2015 IAAF INDOOR PERMIT MEETINGS GET UNDERWAY THIS WEEKEND

The 2015 IAAF Indoor Permit meetings get underway this weekend with two of the most famous and historic events on the indoor calendar: the Indoor Meeting Karlsruhe on Saturday (31) and then the Russian Winter meeting in Moscow on Sunday (1).

Across a three-week period, the series moves on from Germany and Russia and features events in the USA, Sweden and Great Britain.

2015 IAAF INDOOR PERMIT MEETINGS GET UNDERWAY THIS WEEKEND

Full details of the meetings can be found at the dedicated section of the IAAF website, which will contain previews, results, reports and news.

Previews of the Karlsruhe and Russian Winter meetings have already been published and can also be found on the home page of http://www.iaaf.org

Amaju Pinnick Disclaims Facebook Account

NFF President Amaju Melvin Pinnick has put a disclaimer on a Facebook account carrying his name and photograph.

“My attention has been drawn to an account on the popular, interactive social media channel Facebook, which carries my name and photograph.

NFF President, Amaju Pinnick

“I wish to state categorically that I am not the owner of that account. One impostor somewhere is using my name and photograph.

“I am not against the use of social media but I want to make it clear that I do not have any account on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. I want to alert my friends and associates, as well as the football community in Nigeria and around the world, that the said Facebook account is not mine and not being run by anyone authorized by me.”

FEI Endurance Forum In Costa Rica Discusses New Endurance Rules

Over 64 delegates from FEI Group V attended an FEI Endurance Forum in Tilaran, Costa Rica on 23-25 January 2015, the first Forum following the introduction of the new Endurance rules on 1 August last year.

FEI Group V covers Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Puerto Rico and Venezuela.

Athletes, officials including judges, technical delegates and veterinarians, as well as coaches and owners, gathered for the three-day Forum organised with the Costa Rica National Federation and Costa Rica Endurance Association to discuss Endurance across Central and South America and globally.

FEI Endurance Forum

Key areas addressed included horse inspections, the field of play, anti-doping and veterinary rules, disqualification and the FEI Online Entry System, which gives access to over 100,000 international athletes through a single online platform.

At the end of the Forum, a one-hour Endurance ride was held to demonstrate the new rules in action.

“The FEI Endurance Forum was extremely productive in a region where Endurance enjoys huge success,” FEI Endurance Director Manuel Bandeira de Mello said.

“We’re now looking forward to rolling out our series of Endurance courses and seminars throughout 2015, as part of our plan to develop one of the FEI’s fastest-growing disciplines.”

Cowrie Rugby Up For Gosar Test Ahead Of Cape Town Tens Rugby Tournament:

Prop Sunday Bassey believes Cowrie will be facing a young quality opposition when they face Gosar at the Navy Grounds, Ajegunle on Saturday ahead of Cowries trip to South Africa.

Cowrie RFC in a bid to test its readiness for the Cape Town Tens Tournament in South Africa next weekend will be playing a friendly match against Gosar RFC at the Navy ground Ajegunle, the match will be played as an opener for the third place match of Mock Football Nations Cup on the 31st January 2014.

Captain of Cowrie RFC Azeez Ladipo in Action

“We think that they will come with a good plan on Saturday though it’s a test match. In our league match against them, they were very determined and remain a tough nut to crack. We will have to deal with their kicking game and try to impose our game onto them. Tens rugby is a different ball game and I think we should be able to control the game. Sunday said.

Cowrie RFC will be participating in the biggest rugby tens tournament in the world ‘The Cape town tens’, the team is a pioneer member of the event and will be appearing for the 6th time in the tournament.

Racing RFC from Lagos will also be featuring in this year’s Cape Town tens as first timers.

2015-2019 U12 Hosting Rights Awarded To Tainan; U18 And U12 Baseball World Cups Nations, Dates Announced

World governing body WBSC announced today a landmark agreement that awards Tainan City, Chinese Taipei the hosting rights of the next three editions (2015, 2017, 2019) of the WBSC Under-12 Baseball World Cup, which is the only international baseball tournament in this age group (11-12 years old) to feature National Teams (along with the U12 World Cup continental qualifiers), and is the only world championship tournament in all of sports at this age level.

Cuba at the Inaugural 2011 U12 Baseball World Cup. WBSC

WBSC also revealed the qualified nations and dates for the 2015 U18 and U12 Baseball World Cups — the highest and most elite competition platforms for baseball players in these age groups.

WBSC leadership hailed the latest breakthrough agreement on the U12 World Cup, which follows last week’s major announcements on WBSC’s new flagship professional world championship — Premier 12™ — as key indicators that baseball and softball’s National Team international competitions, which are exclusive to WBSC and its Members, continue to gain a foothold among athletes, hosts, fans, broadcasters and sponsors in the sporting world’s highly competitive marketplace.

While traditionally awarding each edition of the Baseball World Cup to new host countries, WBSC leaders cited the sustainability, reduced costs and streamlined operational planning in awarding Tainan the next three editions of the U12 World Cup, which will also maximise returns and the legacy for the host city, WBSC leaders said.

The new approach, specific to the WBSC U12 World Cup, which WBSC leaders regard as having “tremendous potential to mature into one of the baseball’s biggest international showcases”, will present new opportunities to enhance and tailor long-term partnerships and sponsorship strategies for all concerned stakeholders, WBSC officials highlighted.

2015 WBSC U18 Baseball World Cup XXVII — Japan

It was also announced that the 2015 WBSC U18 World Cup will be staged from 28 August – 06 September, with the “Mecca of Japanese Baseball” — historic Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya built in 1924 — serving as an iconic backdrop for the world’s best 18-year-old baseball players and future superstars.

KOR vs USA at the 2013 U12 Baseball World Cup.WBSC

Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) is adjusting the Hanshin Tigers’ home schedule at the legendary 47,000-seat (Hanshin) Koshien Stadium to accommodate and further add to the prestige of the WBSC U18 Baseball World Cup — and to honour the best young baseball players in the world and help drive a magical in-stadium fan-experience.

The nations heading to Koshien Stadium have been finalised after the first-ever U18 World Cup continental qualifiers in Africa (Mera, Kenya) and Oceania (Auckland, New Zealand) concluded this past weekend. The historic qualifiers were regarded by WBSC leadership as “key breakthroughs in baseball/softball’s global evolution that unite the U18 Americas, Africa, Asia, Europe and Oceania continental championships”.

The U18 World Cup in Japan will feature seven out of the Top 10 nations in the world, and eleven out of the Top 20, making for one of the most competitive U18 World Cups on record.

The powerful bloc of U18 World Cup qualified nations represents a global footprint that spans across the entire western hemisphere, Africa, Asia, Central and Southern Europe, and Oceania:

Americas (North-, Central- and South America, and the Caribbean): Two-time defending U18 World Champions No. 2 USA, No. 3 Cuba, No. 7 Canada, No. 12 Mexico and No. 16 Brazil.
Africa: No. 29 South Africa
Asia: No. 1 Japan, No. 4 Chinese Taipei, No. 8 South Korea
Europe: No. 11 Italy and No. 20 Czech Republic
Oceania: No. 14 Australia

2015 WBSC U18 Baseball World Cup

WBSC officials are confident the 2015 U18 World Cup’s broadcast and online/mobile reach will surpass the record broadcast numbers of its 2013 U18 World Cup predecessor — which had a potential broadcast reach of 144 million homes and potential online/mobile reach of 20 million, based on reports furnished by leading media rights agency and WBSC broadcast partner MP & Silva. WBSC leaders base forecasts on the strength of the 2015 U18 World Cup nations, as well as the current positive audience growth trends for international baseball properties that feature WBSC’s Members’ National Teams.

U18 Global launching pad for future stars

The biennial U18 world championship showcase has featured some of the biggest names in the sport, such as Canada’s Brett Lawrie, Japan’s Yu Darvish and Shohei Ohtani, South Korea’s Shin-soo Choo, Cuba’s Yasiel Puig and Aroldis Chapman, and USA’s Justin Upton and Buster Posey, among countless others. The most recent generation of rising stars include Cuba’s Jorge Soler, USA’s Francisco Lindor and Canada’s Dalton Pompey, all of whom played at the 2010 U18 Baseball World Cup in Thunder Bay, Canada (which will return as host for the 2017 WBSC U18 Baseball World Cup).

World Baseball Softball Confederation

2015 WBSC U12 Baseball World Cup III — Nations and Dates

The third edition of the U12 Baseball World Cup, which will showcase the best 12-year-old baseball players in the world, will take place from 24 July to 2 August in Tainan City, with the United States, “Team USA”, entering as the defending U12 World Champions.

The twelve nations qualified for 2015 U12 Baseball World Cup represent a global expansion that includes a first-ever representative from Oceania:

Americas: No. 2 USA, No. 3 Cuba, No. 10 Venezuela, No. 12 Mexico, No. 13 Panama and No. 16 Nicaragua
Asia: No. 1 Japan, No. 4 Chinese Taipei, No. 8 South Korea
Europe: No. 27 France and No. 32 Russia
Oceania: No. 14 Australia

Added excitement will surround this year’s U18 and U12 World Cups, which kick-off the 4-year world rankings cycle — as points earned from these events will be the first to go toward the world rankings that will eventually determine the qualified nations for the 2019 Premier 12™ Pro Baseball World Championship.

Logos, groupings and tournament schedules for the U18 and U12 Baseball World Cups will be unveiled in future announcements.

Flying Eagles win Super 4

Nigeria U20, the Flying Eagles, have won this year’s Super 4 with a match to spare after they thrashed Dolphins 4-1 on Friday.

The Flying Eagles recorded an unassailable 12 points after they won all their four matches thus far.

Nigeria U23s are in second place on eight points, while Enyimba have seven points.

Warri Wolves have three points and Dolphins are bottom of the six-team invitational tournament without any points.

The final day of matches will be played on Sunday with Flying Eagles taking on Dream Team in a match that is of mere formality for the Nigeria U20s.

MUSA YAHAYA

Warri Wolves will square up with Dolphins and Enyimba take on Pillars.

Taiwo Awoniyi gave the Flying Eagles the lead after 24 minutes off a through ball by Obinna Nwobodo.

The Flying Eagles extend their lead in the 42nd minute through an own goal by Dolphins defender Jonathan Zikiye off a desperate clearance by Victor Ezuruike.

The Nigeria U20s went 3-0 up on 49 minutes through Bernard Bulbwa, who charged from the midfield, ghosted past his marker before slotting home coolly.

However, three minutes later Christain Pyagbara reduced the deficit when he turned sharply inside the box before firing past Flying Eagles goalkeeper Olorunleke Ojo.

Dolphins had two players sent of for dangerous play – Ezeruike in the 61st minute and Tijjani Adamu two minutes later.

In the 82nd minute, substitute Musa Yahaya saw his shot come off the crossbar with the Dolphins goalkeeper well beaten.

The Flying Eagles continued to attack their opponents before they grabbed a deserved fourth goal through substitute Chidera Eze.

Flying Eagles

Olorunleke Ojo – Musa Muhammed (Captain), Ali Chinwendu, Saheed Abdul Ganiyu, Zaharadeen Bello, Ifeanyi Ifeanyi, Akinjide Idowu, Obinna Nwobodo, Bernard Bulbwa,Taiwo Awoniyi, Gabriel ikechukwu

Subs: Joshua Enaholo, Roland Silas, Mustapha Abdullahi, Abdullahi Alfa, Musa Yahaya, Chidera Eze, Prince Aggreh, Tunde Adeniji, Usman Hassan, Billy Auta, Adamu Abubakar, Wasiu Jimoh

Day 5: Sunday February 1

Warri Wolves vs Dolphins 1pm

Pillars vs Enyimba 3pm

Dream Team vs Flying Eagles 5pm

SAMM AUDU,

WSB Regular Season Week 3 (30 – 31 January): Preview

Algeria Desert Hawks aim for first WSB victory against Mexico Guerreros

Mexico Guerreros rebounded from an opening World Series of Boxing (WSB) loss to Ukraine Otamans by defeating Morocco Atlas Lions in week two.

They will look to maintain the momentum when they host the second African Franchise, Algeria Desert Hawks, who were whitewashed by Cuba Domadores last week.

Deportivo IV Centernario, Aguascalientes is the venue for this Group A clash, and on Friday January 30th 2015 fans across the world can watch the action free, live and on demand from 20:30 (GMT -6) at AIBABoxingTV.com.

Light flyweight (49 kg) Joselito Velázquez Altamirano narrowly lost his opening round match against Hasanboy Dusmatov, and will look to make amends for Mexico against Algeria’s speedy Youcef Soltani.

The second fight of the night is at Bantamweight (56 kg) and Mexico’s Brian González will look to use his past WSB experience as he faces African Boxing Championships gold medalist Khalil Litim.

Light welterweight (64 kg) sees an intriguing contest between Raúl Curiel García, who claimed the first win of the season for the Guerreros Franchise, with victory over Volodymyr Matviichuk. This time he meets Mohamed Boudiaf who will look to spring a surprise in Mexico.

Misael Uriel Rodríguez Oliva lost his opening Light heavyweight (81 kg) contest but will be confident to win at home against former Algerian youth sensation Azzouz Boudia.

In the last fight of the evening, Mexican Heavyweight (91 kg) Daniel Paniagua faces multi-time championship winner Bouziane Houna.

Rafako Hussars Poland and Argentina Condors both look for their first WSB win

Both Rafako Hussars Poland and Argentina Condors are still searching for their first World Series of Boxing (WSB) victories of the season, which makes this Group B clash a tantalising fixture.

After losing away in Puerto Rico, Poland were within one round of defeating Astana Arlans Kazakhstan, but eventually lost the match, while Argentina are 0-2 after two defeats.

Hala OSiR Włocławek is the venue for this match, and on Saturday January 31st 2015 fans across the world can watch the action free, live and on demand from 20:30 (GMT +1) at AIBABoxingTV.com.

Home favourite Dawid Sebastian Jagodzinski lost his opening match in Puerto Rico, and will look to avert that slide at Light flyweight (49 kg) against Argentina’s Junior Zarate who won his opening fight against Nico Hernandez.

At Bantamweight (56 kg) Poland’s Sylwester Kozlowski makes his first appearance of the season against the Argentine stylist Ignacio Perrin who also makes his WSB season debut.

Light welterweight (64 kg) Damian Kiwior already has WSB experience, but lost his opening match of Season V, and he will seek revenge against Roban Sanchez.

One of the best fights of the night should be the Middleweight (75 kg) contest between Tomasz Jablonski, who knocked out Jean Alicea in week one, against Argentina’s Christian Zarate who packs a very exciting style.

The last bout of the evening is at Heavyweight (91 kg), where Poland’s Igor Pawel Jakubowski will look to continue the momentum of his first week stoppage victory against Elber Passos.

USA Knockouts bid to remain undefeated against a confident Caciques Venezuela

After achieving one of the most surprising results in the history of the World Series of Boxing (WSB) last week when they destroyed Azerbaijan Baku Fires, Caciques Venezuela travel North as they face the undefeated USA Knockouts who have been one of the surprise packages of the season.

The American Franchise have enjoyed wins over Argentina Condors and Italia Thunder, and will look to make it three out of three against the confident Venezuelan side.

A marvelous venue in the Miccosukee Sports & Entertainment Dome, Miami hosts this Group B fixture, and on Friday January 30th 2015 fans across the world can watch the action free, live and on demand from 20:00 (GMT -5) at AIBABoxingTV.com.

An evening of much action begins at Light flyweight (49 kg) with America’s Nico Hernandez looking for his first win of the season against Venezuela’s rookie Yoel Finol who impressed in a losing WSB debut.

The Bantamweights (56 kg) fight next, and Francisco Martinez representing the Knockouts is seeking his second win in a row when he faces José Vicente Azocar who lost his opening fight against Meirbolat Toitov.

Tra-Kwon Pettis is a very exciting boxer, and makes his first appearance of the season for USA in a tough Light welterweight (64 kg) clash with Luis Arcón who narrowly fell to defeat in Kazakhstan.

Jose Endry Saavedra Pinto is ranked in the top 15 in AIBA’s rankings, and the Venezuelan meets America’s WSB Middleweight (75 kg) veteran Anthony Campbell who won his opening week contest by a round one knockout.

The Heavyweights (91 kg) finish the night in Miami, and Josh Temple will be itching to get into the ring following his week one walkover victory, and he will be hoping Alfonso Flores will make it to the ring following the Venezuelan fighters third round loss in week one.

Will Azerbaijan Baku Fires recover from shock against Astana Arlans Kazakhstan?

A rematch from the semi-finals of Season IV of the World Series of Boxing (WSB) is perhaps the jewel of the third week of Season V, as Azerbaijan Baku Fires host Astana Arlans Kazakhstan.

The Baku Fires suffered a humiliating loss in week two away in Venezuela, while Kazakhstan have remained undefeated so far this season.

It was Azerbaijan who reigned victorious over two legs last time out, and they host this Group B fixture at the Guba Olympic Complex, where on Saturday January 31st 2015 fans across the world can watch the action free, live and on demand from 19:00 (GMT +4) at AIBABoxingTV.com.

Light flyweight (49 kg) Rasul Saliyev makes his first appearance of the season against Temirtas Zhussupov who is competing in his second WSB campaign for Astana Arlans Kazakhstan.

Magomed Gurbanov is currently enjoying a winning run in WSB, and the entertaining Bantamweight (56 kg) is in action for The Baku Fires against the relatively unknown Nursultan Kochshegulov.

Light welterweight (49 kg) Gaybatulla Gadzhialiyev is a WSB legend, and he dismantled Italy’s Olympic and AIBA World Championships bronze medalist Vincenzo Mangiacapre in week one.

He faces further tough opposition against Astana Arlans Kazakhstan boxer Askhat Ualikhanov, who was impressive last season for his Franchise.

In the penultimate fight of the evening, Middleweight (75 kg) Jaba Khositashvili competes for Azerbaijan against Kazakhstan’s exciting Meiirim Nursultanov who stopped Juan Rodríguez in the fourth round of his first week contest.

The youthful Azeri Heavyweight (91) Rail Mammadli completes the action in the last fight, but he will be a massive underdog against Vasiliy Levit who is coming off a stoppage win in his first WSB match of the season.

Will Russian Boxing Team defeat Cuba Domadores for the second time in WSB history?

Cuba Domadores have achieved a perfect ten out of ten in results so far in Season V of the World Series of Boxing (WSB) but face their toughest test to date in week three against Russian Boxing Team, the only Franchise to defeat Cuba in WSB history.

Both of Cuba’s wins so far this season have come against African opposition, while Russian Boxing Team are also undefeated from their sole WSB contest against China Dragons.

Ciudad Deportiva, La Habana is the venue for this Group A match, and on Friday January 30th 2015 fans across the world can watch the action free, live and on demand from 20:30 (GMT -5) at AIBABoxingTV.com.

The first fight of the evening is at Light flyweight (49 kg) and Cuba’s 2013 AIBA Junior World Champion Joahnys Oscar Argilagos Perez will look to make it 2-0 this season against 2011 European Championships silver medalist Belik Galanov of Russia.

Olympic champion Robeisy Ramirez is in action next at Bantamweight (56 kg) for the Domadores, and he is also looking for his second win of Season V when he faces World Cup of the Petroleum Countries gold medalist, and former European Junior Champion Bakhtovar Nazirov.

Light welterweight (64 kg) action follows, as two-time AIBA World Championships silver medalist and Olympic bronze medalist Yasnier Toledo puts his overall WSB career 6-2 record on the line against Russia’s exciting Avak Uzlian.

Cuban Middleweight (75 kg) Arlen Lopez stopped Badreddine Haddioui in week one of Season V, so Russian WSB veteran Maxim Gazizov will have to be at his very best to avoid a similar result in Havana.

The night ends at Heavyweight (91 kg) with the WSB Season IV boxer of the year Erislandy Savon looking to make it 2-0 for the season, and 10-0 overall in the competition as he meets the powerful Dmitriy Zaytsev.

Daniel Bryan Defeats Kane In Casket Match On SmackDown

WWE fans were treated to an exciting match between Kane and Daniel Bryan on Thursday after both wrestlers engaged each other in a casket match.

Both Kane and Daniel Bryan had been at each other’s case for quite some time. They use to be tag team partners and they won the tag team title together a few years back.

However, after Kane declared his allegiance to the Authority, both superstars have been on the opposite sides of the fence and they have constantly been at loggerheads.

Following Bryan’s return from neck injury (which Kane was partly responsible for) that kept him away from competition for nearly a year, Kane resumed his usual torment of the leader of the YES movement.

Angered by his early elimination from the Royal Rumble and Kane’s continuous attacks, Bryan decided to end his feud with the Corporate Demon once and for all and a casket match as arranged.

The rules of the match is simple, the wrestler that successfully lock his opponent in a casket wins.

The fight itself was an0 highly intense encounter as was expected. Both wrestlers used every weapon and tactics to incapacitate the each other. Kane used his strength and bigger body mass to his advantage but Bryan’s determination made him a difficult customer.

The WWE Yes Man bravely recovered from each of Kane’s attacks and in the end his persistence paid off when he knocked the Authority’s resident demon out with a Running Knee. The move was enough to help Bryan close the casket and sealed the win.

Shehu Bello

Latest Football Transfer Rumours Done Deals And Titbits…

The January transfer window is yet to pick up steam but like every other window its not devoid of the drama and rumours our man Paul Ayorinde serves you a complete dish of transfer gist spiced with some AFCON Updates and other titbits.

you can follow Paul on twitter: @El_Pauleta on twitter and also follow @NewFanzone and we will follow you right back, lets keep the discussion going

Done Deals:

– Hamburg have completed the signing of Ivica Olic from Wolfsburg on an 18-month contract.

– Valencia have announced on their official website that they have released Portugal international Joao Pereira and he has signed for Bundesliga club Hannover.

– Swansea have completed the signing of Jack cork from Southampton on a three-and-a-half year deal

– Bordeaux have officially announced the signing of French midfielder Clément Chantôme from PSG on a three-and-a-half year deal

– Crystal Palace signs left-back Pape Souare from Lille

Today’s football reports and transfer rumours:

– According to Fiorentina coach Vincenzo Montella, Colombia winger Juan Cuadrado will be joining Chelsea.

Aaron Lennon-photo credit TottenhamFan
https://www.flickr.com/photos/49514223@N04/4543200424/in/photolist-69RkL7-gkdHu-96tv7P-7Vt6cN-7VpQN2-fSR61-8nm4iV-8npcqS-e8eoHU-e8eoLC-e88HCa-e8eoNW-e8eoRo-6ACU7n-6AH3em-6W6LmZ-7T2sMt-oSmS2D

– According to reports, Hull City are in talks with Tottenham Hotspur over a possible loan deal for Aaron Lennon

– Burnley have ruled out selling reported Liverpool target Danny Ings during the January transfer window.

– Louis van Gaal has ruled out any further signings for Manchester United in the January transfer window, while Darren Fletcher looks set to exit the club for West Ham.

– Shakhtar Donetsk CEO Sergei Palkin has said Roma’s offer for Luiz Adriano is “not satisfactory,”

– Reports indicate that Milan have reached a deal for Genoa’s Luca Antonelli.

– Juventus have confirmed that Paolo De Ceglie has ended his loan spell with Parma and that he will return to training in Turin tomorrow.

– According to reports, Fiorentina are interested in Barcelona defender Martin Montoya.

– Roma Coach Rudi Garcia reveals Roma will bring in a striker before the deadline day.

– Manchester United are ready to bid €40million for Roma midfielder Radja Nainggolan, according to reports in Italy.

– Luca Marrone’s loan move from Juventus to Cordoba appears to have fallen through, after the player reportedly failed a medical.

– Manchester City midfielder Bruno Zuculini will head back to the Etihad Stadium after Valencia decided to end his season-long loan.

– According to reports in France, AS Monaco have opened talks with Tottenham over the possible transfer of Aaron Lennon.

– Arsene Wenger claims Arsenal are unlikely to make any further signings this month after completing the capture of defender Gabriel Paulista from Villarreal and teenage midfielder Krystian Bielik.

– Harry Redknapp admitted QPR have enquired about Wolves winger Bakary Sako

– Swansea City are working on a summer deal for Anderlecht striker Aleksandar Mitrovic, according to reports in Belgium.

– Tottenham are reportedly the favourites to sign Yehven Konoplyanka from Dnipro

Ronald Koeman, Southampton Manager-photo credit Ronnie Macdonald
https://www.flickr.com/photos/ronmacphotos/15339571756/in/photolist-dvZqQC-dvTKCP-dvTKzv-dvTPkP-dvTKme-dRdHsY-dR875x-dR8926-dvZmkq-dvTMCr-7YU1Ng-7YXeM3-pnvjg7-3915yv-dvTQTF-hFadrt

– Southampton manager Ronald Koeman has identified Feyenoord’s Tonny Vilhena as his first-choice replacement for Jack Cork plenty of attacking options.

– Reports suggest Bayern are no longer eager to sign Marco Reus as they have plenty of attacking options.

– Milan’s joint-CEO Adriano Galliani will reportedly meet full-back Pablo Armero to discuss the player’s possible transfer to Genoa.

– Chelsea’s Andre Schurrle is edging closing to signing for Wolfsburg, with the Bundesliga side’s director of sport saying only signatures are missing.

– Turkish club Trabzonspor are favourites to sign Real Madrid’s Germany international midfielder Sami Khedira.

– West Brom have been offered the chance to sign former Manchester United striker Diego Forlan on loan from Japanese club Cerezo Osaka.

– Juventus have reportedly reached an agreement with Fiorentina goalkeeper Neto. He will sign on a free in the summer.

– QPR are targeting a move for West Ham midfielder Mark Noble.

– Arsenal are ready to launch a last-gasp bid for Atletico Madrid striker Mario Mandzukic.

Football tit bits:

– Algeria forward Islam Slimani will miss the rest of the tournament due to a muscle injury that kept him out of their last group match against Senegal.

– Guinea striker Mohamed Yattara believes luck played a big role as they managed to advance to the knockout stages of the Africa Cup of Nations after playing draws in all three group matches. “It is a huge joy. We didn’t have our fate into our own hands anymore. Thanks God, luck was on our side. Now, we are all happy.” Yattara said

– Midfielder Hatem Ben Arfa is not allowed to play for Nice this season, after FIFA ruled a Newcastle Under-21 game counted as a competitive match.

– David Ginola has withdrawn his controversial candidacy in the race to be the next FIFA president.

– Chelsea striker Diego Costa should change his game after picking up a three-match ban for stamping, says Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini. “It will be a good thing for him to change a little bit in the future. He doesn’t need to play in that way because he’s a very good player.” Pellegrini said

– Louis van Gaal has confirmed that Michael Carrick will miss up to a month of action for Manchester United after rupturing a muscle.

FRIENDS OF OKOWA MATCH: KESHI, OKALA TO HANDLE EX-INTERNATIONALS

Super Eagles out of contract Coach, Stephen Keshi has opted to be in charge of the Delta/ Edo Ex-internationals against the rest of the Country in the clash between both sides on Sunday, 1st of February at the Warri City Stadium in a match put together by friends of Okowa to showcase the Peoples Gubernatorial Candidate, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa while veteran Goalkeeper, Emmanuel Okala will take over as Coach of the rest of Nigeria.

In a release made available by the Chairman, Publicity Committee, Moses Etu, Keshi has made his intention known to handle Delta/ Edo players made up Harry Blackson, Mobosa Brodericks, Duke Udi, Samson Ozogula, Sam Okpodu, Edema Fuludu, Prince Afejukwu, Sam Sodje, Humphery Jebba and Davidson Owumi.

Others in the Delta/ Edo side include Austin Popo, Tosan Blackson, Kenneth Nwomucha, Lucky Sunday, Joshua Kator, Sam Otis, Joseph Cole and Sebastine Okoh.

STEPHEN KESHI

Those who will feature for Coach Emmanuel Okala and who have confirmed their participation are Peter Rufai, Mutiu Adepoju, Jay Jay Okocha, Victor Ikpeba, Taribo West, Emmanuel Amunike, Uche Okechukwu, Nduka Ugbade, Friday Ekpo and Emeka Ezeugo.

Others include Ifeanyi Udeze, Bright Omokaro, Kingsley Obiekwu, Alloy Agu, Clement Temile, Etim Esim, Mobi Okparaku, Austin Eguavon and Kanu Nwankwo.

“Stephen Keshi has sent words that he would like to handle the Delta/ Edo side of Ex-Internationals and with that, the onus to Coach the rest of the Country fell on Emmanuel Okala. The players will arrive Warri on Saturday where accommodation has been reserved for them and the match will start by 2pm .

Meanwhile, Warri Wolves feeder team will lock horns with Mowoe Babes before the Ex-Internationals showcase why they have become household names in the Country and fans who will not cough out a kobo to watch the match will not regret coming.

ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami, Presented by Sunbrella – Day 4 Highlights

One measure of the success of Olympic class racing on Biscayne Bay is the steadily growing participation. The numbers in 2015-599 boats from 63 countries-make this a record turnout. But make that 64 countries. Add Cuba to the list.

It was a sun bathed day at ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami, Presented by Sunbrella, with the cool northern breeze from the day prior replaced with a shifty, yet warmer, easterly that tested the sailors once again.

ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami – Day 4 Highlights
Spotlight on the Laser, Men’s RS:X, Nacra 17 and Laser Radial at ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami, Presented by Sunbrella.
URL – http://youtu.be/pvNUH9bPttc
Embed –

ICC Announces Umpire And Match Referee Appointments For ICC Cricket World Cup 2015

The International Cricket Council (ICC) today announced the umpire and match referee appointments for the pool stage matches of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, which will be staged in Australia and New Zealand from 14 February to 29 March.

Marais Erasmus and Nigel Llong will be the on-field umpires for the tournament opener between New Zealand and Sri Lanka in Christchurch on 14 February. S. Ravi and Simon Fry will be the third and fourth umpires, respectively, while David Boon will be the match referee.

On the same day in a day/night fixture in Melbourne, Australia will lock horns with England in a match which will be umpired by Aleem Dar and Kumar Dharmasena. Billy Bowden will act as the third umpire, while Joel Wilson will perform the fourth umpire’s duties. Jeff Crowe will be the match referee.

Apart from Mr Boon and Mr Crowe, Chris Broad, Ranjan Madugalle and Roshan Mahanama will share the match referees’ responsibilities during the 44-day tournament in which 49 matches will be played. All the five are members of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Match Referees.

All the 12 members of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires are available for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015. Apart from the four on-field umpires in action on the opening day, Bruce Oxenford, Ian Gould, Paul Reiffel, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Rod Tucker and Steve Davis will feature during the event.

Fry, Ravi and Wilson are members of the Emirates International Panel of ICC Umpires. They will be joined by Johan Cloete, Chris Gaffaney, Michael Gough, Ranmore Martinesz and Ruchira Palliyaguru during ICC’s pinnacle event.

Meanwhile, the ICC has also confirmed umpire appointments for the 14 warm-up matches that will be played in the lead up to the tournament proper. These matches will be played in Christchurch, Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney.