after Julian Alvarez had been fouled by Tim Ream, to become the first top-flight player to reach a half-century of goals in one campaign since Tom 'Pongo' Waring did so for Aston Villa in 1931.
The Norwegian striker also moved level for most goals in a Premier League season - matching the thirty-three goals Andy Cole scored for Newcastle in 1993-94 and the same amount Alan Shearer registered for Blackburn a year later.
Newcastle star, Callum Wilson has taken his Premier League tally to fifteen goals for the season as the team fought back to beat bottom club Southampton at Saint James' Park and strengthen their place in the top four.
Saints, who started the day six points adrift of safety, took a surprise lead in the first half when Stuart Armstrong turned in Kamaldeen Sulemana's low ball following a swift counter.
Newcastle completed the turnaround when Theo Walcott deflected a corner into his own net and Wilson finally got his second goal when he showed great composure to round the goalkeeper and slot in.
The victory means Newcastle are third, eleven points clear of Tottenham with five games remaining.
Manchester United midfielder, Bruno Fernandes scored his one hundred career league goal to boost the team's Champions League hopes and end Aston Villa's ten-match unbeaten run.
Fernandes pounced six minutes before half-time after Emiliano Martinez had turned Marcus Rashford's shot into his path.
It sealed a deserved victory for the hosts, who had already gone close through Marcel Sabitzer.
The result ensures Manchester United have a healthy advantage on the clubs chasing a top-four spot, with Aston Villa now nine points adrift of the Red Devils having missed the chance to cut the gap to just three points.
Manchester United fans opposed to the continued Glazer ownership of the club held a protest at their side's home game against Aston Villa.
About one thousand United supporters gathered in Manchester city centre before marching to Old Trafford.
The protest comes as the Glazers assess the respective offers of Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and Sir Jim Ratcliffe's Ineos group to buy the club.
Manchester United did not comment on the protests but previously have said they "respect the right of fans to voice their opinions peacefully".
Liverpool midfielder, Fabinho, has lauded teammate Curtis Jones, saying the youngster is always ready.
Fabinho also said Jones played well when he returned to Liverpool's starting lineup.
Jones has been making waves in the Reds' starting eleven lately, catching the eye of Fabinho.
Manchester United legend, Gary Neville has predicted what would become of former Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino if he was appointed as Chelsea's next manager.
Neville believes that the Argentine manager is a top coach and a perfect march for the current Chelsea squad.
Neville said Chelsea have a solid core of players who could do well under a top manager like Pochettino.
Chelsea legend, Joe Cole, has expressed fear that the club's two transfer targets might not want to join the Bleus this summer following a tumultuous start to the Todd Boelhy-era at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea are in the middle of one of their worst seasons in recent history as they currently languish in twelve position in the Premier League table.
With Chelsea set to miss out on European football next season, Cole said that summer transfer targets including the likes of West Ham United's Declan Rice and Brighton's Moses Caicedo would be wary of a move to the West London club.
Liverpool manager, Jurgen Klopp has slammed Chelsea owners for giving managers at the club an impossible job to do.
The German gaffer believes that Chelsea have more players than one manager can handle.
The Liverpool boss also said Chelsea's downfall this season makes him 'a little happy'.
Huddersfield Town took a giant stride towards Championship safety by beating a lacklustre Cardiff City two-one.
The Terriers are now three points clear of the drop zone and a point from their last two games will be enough to keep them in the division.
Joseph Hungbo fired Huddersfield ahead after a mistake, before a Jack Simpson own goal made the points safe.
Arsenal have sold out the Emirates Stadium for their Women's Champions League semi-final second leg against Wolfsburg on Monday.
More than sixty thousand tickets have been sold, meaning the Gunners are likely to break the attendance record for a women's club match in England.
The current attendance record of forty-seven thousand, three hundred and sixty-seven was set in September at Arsenal's home victory over Tottenham.
Arsenal, who drew the first leg two-all, are aiming for a second European title.
OTHER SPORTS
UFC middleweight fighter, Alex Pereira suffered a devastating knockout loss to champion Israel Adesanya at UFC 287 but still believes he is the better mixed martial artist.
After his knockout loss, the Braziian announced that he is moving to the light heavyweight division of the UFC but Pereira still thinks that he is better than Adesanya.
Pereira shared a video emphasizing why he is still the better fighter, despite Adesanya's win At the UFC 287.
In Tennis: Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek both moved into the last 16 at the Madrid Open with straight-set victories.
Spanish defending champion Alcaraz, who turns 20 on Friday, beat Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov 6-2 7-5 in the men's event.
He will face two-time champion Alexander Zverev of Germany for a place in the quarter-finals.
In Basketball: The Denver Nuggets beat the Phoenix Suns as the next round of the NBA play-offs got under way.
One spot is still available in the last eight but the Nuggets began the Western Conference semi-finals with a 125-107 home win against the Suns.
Jamal Murray scored a game-high 34 points for the Nuggets, who are the top seeds.
In Cricket; Gloucestershire captain Graeme van Buuren hit an unbeaten half-century to calm a few nerves as the hosts rallied from 41-4, following on, to draw with Sussex.
Only 41.2 overs were bowled on a frustrating final day as Sussex enforced the follow-on after bowling Gloucestershire out for 248.
Resuming on 198-9, Gloucestershire survived an early near miss when Miles Hammond, having gone to his half-century in the first over of the day, was dropped in the next over.
OTHER LEAGUE
Paris Saint-Germain's poor second half of the season continued on Sunday as the Ligue 1 leaders slumped to a 3-1 defeat at home to mid-table Lorient after having Achraf Hakimi sent off in the first half.
Lorient were already ahead through Enzo Le Fee's early goal at the Parc des Princes before Hakimi was dismissed for a second yellow card inside the opening 20 minutes.
Kylian Mbappe equalised for the home side in opportunistic fashion, pouncing to score after Lorient goalkeeper Yvon Mvogo had thrown the ball to the ground wrongly thinking the referee had blown for a free-kick.
Napoli will have to wait for their first Serie A title in thirty-three years after being held to a draw by Salernitana at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
They last won the league in 1990 with a Diego Maradona-inspired side adding to their first title three years earlier.
Luciano Spalletti's side were on course for the victory they needed when Mathias Olivera headed home a sixty-two minute corner, as Salernitana's only goal was scored by Boulaye Dia.
A first-half header from Jota was enough to settle a tense Old Firm encounter at Hampden, sending Celtic into a Scottish Cup final against Inverness Caley Thistle.
A catalogue of Rangers errors led to the only goal on forty-two minutes, with Daizen Maeda profiting from hesitancy to provide the telling cross.
Jota simply had to nod on target from a few yards out.
Former Manchester United striker, Dimitar Berbatov, has chosen Paris Saint-Germain's Lionel Messi as his Greatest Of All Time over Al-Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo.
Berbatov said Messi sees the game so clearly, adding that he is a complete player.
He also hailed Ronaldo as a brilliant player.
RESULTS
In English Premier League
AFC Bournemouth 4 - 1 Leeds United
Fulham 1 - 2 Manchester City
Manchester United 1 - 0 Aston Villa
Newcastle United 3 - 1 Southampton
Crystal Palace 4 - 3 West Ham United
Brentford 2 - 1 Nottingham Forest
Brighton & Hove Albion 6 - 0 Wolverhampton Wanderers
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IN SPANISH LA LIGA
Cádiz 2 - 1 Valencia
Elche 4 - 0 Rayo Vallecano
Real Madrid 4 - 2 Almería
Barcelona 4 - 0 Real Betis
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IN ITALIAN SERIE A
Inter Milan 3 - 1 Lazio
Cremonese 1 - 1 Hellas Verona
Napoli 1 - 1 Salernitana
Sassuolo 2 - 1 Empoli
Roma 1 - 1 AC Milan
Torino 1 - 2 Atalanta
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IN FRENCH LIGUE 1
Monaco 0 - 4 Montpellier
Clermont 1 - 0 Reims
Rennes 4 - 2 Angers
Troyes 0 - 1 Nice
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TODAY'S FIXTURE
In English Premier League
Leicester City vs Everton
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IN SPANISH LA LIGA
Mallorca vs Athletic Bilbao
Sevilla vs Girona
