Welcome To Dipo Liadi's blog: June 2015

24 June 2015

79-Year Old Man Leaves Bulk Of Estate Worth £300,000 To Amateur Football Team

A devoted football fan has left a famous semi-professional club more than £300,000 in his will. Colin Rowell was an avid supporter of Bishop Auckland FC for more than 70 years. When he died, he left the bulk of his estate, worth more than £300,000, to his favourite team.

Now his ashes are to be scattered on the pitch and a stand may be named after him so he is remembered forever at his beloved club.

To celebrate Leo Messi's 28th birthday, we look back at 28 key moments in the Argentine's career. The Barça star has repeatedly written his name in football's history books in golden letters with his goals, medals and magical moves. This list is necessarily not exhaustive but includes a good deal of Messi's major milestones - good and bad.

1. Arrival at Barcelona aged 13.
2. Debut for Barça against Porto in 2003.
3. First senior goal, against Albacete in 2005.
4. Awarded the Golden Boy prize in 2005.
5. Senior Argentina debut in 2005.

Reports that Republic of Ireland players were paid to not injure Lionel Messi during a 2010 friendly have been denied by the FAI.

The Football Association of Ireland (FAI) has issued a strong rebuttal to claims in an Argentinian newspaper that Republic of Ireland players were paid $10,000 each to not injure Lionel Messi during a 2010 friendly against Argentina.

A story in La Nacion claimed that former head of the Argentina Football Association Julio Grondona who died in July 2014 - suggested making payments to the Irish players as they could not afford to stump up the Barcelona superstar's insurance should he have picked up an injury.

Watch The Best Solo Goals By King Messi As He Turns 28 Today

Happy birthday to King Lionel Messi

BOXING: Am Very Serious About Coming Back Says Oscar De La Hoya

Oscar managed 39 wins which included 30 knockouts and 6 career defeats before he retired. Now at 42 De La Hoya says he is serious to stage a come back. In sports come backs have been seen before but for a boxer at 42 you will probably think he needs to set a record in the Guiness book of records like a fellow boxer Bash Ali of Nigeria who thinks he can set a world record at an age fast approaching 60. Will Oscar come back to shock the world or will he suffer a massive regret for coming back? Time will certainly tell... Read the full story after the cut...

The signing of Brazil's young star Roberto Firmino has been confirmed by Liverpool. His transfer fee has instantly made him the reds 2nd most expensive player leaving him behind Liverpool's flop Andy Caroll which cost the reds £35m in January 2011. With his recent performance you would want to believe that he wouldn't go the Andy Caroll way who ensured that Liverpool walked alone. The transfer fee looks high and you will probably wonder why Liverpool paid more for him than the likes of Suarez and Torres who became Anfield heros and ensured massive sales with huge profits when they left. Adam Lallana cost Liverpool £25m in July 2014, Luis Suarez cost £22.8m in January 2011 Fernando Torres cost £20.2m in July 2007 for me he should have come a bit lesser.. Read the full story after the cut.

The signing of Cech by Arsenal is far from speculations its actually real. The implications it might have on Chelsea will be seen in few months to come.... Terry said he could save 15 points for Arsenal, Mourinho was reluctant to sell him to the reds and Harry thinks Cech has now made Wenger's side a serious title challenger.

Harry Redknapp says Arsenal's capture of Petr Cech will transform Arsene Wenger's side into genuine title contenders. The Gunners will complete an £11million swoop for the Chelsea goalkeeper by the end of the week.

The failure of the captain of the Super Eagles to appear before the disciplinary committe of the NFF certainly spells trouble. Enyeama criticized the venue of the match against Chad which was the reason why he was invited for questioning. His refusal to show up might certainly mean two things..... You can't question me, i have a right to my opinion or who cares about the NFF.... lol. Read the full story after the cut...

The Miami Dolphins American football team owner Stephen Ross is reportedly working with investors from Qatar to buy a stake in Formula 1 racing which is close to $8bn. The intention is to help strengthen formula 1 in the USA. Massive investment move.... Read the full story after the cut..

NIGERIA: Keshi Shifts Focus On Tanzania After Addressing NFF

Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi has asked that attention should be shifted from his alleged application for the job of the Cote d’Ivoire national team to the Super Eagles’ next Africa Cup of Nations qualification match against Tanzania in September.

The 53-year-old has come under intense scrutiny since the 2-0 victory over Chad after he put a non-league player on the bench and his name also appeared on the FIFA website as one of more than 50 coaches applying to fill in the space left by Herve Renard.

Few years ago Nasri was everywhere mocking Arsenal fans, Wenger and also playing the hero after picking up the Premier League. Am not surprised because in football anything can happen. You will find it hard to believe he now says Wenger is his father! Read the full story after the cut....

Colombia's main man, James Rodríguez, said today [Monday] that it is unfair to see the Copa America quarter-final game between Colombia and Argentina as a showdown between himself and Lionel Messi because the Barcelona star "is from another world".

"Messi is from another world. He's a one-off. There can't be a James vs. Messi showdown as that'd be unfair on him", said the Real Madrid midfielder at a press conference.

James tried to stop the quarter-final between Colombia and Argentina from being reduced to merely a game between James and Messi, who usually face off in La Liga 'clásicos' between Real Madrid and Barcelona.

The League Management Company (LMC) on Monday said it has asked Dolphins Football Club of Port Harcourt to settle its indebtedness to its player or face sanctions.

In a statement, the league organisers said the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) club has 60 days to comply or it would lose six points and face further sanctions.

Two-time champions United States will play China in the last eight after seeing off Colombia on Monday. United States advanced to the quarter-finals of the Women's World Cup with a 2-0 win over Colombia, who finished with 10 players.

After a scoreless first half, USA pilled on unanswered goals via Alex Morgan and Carli Lloyd as the two-time world champions made the most of their numerical advantage on Monday. Colombia goalkeeper Catalina Perez conceded a penalty and saw red for a rash challenge on Morgan in the 47th minute at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton.

A rugby league player seriously injured during a Queensland Cup match in Australia has died in hospital. James Ackerman, 25, was playing for the Sunshine Coast Falcons when he suffered a head injury in a tackle five minutes into a game against Norths Devils.

The father-of-two was treated on the field at Bishop Park, before being taken to hospital in Brisbane, and Saturday's game was then abandoned. Queensland Rugby League (QRL) said on Monday that Ackerman had passed away.

Australian newspaper the Courier-Mail said Francis Molo, 20, who made the tackle on Ackerman, is "struggling to cope". A minute's silence was held for Ackerman prior to Monday's NRL game between St George-Illawarra Dragons and Sydney Roosters.

Ghana superstar Asamoah Gyan understands that John Obi Mikel will 'definitely' be switching to United Arab Emirates side Al Ain this summer, with the midfielder having been linked heavily with a transfer away from Chelsea. The Nigeria midfielder moved to Stamford Bridge in 2006, and has since become one of the most successful African stars of his generation.

However, his time with the Pensioners looks to be coming to an end, with both Al Ain and Turkish giants Fenerbahce linked with a move for the Super Eagle, according to the Express.

Petr Cech has moved to play down reports that a deal for him to join Arsenal has been completed.
Amid reports a deal for Petr Cech to join Arsenal has been completed, the Chelsea goalkeeper has taken to social media to insist that is not the case.

Cech is widely expected to bring an end to his 11-year stay at Stamford Bridge and move to London rivals Arsenal, having seen his first-team opportunities at Chelsea limited due to the presence of Thibaut Courtois.

Ex Footballer John Fashanu Steps Out For Dbanj's Birthday Party

What marriage breakup? Ex footballer John Fashamu has moved on, lol… that seems to be what the former footballer and ex-husband of Adaeze Yobo’s mom, Abigail Igwe is saying in this photo when he stepped out last night in Abuja for the Abuja version of bangalee’s 35th birthday party. Also see more photos from the party after the cut.

Real Madrid Keen On De Gea

Real Madrid will push on this week with operation De Gea. From today they will kick-start negotiations to sign the Spanish international keeper.

United know they have no choice but to sell him. Meanwhile, Real Madrid know full well that David goes into the last year of his contract on 1st July and that they have already agreed personal terms with the former Atlético man.

Brazil right-back Dani Alves has revealed that he lectured his Barcelona team-mate Neymar over the latter's dismissal in last Wednesday's 1-0 loss to Colombia.

The 23-year-old received a straight red card when he attempted to headbutt Colombian stopper Jeison Murillo after the full-time whistle before then landing himself in further trouble by insulting referee Enrique Osses in the tunnel. Neymar was subsequently hit with a four-game suspension, thus depriving Brazil of their captain for the remainder of their Copa America campaign.

While Selecao team-mate Alves insists that the ban was excessive, the defender conceded that his young compatriot has to start handling provocation better.

15 June 2015

SUPER FALCONS: FIFA Fines Ugo Njoku 641,349.27 Naira For Elbowing Australian Player

Nigeria defender Ugo Njoku has been suspended for three matches and fined 641,349.27 Naira by Fifa after being found guilty of elbowing Australia striker Sam Kerr in their last match. The substitute escaped the referee's sanction for the action in the second half but has now been punished after a post-match video assessment.

The Australian striker suffered a broken jaw from the incident. In a statement issued by Fifa on Monday morning, it said the decision became necessary after asserting the Nigerian's poor challenge in the game which the Super Falcons lost 2-0 on Friday.

"The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has reached a decision in the case related to Ugo Njoku of Nigeria following an incident that occurred during the FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015 match between Australia and Nigeria played on 12 June 2015," the statement reads.

Super Eagles midfielder, Ogenyi Onazi, has apologized to Nigerian fans, for being sent off at Saturday’s 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Chad.

The Lazio man was shown a straight red, after he shoved a Chadian player when Nigeria was awarded a penalty. Odion Ighalo stepped up to convert the spot-kick, but the Eagles had to battle on with 10 men.

Rafael Nadal has won his first title on grass since 2010 by beating Viktor Troicki in the Mercedes Cup final. The Spaniard, who was well beaten in the French Open quarter-final by Novak Djokovic earlier this month, won 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 in Stuttgart.

Nadal, 29, hit 11 aces in his victory over the Serb and now has 66 career titles, four on grass.
He also won in Stuttgart in 2005 and 2007 when the tournament was held on clay.

Victory will boost Nadal's world ranking after the 14-time Grand Slam winner slumped to a 10-year low of 10th earlier in the month.

The Golden State Warriors, with 37 points from MVP Stephen Curry, moved within one step of ending the franchise's 40-year championship drought with a 104-91 victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night, taking a 3-2 lead in the NBA Finals.

Game 6 will be Tuesday night in Cleveland, where LeBron James and the Cavs will try to force a seventh game and maintain hope of ending that city's 51-year pro sports title drought.

After a series-low 20 points in Game 4, James was incredible once again -- collecting 40 points, 14 rebounds, 11 assists and making one clutch play after another down the stretch. But despite using a smaller lineup to match the Warriors, the Cavs couldn't find consistent offense from anyone else. Tristan Thompson had 19 points and 10 rebounds, and the enigmatic J.R. Smith had 14 points -- all in the first half -- on 5-of-15 shooting.

FIFA: Blatter Considering Not Stepping Down Again

Sepp Blatter is reportedly considering staying on as president of FIFA, having received the backing of several federations in Asia and Africa, according to the Swiss Sunday paper Schweiz am Sonntag.

"A source close to Blatter says that the president is honoured by the demonstrations of support and really is not ruling out staying on in the position", the report said. "It is being said in Blatter's immediate circle that the Asian and African federations want to prevent the 79-year-old from retiring", it went on.

Robin van Persie is refusing to pay attention to speculation linking him with a move from Manchester United. Manchester United striker Robin van Persie has vowed to see out his contract at Old Trafford and fight for a starting berth next term, despite reports of an off-season departure.

Van Persie entering the final year of his United contract - revealed earlier in June that he was evaluating his future at Old Trafford amid talk of a reduced role under Louis van Gaal in 2015-16.
The 31-year-old Netherlands international has been linked to Italian champions Juventus, Lazio and Turkish giants Fenerbahce, however the veteran believes he can still perform at the highest level.
Van Persie only scored 10 goals in 27 Premier League matches last season.

TRANSFER NEWS: Madrid Willing To Sell Casillas, City In For Di Maria, Ronaldo Wants Madrid Stay & More

Real Madrid willing to sell Casillas
Real Madrid are willing to sell Iker Casillas who could move to Tottenham should Hugo Lloris replaced Madrid-bound De Gea at Manchester United.

Manchester City want Di Maria
Manchester City are keen to sign Angel Di Maria. Txiki Begiristain has asked the forward's representatives whether he would be willing to move to City from Manchester United.

Paraguay fought back from two goals down to deny Argentina victory in their opening game of the Copa America. Argentina, runners-up at the 2014 World Cup, raced ahead in the first half as Manchester City's Sergio Aguero slotted in before Barcelona's Lionel Messi converted a penalty.
Paraguay fought back after the break, Nelson Valdez halving the deficit with a long-distance shot.
Lucas Barrios then drove in late on to snatch a point.

The result means Argentina and Paraguay are level on one point in Group B, two points behind defending champions Uruguay, who beat Jamaica 1-0. It was a stunning response by Paraguay, who had little answer to Argentina's relentless attacks in the first half.

TRAGEDY!!! Nigerian Defender David Oniya Dies After Collapsing During Football Match

Nigerian defender David Faramola Oniya has died. Oniya died on Saturday after collapsing on the pitch during a friendly between his Malaysian club T-Team and Kelantan.

The T-Team captain, who was 30, collapsed three minutes into the match in Kota Bharu and was taken to hospital. So sad....

13 June 2015

WOMEN'S WORLD CUP: AUSTRALIA 2 NIGERIA 0 - Watch The Goals & Highlights

"I Don't Like It When They Boo A Spain Player" - Del Bosque

Vicente del Bosque assessed Spain's win over Costa Rica and commented on fans booing Piqué at the Reino de León stadium.

On fans booing Piqué: "I'm here to talk about the game. I personally don't think it's important. He's an intelligent lad and it won't affect how he plays. I don't like it when they boo a Spain player because when they do they're booing the whole team".

On Aleix Vidal: "He has an ankle injury and I don't think he'll be fit to face Belarus. That's the downside of this match".

EPL Transfer Update: Cech Close To Arsenal Move, United, City In For Pogba, Mourinho Keen On Walcot & More

Man Utd ready Kane bid
Manchester United are set to submit a £40 million bid to Tottenham for Harry Kane.

Man City in £100m bid for Pogba & Sterling
Manchester City will bid £60 million for Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba and £40 million for Liverpool’s Raheem Sterling.

Arsenal stand firm in Cech deal
Jose Mourinho is keen on Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain but Arsenal are not willing to use their players in the deal to sign Petr Cech from Chelsea.

Argentina coach Gerardo Martino said Lionel Messi is in unstoppable form leading into the Copa America. Lionel Messi is in "unbeatable shape" according to Argentina coach Gerardo Martino, who is preparing his side for their Copa America opener against Paraguay on Saturday.

Messi is fresh from helping Barcelona to La Liga, Copa del Rey and UEFA Champions League titles, having led the Catalan club to the treble with victory against Juventus in the European final in Berlin on June 6.

The 27-year-old now switches his attentions to his national side, with Argentina kicking off their Copa campaign in La Serena on Saturday, and Messi has said he believes the group is better prepared than they were before the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

TENNIS: How Novak Djokovic Beat Rafeal Nadal In French Open

Novak Djokovic became only the second man to beat Rafael Nadal at the French Open with a straight-sets victory in the quarter-finals in Paris. The world number one ended the nine-time champion's reign 7-5 6-3 6-1.

The Serb, now two wins from completing the career Grand Slam of all four major titles, will play Andy Murray in the semi-finals on Friday. Nadal, on his 29th birthday, suffered his first defeat in six years and his second in 72 matches at Roland Garros.

His only previous French Open loss came in the 2009 fourth round against Sweden's Robin Soderling - but this defeat was far less of a shock.

Former England captain David Beckham says "it is time for Fifa to change" after Sepp Blatter said he would stand down as the organisation's president. Blatter plans to end his 17-year reign after Fifa became the subject of two significant corruption probes.

"I hope at last we are now moving in the right direction," said Beckham.
"Some of the things that we now know happened were despicable, unacceptable and awful for the game we love so much."

The Golden State Warriors will be nervous in Game 1 of the Finals vs. the Cleveland Cavaliers Thursday. They know that, and instead of trying to deny it or run from it, they're turning into the slide, and trying to use the inevitable "jitters" as something they can prepare for.

"There are always going to be jitters," Harrison Barnes said Wednesday at Oracle Arena's availability. "No matter how relaxed you try to be. The biggest thing is to use it in a positive way, not getting too hard on yourself. Game 1 there are going to be adjustments, we have to be able to adapt. We don't know defensively, how they're going to guard Steph, all that stuff. So we just have to be ready to turn that energy into a good thing."

The Warriors do not feature a player with NBA Finals experience, and have gotten off to slow starts at home consistently. They trailed after the first quarter in two of the three games vs. Houston and have a home first-quarter point-differential of just plus-0.3.

By Lionel Messi's exceptional standards 2014 was a year to forget. For the first time in six years he went trophyless at club level with Barcelona, while arguably his best ever chance to win a World Cup with Argentina came and went.

His listless performances particularly in the latter stages of the World Cup, despite being controversially named player of the tournament, led many to believe he could never return to the level that dazzled as he became the first man to win four consecutive World Player of the Year awards between 2008 and 2012.

Rafa Benítez was unable to keep his emotions in check on being unveiled as the new Real Madrid coach. In a short speech at a ceremony in the presidential box at the Bernabéu, a teary-eyed Benítez highlighted how much the opportunity meant to him: "Today is an emotional day, coming back here, to my home. I hope that things go well, we win trophies, the team play well and I can repay the faith that has been shown in me through my work".

Later, in the press room, Benítez dropped the first hints about how he would approach the job. "We have a great squad, with great players. That's why, rather than talking about style, what's important is to play as well as possible and to have a clear idea of what we want to do", he noted. "This team have to compete, play good football and win.

France Football has started a debate going by asking who the best football player of all time is, Leo Messi or Pelé. The French magazine poses the following question: "Is Messi greater than Pelé?"

"With Lionel Messi about to fight for his fourth Champions League title this Saturday in Berlin, his record, his stats and his growing impact make a comparison between him and the man that has always been considered the best player of all time, Pelé, unavoidable", assures the magazine, although it also accepts that comparing these two football maestros is akin to comparing Elvis with Mozart or Rembrandt with Dalí.

But there is certain information that is comparable, such as for example goals scored. When Pelé turned 20 he had already scored 300. In his entire career, he put the ball in the back of the net 1,281 times, 784 of them in official matches.

African champions, Nigeria got their 2015 Fifa U20 campaign back on track with a 4-0 win over Korea DPR on Wednesday. The Flying Eagles needed a win to restore confidence after dramatically losing 2-4 to Brazil in their opening game of the competition on Monday.

Head coach, Manu Garba rang the changes as “big guns” Success Isaac, Musa Yahaya and Kelechi Iheanacho were dropped with Bernard Bulwa, Saviour Godwin and Kingsley Sokari restored in the starting XI in their place.

Goalkeeper, Joshua Enaholo was also given the nod to start despite making a couple of howlers against the South Americans on Monday.

5 Things Arsenal Must Do To Keep Winning

Jon Spurling earmarks strikers, steel and injury prevention as areas for improvement for Arsene Wenger... Arsenal wiped the floor with Aston Villa at Wembley on Saturday to secure back-to-back FA Cup wins, and already Arsene Wenger and his players are talking of a genuine Premier League title challenge next season – perhaps even a tilt at Champions League glory.

Yet despite an improved league position (if not a points tally), the potency of Alexis Sanchez and some wonderful attacking play, the Gunners finished a hefty 12 points behind Chelsea and were humbled at home against Monaco in Europe, going down 3-1 and crashing out in the last 16. There were also a couple of calamitous away days, after which a minority of fans called for Wenger’s head. So how do they ensure those events don't happen once again next season? Here's the Gunners' five steps for success...

Sign a new striker

FIFA U-20 WORLD CUP: NIGERIA 2 BRAZIL 4

Nigeria U20 team lost 4-2 to their Brazilian U20 opponents in Group E opening game of the 2015 Fifa U20 World Cup played at the Stadium Taranaki New Plymouth.
A goal in each half of the encounter by Flor Da Silva Judivan plus strikes from Gabriel Jesus and Boschilia Gabriel ensured the south Americans – for the fourth time proved their superiority over the Flying Eagles at this level of the competition.

Manu Garba’s side came into the game with the ambition of breaking the Seleção age-longed jinx but were stunned as early as the fourth minute when Gabriel gave his side the lead from close range after been set up by Joao Pedro who made laid a low cross to him.

South Africa denied that a $10 million payment it made in 2008 was in any way a bribe to Fifa for the 2010 World Cup, in the latest twist to the massive corruption scandal engulfing world football's governing body.

Two separate investigations are being carried out by American and Swiss authorities for alleged rampant and long-running corruption within Fifa, with several top officials arrested and accused by US investigators of taking tens of millions of dollars in bribes.

Several top football officials have been questioned by Swiss investigators, and Fifa's president Sepp Blatter too could be quizzed "in the future if needed", according to Swiss prosecutors.

Patrick Vieira Is The Best For Newcastle - Olivier Bernard

Patrick Vieira has been linked with Newcastle and Olivier Bernard believes the ex-Arsenal man is "the best bet" to take over as head coach. Former Newcastle United defender Olivier Bernard believes Patrick Vieira would be an excellent choice to take over as the club's head coach.

John Carver was handed control of first-team affairs at St James' Park following Alan Pardew's departure at the turn of the year, but the former's future is unclear after Newcastle endured a woeful slump and only narrowly avoided relegation from the Premier League.

24 June 2015

23 June 2015

22 June 2015

15 June 2015

14 June 2015

13 June 2015

04 June 2015

02 June 2015

01 June 2015