Sports

Chelsea Hit Back To Draw In Blow To Villa’s Top Four Bid

Published

12 months ago

April 28, 2024

Troubled Chelsea finally showed some spirit as they fought back from two goals down to dent Aston Villa’s top four bid in the Premier League with a dramatic 2-2 draw on Saturday.

Mauricio Pochettino’s side trailed to Marc Cucurella’s early own goal and a Morgan Rogers strike before half-time at Villa Park.

But rather than capitulate as they did in Tuesday’s humiliating 5-0 loss at Arsenal, the Blues dug deep to rescue a gritty point thanks to goals from Noni Madueke and Conor Gallagher.

Chelsea thought they had won it deep into stoppage-time when Villa keeper Robin Olsen turned Axel Disasi’s effort into his own net, however, to Pochettino’s fury, the goal was disallowed for a Benoit Badiashile foul.

The draw was a blow to Villa’s hopes of holding off Tottenham in the race to qualify for the Champions League via a top four finish.

Villa are seven points clear of fifth-placed Tottenham, who host Premier League leaders Arsenal on Sunday in the first of three games in hand on Unai Emery’s side.

Although Villa, who last finished as high as fourth in 1995-96, remain favourites to clinch the lucrative Champions League berth, they might feel a little nervous if Tottenham win the north London derby.

Villa were well below their best and must recover quickly as they face Olympiakos in the Europa Conference League semi-final first leg on Thursday.

The under-fire Pochettino reportedly retains the backing of Chelsea’s ninth placed squad — which has been assembled for over £1 billion — despite a difficult campaign that included an FA Cup semi-final loss to Manchester City last weekend.

They proved that point by refusing to surrender against a Villa team that flew at them in a vibrant start.

In the fourth minute, Lucas Digne poked a low cross into the Chelsea six-yard box, where John McGinn’s scuffed shot was deflected into his own net by Cucurella.

It was the first time since 1998 that Chelsea had conceded in the opening four minutes in consecutive league games.

Digne volleyed into the side-netting from an acute angle moments later as Villa scented the chance to punish Chelsea’s early lethargy.

But Villa’s momentum had stalled and they suffered a setback when Belgian midfielder Youri Tielemans limped off injured.

Nicolas Jackson was inches away from equalising with a close-range header from Cucurella’s cross that glanced off the post.

The much-maligned Jackson should have buried that chance and Ollie Watkins almost made him pay with a powerful drive that Djordje Petrovic saved at his near post.

It was a warning Chelsea failed to heed as Rogers doubled Villa’s advantage in the 41st minute.

Matty Cash’s pass picked out Rogers and the 21-year-old, given too much time and space on the edge of the area, swept a perfectly-placed strike past Petrovic for his third goal since his January arrival from Middlesbrough.

Villa keeper Emiliano Martinez was forced off with an injury at half-time and his replacement Olsen had to pick the ball out of the net in the 62nd minute.

Pau Torres carelessly lost possession, with Gallagher’s touch reaching Madueke, who slotted a fine finish past the Swedish keeper from 10 yards.

Madueke almost completed Chelsea’s fightback, but his flicked effort was parried by Olsen.

The winger wasn’t left to rue that miss as Gallagher rescued a deserved point for Chelsea in the 81st minute with a superb curler into the far corner from the edge of the area.

AFP

Sports

Just in: Chelsea maintains top 4 position after thrashing Everton 1-0

Published

15 hours ago

April 26, 2025

ADMIN

Chelsea on Saturday maintained its top four position in the Premier league after thrashing Everton 1-0 at home.

A lone goal was put behind Everton’s goal keeper at the 27th minute of the second half by M.Jackson of Chelsea, his first goal in the Premiership.

Details….

Sports

Weightlifting Heroes Lift Nigeria’s Spirits with Record-Breaking Gold Medals

Published

1 day ago

April 26, 2025

Admin

Team Nigeria has wrapped up its participation at the 2025 African Senior Weightlifting Championship in Moka, Mauritius, with a stunning haul of 18 medals—13 gold, 4 silver, and 1 bronze—cementing its status as a continental powerhouse in the sport.

Nigeria’s final day of competition saw Sarah Ovayioza deliver a show-stopping performance in the women’s 76kg weight class, lifting a combined total of 237kg in the snatch, clean, and jerk. Her flawless execution earned the nation three more gold medals and drew roaring applause from the crowd as she closed out Nigeria’s campaign in style.

Earlier in the tournament, Ruth Imoleayo Ayodele dazzled in the women’s 64kg category, completing a clean sweep of the three gold medals in her weight class.

Following suit, Onome Omolola Didih was the star of the 55kg division with another triple-gold performance, dominating her weight class from start to finish (three gold medals).

Two-time African Games gold medallist and reigning Commonwealth Games champion, Rafiatu Folashade Lawal , continued her golden streak in the 59kg category. Her lifts of 95kg (snatch) and 118kg (clean and jerk) for a total of 213kg secured yet another hat-trick of gold medals for Team Nigeria.

In the men’s events, Umoafia Joseph Edidiong powered through the 73kg category with a 147kg snatch to win gold, while narrowly missing out on a gold rush with two silvers in the clean and jerk.

Without minding what day of the week it was, Tuesday Emmanuel contributed to the medal count in the 67kg category, bagging two silver medals and a bronze after a combined lift of 276kg (130kg snatch, 146kg clean & jerk).

Although the championship continues until April 28, Nigeria’s contingent has concluded its events, proudly leaving the stage with one of the most impressive medal tallies recorded in recent history. The team’s performance yet again showcases Nigeria’s continued dominance and rising momentum in international weightlifting.

Sports

Teams that have qualified for the 2025-2026 Champions League

Published

5 days ago

April 22, 2025

Austin Ojomah

Today we dive into some of the clubs that have already qualified for the 2025-26 Champions League group stage based on the current standings in some of the top European leagues and teams that have mathematically secured a top finish as of today, April 22, 2025:

Liverpool: They have mathematically secured a top-five finish in the Premier League, guaranteeing their Champions League spot due to England’s strong UEFA coefficient ranking.

Arsenal: They are highly likely to qualify, holding a significant point advantage over sixth place.

Bayer Leverkusen: They have secured a top-four finish in the Bundesliga.

Bayern Munich: They have also secured a top-four finish in the Bundesliga.

Barcelona: They are currently in a position to qualify through their league standing.

Real Madrid: They are also in a strong position to qualify through their league standing.

Paris Saint-Germain: They are in a qualifying position in Ligue 1.

Now, those are the usual suspects. There are several other teams that have qualified as league champions in their respective countries, though their entry point, i.e., group stage or qualifying rounds, depends on their league’s UEFA coefficient ranking. Some are familiar; others, not so familiar. They are:

Qarabag (Azerbaijan)

Differdange 03 (Luxembourg)

Crvena Zvezda (Serbia)

Malmö FF (Sweden)

Kairat (Kazakhstan)

KuPS (Finland)

Shelbourne (Ireland)

RFS (Latvia)

Víkingur (Faroe Islands)

Breiðablik (Iceland)

Linfield (Northern Ireland)

The New Saints (Wales)

Virtus (San Marino)

Slavia Prague (Czech Republic)

Galatasaray (Türkiye)

Ajax (Netherlands)

Sporting CP (Portugal)

Genk (Belgium)

As the current season winds down, the number of qualified teams will increase. Follow the league standings in the major European leagues and the results of the current Champions League and Europa League to stay updated.