Category: Sports

Ademola Lookman provided an assist as Atletico Madrid strolled into Round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League following a 4-1 win over Club Brugge at the Metropolitano Stadium on Tuesday night.

The LaLiga giants won the playoffs tie 7-4 on aggregate.

Lookman was named among the substitutes by head coach, Diego Simeone.

The tricky winger replaced Alex Baena in the 70th minute.

Lookman teed Alexander Sørloth for Diego Simeone’s side third goal six minutes later.

The Nigeria international has now registered four goals, and three assists in seven matches across all competitions for the Rojiblancos.

Sørloth netted a hat-trick for Atletico, while Johnny Cardoso scored the other goal

Club Brugge got their goal through Ecuadorian defender Joel Ordóñez.

UCL Playoffs: Lookman grabs assist in Atletico Madrid’s win over Club Brugge

Victor Osimhen has declared that he is fit and ready for Galatasaray’s clash with Juventus, DAILY POST reports.

The Nigeria international missed Okan Buruk’s side Turkish Super Lig clash with Konyaspor last weekend due a slight knee problem.

After missing Sunday’s session, Osimhen trained fully with his teammates on Monday, and Tuesday.

The powerful striker has already been included in Galatasaray’s squad for the UEFA Champions League playoffs second leg tie.

Osimhen confirmed he is ready for action again after the minor injury setback.

“My knee is fine, thank you,” Osimhen told Sky Sport Italia.

“I have a little pain in my knee, that is the reason why I didn’t play the last league game, but thanks to the medical team, I am back with the squad and looking forward to facing Juve.”

UCL Playoffs: ‘My knee is fine’ – Osimhen declares ahead Juventus vs Galatasaray

Former Real Madrid striker, Michael Owen has insisted that Arsenal’s Viktor Gyokeres has many weaknesses in his game.

Owen spoke after the Sweden international netted two goals in Arsenal’s 4-1 Premier League victory over Tottenham during the North London derby on Sunday.

Speaking on Premier League Productions, the former England international said: “I like this Viktor Gyokeres in so many aspects, but I think he’s got so many weaknesses as well.

“What you cannot question with this Gyokeres is his work rate. He is a fantastic runner and one of the very best finishers in the Premier League.”

Gyokeres made the switch to Arsenal from Sporting Lisbon last year.

Arsenal’s next game is against Chelsea in the Premier League this weekend.

EPL: Arsenal’s Gyokeres has many weaknesses – Michael Owen

Former Chelsea midfielder, John Obi Mikel has claimed that his old club is five steps backwards under manager Liam Rosenior.

The Nigerian also insisted that the Chelsea hierarchy made a mistake parting ways with Enzo Maresca, adding that they made a ‘crazy’ decision.

Speaking on the Obi One Podcast, Obi Mikel said: “Man United being above Chelsea, given how they started the season, is just incredible, it’s awful to see. I don’t see any consistency at Chelsea.

“We had Enzo Maresca, and I think it was a massive mistake to sack him. I still believe that, I still stand by that.

“It’s ridiculous. A manager who won us the Club World Cup and Conference League, we had some sort of identity with the way we played.

“For the club to sack him is absolutely crazy. We have gone five steps backwards. Yes, Liam has come in, and he’s won games, but there is absolutely something that is missing. Something is not quite right.”

EPL: Chelsea five steps backwards under Rosenior – Obi Mikel

Italy legend Gianluigi Buffon has pointed out that Galatasaray striker Victor Osimhen has failed to score a goal in his last two matches for the Turkish Süper Lig champions.

Buffon made the comments while discussing Galatasaray’s Champions League Round of 16 playoff second-leg tie with Juventus on Wednesday.

Recall that Galatasaray defeated the Serie A giants 5-2 in the first leg in Turkey last week.

When asked if he believes there is a possibility of a comeback for Juventus against Galatasaray, Buffon told La Gazzetta: “I think that if Juventus had their full squad, they would have had a reason to believe in themselves and put up a fight in this match.

“Because in my opinion, they could have won by two or three goals. But they’re coming from a defeat against Como, and they have some deficiencies in their squad.

“There is another point that makes me doubt. Galatasaray scored five goals in the first match, and Osimhen didn’t score (laughing). Sooner or later… He already made two assists. These kinds of situations are one of the few things I believe in football. We are talking about a player who hasn’t scored in two matches.”

UCL: Osimhen hasn’t scored in two matches – Buffon on Juventus, Galatasaray second leg

Ex-Barcelona president, Joan Laporta, has claimed Paris Saint-Germain were willing to pay €250 million for Lamine Yamal.

Laporta, speaking at the launch of his new book on Tuesday, said people thought they were crazy for turning it down.

Yamal caught the eyes of top clubs around Europe, after he burst into limelight during the 2023/2024 season.

PSG at the time, were looking to bring in a replacement for Kylian Mbappe who had joined Real Madrid as a free agent.

If Barcelona had accepted the €250 million offer for Yamal who was 17 at the time, it would have surpassed the €222m world-record fee PSG paid for Neymar in 2017.

“When PSG offered us €250 million for Lamine Yamal, and we rejected it, he was 17 years old; some people thought we were crazy,” Laporta said.

Transfer: Ex-Barcelona president, Laporta reveals club that bid €250m for Yamal

Former Manchester City legend, Sergio Aguero, has said that Arsenal is in a good position to win the Premier League title.

Aguero has been part of several title battles in the past few years and believes Arsenal is doing well in the competition.

The Gunners beat Tottenham Hotspur 4-1 at the weekend, helping them get back to winning in the league after two straight draws.

They are now five points ahead at the top, having played one more game than second-placed City, which has 56 points.

Recognizing the strength in the Gunners’ squad, five-time Premier League champion, Aguero spoke to Stake through Football 365:
“It’s not about having a weak mindset. Not now, at least, because the team has a very complete and balanced squad that has much more experience compared to the recent past.

“They’ve faced this situation before and came really close to succeeding. And today you can see that they have a stronger mindset. The young players have matured, and they’ve added some excellent talent, which is clear to see.

The former City striker added, “Arteta has shown he’s a top manager. He has put together a strong group of players who know how to compete and are consistently in the running for the championship.

“Let’s think about how many years have passed since Arsenal last won the Premier League. How close they have gotten to achieving that in recent years. I think if you talk to Arsenal fans, they would really hope Arteta stays at the club for a long time.”

Arteta’s team has finished as runners-up in the league three times in a row, losing out to Manchester City twice and to Liverpool last year. They’re trying to end their 22-year wait for a league title.

EPL: ‘Strong group of players’ – Aguero names team to win title

Werder Bremen defender Felix Agu is set for another spell on the sidelines, DAILY POST reports.

Agu recently returned to action for the Greens after spending around four months on the sidelines due to a syndesmosis ligament injury.

The injury also forced the left-back to miss the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.

The Nigeria international injured himself during warm-up ahead of Bremen’s Bundesliga clash with St. Pauli last weekend.

Bremen confirmed he suffered a muscle injury in his adductor area, and will be sidelined for the time being.

The 26-year-old has made nine league appearances for the Greens this season.

Bundesliga: Werder Bremen confirm Agu’s latest injury

Fulham midfielder Alex Iwobi has been named in the Premier League Team of the Week, DAILY POST reports.

Iwobi earned his position in WhoScored’s Team of the Week following his superb performance in Fulham’s 3-1 win over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Sunday.

The 29-year-old scored, and also registered an assist in the game.

Iwobi’s corner-kick was nodded home superbly by Raúl Jiménez for the game’s opening goal.

The Nigeria international netted Fulham’s third from a counter attack five minutes from time.

It was Iwobi’s third goal of the season for Marco Silva’s side.

His teammate Jiménez was also included in the selection.

EPL: Iwobi included in Team of the Week

Turkish sports commentator, Ibrahim Seten has insisted that Galatasaray striker Victor Osimhen refused to grant manager Okan Buruk’s wishes to play against Konyaspor in the Turkish Super Lig over the weekend because he was in pain as a result of a knee injury.

According to Seten, Buruk wanted Osimhen to travel with the team for the Konyaspor match, but the Nigerian international didn’t go because he needed to rest.

Galatasaray ended up losing 2-0 away against Konyaspor in Osimhen’s absence.

Speaking on the 343 Digital YouTube channel, Seten said: “Information from Okan Buruk’s team indicates that Victor Osimhen did not want to come to Konya due to knee pain.

“Okan Buruk wanted him to come, but Osimhen said that despite Okan’s wishes, he was in pain and needed to rest,” he stated.

Buruk will now hope Osimhen recovers on time to play against Juventus in the return leg of their Champions League Round of 16 playoff on Wednesday in Italy.

Galatasaray: Osimhen refused to play because of injury – Ibrahim Seten