Posts

The 27-year-old is now expected to join his teammates in London ahead of the game against England at Wembley on June 2. The Super Eagles had their first training camp in preparation for their sixth appearance at the World Cup in Uyo on Wednesday. As part of their buildup to the global tourney in Russia, the three-time African champions will lock horns with Florent Ibenge’s charges at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium on May 28....

The former Napoli head coach kept his players in the away dressing room at the Vitality Stadium for 45 minutes after a sapping defeat on England’s south coast, banishing his coaching staff so he could address them alone. Sarri called the Chelsea squad’s motivation into question after the 2-0 loss at Arsenal 11 days ago and, although cup wins over Tottenham and Sheffield Wednesday followed, he found himself once again picking through the bones of an unacceptable display....

Romelu Lukaku left Chelsea two seasons for £28million while the club were still under the stewardship of Jose Mourinho. Conte, however, sees the value in the Belgian and is willing to spend a mammoth £68million to bring him back to the Bridge. Everton, meanwhile, value the former Anderlecht striker at £75 million and are unwilling to budge from that valuation to ensure even they have a chance to keep him at Goodison for another season at least....

On the contrary, the Blues last tasted defeat in December while they were humbled by a shocking defeat to Southampton. Post that Lampard’s wards have put up a decent show until now, winning three of their last five fixtures. Chelsea will have to be highly alert, as they will not be able to afford a slip up at this stage, given the hot pursuit of Manchester United for the coveted fourth position as of now....

The first half started out with an intense midfield battle initially, but as the minutes rolled down, Jamshedpur FC extended their grip over the game. However, they were struck by an unfortunate injury when Jitendra Singh had to be replaced in the 10th minute. Midfielder Mobashir Rahman was brought on to replace him. JFC were unmoved by the forced change and drew first blood in the 23rd minute through Ritwik Das....

Seven Israeli players hoping to attend the championship on Dec. 26-30 have submitted visa requests, FIDE Deputy President Georgios Makropoulos told Reuters. Should their visas be granted, it would mark the first time Saudi Arabia has publicly hosted Israelis. Saudi Arabia does not recognize Israel and there are no formal ties between the two countries. “We have sent their documents to the organizers and the visa status is currently pending,” Makropoulos said....

“See, it is overall. Now, I have this opportunity to play for Yorkshire. You have bad times in your career and to come out of it, you need to work hard. My first priority is to do well for Yorkshire. I have been trying to improve and work on my game, which I needed to in all aspects. “I am developing as a cricketer. At times, I will have a good or a bad series, but the trick is to stay mentally tough and positive throughout, if you want to start playing well again,” Pujara told DNA in an interview....

There was one player who was instrumental in giving India the series and it is none other than Cheteshwar Pujara. Pujara’s grit and determination paralysed one of the best bowling attacks in the world in their own backyard. His defence was solid as a rock and his concentration was unwavering like a monk. Before the Test series even started all the eyeballs were on the superstar Virat Kohli, world’s no....

The 26-year old, who has made plenty of starts on the current tour without going on to the big scores for which he is known, has opted for the county despite several offers from elsewhere. Pujara averages just under 59 in first-class cricket and over fifty in the one-day game, with a highest score of 352. With twenty-six centuries and twenty-five fifties in his short career so far, there is little doubt that he is a batsman of great talent and will undoubtedly benefit from the exposure to English wickets....

The gun violence continues as President Donald Trump has threatened to deploy federal troops to cities across the country that have increasing violence, including Chicago, much to Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s discontent. The gunshots and subsequent scene Tuesday night jarred local residents, including Arnita Geder, who had been inside her home watching TV, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. “We went out in the street and all we saw was bodies just laying everywhere,” Geder said....

Chicago Police Department Superintendent David Brown said during a recent press conference that while the police department has continued to show courage in battling the city’s crime wave, “violent offenders need more serious consequences in our courts.” Brown continued, “What we can do different is challenge the courts to render Chicago safe….Holding offenders in jail longer, not releasing murderers back into our community. That’s what we can do different.”...

The international double came just a day ahead of Chicharito’s birthday, with the striker turning 25 on Saturday. And with the brace, he secured his 32nd international goal in just 47 appearances – continuing a remarkable scoring record during four years as a senior international. Jared Borgetti’s Mexican record of 46 in 89 appearances for El Tricolor will surely be broken – possibly before World Cup 2014 is over, with the player also featuring in the Confederations Cup this summer....

MORE: Preseason power rankings: Who’s no. 1? | Dolphins’ coach Joe Philbin raps — really Catchy, but Glitter has to go. The former music star comes with controversy. Glitter — actually named Paul Gadd — was sentenced to 16 years in prison in February for sexual abuse crimes involving young girls. This came in the wake of several sexual offense charges dating back to the 1990s — charges that led the NFL to ask Kansas City to alter their touchdown anthem as long ago as 2006, according to Fox Sports....

Marko Arnautovic’s early goal proved decisive for the Hammers as the forward netted his first for the club at the end of a fine move inside the opening six minutes. After that early breakthrough David Moyes’ side were content to sit back and soak up the pressure, with Chelsea toiling fruitlessly at London Stadium. And the lack of tempo and cutting edge to the visitors’ play left Cahill deflated. “We were miles off [our best] from the start,” the defender told Sky Sports ....

Chelsea are playing against West Ham on Monday night, but will have to watch the second legs of the games from home after failing to qualify for Europe last season thanks to a disappointing Premier League campaign. ‘Kante wanted to go to Marseille’ Conte is used to Champions League football after managing Juventus and he is looking forward to bringing Chelsea back into the competition next season, with his side seven points clear at the top of the table....

Conte’s men 14/1 for CL glory A study by Football Observatory Weekly Post has published data on top-tier teams from 31 European associations, ranking them according to the percentage of domestic league minutes played by expatriates since the start of the season. Chelsea, with 90.4 per cent, top the major European leagues. Three Cypriot clubs lead the overall table, however, with Apollon Limassol (99.8%), Anorthosis Famagusta (95.3%) et AEK Larnaca (91....

Todd Boehly has taken over a team who qualified for the UEFA Champions League by finishing third last time out — and head coach Thomas Tuchel will no doubt hope his players can challenge for the Premier League. Despite the uncertainty around the future of the club’s ownership, Chelsea went close to winning the most recent editions of the Carabao Cup and FA Cup, losing to Liverpool on penalties in the finals of both competitions....