Sports

Too Good, Too Bad: How African stars performed in Europe last weekend

Published

2 years ago

May 23, 2022

It was curtain closed on major European league at the weekend with football taking a break across the continent but on the final day, a couple of African stars were still in action for their respective clubs.

In the English Premier League, it was a fitting and nail biting finale involving some top continent talents which saw Manchester City’s Riyad Mahrez and co pip Liverpool’s quartet of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Joel Matip and Naby Keita to the EPL title on the final day.

Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha recorded yet another career milestone when he scored the only goal which saw Manchester United go back to Old Trafford empty handed.

Africa News Watch takes a look at how a select Africa soccer stars fared with their teams in their respective leagues and competitions.

Too Good

Riyad Mahrez:Manchester City

Algerian Riyad Mahrez was saved the embarrassment his penalty miss against West Ham penultimate week could have caused City an Ilkay Gundogan inspired 15-minutes comeback win against Aston Villa in a dramatic 3-2 win which saw the Citizens retain its title.

Mahrez was involved from the start in the make or break encounter and contributed his quota to the win which ensured City took home its sixth diadem.

Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane: Liverpool

Though Liverpool failed to usurp Manchester City to win the EPL title on the final day despite a 3-1 triumph over Wolverhampton Wanderers, Egyptian captain Mohamed Salah still smiled as he won the Premier League Golden Boot award for the 2021-22 season with his 23rd goal after he added one in the win over Wolves at Anfield.

The Egyptian who levelled with Tottenham Hotspur’s Son Heung-min who also scored 23 goals from 35 appearances, won based on the number assists he had.

This would be the third time Salah would be picking the highest scorer award alongside the Premier League’s Playmaker award with his 13 assists.

His African compatriot, Senegalese Sadio Mane, also played a critical role in the season’s finale when he scored to equalize for Liverpool after an early goal by Wolves, while the other African contingents in the Reds fold, Cameroon’s Joel Matip, Guinea’s Naby Keita and Mali-qualified Ibrahim Konate were all involved in the match.

Franck Kessie: AC Milan

The Barcelona-bound Ivorian midfielder, Franck Kessie, was a key feature as AC Milan defeated Sassuolo 3-0 to claim its first Serie A title in 11 years on Sunday.

Kessie scored the third goal for Milan after Olivier Giroud had already claimed a brace as they lifted the trophy on the final day.

It had been a season-long battle between Milan and Inter Milan, and the Rossoneri only needed a point to lay their hands on the title they last won in the 2010/11 season, although they had a two-point lead over Inter and a better head-to-head record, which could have been the tiebreaker.

Zaidu Sanusi, Chancel Mbemba: Porto

Nigerian defender, Zaidu Sanusi and DR Congo’s defense lynchpin, Chancel Mbemba, were both involved as Porto lifted the Portugal Cup after a 3-1 victory over Tondela.

Mehdi Taremi’s brace and a goal from Vitor Ferreira ensured Porto lifted the domestic trophy, while Tondela’s goal was scored by Neto Borges.

Joe Aribo, Calvin Bassey, Leon Balogun, Amad Diallo, Fashion Sakala: Rangers

Nigeria’s trio of Joe Aribo, Calvin Bassey, and Leon Balogun, were all on from the start as Rangers won their 137th Scottish Cup final, beating Hearts 2-0.

Goals from substitutes Ryan Jack and Scott Wright in the first period of extra-time gave Rangers the win.

The other Africans in the team, Ivory Coast’s Amad Diallo and Fashion Sakala of Zambia also played their parts in the victory.

Diallo who stated the game was substituted in the 63rd minute while Sakala replaced Aribo in extra time.

Wilfried Zaha: Crystal Palace

The Ivorian winger, Wilfred Zaha, got the only goal as Crystal Palace defeated Manchester United 1-0 at Selhurst Park.

The goal was Zaga’s 14th Premier League goal of the season for Palace, with only three players ever netting more for the Eagles in a single Premier League season: Chris Armstrong in 1992-93 (15), Andrew Johnson in 2004-05 (21) and Christian Benteke in 2016-17 (15).

Zaha has also scored three league goals against his former club, Manchester United, the joint-most a player has scored against the Red Devils after playing for them in the competition

Too Bad

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang: Barcelona

The now retired Gabonese striker was on from the start as Barcelona suffered a 2-0 at home at the hands of Villarreal in their last game of the season.

The defeat saw Barca finishing with their lowest La Liga points total in 14 years with 73 points though they ended a turbulent season in second place behind Real Madrid, and without a trophy.

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Sports

Kenyan footballer arrested over brutal robbery, murder case

Published

22 hours ago

May 4, 2024

Akanimoh Etim

A Kenyan footballer, Byron Billy Owuor, has been arrested in connection with a violent robbery that led to the murder of a businesswoman in the Kondele area of Kisumu County of the country.

Owuor, a former Kisumu All-Stars player, was arrested after an AK47 rifle linked to violent robbery and murder was recovered and linked to him.

According to media reports, the 26-year-old midfielder was arrested along with another suspect for their alleged roles in a crime that has shocked the local community.

Police authorities confirmed that they seized the AK47 and 36 rounds of live ammunition linked to the robbery which took place on January 27th.

In a statement by the country’s Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the weapon was used to fatally shoot the business woman, Grace Awino Adero, who operated an M-Pesa shop with her husband.

“The assailants attacked the couple, making off with the day’s earnings and killing Mrs. Adero, while her husband narrowly survived the encounter,” the DCI said.

“The cold-blooded killers, believed to be part of a larger gang, fled the scene on an unmarked motorcycle, retreating to a hideout in Kasagam.

“Hours later, a suspicious saloon car was located by the Kasagam police during a routine patrol. Upon searching the vehicle, officers discovered a homemade pistol and four mobile phones, alongside an AK47 rifle without its magazine.

“The investigation revealed that the rifle had been obtained illegally from Uganda,” the DCI noted.

A media report stated that the case took a significant turn when detectives identified Robert Wakolo Okoth, also known as Michael Osama, as the alleged mastermind behind the syndicate’s criminal activities.

“Following this lead, a coordinated sting operation was conducted at Osama’s residence near Rai Primary School in Kasagam. During the raid, Osama’s 17-year-old brother, also believed to be a gang member, was arrested.

“The items recovered from the house include an AK47 magazine loaded with ammunition, six rounds of .38 special ammunition typically used in pistols, and five ID cards from different individuals.

“A green camouflage bag and a Kenya Armed Forces Comrades Association card were also found, pointing to the serious nature of the gang’s operations.

“With the arraignment at the Winam Senior Principal Magistrate’s Court, detectives have been granted an additional 14 days to wrap up their investigation.

“The focus now turns to capturing the remaining gang members whose identities have been uncovered but remain at large,” the statement said.

Sports

Liverpool legend Graham Souness wants ‘selfish’ Salah to leave club

Published

2 days ago

May 3, 2024

Akanimoh Etim

One of the legends of English Premier League club, Liverpool, Graeme Souness, wants Egyptian star, Mohamed Salah, to leave the club due to his “extreme selfish” nature.

Souness who was reacting to the celebrated touchline dispute between Salah and manager Jurgen Klopp during the club’s league match against West Ham last weekend, described Salah as the most selfish player he has ever seen.

Salah got into trouble with Liverpool fans when he was preparing to come on as a substitute, having been selected on the bench for the second time in three games.

Video footage that captured the scene showed Klopp walking up to the Egyptian and whisper something in his ear but whatever the manager said seemed to infuriate Salah who flared up leading to an exchange of words between the duo.

The two have played down the confrontation with Klopp insisting that whatever issue they had has been “completely resolved.”

Klopp who spoke on Friday at a press conference ahead of Liverpool’s home match with Tottenham in the Premier League on Sunday, insisted that his spat with the star forward would not damage to their relationship going forward.

“If we wouldn’t know each other for that long, I don’t know how we would deal with it, but we know each other for that long and respect each other too much that it’s really no problem,” Klopp said.

“In general, the best situation would be everybody is in the best possible place, we win games, we score lots of goals.

“Yes, then the situation with Salah would probably not have been exactly like that. Then Mo wouldn’t have been on the bench in the first place,” the manager said.

However, while speaking on William Hill’s Three Up Front podcast on Friday, Souness called Salah a selfish player and expects him to leave Liverpool.

“Salah is the most selfish player I have ever witnessed. Even before that game, whenever Klopp takes him off, he is never happy about it,” Souness said.

“That is what you want from your players; if you take them off on two goals, they should want to stay on to score a third. When Sadio Mane was there, they’d fall out all the time,” Souness added.