News
Just in: Lookman hits hat trick to earn Atalanta Europa League victory
Bu Kayode Sanni-Arewa
Nigerian winger, Ademola Lookman produced three fantastic finishes against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday to hand Atalanta the 2023/2024 UEFA Europa League title.
Lookman’s first goal came in the 12th minute of the Europa League final before pulling the trigger again to fire past Leverkusen’s goalie, Matej Kovar in the 26th minute of the game.
Lookman nutmegged Granit Xhaka before launching a stunning long-range effort from the edge of the box which went straight into the goal as he completed his brace within 26 minutes of the game.
In a moment of magic, Lookman got his name on the scoreboard again in the 76th minute of play, completing his hat-trick to become the first player to score a hat-trick in a Europa League/UEFA Cup final since Jupp Heynckes for Gladbach in a 5-1 2nd leg away win over FC Twente in 1974/75.
The three goals scored by the Nigerian winger handed Atalanta the Europa League title, dishing a heavy blow to the German side’s dream of winning the treble unbeaten this season.
Born on 20 October 1997, Lookman is a professional footballer who plays as a winger for Serie A club Atalanta. Born in England, he plays for the Nigeria national team.
Lookman made his senior debut in 2015, playing as a forward for Charlton Athletic of the Championship.
He signed for Everton in January 2017, where he played mainly as a winger. He has represented England from under-19 to under-21 levels. In 2022, Lookman made his debut for Nigeria.
Born in Wandsworth, Greater London, to Nigerian parents, he attended St Thomas the Apostle College in Peckham where he achieved three A*s and five As at GCSE.
Lookman joined Charlton Athletic’s academy in 2014 after signing from Waterloo, a youth football club based in the London Borough of Lambeth.
His goalscoring record for Charlton’s U18 and U21 teams led to him making a rapid ascent through the Charlton academy ranks and he made his first-team debut for the Addicks on 3 November 2015.
He scored his first goal for the club in a 3–2 defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion on 5 December 2015, and then followed that up with both Charlton’s goals in a 2–2 draw with Bolton Wanderers ten days later.
Lookman signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with Everton on 5 January 2017 for an undisclosed fee, reported as an initial £7.5m potentially rising to £11m.
He made his debut for the club ten days later in a 4–0 victory over Manchester City, replacing Ross Barkley in the 90th minute and scoring the team’s fourth goal.
Lookman made his first European appearance for Everton in a 1–0 win over MFK Ružomberok in the Europa League third qualifying round first leg.
Although manager Sam Allardyce stated that Lookman would not be leaving on loan in the January 2018 transfer window, the club eventually arranged a loan move to Championship club Derby County, where they hoped he would play regular first-team football.
However, the player insisted on an alternative move, and instead joined Bundesliga club RB Leipzig until the end of the 2017–18 season. In his first game with Leipzig, Lookman scored the winning goal in the away game against Borussia Mönchengladbach after coming on as a late substitute.
On 25 July 2019, Lookman returned to RB Leipzig on a five-year contract. On 30 September 2020, Lookman joined Premier League side Fulham on a season-long loan. He scored his first league goal for Fulham against Sheffield United on 18 October.
On 31 August 2021, Lookman joined Leicester City on a season-long loan. On 11 September 2021, he made his Leicester debut as a 73rd minute substitute during a 1–0 defeat to Manchester City. On 28 December 2021, Lookman scored the only goal in their 1–0 win over Liverpool.
On 4 August 2022, Lookman joined Serie A club Atalanta on a four-year contract for a reported fee of €15 million. He scored on his debut for the club, a 2–0 Serie A win over Sampdoria on 13 August.
In January 2023, he scored braces in three consecutive matches: a 8–2 Serie A win over Salernitana, a 5–2 Coppa Italia win over Spezia and a 3–3 Serie A draw to Juventus.
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
US President-elect, Donald Trump’s incoming administration plans to immediately order a series of deportation raids targeting illegal immigrants after his inauguration.
Chicago is expected to be the first major city targeted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents as part of Operation Safeguard, the New York Times reported, citing two people familiar with planning the undertaking.
The massive deportation operation is expected to target criminals and gang members in the United States illegally and run for one week.
Trump has promised to conduct the largest deportation program in U.S. history.
Up to 200 ICE agents are being sent to Chicago to help kick off the operation on Tuesday, the Wall Street Journal reported. The agency has already asked agents to volunteer for the post-inauguration raids.
“There’s gonna be a big raid across the country,” Tom Homan, who will be in charge of U.S. borders once Trump takes office, told Fox News in an interview.
Homan has previously said he will instruct ICE agents to carry out raids on illegal immigrants at their workplaces.
In addition to Chicago, the sweeping crackdown will also target other major U.S. cities with large immigrant populations.
Trump is set to take the oath of office on Monday, January 20, in an inauguration that will take place indoors.
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
A faith-based civil society organization, CSO that monitors and reports on Hajj and Umrah activities, the Independent Hajj Reporters, IHR, has commended the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, NAHCON, for selecting a different Saudi-based Hajj service provider for the 2025 Hajj season.
It said the decision would create healthy competition among service providers interested in efficiently, qualitatively, and satisfactorily serving Nigerian pilgrims.
The CSO, in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Malam Ibrahim Muhammed, in Makkah, Saudi Arabia, and made available to our correspondent on Sunday in Abuja, said the quest for improved Hajj services has been a major challenge for Nigerian pilgrims owing to the repeated failure of providing satisfactory services.
”We applauded the decision to pick another service provider that will cater for the needs of pilgrims within the Masha’ir areas during the five days of Hajj,” he said
The national coordinator, who is currently in Saudi Arabia to monitor the pre-Hajj arrangements, said available information shows that the new company, Mashariq Al Dhahabia, is an experienced provider that has served top-rated Hajj countries, like Indonesia and Malaysia, and ranked among the top five Hajj service providers by the Saudi Arabia Ministry of Hajj and Umrah.
“The company served 249 706 which is the largest number of Hajj pilgrims during the 2023 hajj. They were awarded as the Best Hajj Service Providers during the 2022 Hajj by the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah,” he stated.
IHR said it further understood that NAHCON is planning to recruit another service provider to provide services for very important personalities, VIP pilgrims so as not to repeat the experience of previous years, which is also a desired step forward.
It, however, urged NAHCON to set a parameter of performance for the newly selected service providers to serve as a baseline for determining continuous patronage, advising that such criteria should be based on pilgrims’ satisfaction and adherence to contractual terms.
Speaker Abbas expresses sorrow over Niger tanker explosion, multiple fatalities
Fear as Trump’s deportation raids in US to start in Chicago immediately afte inauguration
Hajj: CSO lauds NAHCON’s selection of new Saudi-based service provider
Just in: Terrorists ambush military truck, kill all soldiers on board
Nigerian Dancer, Korra Obidi Attacked with acid, stabbed on stage In UK
Meet Rare Gem 16 Years Old Chiaza, CEO of ‘RUN MARKET PLACE’
-
News24 hours agoJust in: Gov Soludo reveals those behind kidnapping in SE, says it’s now a lucrative biz
-
News15 hours agoFG Accepts New VAT Sharing Formula Proposed By Governors
-
News16 hours agoFinally, court bars FRSC from arresting vehicles, penalizing motorists faded number plates
-
News11 hours agoCLARIFICATION: Wike’s aide rubbished claim on his principal’s alleged trip to UK
-
News10 hours agoCatholic church suspends priest over alleged secret marriage in US
-
News10 hours agoSAD! Two Judges shot dead in Court as attacker takes own life
-
News24 hours agoOborevwori expresses sadness over Edna Ibru’s passage
-
News15 hours agoTrump launches his own meme coin, value soars