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N’GOLO KANTE is the French Player of the Year for 2017.The Chelsea  midfielder received 92 votes, pipping Paris Saint-Germain teenager Kylian Mbappe to the crown by five votes. Kante won back-to-back  Premier League  titles with  Leicester City  and then the Blues, and has proved himself to be one of the best midfield enforcers in world football.Kante, who arrived at Stamford Bridge from Leicester in 2015,  this year been named PFA Players’ Player of the Year and FWA Footballer of the Year. He also claimed Chelsea’s Player of the Year and was included in the Premier League Team of the Season.

Eden Hazard  believes Kylian Mpabbe will be the player to break the monopoly  Cristiano Ronaldo  and  Lionel Messi  have held on the Ballon d’Or. The  Real Madrid  superstar won his fifth Ballon d’Or award earlier this month to draw level with his long-time rival Messi. Hazard, himself, has been tipped as a future winner but the Chelsea forward believes PSG’s prodigious striker will be the man to end the dominance world football’s two biggest names have enjoyed for nearly a decade.  He told Sky Sports: I think the guy we are talking about every day is Kylian Mbappe he is very direct, he has skills and scores goals. ‘He made a big impact in the Champions League with Monaco last year so I think he will win the Ballon d’Or soon because he is special.’ Hazard also believes his teammate Andreas Christensen is capable of establishing himself as one of the best in the world in his position. The Denmark international has replaced the i...

Workers in Osun State have declared their intention to begin an indefinite strike following  the refusal of the state government to revert to paying them  full salary and arrears despite the receipt of the third tranche of N6.3 billion Paris Club loan refund. The workers under the umbrella of the Osun State Joint Public Service Negotiating Council gave the strike notice  in a statement issued on Friday following an emergency meeting of labour leaders on Thursday. The notice of strike was signed by the Chairman JPSNC, Bayo Adejumo; Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress, Tunde Adekomi and the Trade Union Congress Chairman, Bowale Adekola and leaders of various affiliate unions. The notice read in part, “Consequent upon the refusal of the government of Osun State to accede to the demands of the workers and pensioners as contained in our letter of Tuesday, December 5, 2017, the workers of Osun State will be proceeding on an indefinite strike by 27th December , 2017.”The la...

This year has been a bittersweet one for Davido. Apart from releasing monstrous hits and bagging international awards, he also lost three of his close friends. He was even accused, allegedly, of knowing about the death of one of them. In an exclusive chat with Saturday Beats, the singer acknowledged that it had been a very challenging year for him but described himself as a warrior. “Everybody knows what had happened to me this year, especially with the death of my friends. But I just had to overcome it and prevail. It is an amazing feeling when you are able to prevail. “I am happy and I thank God for the great things He has done for me this year. I thank everybody that has been supporting me. My tour was great, we went to 60 cities around the world and I am going to round it off in Lagos. It would be an amazing show and people should expect madness. It is God I guess,” the singer said.When asked about the purported battle of supremacy with his colleague, Wizkid, the singer was ...

Nicki Minaj, Cardi B have found themselves embroiled in a clash of queens, but why? There’s a quote in HBO’s  Game Of Thrones,  in which one of the series’ most OG characters drops knowledge on a young fool with a powerful piece of advice: “any man who says ‘I am the king’ is no true king.” And while  Thrones  is a work of fiction, one of the show’s central themes is the exploration of power. In that regard, it shares a common thread with the rap game; competition is ingrained within hip-hop’s lifeblood. For the most part, that competition is fuelled by respect and good sportsmanship, serving as a tool to keep lyricists sharp. Yet sometimes, a rapper might succumb to their own ambitious desires, and find themselves obsessed with chasing a proverbial crown. In those cases, it becomes harder to see the competitors as “friendly,” and thus, everything begins to feel like a personal slight. Those who are familiar with   Nicki Minaj   are well aware th...

Chelsea have offered Thibaut Courtois a new contract worth more than £200,000 a week. The deal on the table for the Belgium international, which includes bonuses, will see him overtake Manchester United’s David de Gea as the world’s highest-paid goalkeeper.And the Premier League champions are optimistic the 25-year-old will sign the new contract, despite interest from Real Madrid. According to The Telegraph, the Courtois’ current £100,000-a-week deal, which runs out at the end of next season, will be extended until 2023. Courtois has been a long-term target of Real Madrid but the LaLiga champions appear increasingly likely to sign Athletic Bilbao keeper, Kepa Arrizabalaga, in January.

It may have been strewn with errors but the action-packed 3-3 draw at the Emirates summed up everything that is so attractive about English football There were 366 seconds between Liverpool going 2-0 up at the Emirates on Friday night and Arsenal storming back to move 3-2 ahead. That remarkable statistic proves just why the Premier League is the most entertaining league in the world. As the scoreline changed so quickly and so dramatically, so too did the momentum of the game and each team’s confidence, transforming what had been a one-sided encounter into a Christmas cracker. It eventually ended 3-3 but either side could have won it at the death. Alexis Sanchez, Mesut Ozil and Jurgen Klopp’s scintillating ‘Fab Four’ all starred in attack at various intervals. Sanchez and Ozil netted vital goals in Arsenal's stunning turnaround, while Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane, Philippe Coutinho and Mohamed Salah took advantage of the huge gaps in midfield to repeatedly hit ...

Fayose condemns FG over persistent fuel scarcity, calls for Buhari’s resignation Ekiti State Governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose has again condemned the federal government over its nonchalant attitude towards ending the fuel scarcity being experienced across the country, calling for immediate resignation of President Muhammadu Buhari as the minister of petroleum. The governor, who reiterated his position that the All Progressives Congress (APC) federal government was punishing Nigerians with fuel scarcity so as to achieve its planned increment of petrol pump price from N145 to not less than N185 per litre, added that; “Already, fuel is being sold officially at between N180 and N200 at petrol stations across the country.” In a release issued on Friday, Governor Fayose’s Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, quoted him as saying that “It is sad that this Buhari’s APC government had to choose this Christmas and New Year period to ground Nigeria with the fu...

Barcelona are interested in the signing of Chelsea defender David Luiz - The Spanish club are said to have contacted the Blues for the possibility of luring him to Spain - Brazilian defender David Luiz has lost his place in the Chelsea squad since the end of October Spanish club Barcelona have reportedly contacted reigning Premier League champions Chelsea over the signing of their star Brazilian defender David Luiz. David Luiz has been left out of Chelsea's squad since the end of October with many reports claiming that the Blues' manager Antonio Conte no longer needs him in his team. The former Paris-Saint-Germain star is currently injured, but he has lost his place in the Blues' squad to youngster Andreas ChristensenClubs like Real Madrid and Arsenal are said to be interested in signing David Luiz from Chelsea next year, but according to Telefoot, Barcelona are the only side who have contacted the Stamford Bridge landlords.

Alvaro Morata Antonio Conte says the loss of Alvaro Morata for Chelsea’s trip to Everton is a blow to his side’s hopes of maintaining their distant pursuit of Premier League leaders Manchester City. Morata was booked after scoring the added-time winning goal in the midweek League Cup quarter-final victory over Bournemouth that set up a semi-final meeting with Arsenal. The Spain striker, who had come off the bench, initially stuck the ball under his shirt in a gesture to his pregnant wife but he earned the caution for kicking the ball away as Bournemouth attempted to restart the game quickly. It was Morata’s fifth booking of the season, earning the forward a one-game ban and leaving Conte with a decision to make about how best to replace his side’s leading scorer. Michy Batshuayi is the squad’s only other recognised central striker but the Belgian failed to impress after being handed a rare start this week. Previously, Conte has preferred to fill the gap by emplo...

T HE  Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, expressed surprise at the worsening fuel scarcity across the country, despite assurances by the Federal Government to flood filling stations with products. The union implored the federal government; Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources and the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, to tell the nation what is actually happening, as the two unions in the sector are not on strike NUPENG in a statement yesterday, decried the attendant suffering and pains of Nigerians as a result of the persistent and unjustified fuel scarcity, lamenting the incessant fuel scarcity resulting to long queues, loss of man-hours and endless search for products. NUPENG in a statement by its President, Igwe Achese, said the scarcity had further worsened the sufferings of citizens through increase in transport fares, rising pricing of goods and services as we approach the Christmas festivities. We call on the government to quickly ...

Ronaldo, Neymar Neymar believes Paris Saint-Germain can “make history” by eliminating holders and record 12-time winners Real Madrid when the two clubs meet in the last 16 of the Champions League. French league leaders PSG were paired with Cristiano Ronaldo’s Real in the tie of the round, and big-spending PSG are looking for a rapid return on their massive summer investment. “We know it will be a difficult match against a team that has been playing together for years and also wants to win, but we can beat them,” Neymar said on Thursday as PSG arrived in Doha for their winter training camp. “We can make history. We’re here to do just that, to play football, and we’re going to do everything to win,” added the Brazilian, who cost PSG a world record 222 million euros ($264 million) in August when he joined from Barcelona. PSG have never advanced beyond the quarter-finals of the Champions League since the club’s takeover by its Qatari owners in 2011, throwing away a 4...

Having won several awards this year, Davido is also ending the year on a good note as he signed a contract with First Bank to become one of their ambassadors. The  Omo baba olowo , crooner took to his Instagram page to share the good news by posting photo of the event, with the caption, “Me and my new family @firstbanknigeria, So many new projects and ideas coming! We also can’t wait for Dec 27th!” It has been revealed that the bank has taken over sponsorship of the grand finale of Davido’s ‘30 Billion Concert’ scheduled for December 27, 2017 in Lagos. The 30  Billion World tour , which had 28 countries on the list included Europe, Switzerland, Belgium, Denmark, Finland and Sweden. He also did a total of 13 cities in the US as well as four Canadian cities, four African countries including Djibouti, Ivory Coast and Guinea. According to report, the decision to go on the  30 Billion World tour  ahead of a project is to create the environment for his sophom...

Cristiano Ronaldo trained alone on Thursday ahead of Real Madrid’s clash against Barcelona this weekend, after sustaining a knock to his calf during the Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi. The Portugal star received rough treatment as he scored the winner in last Saturday’s 1-0 victory over Brazilians Gremio in the final, but Ronaldo had insisted he would be fit for the visit of Barcelona. Cristiano Ronaldo trained alone out on the pitch, both with and without the ball,” Real wrote on their website, two days ahead of Saturday’s Clasico at the Santiago Bernabeu Following Real’s return to Spain, the five-time Ballon d’Or recipient had remained in the gym on Tuesday and Wednesday before finally lacing up his boots for an individual training session on Thursday Spanish sports daily As reported it was simply a “precaution” as Real look to trim the 11-point gap between themselves and leaders Barcelona, who are unbeaten in La Liga this season. “He will play in the Clasico barring last-minute su...

Football ruling body FIFA has confirmed receiving a complaint from Atletico Madrid who say Spanish league leaders FC Barcelona have illegally contacted their forward Antoine Griezmann. “We have received a complaint from Atletico Madrid about Griezmann’s case,’’ a FIFA spokesman told newsmen on Wednesday, without commenting further on the case. The 26-year-old Frenchman Griezmann renewed his contract at Atletico in summer until 2022. According to FIFA rules, he cannot be approached by interested clubs until the final six months of his contract. Spanish news reports said Atletico have proof that Griezmann has been contacted by Barca over a possible transfer. Reports also said that Atletico were not seeking compensation or requesting sanctions for FC Barcelona, ​​but wanted to bring the matter to the attention of FIFA. Griezmann, who came to Atletico in 2014, has been linked with several top clubs, including Manchester United. His release sum was halved to 100 million Euros...

Chelsea manager, Antonio Conte, has bemoaned Alvaro Morata’s yellow card, which rules him out of this weekend’s Premier League game against Everton. Morata picked up the booking on Wednesday night, while celebrating his late winner against Bournemouth in the quarter-final of the Carabao Cup. The Spaniard could not contain his joy and was booked by referee Lee Mason. Conte, whose side plays Arsenal in the semi final, said: “We must be pleased. We had a great reaction to their goal. “It’s not simple conceding a goal in the last minute of the game, but when you have this reaction you have players with great character, personality and talent. We must be pleased. “I’m very happy. Very happy for the performance of these players, because it means we are working very well. “But I must be honest, I didn’t see this yellow card. He’s a big loss for us, especially because we have to play a tough game against Everton. “It’s a pity. It’s a pity. But we have to accept it. Tonight, ma...

It will be a battle of brothers of some sort in one of the Carabao Cup semi-final game. Super Eagles stars Alex Iwobi will be up against Victor Moses following Wednesday's draw which pitched Arsenal against Chelsea. On their part, Bristol City's reward for overcoming Manchester United is to face the other Manchester team who are the current EPL league leaders.The first leg of the semi-finals will take place on the week commencing January 8, the second a fortnight later. Manchester City and Chelsea will host the first legs. Arsenal battled into the last four by beating London rivals West Ham 1-0 while on Tuesday Chelsea joined them in the hat following a 2-1 victory over Bournemouth on Wednesday. The 2017-18 season EFL surprise package Bristol City beat holders Manchester United 2-1 to reach the last four on Wednesday, 24 hours after Man City needed the heroics of Claudio Bravo to knock out Kelechi Iheanacho, Wilfred Ndidi and Ahmed Musa's Leicester on penalties....

The Belgium international's new contract will be paid in Euros due to the impact of Brexit talks, and he will also receive a €10m signing-on fee Kevin De Bruyne's new six-year Manchester City contract will be paid in euros rather than pound sterling and will include a whopping €10 million signing-on fee,  Goal  has learned. The midfielder's new contract will be signed off once City and the Belgian's agent agree on the valuation of his image rights. The rest of the terms of the contract are already in place following months of talks, and they can now be revealed by Goal. De Bruyne's basic wage will be the euro eqivalent of £200,000 per week (currently around €230,000) and will be topped up by various other bonuses and payments. The midfielder's existing agreement is paid in pound sterling, but due to the fall in the valuation of the currency since the United Kingdom's European Union referendum in 2016, De Bruyne's agent, Patrick De Koster...

Buhari presides over FEC meeting. File copy The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, says the extra-ordinary meeting of the Federal Executive Council, presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari, will continue on Thursday. Shehu, who made this known in Abuja on Wednesday, said the meeting was extended to Thursday to enable the council deliberate and take decisions on pending issues. According to him, the Federal Government plans to make Nigerians happy by providing tangible and meaningful projects to uplift their quality of life. The  News Agency of Nigeria  reports that President Buhari had sworn-in the remaining seven permanent secretaries out of the 22 appointed earlier in the year. The inauguration preceded the Council’s meeting and had the cabinet members and serving permanent secretaries as well as some guests of the new officials in attendance. The President did not deliver any inauguration address after...

Rejects sack of 150 members in Kogi varsity By Daud Olatunji  A BEOKUTA —Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, Lagos Zone, has asked Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State, to set    up   a panel of inquiry to probe the lingering crisis rocking the Lagos State University, LASU, Ojo, over the alleged sack of seven of its members, among others This came as ASUU also rejected recent sack of   150 members of Kogi State University, KSU, Ayungba ,calling   on the   State Government to reverse the action. The Lagos Zonal Coordinator of the Union, Prof. Olusiji Sowande, who briefed journalists yesterday at the ASUU office in Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, said the zone was mandated by its national body to look into the crises at both LASU and KSU  and come out with recommendations The Zonal coordinator briefed alongside other ASUU executives, such as Prof. Deji Agboola of Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago ...

By Rotimi Ojomoyela Ado-Ekiti —  A middle aged man, Waliu Abifarin was on Wednesday sentenced to death by hanging for armed robbery by an Ado-Ekiti High Court. The presiding Judge, Justice Ayodeji Daramola, who found Abifarin guilty on the strength of evidence adduced before the court by the prosecution, added that the prosecution has proved the case beyond reasonable doubt . Daramola ruled that Abifarin was guilty of one-count charge of armed robbery contrary to Section 1 (2) (a) of the Robbery and Firearms (Special Provision) Act Cap R11 Vol. 14 laws of the Federation of Nigeria. According to the charge sheet, Abifarin, on 21st December, 2013 robbed one Shaibu Obanimoh of the sum of N250,000 at Aleja Camp, Idege/Igirigiri Road, Ado-Ekiti, while armed with cutlass and other offensive weapons.He was first arraigned alongside one Haruna Onimisi, who escaped during the 2014 jailbreak from Ado-Ekiti prisons, which caused a setback to the case. Abifarin was again arraigned on...

Multiple award-winning pop star, Wizkid, ‘ African Queen’  crooner,  2face and Mavin Records first lady,  Tiwa Savage are billed to headline the maiden edition of the Akwa Ibom Christmas groove tagged, “Ukap’isua,” scheduled to hold on December 26 and 27 in Uyo, the state capital. According to Mr Victor Antai, state Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, other music acts  on the line up  include Tekno, Phyno among others. He said more than 100,000 fun seekers are also expected at the “Ukap’isua” groove which means the end of the year Christmas festival and would feature musical concerts, dance party and beach competitions. Antai said, the star studded event will also include a parade of five bands along the carnival routes, University of Uyo mini stadium – Ikot Ekpene road – Aka road – UdoUdoma Avenue – Unity Park. He said that five bands have been named after tourist attractions and historical features in the state such as, Blue River Band, Rolling Hills ...

Paul Clement faces the sack at Swansea City if the club fail to get a positive result at the weekend, reports the  Express  . The former Bayern coach has seen his team fall to bottom of the Premier League, and a defeat to Crystal Palace could spell the end of his tenure.

Goal takes a look at the biggest transfer rumours from the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A and beyond as we head into the winter window MOVE Monaco star Thomas Lemar would prefer to join Liverpool rather than Arsenal in the January transfer window, reports  The Independent . Arsenal failed to complete a £90 million deal for Lemar in the summer and have been linked with a renewed approach in the New Year, with Chelsea also showing an interest in the winger. Lemar has also been a long-term target for Liverpool and the Anfield club believe the player would accept a switch to Merseyside ahead of the Emirates Stadium. SPURS PLOT AUDACIOUS SUAREZ MOVE Tottenham are plotting an audacious move for Barcelona striker Luis Suarez, according to  Don Balon . Spurs believe Barca may be open to selling Suarez as they target Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann, with the north London outfit having already opened talks with Suarez's representatives. But the former Liver...