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Argentina coach, Jorge Sampaoli has explained why his star studded side lost to the Super Eagles of Nigeria in Tuesday’s grade one friendly in Russia. The high profile friendly ended 2-4 in favour of Nigeria. The former Sevilla coach watched his side throw away a two-goal lead to lose 2-4 as Nigeria rallied back with a strong showing in the second half. Addressing reporters after the game, Sampaoli faulted his team’s wastefulness in front of goal in the first half. He said, “I do not think it’s hard to explain. We played in the first half well, in the second we tried to play more in attack.

The Premier League leaders, Manchester City, on Sunday extended their club record run winning 15 in all competitions by beating Arsenal 3-1to open up an eight-point lead at the top of the table. City grabbed the lead in the 19th minute through a low drive from Belgian midfielder Kevin De Bruyn. He doubled Manchester City’s advantage soon after the interval when record scorer Sergio Aguero slotted home a penalty after Raheem Sterling was barged over by Nacho Monreal. Arsenal threw on striker Alexandre Lacazette in the 56th minute and he fired the gunners back into the game with a clinical diagonal finish, after being set up by Aaron Ramsey.

Argentine Lionel Messi will celebrate his 600th start for Barcelona on Saturday in what his manager Ernesto Valverde hails as “a monstrous” achievement. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner becomes only the third player to reach the milestone for the Catalan club after ex-playmaker Xavi Hernandez (767 appearances) and the current captain Andres Iniesta (642). In his 599 games since 2004 the 30-year-old Argentine legend has scored 523 goals all competitions to be the club’s all time top scorer and the top scorer in La Liga with 360.

Wayne Rooney and his colleagues during training session earlier today in preparation for tomorrow clash with Lyon in the group stage of Europa league.

Businessman Aka Udofia has offered the Super Eagles the sum of $20,000 for every goal scored in Monday’s 2018 World Cup qualifer against Cameroon’s Indomitable Lions in Yaounde. The businessman from Akwa Ibom State made the promise as he briefly greeted players and officials inside the chartered ARIK Bombadier CRJ 1000 aircraft just before the team took off at the Ibom International Airport, Uyo.

  While speaking to journalists on the back of an emphatic win by Nigeria’s Super Eagles who demolished the visiting Indomitable Lions of Cameroon 4-0 in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying match played at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo on Friday, the Minister of Youth and Sports, Barrister Solomon Dalung, promised some money to the players.

The world record signing,  Neymar Jr. will miss Paris Saint Germain opening match of the season today as a result of incomplete paperwork by the club. He will  watch the from the stands after his unveiling to the crowd  before the kick-off, the AFP reported. His hopes to play today were dashed when his international transfer certificate failed to be lodged with the French league by the midnight deadline on Friday.

Marcelo Bielsa, the new coach of French Football club, Lille has told former Nigerian goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama and 10 other players that they are no longer needed by the club.

Abia Warriors Football Club on Sunday scraped a 2-1 victory against hard-fighting Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) leaders,  Plateau United FC. It was in the Match Day 25 fixture as Warriors denied the leaders an an opportunity to create an eight point lead. In the match played at the Umuahia Township Stadium, Abia Warriors took the lead in the sixth minute of the game.

Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is prioritising a move to Manchester United in the summer transfer window, according to reports in Italy. It’s understood Ronaldo is considering a move away from the Bernabeu in the coming months as a result of growing negativity from Madrid supporters towards his performances.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is set to sign for LA Galaxy after Manchester United confirmed his release. That is according to Spanish paper Marca, who say the former Barcelona striker will seal a switch to the MLS after his one-year stint at Old Trafford.

Fans of English FA Cup winners Arsenal have so much to worry as the club is about to lose superstar Alexis Sanchez to Manchester City. Both the player and Manchester City have finalised the move, according to reports in Chile. The 28-year-old enjoyed the season of his career with the Gunners, culminating with FA Cup glory at Wembley.

  Cristiano Ronaldo, the Real Madrid forward, has reportedly become the father of surrogate twins. According to reports in the Portuguese media, the children, a boy and girl called Eva and Mateo, were born on Thursday. SIC , the Portuguese TV channel, reported: “Mateo and Eva, those are the names of Cristiano Ronaldo’s twins. The boy and girl were born to a surrogate mum. It’s a secret that Cristiano Ronaldo hasn’t yet revealed to the rest of the world.”

It has been all tears in the Rugby world over the sudden death of Warringah player Lachlan Ward, 25, after collapsing on the field after a regulation collision in a fifth-grade match against Gordon at Pittwater Park. WALLABIES captain Stephen Moore ​says the sudden death of Ward ​i​s “tragic” and extended the team’s support to grieving family members, friends and clubmates.

Russian tennis player Maria Sharapova will be unable to compete in Wimbledon qualifying competition at Roehampton because of injury. The 30-year-old five-time Grand Slam champion has not played since May 16 when she retired with a thigh problem from her second-round match at the Italian Open. The Russian is now hoping to return at the end of July, by which time the grass court season will have ended.

Fans of Nigeria’s Super Eagles in Uyo, Akwa Ibom state  said the team’s 0-2 loss to Bafana Bafana of South Africa in the 2019 AFCON qualifier at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium struck them like earthquake. The  Secretary of Akwa Ibom  Football Association, Joseph Eberefe, said that the loss struck him “like earthquake”.

Saudi Arabia war against Qatar has deepened with the latest being criminalising wearing  a Barcelona shirt in the country. It means that fans wearing a Lionel Messi or Neymar shirt will go to jail in the Saudi Kingdom. Qatar Airways has been a sponsor of the Catalan team for four seasons, with its name emblazoned on the club’s jersey.

Bafana Bafana shocked Nigeria’s Super Eagles in their first qualifying match for the African Cup of Nations in Uyo. It was the first time in 23 years that the South Africans would beat the Super Eagles. The South African team won the encounter 2-0, leaving Nigerian  fans shocked. The goals were scored in the  55th and 82nd minute by R.Tokelo and P.Tau. Libya mauled Seychelles 5-1 in the second match of Group E, making the Libyans top of the table, with South Africa second.

According to Forbes, Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo banked $93 million over the past 12 months to retain the crown of the world’s highest-paid athlete for the second straight year. In the last 12 months, Ronaldo was named FIFA’s best player in the world for the fourth time, scored his 600th career goal and secured a contract extension with Real that will pay more than $50 million annually for the next four years. Ronaldo also inked a lifetime deal with Nike worth upwards of $1 billion. 

English club, Manchester United have replaced European champions Real Madrid, as the world's most valuable soccer team, according to the annual list published by Forbes on Tuesday.  Manchester United were valued at $3.69 billion, an 11 percent jump compared to last year. Barcelona were second on the list with a value of $3.64 billion while Real Madrid, who held top spot for the last four years, fell to No. 3 on the list, valued at $3.58 billion.  Rounding out the top five are Bayern Munich at No. 4 with $2.71 billion and Manchester City at No. 5 with $2.08 billion.