Sports

Sacked Premier League referee , David Coote has been sentenced to nine months in prison, suspended for two years, after pleading guilty to making an indecent image of a child. Entertainment center The court heard that police seized the disgraced former Premier League referee's electronic devices and an explicit two-minute video of a 15-year-old boy, initially in a school uniform, from January 2, 2020, was found on his laptop. Coote was charged in October with an allegation relating to a category A video, the most serious kind, recovered by police in February. The 43-year-old appeared for his sentencing hearing at Nottingham Crown Court on Thursday, where prosecutors said a clip was found after a separate probe into comments he made about ex-Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp in...

Cyriel Dessers has broken his silence following his injury-induced exit from the ongoing 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. The striker was forced to return to his club in Greece after sustaining a thigh injury during a Super Eagles training session last week. The former Rangers forward did not make any appearance for Nigeria at the tournament before suffering the setback. Super Eagles head coach Éric Chelle had earlier disclosed, ahead of Nigeria’s Round of 16 clash with Mozambique, that Dessers would be sidelined for between 10 and 12 weeks. Reacting to the development, the Panathinaikos striker took to social media to express his disappointment. “Unfortunately I sustained an injury at AFCON. It’s extremely difficult to accept that I will miss the remainder of the tournament and...

Eric Chelle has marked his one year anniversary in charge of the Super Eagles of Nigeria. The Malian was appointed Super Eagles head coach on January 7, 2025. Chelle’s appointment divided opinion among the Super Eagles’ faithfuls but he has steadily won over some of his critics especially with his team’s impressive displays at the ongoing 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. Under the 48-year-old’s tutelage, the Super Eagles have suffered just one defeat in 16 games, with 10 wins, and five draws. The West Africans have also scored 34 goals, and conceded 15. Chelle will look to guide the Super Eagles to another win when they take on the Desert Foxes of Algeria in the quarter-finals of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations on Saturday.

The Federal Government has confirmed that the Super Eagles’ match bonuses for the ongoing 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) have cleared all regulatory hurdles. In a statement on Thursday, Minister of State for Finance Doris Uzoka-Anite said the payments would start reflecting in the players’ domiciliary accounts “today or tomorrow.” This assurance follows reports that the team had threatened to boycott travel to Marrakesh for their quarter-final match against Algeria on Saturday due to unpaid allowances. The squad is scheduled to travel from Fez to Marrakesh, about five hours away, on Thursday. The Eagles have yet to receive bonuses for all four matches played so far in the tournament. Previously, in November 2024, the team also boycotted training during the African World Cup pl...

Nigeria forwards Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman are set to put the perfect record of Algeria goalkeeper Luca Zidane under serious pressure when both sides clash in the Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals in Morocco. Zidane, son of French football legend Zinedine Zidane, is the only first-choice goalkeeper among the remaining quarter-finalists yet to concede a goal in the tournament. However, his clean-sheet streak faces a major test against Nigeria’s in-form attackers. Osimhen and Lookman, both former African Player of the Year winners, have been outstanding so far, scoring three goals each as the Super Eagles emerged as the competition’s top scorers with 12 goals. The 27-year-old Zidane kept clean sheets against Sudan and Burkina Faso in the group stage before being rested a...

Super Eagles players and coaches have refused to travel to Marrakech due to unpaid bonuses. This was revealed by BBC Africa journalist, Oluwashina Okeleji, who is in Morocco. Nigeria are billed to take on Algeria in the quarter-final of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations on Saturday evening. But it is understood they have not paid their bonuses for the four matches they have played. Eric Chelle’s men beat Tanzania, Tunisia and Uganda in the group fixtures, before they thrashed Mozambique 4-0 in the Round of 16. They have taken the decision not to travel or train anymore until the bonuses issue is resolved.

Manchester City are set to complete the signing of Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo for £65 million, with the player expected to undergo a medical ahead of the move. According to the BBC, the Premier League champions have agreed to trigger Semenyo’s £65m release clause, which must be activated by January 10. The deal is expected to be finalised before Saturday. Semenyo is scheduled to have his medical after Bournemouth’s Premier League clash against Tottenham on Wednesday evening. Despite interest from several top clubs, including Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham, City are the only side to have made formal contact with Bournemouth and progressed talks to an advanced stage. Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola hinted that the winger’s time at the club may ...

The Super Eagles of Nigeria have earned a total of $80,000 in goal bonuses for their impressive scoring form at the ongoing 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco. The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) had pledged a $5,000 reward for each goal scored during the group stage. Nigeria currently leads the tournament’s scoring chart with 12 goals. The team received $40,000 for the eight goals netted across their three group matches against Tanzania, Tunisia and Uganda. They added another $40,000 after scoring four goals in their Round of 16 victory over Mozambique’s Mambas. Nigeria will face Algeria in a quarter-final clash at the Marrakesh Stadium on Saturday.  

Algeria captain, Riyad Mahrez has predicted that his side’s AFCON quarter-final clash with Nigeria won’t be easy. According to Mahrez, anything is possible when Algeria tackles Nigeria in Saturday’s quarterfinal tie. Recall that the last time Nigeria and Algeria met at the AFCON was in the 2019 edition, where Mahrez’s semi-final dramatic last-minute free-kick knocked the Super Eagles out of the tournament. Speaking after Algeria defeated DR Congo in the Round of 16 yesterday, Mahrez told reporters that the North Africans know Nigeria well. “Nigeria? We know them well, the match won’t be easy,” Mahrez, a former Leicester City player, said. “Another last-minute free kick? We will see, anything is possible.”

Super Eagles captains, Wilfred Ndidi, Frank Onyeka and Calvin Bassey are on suspension alert ahead of the team’s quarter-final clash with Algeria, DAILY POST reports Ndidi, Onyeka, and Bassey were booked in Nigeria’s Round of 16 encounter against the Mambas of Mozambique. Should any of the trio be cautioned against Algeria, and the Super Eagles beat the Desert Foxes, they will be suspended for the semi-final. Morocco or Cameroon awaits the winner of Nigeria versus Algeria clash in the last four. The encounter between Nigeria and Algeria will hold at the Marrakech Stadium on Saturday. It will kick-off at 5pm Nigerian time. https://www.youtube.com/@officialsnowtv1