Sports
Adebayo Rescues Struggling Luton In Draw Against Everton
Elijah Adebayo kept Luton in the hunt to avoid relegation from the Premier League as his equaliser rescued a 1-1 draw against Everton on Friday.
Rob Edwards’ side trailed to Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s penalty but Adebayo scored the crucial leveller before half-time at Kenilworth Road.
Despite earning just one win in their past 15 league games, third-bottom Luton are still in contention to beat the drop.
They are behind fourth-bottom Nottingham Forest on goal difference, with Nuno Espirito Santo’s team facing already-relegated Sheffield United on Saturday.
A Forest win at Bramall Lane would move them three points ahead of Luton, who have two games left against West Ham and Fulham to avoid an immediate return to the Championship after last season’s fairytale promotion.
Luton’s survival bid is further complicated by the wait for a verdict on Forest’s appeal against their four-point deduction for financial breaches, with a Premier League announcement expected before the end of the season.
Despite losing eight points as punishment for financial breaches of their own, Everton had already secured their Premier League status with three games to spare.
Winners of their previous three matches, Sean Dyche’s side had nothing to play for on their first visit to Kenilworth Road for 17 years but they did enough to frustrate the superstitious Edwards.
Edwards revealed this week that he drives the same route to the stadium, uses the same toothpaste and walks his dog at a certain time of day if Luton are on a winning streak.
Beaten in their last three matches, Edwards needed a change of fortune so he said he would switch his underwear for the Everton clash.
Unfortunately for Edwards, Luton’s luck was out initially as Tahith Chong appealed in vain for an early penalty after stumbling when Everton ‘keeper Jordan Pickford rushed out to challenge the Luton forward.
Teden Mengi gifted Everton a 23rd-minute penalty when he needlessly wrestled Jarrad Branthwaite to the ground as the pair jostled at a corner.
Calvert-Lewin stepped up to drill the spot-kick down the middle for his fourth goal in his last five games.
But Luton had no intention of surrendering and they were level seven minutes later.
Targeting Everton’s Ashley Young time and again, Luton’s persistence paid off as Adebayo controlled Albert Sambi Lokonga’s high pass on his chest, muscled his way past the veteran defender and slammed a fine finish past Pickford from 10 yards.
In his first start since February after a hamstring injury, Adebayo had taken his goal tally for the season to 10.
Luton striker Carlton Morris had a towering header cleared off the line by Ben Godfrey just before half-time.
The Hatters pushed hard in the second half and their former Everton midfielder Ross Barkley headed over from a good position.
Jack Harrison almost put Everton in front against the run of play with a deflected effort that was clawed away from under the bar by Thomas Kaminski.
Calvert-Lewin’s powerful header forced a brilliant tip over from Kaminski, while Pickford made a fine stop from Luke Berry’s header in stoppage-time.
AFP
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….
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.
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.
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