Sports
Arsenal Beat Luton To Top Premier League Table
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Arsenal coasted to a 2-0 win over struggling Luton on Wednesday to dislodge Liverpool from the top of the Premier League table, once again edging ahead in a thrilling three-way title tussle.
Gunners captain Martin Odegaard opened the scoring midway through the first half and an own goal just before the break gave the home side a cushion.
The result lifts Arsenal to 68 points – one ahead of Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool, who host Sheffield United on Thursday.
Defending champions Manchester City, playing fourth-placed Aston Villa on Wednesday, started the evening in third place, a point behind Arsenal.
Mikel Arteta’s men dominated possession in the opening stages at the Emirates but created few clear-cut openings in front of an expectant crowd.
But they broke the deadlock in the 24th minute, courtesy of a sweet left-footed strike by Odegaard.
Emile Smith-Rowe, a peripheral figure this season, stole possession and fed Odegaard, who played a one-two with Kai Havertz before stroking the ball home.
Arsenal doubled their lead in the 44th minute thanks to an own goal from Luton defender Daiki Hashioka, who turned into his own net following more good work down the left by Smith-Rowe.
The home side, playing in second gear, had just three shots on target in the first half but were well worth their lead.
The bulk of the second half was largely flat, although Luton came into the game more, probing for an opening to haul themselves back into the contest.
Arteta brought on midfielder Declan Rice and forward Eddie Nketiah, adding Gabriel Martinelli with 15 minutes to play.
Arsenal substitute Takehiro Tomiyasu went close, bending one just wide, and Nketiah forced a save from the scrambling Thomas Kaminski in the closing minutes.
They were unable to score a third but saw the game out with few alarms.
The Gunners, who have not been crowned English champions since 2004, set the pace for the bulk of last season before flagging as the finishing line approached.
But, adding steel to their style, they have now won nine of their past 10 league games, with the only blip in that sequence a goalless draw against City on Sunday.
Arsenal, who have conceded just four goals in the league in 2024, travel to Brighton on Saturday before hosting Villa on April 14.
Defeat for depleted Luton leaves Rob Edwards’ side third from bottom of the English top flight, three points from safety, and facing an immediate return to the Championship.
In the other 1830 GMT kick-off on Wednesday, Brentford drew 0-0 with Brighton.
On Sunday, Manchester City failed to break down Arsenal as a highly-anticipated clash at the top of the Premier League failed to live up to the hype in a 0-0 draw at the Etihad.
Sports
SAD! Rebecca Cheptegi becomes 3rd victim k!lled by partner in Kenya
![](https://naijablitznews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Rebecca-Cheptegei.jpg)
Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei, who succumbed to her injuries on Thursday, four days after being set on fire by her boyfriend at her home in Kenya, has been confirmed as the third female athlete killed by her partner since 2021.
According to reports from CNN and the BBC, Cheptegei’s death follows a troubling trend in Kenya, where several female athletes have been killed by their partners in recent years.
All three of these cases occurred in Iten, Kenya’s renowned hub for elite runners.
Cheptegei, who trained in Kenya, launched her international career at 19, competing for Uganda in the junior category of the 2010 World Cross Country Championships. She later transitioned to road racing, making her marathon debut in 2021.
The following year, Cheptegei achieved a personal best time of 2:22:47, making her the second-fastest Ugandan female runner in history.
In the past three years, two other female Olympians have been killed in Iten, Kenya.
In 2021, Kenyan authorities identified the husband of renowned long-distance athlete Agnes Tirop as a prime suspect in her brutal murder. Tirop, who was 25, was fatally stabbed.
According to CNN, the suspect contacted Tirop’s parents, suggesting his involvement and leading authorities to conclude that he was aware of the circumstances surrounding her death.
The police determined that Tirop’s fatal neck wounds were inflicted by a knife.
Tirop had secured back-to-back bronze medals in the 10,000m at the 2017 and 2019 World Championships and placed fourth in the 5,000m event at the Tokyo Olympics.
She also broke the women’s 10km world record by 28 seconds at Germany’s Adizero Road to Records event, a historic achievement that came just a month before her death.
Approximately six months later, another tragic incident occurred in the same town when marathon runner Damaris Mutua was strangled by her boyfriend, who then attempted to conceal his crime by placing a pillow over her face.
He subsequently fled the country and remains at large, according to authorities, as reported by the BBC.
Mutua earned a bronze medal representing Kenya in the 1,000m event at the inaugural Youth Olympic Games held in Singapore in 2010.
Mutua’s standout season was in 2018, when she achieved personal bests in the 20km (1:08:28), the fastest time that year, with a victory in Marrakesh, and the half-marathon (1:11:51), claiming second place in Mozambique.
According to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics’ latest data released in January 2023, 34% of women in Kenya have faced physical violence at some point in their lives since the age of 15.
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo announced on Friday that the city will pay tribute to the late Cheptegei by dedicating a sports facility in her name.
Sports
Why I snubbed Eagles job — Cannavaro
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By Mario Deepromoter
Former Italy captain and 2006 World Cup winner, Fabio Cannavaro, says he turned down the Super Eagles job to wait for offers in the Italian Serie A and other European clubs.
Cannavaro was one of the candidates interviewed for the role during the Nigeria Football Federation’s race against time to fill the vacant role ahead of the 2025 AFCON qualifiers against the Benin Republic and Rwanda.
“I had offers from Nigeria [national team] and Iranian clubs, but I want to wait for Serie A and European clubs until December. After that, I may start travelling again,” Cannavaro told La Gazzetta dello Sport in an interview.
German coach Bruno Labbadia was eventually announced by the NFF as the new coach of the Super Eagles, but the 56-year-old eventually turned down the offer over stringent German tax laws.
The team are currently under the guidance of NFF Technical Director Augustine Eguavoen, who is working with coaches of two Nigeria Premier Football League sides, Daniel Ogunmodede (Remo Stars) and Fidelis Ilechukwu (Enugu Rangers), as assistants, ahead of the qualifiers.
They are also joined in Uyo by Tomaz Zorec, a fitness trainer from Slovenia, goalkeeper trainer Olatunji Baruwa, and match analyst Eboboritse Uwejamomere.
After the clash against the Benin Republic at Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo on Saturday, the team will depart for Kigali on Sunday for Tuesday’s clash with the Amavubi (Bees) of Rwanda at the Amahoro Stadium.
Sports
FULL LIST: Eight Nigerians nominated for Ballon d’Or
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The Ballon d’Or is an annual football award presented by French magazine France Football since 1956 to honour the player deemed to have performed the best over the previous season.
Over the years, Nigerian players have also proven to be worthy of this award after being shortlisted by the organisers.
Following Wednesday’s announcement, Nigerian winger Ademola Lookman joined the train of Nigerian players to be nominated for the prestigious award after his blistering performances for both club and country.
Here is the full list of nominees from Nigeria and the year.
1. Finidi George- 1995
2. Daniel Amokachi – 1995
3. Austin Okocha – 1995
4. Kanu Nkwankeo – 1996, 1999
5. Victor Ikpeba – 1997
6. Sunday Oliseh – 1998
7. Victor Osimhen – 2023
8. Ademola Lookman – 2024
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