Sports

Brilliant Chelsea Shatter Tottenham’s Top-Four Hopes

Published

12 months ago

May 3, 2024

Chelsea delivered a hammer blow to Tottenham’s hopes of qualifying for the Champions League with a 2-0 win against their spluttering London rivals on Thursday.

Trevoh Chalobah’s first goal since March 2022 put Chelsea ahead in the first half at Stamford Bridge.

The much-maligned Nicolas Jackson wrapped up the points in the closing stages with his 14th goal of a difficult first season with the Blues.

After losses to Arsenal and Newcastle, fifth-placed Tottenham’s third successive defeat leaves them seven points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa.

Tottenham have four games left, while Villa have three to go, making the north Londoners rank outsiders to finish in the Premier League’s top four.

It was another painful setback for Tottenham, who have squandered the good will built by Postecoglou for much of the Australian’s first season in charge.

While Postecoglou licks his wounds, Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino enjoyed a second win over his former club this season following the 4-1 success in November.

Pochettino had irritated Chelsea fans by admitting he couldn’t “hide his emotions” for the club he managed for five years and led to the 2019 Champions League final.

But he put those feelings aside to provide the result they wanted, keeping alive eighth-placed Chelsea’s hopes of qualifying for Europe and making it just one defeat in 34 home league games against Tottenham.

Postecoglou had criticised Tottenham’s sloppy performance in Sunday’s 3-2 defeat against Arsenal and responded by making five changes, with Richarlison brought in and James Maddison dropped.

But in Pochettino’s 400th match in English football, the Chelsea manager should have been celebrating a goal inside five minutes.

Jackson sprinted into the Tottenham area for a shot that went under Guglielmo Vicario but lacked the power to beat Mickey van de Ven’s clearance off the line, with Cole Palmer somehow scooping the loose ball over from close range.

Moments later, Chelsea winger Noni Madueke embarked on a dynamic run before firing just over from the edge of the area.

Four of the five goals conceded by Tottenham in their previous two games had come from set-pieces and they were punished for more woeful dead-ball marking in the 24th minute.

Conor Gallagher’s free-kick looped into the area and Chalobah was left unmarked to power a superb header over Vicario from 12 yards.

That made it 22 goals conceded from set plays in league games by Postecoglou’s creaky defence this term.

Tottenham claimed Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella had blocked Brennan Johnson from marking Chalobah, but VAR ignored their protests.

Mykhailo Mudryk’s deflected strike was held by Vicario before the Ukraine winger curled narrowly wide as Chelsea pushed for a second goal.

Undone by their set-piece frailties, Tottenham almost took advantage of Chelsea’s defensive deficiencies with a Cristian Romero header that clipped the post from Pedro Porro’s free-kick.

Postecoglou looked increasingly irate by the half-time whistle and his chastened players responded to their manager’s frustration with a more lively second-half display.

Porro’s drive from a tight angle forced Djordje Petrovic to save in Tottenham’s most threatening moment.

But Chelsea landed the knockout punch in the 72nd minute.

Palmer’s fierce free-kick cannoned down off the bar towards Jackson, who reacted quickest to head home from six yards.

AFP

Sports

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

Published

5 hours 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

4 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.

Sports

Burnley, Leeds United seal Premier League return

Published

4 days ago

April 22, 2025

Admin

Burnley beat Sheffield United 2-1 to seal automatic promotion to the Premier League on Saturday, with the result also sending Championship leaders Leeds United up alongside them.

Leeds had earlier thrashed Stoke City 6-0 to go top of the Championship on 94 points with two matches remaining and needed Burnley to then not lose to third-placed Sheffield United to make sure they would finish in the top two.

Burnley duly obliged with Josh Brownhill scoring twice at Turf Moor, either side of Tom Cannon’s equaliser.

Scott Parker’s side, who were relegated last season, joined Leeds on 94 points to leave Sheffield United on 86, and now face the prospect of trying to join them via the playoffs.

Joel Piroe scored a hat-trick in the opening 20 minutes for Leeds at a raucous Elland Road and added another before halftime as the hosts stormed 5-0 ahead by the interval.

Leeds are heading back to the top flight after being relegated in 2023 after three seasons in the Premier League.

Fourth-placed Sunderland are guaranteed a playoff place despite a 1-0 home defeat by Blackburn Rovers, who kept alive their slim hopes of a top-six finish.

Fifth-placed Bristol City went down 3-1 at relegation battlers Luton Town, but remained above Coventry City who also lost 3-1 to bottom club Plymouth Argyle.

Seventh-placed Middlesbrough will be kicking themselves as they failed to capitalise on the defeats for Bristol and Coventry as they fell to a 2-1 defeat against Sheffield Wednesday despite taking an early lead.

With two games remaining, Bristol City have 67 points, Coventry have 66, and Middlesbrough have 63.

Millwall and Blackburn, with 63 and 62 points respectively, are also still involved in the playoff picture.

AFP