Author: Kayode Akinwumi

Aston Villa reeacted the most famous night in their history with another 1-0 victory over Bayern Munich in the Champions League at home last night. It was the same scoreline from their historic European Cup final victory over the German side in 1982. Peter Withe was the hero of the night from that victory 42 years ago. Last night, it was Jhon Duran who sent Villa Park into ecstasy with a goal in the 79th minute after coming off the bench.Leading the celebrations from the stands was Prince Williams, as fans got to relive memories from that night in 1982.…

Atletico Madrid have been handed sanctions for the action of their fans leading to the temporary suspension of their Sunday’s Derby match against Real Madrid. Atletico’s two-fold sanction involves a three-game partial closure of their stands and a €45,000 ban.Atletico’s derby against Madrid had to be abandoned in the middle of the second half after their fans began to throw lighters, bottles and other objects onto the field minutes after an Eder Militão goal put Madrid ahead. Angel Correa brought Atletico back to level after play had been delayed for 15 minutes.The competition committee of the Spanish footnall federation handed…

Lionel Messi’s return to the Argentina national team is the biggest highlight of head coach Lionel Scaloni’s 27-man roster for the October international break. Scaloni named the squad expected to face Venezuela and Bolivia in the World Cup qualifiers scheduled for October. The Albiceleste are currently top of the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying standings after gathering 18 points from eight games including a 3-0 victory over Chile. The world champions will play away against Venezuela on October 10 before hosting Bolivia on October 15 as they look to cement their position at the top of the standings. The top six…

Manchester United coach Erik ten Hag has reaffirmed that he is still in control of the dressing room at Old Trafford amidst the performance crisis his team is going through.The Dutchman has come under intense pressure with his job at great risk following a terrible start to the season made worse by the club’s humiliating 3-0 home defeat to Tottenham last weekend.One of the explanations offered by analysts for United’s poor form is that ten Hag no longer has control over much of the dressing room. However, the manager has debunked this claim. He responded to questions about the state…

Atletico and Spain defender Robin Le Normad may be out indefinitely. Le Normand may be facing a long absence from football action after picking what is looking like a serious head injury during the Madrid derby over the weekend. The Euro champion had a head collision with Real Madrid’s Aurelien Tchouameni as the one-all draw entered its closing moments.The 27-year-old defender was immediately attended to by medical staff at the venue of the game. Further tests have revealed the former Real Sociedad man sustained a traumatic brain injury and a subdural hematoma, a situation involving the collection of blood between…

Barcelona and Spain legend, Andrés Iniesta has announced his plans to call quits on his playing career come October 8. The date is a tribute to the midfielder’s iconic jersey number.The former Barca midfielder turned 40 this year and has been playing football for more than two decades, a significant portion of which he spent with the Catalan Giants after coming up the club’s youth system. He earned 674 appearances for Barcelona between 2002 and 2018 when he left the club, scoring 57 goals in the process. His stellar career is full of glorious highlights including four Champions League titles,…

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag appears to be keeping his job despite a disappointing three-nil loss to Tottenham over the weekend. The defeat to Tottenham was United’s second straight three-nil loss at Old Trafford, putting the Dutchman under intense pressure. However, the club’s executives do not seem to be in a search for a new manager.United made a very poor showing against Tottenham, with Spurs taking an early lead through a Brennan Johnson goal. The Red Devils’ captain Bruno Fernandes was sent off just before halftime, putting the team in a worse situation. Dejan Kulusebski and Dominic Solanke compounded…

Former Cameroon and serving president of the Cameroon Football Federation (Fecafoot) Samuel Eto’o has been hit with a six-month ban by world football governing body FIFA. FIFA reached the decision after the former striker commited disciplinary violations during the under-20 Women’s World Cup round of 16 game between Cameroon and Brazil. Cameroon crashed out of the competition hosted by Columbia after losing 3-1 to Brazil after extra time on September 11.The ban will prevent Eto’o from attending any Cameroon game in all age groups and categories for a period of six months. This will limit his participation with the teams…

There is cause for concern at Manchester City as the Cityzens were held to a draw by Newcastle this weekend. Pep Guardiola’s men visited St James’ Park coming from a two-all draw against Arsenal during which star midfielder Rodri picked a season-ending injury. The Spaniard’s absence was very obvious this weekend as City could only manage a draw against the Magpies.Mateo Kovacic and Rico Lewis started in midfield for City, but the physicality and presence Rodri brings was missing despite the duo’s impressive showing. City struggled to break down Newcastle’s defence as Eddie Howe’s men sat deep. Coupled with Nick…

Chelsea and England forward Cole Palmer is the rave of the moment in the Premier League, after scoring all his side’s four goals in Saturday’s win over Brighton. Palmer moved to Chelsea from Manchester City for £40 million in 2023.The 22-year-old bagged 22 goals in 33 appearances for Chelsea last season and was rewarded with a new deal meant to keep him at the London club till 2033. He has maintained his impressive form for the club this season after representing England in the Euros last summer.With four goals against Brighton, Palmer brought his Premier League goals tally this season…