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6:16 AM
According to the 30-year-old who is on loan from Shanghai Shenhua, he reported the abuse to the Chinese FA, but no action was taken.

 

Odion Ighalo

Odion Ighalo

Manchester United striker, Odion Ighalo, has revealed that he was called “all sorts of names” by an opposition player while playing in China.

Speaking with Sky Sports, Ighalo further said he would walk off the pitch if he is racially abused again in his career.

According to the 30-year-old who is on loan from Shanghai Shenhua, he reported the abuse to the Chinese FA, but no action was taken.

Ighalo, who called for “justice to be done” following George Floyd’s death in the US, has said he would be ready to take further action should he be subjected to racist abuse while playing.

“If it happens to me I would report it to the referee and see what they do, but if they don’t take action about it then I’m going to walk off because it should not be done to any player or anyone in the world.

“In one game in China I got called all sorts of names and after the game, I didn’t shake his hand. I walked straight into the dressing room, I was angry, I reported it to the FA,” he said.

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5:03 AM
The 35-year-old Juventus star is the third athlete after Tiger Woods and Floyd Mayweather to hit the $1 billion earnings mark.

 

Cristiano Ronado

Ronaldo

Portuguese professional footballer, Cristiano Ronaldo, has emerged as the first soccer billionaire, The PUNCH reports

The 35-year-old Juventus star is the third athlete after Tiger Woods and Floyd Mayweather to hit the $1 billion earnings mark while still actively competing, according to Forbes.

Forbes via its  Twitter handle said Ronaldo earned $105 million in the past year (2019), making him number 4 on the 2020 Forbes list.

Ronaldo raked in £85million last year from his wages and endorsement deals, pushing him into becoming a billionaire.

His capital for the past year was second only to tennis superstar, Roger Federer, in the athletic world and it made him the number one in the game of football.

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4:58 AM
Full fixtures for the remaining 92 EPL games have been released ahead of the opening next two weeks.

 

EPL
EPL
 
The full list of the fixtures of the remaining 92 games of the 2019/20 English Premier League season has been released.
 
The list contains the dates and kick-off times of the remaining games.
 
 
The English top-flight was forced to be suspended for several weeks, due to the coronavirus pandemic but is now scheduled to resume on June 17, 2020.
 
Aston Villa vs Sheffield United at 6pm – and Manchester City vs Arsenal at 8pm – will restart the season on Wednesday, June 17, 2020. There are 92 fixtures left to be played this term with Liverpool closing in on the title.
 
See full schedule below.
 
Weds 17th June
 
Aston Villa vs Sheffield United (6pm) Sky Sports
 
Man City vs Arsenal (8pm) Sky Sports
 
Fri 19th June
 
Norwich vs Southampton (6pm) Sky Sports
 
Tottenham vs Manchester United (8pm) Sky Sports
 
Sat 20th June
 
Watford vs Leicester (12.30pm) BT Sport
 
Brighton vs Arsenal (3pm) BT Sport
 
West Ham vs Wolves (5.30pm) Sky Sports
 
Bournemouth vs Crystal Palace (7.45pm) BBC
 
Sun 21st June
 
Newcastle vs Sheffield United (2pm) Sky Sports
 
Aston Villa vs Chelsea (4.30pm) Sky Sports
 
Everton vs Liverpool (7pm) Sky Sports
 
Mon 22nd June
 
Man City vs Burnley (8pm) Sky Sports
 
Tues 23rd June
 
Southampton vs Arsenal (6pm) Sky Sports
 
Tottenham vs West Ham (8.15pm) Sky Sports
 
Weds 24th June
 
Manchester United vs Sheffield United (6pm) Sky Sports
 
Newcastle vs Aston Villa (6pm) BT Sport
 
Norwich vs Everton (6pm) BBC
 
Liverpool vs Crystal Palace (8.15pm) Sky Sports
 
Thurs 25th June
 
Burnley vs Watford (6pm) Sky Sports
 
Leicester vs Brighton (6pm) Sky Sports
 
Chelsea vs Man City (8.15pm) Sky Sports
 
Wolves vs Bournemouth (8.15pm) BT Sport
 
Sat 27th June
 
Sheffield United vs Arsenal (FA Cup) (5pm) BT Sport
 
Norwich vs Manchester United (FA Cup) (8.15pm) BBC
 
Sun 28th June
 
Aston Villa vs Wolves (12pm) BT Sport
 
Leicester vs Chelsea (FA Cup) (2.30pm) BT Sport
 
Newcastle vs Man City (FA Cup) (6pm) BBC
 
Watford vs Southampton (4.30pm) Sky Sports
 
Mon 29th June
 
Crystal Palace vs Burnley (8pm) Amazon Prime
 
Tues 30th June
 
Brighton vs Manchester United (6pm) Sky Sports
 
Sheffield United vs Tottenham (8.15pm) Sky Sports
 
Weds 1st July
 
Bournemouth vs Newcastle (6pm) Sky Sports
 
Everton vs Leicester (6pm) Sky Sports
 
West Ham vs Chelsea (8.15pm) Sky Sports
 
Thurs 2nd July
 
Arsenal vs Norwich (6pm) BT Sport
 
Man City vs Liverpool (8.15pm) Sky Sports
 
*Only first three rounds of fixture dates and times have been confirmed
 
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4:11 AM
Nigerian international and top striker for French club, Lille has won the player of the year award from his club.

 

Victor Osimhen
Victor Osimhen
 
Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen has added an award to his name after being voted as the Player of The Year at his French club Lille.
 
Osimhen’s emergence as Lille’s best player in the truncated 2019-20 season is not surprising for many going by the spectacular displays of the 21-year old in what is just his maiden campaign in Ligue 1.
 
Among other feats; Osimhen had scored 18 goals and provided eight assists in all competitions for the French Ligue 1 side, before the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic disrupted the season.
 
It is these breathtaking performances that have seen Osimhen be linked with a possible transfer to several top clubs across Europe.
 
On the list of potential suitors for Osimhen are Napoli, Liverpool and Chelsea who are all said to be willing to pay heavily to lure the striker away from Lille.
 
Since his record-breaking performance at the 2015 U-17 World Cup, where he scored 10 goals -the most by any player in a single tournament- Osimhen has continued to shoot, despite having a torrid time at Wolfsburg where he was denied enough playing time.
 
The same way Osimhen has been the toast of fans at his club, he has also been tipped for greatness with the Nigeria national team, the Super Eagles.Already, some have identified Osimhen as the next Rashidi Yekini.
 
On 14 August, 2019, the coach of the Nigerian National Team, Gernot Rohr, extended an invitation to Osimhen for a friendly against Ukraine that was played on September 10, 2019, in Dnipro Arena, Ukraine, which ended in a 2–2 draw.
 
He was also included in the Super Eagles team to face Brazil in a friendly match in Singapore on 13 October 2019 and also helped Nigeria to win bronze at the 2019 African Cup of Nations in Egypt.
 
Before Osimhen’s emergence as the player of the year at Lille, another Nigerian, Simon Moses, had also been crowned Player of the Year, this time by Nantes.
 
Both Osimhen and Simon have been nominated for the African French Player of The year.
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4:07 PM
Nigerian international, Odion Ighalo has secured a move to stay at Manchester United till next year.

 

 
Odion Ighalo
Odion Ighalo
 
Odion Ighalo has "agreed" a loan extension with Manchester United until end of January 2021 with the transfer awaiting FA approval.
 
The agreement with his parent club Shanghai Shenhua officially expired on Sunday night, and it appeared as though United had failed in a bid to keep the striker at the club.
 
But according to The Telegraph, both sides have now come to an agreement for the 30-year-old to stay in Manchester until the new year.
 
The deal is said to be awaiting confirmation with FA for registration.
 
It is claimed Ighalo will then discuss a new contract with Shanghai Shenhua once he returns in 2021.
 
The news comes after his agent Atta Aneke confirmed talks were in place for the ex-Watford man to remain at Old Trafford.
 
Aneke told Nettavisen: "We are nearing an agreement with Manchester United on an extended loan.

"The agreement will mean that Ighalo will remain with them until January 2021."
 
Ighalo swapped the Chinese Super League for the Premier League in a shock deadline day loan deal back in January.
 
And it is understood Ighalo took a 40 per cent pay-cut on his £300,000-a-week wages in China to make his dream switch happen.
 
He scored four goals in eight games before the season was suspended amid the coronavirus pandemic - leaving his loan contract to run up.
 
The Nigerian made a personal plea to Shanghai Shenhua to let him finish the season at Old Trafford, before returning to China, and it appears his wishes have been met.
 
Reported by Sun UK.
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7:30 AM

NFF boss Pinnick says winning the AFCON is now the focus.


German coach Gernot Rohr will remain as Super Eagles after agreeing on a new contract with the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), the federation’s boss Amaju Pinnick has confirmed.

Rohr and the NFF have been going back and forth on a new deal with his current contract to expire on June 1.

All contractual discussions have now been concluded and Rohr who was first appointed in June 2016 will continue his work with the Super Eagles.

“I'm happy to announce that the @thenff and Coach Gernot Rohr have concluded all contractual discussions and he will stay on as Coach of the Super Eagles,” Pinnick on Wednesday, May 27, 2020, announced on Twitter.

“We can now focus on qualifying for the World Cup and winning the Nations Cup.

“In truth, these are sacrosanct and Coach Rohr is aware of these conditions. Like the Honourable Minister of Youth and Sports Development has rightly noted; we are uncompromising in these goals.

“The board of the Federation & I are totally in agreement with the minister on the goals for the team and it is unwavering.”

“With the distraction of the contract talks out of the way now, we can now face our football on the pitch, totally. Again, I never lost confidence in Gernot Rohr's ability to take our football forward and I'm convinced our football will only get better from here on,” the NFF boss also said.

Fallouts

Gernot Rohr and Ajamu Pinnick
Gernot Rohr and Ajamu Pinnick

The agreement between both parties brings to end the bickering that went on for a few months.

After years of disagreements over a host of issues including choice of stadiums for home games, Rohr got more uncomfortable when the NFF delayed contract talks after the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

The Franco-German infuriated his bosses at the NFF with an interview in November 2019 where he expressed his frustration at the delay in contract talks and also revealed that he was being owed some wages. The NFF responded by sending him a query for publicly disclosin details of his contract

The NFF also forced Rohr’s hands with some terms in the contract offer which stipulate that he must agree to live in Nigeria earn in Naira and developed home-based players

It’s now until 2022 for Rohr who will now focus on getting Nigeria to AFCON 2021 and winning it which is top of NFF’s top priority.

Next will be to lead the Super Eagles to the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Rohr was first appointed in August 2016 on a two-year contract which he renewed for another two years in January 2018.

He led Nigeria to AFCON 2019 where the Super Eagles finished third and the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia where his side crashed out of the group stage.

In total, the Super Eagles have played 49 games under Rohr with 29 wins, 11 draws and nine loses.







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4:17 PM
Super Eagles 
 
Super Eagles head coach, Gernot Rohr has dropped Leicester City striker Kelechi Iheanacho and Rottherham United player Semi Ajayi  for the Africa Cup of Nations which kicks off on June 21 in Egypt, TheNation has revealed.
 
Iheanacho who was part of the team for the qualifiers failed to make the final cut as a result of his lack of playing time with his club in England, while Ajayi who was player of the month for his English Championship side last season failed to measure in training. Indications that Rohr was going to drop Iheanacho who has also featured for premier league side, Manchester emerged yesterday when he was not featured for the friendly against Zimbabwe at the Stephen Keshi Stadium.
 
All throughout last week, Rohr had hinted that only players that were in form would be make the 23-man squad for the tournament.
 
The team will fly out later today from Asaba to Egypt on a chartered flight where they would set up a training base in Ismailia.
 
On June 16 they face the Teranga Lions of Senegal in a friendly before their opening group game against Burundi on June 22 in Alexandria.
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12:09 PM

Real Madrid have made contact with Chelsea about a summer deal for Eden Hazard, the UK Telegraph reports.

The LaLiga club is already planning Zinedine Zidane’s first big transfer, after his return was confirmed on Monday.
It is believed Real made contact with Chelsea about Eden Hazard, shortly before they announced Zidane would be their new head coach on Monday.
Eden Hazard is a huge admirer of Zinedine Zidane as a coach and named the French legend as his idol growing up.

Chelsea’s transfer ban could block Eden Hazard from joining Real, as Chelsea would be unable to sign a replacement. However, the club is hopeful the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) will overrule FIFA’s decision to snub a request to freeze the suspension during the appeal process.

The Blues value Eden Hazard at £100million, even though his current deal expires next summer.

Zinedine Zidane has reportedly been handed a £300m transfer kitty.
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3:27 PM

Manchester United interim manager, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, has blamed his players for giving Arsenal too much room, following their 2-0 loss at the Emirates on Sunday.

Granit Xhaka’s shot swerved past David De Gea to give the Gunners the lead, before Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang sealed victory from the spot in the second half.

Solskjaer feels his players had a hangover from their 3-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain in midweek and started slowly.
“Well we started slow and maybe a backlash from Wednesday. We created chances but when they get the first goal it’s a different game.
“We played a better game today than in the cup. We had more chances. Sometimes this happens.

“Today I can’t remember any proper saves De Gea has to make. I think the referee will be disappointed when he sees the penalty again.

“The ball moves so strangely and when you see it again it’s one of those things, but we were too slow. First fifteen minutes we didn’t put them under pressure. We gave him time to hit that ball.

“The first goal decides how the game goes.

“One of those games that you have, it’s now about how we respond against Wolves in the cup,” Ole Gunnar Solskjaer told Sky Sports after the game.
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3:26 PM

Real Madrid captain, Sergio Ramos, will push for a summer exit, if the club appoints Jose Mourinho to replace under-fire Santiago Solari, SportsMail reports.

Ramos fought with Jose Mourinho when he coached the club between 2010-2013 and has already clashed with President Florentino Perez, over plans to bring him back.

Despite the fact that Jose Mourinho courted Gareth Bale in 2017 when he was at Manchester United, the Welshman is another player believed not to welcome the managerial change.

And two other veterans from Mourinho’s last spell in charge, Marcelo and Karim Benzema, have also opposed the idea.

However, Perez has told the players they will have no voice in the appointment.
He is expected to meet with his club directors on Monday, to take a final decision on putting Jose Mourinho in charge of the team with immediate effect.
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3:25 PM
Luis Enrique has termed his relationship between himself and Lionel Messi as a time of tension during his spell at Barcelona.

The Spanish national team boss spent three years at the Camp Nou and won nine trophies, including two La Liga titles and one Champions League trophy.
And according to Spanish news media outlet, Football Espana, Enrique admitted that it was difficult getting along with the Barca star man.
In quotes made to Catalunya Radio, Enrique said:

“There was a time of tension between us, which needed to be managed.
“That was not something that I wanted or had pre-empted but we needed to manage it at the time, and now I cannot say anything not good about Messi.”
Enrique, who is now on international duties with Spain left his former club three years ago.

However, the former Celta Vigo boss was quick to address any rumours suggesting his departure at the Camp Nou was unplanned, and stated it was one that had been in the pipeline for months.

He added: “My exit? I had already told the club to begin their search for the replacement at the start of that season (2016/17) because I knew I would not have any more energy for the role.
“It was a special group of players and for me it would have been the easy route for me to continue, to work with such quality players.

“It would have given me a lot of money, I would have the opportunity to win a lot of trophies, unparalleled in world football, but I did not go for this.

“Maybe the players needed a new face, a new vision and a new message.”
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11:54 AM
Finally! Manchester United set to install Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as manager on a permanent basis after Champions League win over PSG
Norwegian manager, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will reportedly be installed as Manchester United manager on a full-time basis after the club's stunning Champions League 3 -1 win over Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday.
According to Mail Online Football, the 46-year-old held talks with United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward at the team hotel in Paris on Wednesday morning and also spoke with co-chairman Avram Glazer after the game.
But the club will not be rushed into an announcement to make it official.
'I think it has been decided,' said striker Romelu Lukaku. 'I think he is going to get it = he should get it. When we've won at Tottenham, Chelsea away, at Arsenal in the FA Cup, now this, what else does he have to do?' 
Solskjaer who replaced sacked Jose Mourinho has won 14 of his 17 games since arriving on loan from Molde, losing just once, as United have moved into the top four in the Premier League as well as the quarter-finals of the Champions League and FA Cup.

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11:50 AM
There was a heated exchange between Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos and club president Florentino Perez following the side’s Champions League elimination at the hands of Ajax, MARCA reports.
Florentino Perez had told the players that they were to be blame for the club’s lacklustre outing this season, but Sergio Ramos, who didn’t play the second leg as he was suspended, told the president that they’d warned him during the summer of the need to sign a striker.
The captain made clear that the players weren’t the only ones to blame for the crisis.
Florentino Perez threatened to kick Sergio Ramos out of the club as the pair argued and the centre-back replied by saying that the rest of his contract would need to be paid and that he’d leave with his head held high.
“Pay me, I’ll go,” Ramos was quoted as saying.
Also present as the pair argued were members of the coaching and medical staff.
This clash comes at the worst moment of the season for Los Blancos, as they were knocked out of two competitions in one week and also fell 12 points behind Barcelona in LaLiga Santander.
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11:48 AM
Roma have sacked head coach  following Champions League last-16 defeat by Porto on Wednesday.
The Italian side lost 4-3 on aggregate after an Alex Telles extra-time penalty in Portugal, having led 2-1 from the first leg.
Roma are fifth in Serie A and lost 3-0 to city rivals Lazio on Saturday.
Eusebio di Francesco , 49, took over in June 2017, leading Roma to last year’s Champions League semi-finals, where they were beaten by Liverpool.
“On behalf of myself and everyone at AS Roma, I’d like to thank Eusebio for his work and his commitment,” said club president Jim Pallotta.
“Since returning to the club, Eusebio has always acted professionally and put the club’s needs ahead of his own. We all wish him well for the future.”
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11:00 AM
It was a remarkable night for Manchester United in the Champions League as their 3-1 away win, clinched in the most dramatic of circumstances Wednesday, ended up putting them in the quarterfinals at Paris Saint-Germain's expense.
The victory was sealed in injury time with a VAR-assisted penalty that Marcus Rashford duly converted to give Ole Gunnar Solskjaer & Co. the victory on away goals, which prompted a flurry of social media celebrations from players past and present. And rightly so: Paul Pogba, Ander Herrera, Nemanja Matic, Juan Mata, Alexis Sanchez and Jesse Lingard were all absent from the matchday squad, which further added to a magnificent night at the Parc des Princes.
Lingard was the first to register his pure, unbridled joy on Instagram:
This was soon followed by ex-Man United and France legend Patrice Evra, who sat next to the suspended Pogba in the stands ...
Sir Alex Ferguson and Man United chief executive Ed Woodward watched the game side by side, and nearby was United legend Eric Cantona, who very much enjoyed Wednesday's remarkable comeback:
The sweat had barely dried on defender Chris Smalling's brow after a torrid night of marking Kylian Mbappe, but even he had the perfect tweet after a heroic performance:
And last but not least, the oft-criticized Fred, who's struggled to settle at United but played brilliantly in midfield to deny PSG's vaunted attack amid nine Man United injury absences.
As if that wasn't enough, the legendary player, legendary manager and current golden boy Solskjaer got together for a merry postmatch photo.
It's a night United fans will not soon forget, not to mention the boost it might give Solskjaer in his quest to get the manager's job on a permanent basis. But for now, the celebrations are just beginning, and you'd imagine that a lot of Wednesday night's festivities will not be happening in front of a smartphone.
Congrats, United, on a famous European night.

Source: ESPN
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