Sports

Partey closing in on lucrative deal to Saudi Arabia

Published

1 week ago

June 14, 2024

Reports from England have revealed that Arsenal and Ghana international midfielder, Thomas Partey, is on the verge of a lucrative summer move to the Saudi Arabian Pro League.

According to the reports, Partey’s representatives have been in talks with the unnamed club and working behind the scenes to secure him a summer move away from North London as Mikel Arteta is not willing to renew his contract which runs out next summer.

It is also rumoured that former Chelsea coach, Jose Mourinho who was recently appointed head coach of Turkish club, Fenerbahce, is also interested in luring the player to the Istanbul club while Juventus is also said to be eyeing the player.

During his time at the London club, Partey had been one of the fulcrum of the team but in the past two seasons, his appearances have been marred by injuries and loss of form.

During the 2023-24 season, Partey struggled with hamstring and groin injuries that limited him to just 16 appearances across all competitions.

According to Football Insider, the 31-year-old midfielder who signed for the Gunners from Atletico Madrid in 2020, would love to extend his contract with Arsenal but the club have no intention of offering him an extension on his deal and are willing to listen to offers for him before he enters the final 12 months of his contract.

Arteta is expected to be busy this summer and would likely look to use the proceeds from the potential sale to bring in a younger central midfielder to partner Declan Rice, with the rumoured fee said to be in the region of £20m to £25m.

The Ghanaian had previously been linked with a move to the Middle East and Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund officials have now restarted talks over a potentially lucrative contract.

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Sports

CAF reschedules AFCON 2025, announces new dates

Published

2 days ago

June 22, 2024

Isaac Dachen

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has rescheduled the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 which was to take place in Morocco from December 21, 2025, to January 18, 2026.

The decision to reschedule the tournament dates, according to CAF President Patrice Motsepe in a statement on Friday after virtual executive committee in Cairo, was to avoid a clash with the inaugural Club World Cup in the United States which will hold from June 15 to July 13 next year.

The AFCON was initially scheduled for June and July 2025, but following an announcement by FIFA of the Club World Cup in the summer of 2025, CAF had to reschedule its own competition to avoid a clash.

“I am confident that the CAF AFCON Morocco 2025 will be extremely successful and the best AFCON in the history of this competition,” Motsepe said, regardless of the postponement.

The 35th edition of the AFCON which will be held in Morocco, is set to make history with its unique scheduling as unlike previous tournaments, the edition will span across two years, commencing on December 21, 2025, and concluding on January 18, 2026.

This timing is also a deviation from the traditional AFCON schedule which typically begins in early January and ends in early February.

However, the new dates will upset many English Premier League clubs as the Christmas-New Year period is always frenetic with teams playing many matches in a short period and will need their African players who will be at the AFCON tournament during the hectic period.

Media reports in England have suggested many clubs might not release African stars as they are compelled to do so for only one international championship per year and the next World Cup is in 2026, but CAF could argue that it is the 2025 AFCON, although most of the tournament will be staged the following year.

Sports

Race for Super Eagles midfielder Ndidi heats up

Published

3 days ago

June 21, 2024

Isaac Dachen

The race to snap up Super Eagles and Leicester City midfielder, Wilfred Ndidi, is hotting up as three French clubs have joined Everton for his signature.

According to Footmercato, French giants Olympique Marseille, AS Monaco and Olympique Lyonnais have indicated interest in the Eagles star who could become a free agent by the end of this month.

In its report, Footmercato said Marseille are seeking to bolster their squad this summer with the midfield being one of their priorities.

“The nine-time French champions risk the possibility of losing Jordan Veretout, Pape Gueye and Geoffrey Kondogbia while Jean Onana is also set to return to his parent club Besiktas after the expiration of his loan spell.

“Thus, the need for the Olympians to bolster their midfield with Ndidi being one of their targets but they aren’t the only French side eyeing the Nigeria international.

“AS Monaco who came second in the Ligue 1 last season are also eyeing a move for the Nigeria international who has become a hot property due to his contractual situation with Leicester City.”

However, the Foxes, as Leicester are called, are trying hard to retain the services of Ndidi beyond this summer and are running out of time with his current contract set to end in ten days’ time.