Football Transfer Rumours Done Deals And Titbits…

Here are the top transfer rumours, done deals and football transfer gist and some results making the rounds as compiled by our man Paul Ayorinde.

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:

– Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa has made permanent his loan move from Newcastle to Roma.

– Valencia have confirmed that striker Paco Alcacer has signed a contract extension until 2020.

– Werder Bremen have confirmed the signing of Jannik Vestergaard from Hoffenheim.

– Everton striker Samuel Eto’o has joined Italian Serie A side Sampdoria, signing a deal with the club until 2018.

– Villarreal have completed the signing of Joel Campbell from Arsenal on loan

Today’s football reports and transfer rumours:

– According to reports,Hamburg want to sign Ivica Olic before Saturday’s Bundesliga match at Cologne, with Wolfsburg already searching for a replacement for the 35-year-old.

– According to reports,Roma are set to launch a late bid for Tottenham defender Vlad Chiriches

– According to reports, the hierarchy at Old Trafford have informed manager Louis van Gaal that, if they cannot get the club’s main targets immediately, they now intend to wait until the summer rather than going for stop-gaps.

– Atletico Madrid midfielder Koke has rubbished speculation linking him with a move away from the Spanish champions to the Premier League.

– Mark Hughes has played down speculation he will be making a bid for Barcelona starlet Adama Traore after travelling to Spain to watch Barca’s B team.

Borussia Dortmund

– Mats Hummels has once again dismissed rumours linking him with a switch away from Borussia Dortmund, and said that they will not distract him from the task of helping BVB stay in the Bundesliga.

– According to reports, Manchester United have told Darren Fletcher he can leave on a free transfer

– Wolfsburg sporting executive Klaus Allofs, asked whether his club were interested in the Chelsea forward Andre Schurrle. “A very clear no. We’ll have more on that one in a little while.”

– According to reports, Nathaniel Clyne is stalling on signing a new deal at Southampton amid interest from Manchester United.

– Arsenal are reportedly interested in Valencia right-back Joel Pereira and AC Milan centre-back Adil Rami

– Salvatore Bocchetti is believed to be on the verge of joining the AC Milan from Spartak Moscow, with an initial loan deal to be followed up by a permanent move in the summer.

– Sampdoria have reportedly agreed to sign Italy defender Gabriel Paletta from Parma.

– Brazilian forward Douglas Costa, has asked his Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk not to price him out of a move to Chelsea this January.

– Southampton are considering making a move for Netherlands midfielder Jordy Clasie from Feyenoord

– According to reports, AC Milan are in advanced talks with Palermo for Ezequiel Munoz.

– Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas, 33, has revealed he would like to move to the United States and play in Major League Soccer.

– Reports in Ukraine suggest Dnipro midfielder Yevhen Konoplaynka will fly out for a Roma medical tomorrow.

– Andrea Pirlo believes that Paul Pogba will never return to Manchester United and that the English club have missed their chance to have the player.

– Newcastle midfielder Moussa Sissoko has refused to rule out a departure during this transfer window, but admitted that there has been no contact with clubs.

– Partizan Belgrade youngster Danilo Pantic claims he will join Chelsea before the end of the January transfer window.

– According to reports, Liverpool are close to agreeing a £14 million deal with Paris Saint-Germain for Ezequiel Lavezzi.

– West Ham are hoping to complete a deal for Hamilton left-back Stephen Hendrie.

– Crystal Palace are reportedly on the verge of completing a £4 million deal for QPR midfielder Jordan Mutch.

– Athletic Bilbao will only allowed defender Aymeric Laporte to leave the club if his full buy-out clause of £32million is met.

– According to reports, Everton are in talks to sign Brazil international Alexandre Pato.

Football tit bits:

– Stoke City have confirmed that Bojan will miss the rest of the season after sustaining a knee ligament injury in the FA Cup win over Rochdale.

– Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu says he does not want to see Real Madrid punished in the same way as his club over allegations of irregular dealings in the transfer market.

– Mino Raiola has decided to pull out of the race for the Fifa presidency after Dutch FA (KNVB) chief Michael Van Praag announced that he will challenge Sepp Blatter for the position. “Running for the Fifa presidency was not about me, but about having a good candidate to challenge Blatter. We have a good candidate now. Van Praag is someone with a better network, with more patience and who is a bit more of a natural when it comes to politics.” Raiola said

– According to reports, England Football Association will back Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein’s bid to become FIFA president.

– Coach of the DR Congo national team Florent Ibenge says facing Congo in the Afcon 2015 quarterfinals is more than just a derby. “We want to act first. It will be more than a derby, it will be a family match which is going to be very tight, and we hope that it will be even tighter for them.” Ibenge said

AFCON 2015 Group C Results:

Ghana 2-1 South Africa

Senegal 0-2 Algeria

AFCON 2015 Group D fixtures:

Cote d’Ivoire V Cameroon

Mali V Guinea

Nadal Stunned As Sharapova And Makarova Set Up All Russian Semi-Final

It was another days for upsets as Iron-willed Tomas Berdych defeated 3rd seed and Spaniard Rafael Nadal in straight sets 6-2,6-0,7-6(5) to enter his second consecutive Australian Open semi-final.

Berdych joins French man Jo-Wilfred Tsonga as only the second man to defeat Rafael Nadal,Roger Federer,Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray.

The 7th seed Czech will now set up a meeting with 6th seed and three time finalists Andy Murray who defeated home favourite Andry Krygios in straight sets 6-3, 7-5,6-3.

Andy Murray, photo credit Kate
https://www.flickr.com/photos/43555660@N00/7381761806/in/photolist-cfisBh-cccBHE-9Q9NNi-9QcEx7-9QcENf-9Z5qp7-e54daR-mPmFn8-mRgT1h-cccD2E-dbsMQE-e5aJoq-cccCX9-bUQost-6cksF6-dfA9oT-bUQn8r-bUQnFK-bUQoUa-e559ne-bUQoxc-dbyNhi-nAZ51B-8kCqj3-6zTgmb-nAYhfu-6zPqXv-e6oK1H-9WDUCT-pLz9Z8-cccBu7-e5aMGS-mPnSnV-9sA5m8-9sA4AX-6zSRpj-9QcE4h-dbyR8b-dbyRum-efDT4N-eeKzKC-mPo7qn-ct8Rfw-9Z2u7K-9Z2tsz-9Z5q29-ct8Ww1-cccDgf-e51KYK-mjz5Pk

Andy Murray had this to say about Krygios “Growing up in the spot light isn’t easy and he’s doing a great job so far,and he is going to continue to learn and keep getting better”.

Murray was good from start to finish as he closed out the match with a barrage of winners.

To the ladies, Maria Sharapova moved closer to her first Australian Open title since 2008 by inflicting a grand slam reality check on 20 year old Canadian Eugenie Bouchard defeating her 6-3,6-2 in the process.

Maria Sharapova photo credit upi.com

Before she walked off Rod Laver Arena Sharapova scrawled on the lens of the camera saying “Fly high,Sing your own song”.

The second seed Russian will now meet plucky left hander Ekaterina Makarova who defeated Simona Halep in straight sets. Sharapova has a 5-0 record over her Russian Opponent but she says its nice to know that a Russian will get to the final of a grand slam.

NFF Sad At Death Of ‘Flying Cat’ Agbonavbare

Acting President of Nigeria Football Federation, Barrister Seyi Akinwunmi has expressed deep grief of the Federation and the entire Nigeria football family at the death of former Super Eagles’ goalkeeper Wilfred Agbonavbare.

The former Senior National Team number one goalie’s affliction with cancer was reported a couple of weeks ago, and the news was broken that he died in the early hours of Tuesday in Spain.

“This is very sad coming only two days after the death of Coach Musa Abdullahi. The Nigeria Football Federation became aware of Agbonavbare’s affliction only a couple of weeks ago.

“This is another true hero gone to rest too early. Agbonavbare was a patriot of the first grade and his contributions to Nigeria football on-field can never be forgotten,” Akinwunmi said Tuesday afternoon.

Wilfred Agbonavbare, who played for Rubber Board FC and New Nigeria Bank FC, both of Benin City, was a member of the Super Eagles’ squad that won the Africa Cup of Nations in Tunisia in 1994, and also made the final squad to Nigeria’s debut appearance at the World Cup finals in USA the same year – one of the three goalkeepers, the others being Peter Rufai and Alloy Agu.

Wilfred Agbonavbare, credit forocoches.com

He was in the first Nigeria team to qualify for a FIFA World Cup finals – the U-20 squad of 1983. At the finals in Mexico, the team famously defeated USSR but lost 3-0 to Brazil before a 0-0 draw with The Netherlands, exiting at group stage.

The well-built goaltender also represented the senior team at the 1984, 1988 and 1990 Africa Cup of Nations finals, winning silver in all three, before plucking gold in Tunisia in 1994.

He also played for Spanish club, Rayo Vallecano.

RIVERS ANGELS TO FACE PELICAN STARS

RIVERS ANGELS TO FACE PELICAN STARS IN LEAGUE DECIDER AS NEW NWPL SEASON GETS DATE

Rivers Angels might have won the 2013/2014 Nigeria Women Premier League and the Federations Cup but the winner for the League season is yet to be decided, according to the Nigeria Women League board.

The Port Harcourt side won the league with 39 points ahead of runners up, Pelican Stars who finished with 36 points.

In the Federation Cup, Rivers Angels also won 2-0 against Sunshine Queens at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos.

Ideally, they should be regarded as double champions of the season for their outstanding performance throughout last year and rewarded with medals and two trophies for the two competitions but they have just one trophy in their kitty.

Rivers Angels Starting lineup

On Friday, January 23 2015, the Nigeria Women Premier League Board, held a meeting to review the 2013/2014 season.

It was resolved that there shall be the champion of champions tournament to declare the winner for the season which will be between the League winners and Fa Cup winners.

Since the Rivers state owned Angels won both competitions, it was resolved that they would battle with Pelican Stars who were the runners up in the 2013/2014 league season.

In a related development, it was also agreed at the meeting that the new NWPL season will commence on the 31st of March, 2015 as a against the former date scheduled for 28 February, 2015

The NWPL Board also resolved that there will be no relegation this season considering the small size of the premier league and most importantly, the situation with the insurgency in the North East sub-region that impacted on the league. Although, there will be a promotion of two clubs from the pro-league division to the premier league to bring the total number of premier league clubs to 14 for the 2014/2015 league season.

Brock Lesnar Survives Triple Threat Match To Retain WWE title

The much anticipated Triple Threat match that pitch WWE World Heavyweight champion, Brock Lesnar, John Cena and Seth Rollins against each other took place on Sunday at the Royal Rumble main event.

The match was as physical and bloody as anyone can remember in the WWE as all three athletes went all out to win the encounter using every weapon at their disposal to secure victory.

Lesnar started the bout strongly, the Beast dismantled both Rollins and Cena with a series of German-Suplexes but Cena rallied back and nailed the title holder with an Attitude Adjustment only for Rollins to try and steal the pin but Lesnar powered out after just one count.

Brock Lesnar, photo credit Megan Elice Meadows
https://www.flickr.com/photos/ohhsnap_me/13770925543/in/photolist-mYTAoK-mZ4sAn-mZ6gG3-mZ4uCX-pmRLDo-poS8S9-mYVY5N-mYW8ZN-mYWj1j-mYUqLD-mYTKsD-mYUmHD-mYUeyX-mYWfUE-mYWgmm-mYUkQg-mYUaU2-mYTMHZ-mYVBUY-mYUc5k-mYWa77-mYTLqv-mYW71s-mYVARL-mYWiwd-mYWc3w-mYUjfT-mYUjG2-mYW9sw-mYUjir-mYUoEn-nbSK7G-nbSKah-mYUd6r-mYU8fX-mYUbya-mYTDMv-mYUneZ-mYUnE8-mYWhAA-mYUc8K-mYU8BZ-mYUfFM-mYUhdz-mYUgiD-mYTEzn-mYTLPg-mYWhcE-mYTHXp-mYUhDp

The encounter eventually spilled outside the ring and both Cena and Rollins did their best to incapacitate Lesnar. Their plan worked for a while but none of the two wrestlers were able to get the needed win.

Lesnar returned to the encounter and promptly laid waste to both Cena and Rollins before ending the match with an earth shattering F-5 on Rollins to seal the win and retain his title which he will defend at the main event at Wrestlemania 31.

Shehu Bello

Gambia Write History, Senegal Make It Through At CAVB Continental Cup Zone 2

Hosts Senegal and emerging Gambia men and women teams proceeded to the second phase of the CAVB Continental Cup after both countries were ranked at the top 2 positions in Zone 2 Pool 2 of the competition held a in Dakar, Senegal this weekend.

Zone II sub-zonal pool 2 continental qualifications for beach volleyball came to a historic end after Gambian teams booked qualification to the proper zonal qualification for Rio Olympics in 2016. Gambia topped the Women ranking after beating Senegal in the tournament. Gambia gained 12 points from 4 games leaving the host with 0 points. Mauritania and Cape Verde did not present Women teams consequently as Gambia became the new leaders in Zone II pool 2 female standings.

Gambian women’s team

Saffie Sawaneh, Abie Kujabi, Sainabou Tambedou and Fatoumatta Ceesay adore the national colors in front of hundreds of spectators. This is the first time Gambia will be defeating Senegal in such competition and in head to head victories. Gambia men teams were defeated by the host in the round robin securing 9 points with the Gambia 3 points. Gambia bounces back in day two of the competition by overcoming Cape Verde 3-1 in four games thus ending their campaign with 12 points from 8 games. Malick Jammeh, Babucarr Jarra, Alieu Barry and Pa Ali Njie gave Gambia the historic victories. Senegal gained qualification after beating Cape Verde Islands to top the standings with 15 points whiles Cape Verde earned 6 points.

“I am proud of my ladies,” said Gambian coach Alagie Babou Joof. “We managed to control the game with good balance of threat and control. Our strategy to control the Senegalese player worked very well. Our target is to see Gambia in Rio for the Olympic Games and today I am the proudest Gambian,” Joof concluded.

“I usually need some time at the start of the games to inspire and motivate my team mates,” Malick Jammeh captain of Gambia said. “However my teammate helped me a lot to play on my best level and today we are thinking of the zonal level and we are not stopping there, raising the national colors of the Gambia is our target now.”

The Gambian men’s team

The Senegalese coach Seck Mbye applauded the Gambia team and said he was surprised wth the performance Gambia showed. “To be honest Gambia was tipped as the underdogs but they proved everyone wrong so congratulations to the Gambia Mbye stated.”

Gambia women team was decorated with gold medal and trophy and the Senegalese counterparts with silver medalist. The Senegalese men team wins the gold medals with a trophy and Gambia were runner up with silver and Cape Verde got the bronze

The competition referees

Men’s Results

Senegal v Gambia
Gambia A v Senegal B 2-1 (21-17, 17-21, 15- 10)
Gambia B v Senegal A 0-2 (11-21, 17-21)
Senegal A v Gambia A 2-1 (19-21, 21-19, 15-13)
Senegal B v Gambia B 2-1 (16-21, 21-17, 15-11)

Gambia v Cape Verde
Gambia A v Cape Verde B 2-1 (21-19, 21-23, 15-10)
Gambia B v Cape Verde A 1-2 (21-17, 17-21, 5-15)
Gambia A v Cape Verde A 2-0 (21-16, 21-12)
Gambia B v Cape Verde B 2-1(21-23, 21-17, 15-9)

Senegal v Cape Verde
Senegal A v Cape Verde B 2-1 (16-21, 21-13, 15-13)
Cape Verde A v Senegal B 2-0 (21-16, 21-17)
Senegal A v Cape Verde A 2-0 (21-18, 21-12)
Senegal B v Cape Verde B 0-2 (19-21, 21-23)

Women Results

Gambia v Senegal
Gambia B v Senegal A 2-0 (21-17, 25-23)
Gambia A v Senegal B 2-0 (21-7, 21-6)
Gambia A v Senegal A 2-1 (21-18, 11-21, 15-9)
Gambia B v Senegal B 2-0 (22-20, 21-10)

Men Ranking
1. Senegal 2. Gambia 3. Cape Verde

Women Ranking
1. Gambia 2. Senegal

Muhammed L Saidykhan, Press Officer- GVBA

ISAF Sailing World Cup: Sunny And Bright. Storming And Raining Sideways

It’s easy to explain the opening day of racing at ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami, presented by Sunbrella.

It was sunny and bright. It was storming and raining sideways. It was sunny and bright.

Numerous challenges were posed to the competitors in wet and windy day of action. Racing commenced shortly after 10:00 local time with a confirmed number of 856 sailors from 63 nations competing across the ten Olympic and three Paralympic events.

ISAF SAILING WORLD CUP

Laser

Robert Scheidt, winner of five medals in five Olympiads, two of them gold, described the series opener as, “Windy. Tough. What you have to do this early in the regatta is avoid the big problems.”

Which is not so easy when a squall is the takeaway.

“In the first race there was a time on the second weather leg where we couldn’t see through the rain, couldn’t find the marks,” Scheidt said. “Finally Bruno (Fontes) saw a bit of colour out there in the grey stuff, and we both went for it, and we made big gains.”

Figure the breeze at the moment was high 20s or perhaps even 30 knots, so a boat aimed the right direction – and on its feet – had a lot going for it. “After that,” Scheidt said “I didn’t have a special second race, but I didn’t need to. I was happy with a second and a fourth.” Those finishes left Scheidt second to Fontes, first, and New Zealand’s Andy Maloney, second at 4-1 in the other division of the split fleet.

The other piece of Laser class news happened in the other division of the split fleet, where the Aussie, Tom Burton, who has been on a winning streak, dug himself a hole with finishes of 18th and 20th.

Men’s 470

Perennial threats Luke Patience and crew Elliot Willis of the UK comfortably topped a fleet of 45 entries in the 470 class, on a challenging day, on scores of first and second.

As in other fleets, the people at or near the top of the leaderboard were grateful to be just that. Australian 470 skipper Mat Belcher figured, “The job was to get around the course. We were happy with a first and a fifth and a boat that was still working. We have the whole week to make points.” Perhaps it is fair to add, Belcher was busy gluing and screwing new parts onto his “still working” mast as he spoke.

And Belcher has earned whatever confidence he can muster. A five time world champion – all in a row – he and crew Will Ryan won the inaugural ISAF Sailing World Cup Final title in Abu Dhabi, UAE, in November.

Asenathi Jim and Roger Hudson of the Republic of South Africa stand second off a 4-6 day, followed by the French threat of Sofian Bouvet and Jeremie Mion, 3-8. They’re the defending champions. At this regatta one year ago, Bouvet and Mion broke a seventeen-regatta winning streak that Belcher and Ryan had been riding.

Stories stories, everybody had a story. The Japanese duo of Tetsuya Matsunaga (a second generation sailor) and Yugo Yoshida used both sides of the course, “sometimes” to good effect, said Matsunaga, “It was very shifty. It the second race, we went left and the wind came from the right. We rounded the top mark 20th or so. I really don’t know.” But that “20th or so” turned into a 10th for a 2-10 day and fifth in the standings.

ISAF SAILING WORLD CUP MIAMI 2015 Nick Thompson 201402 Laser Mitcham, Surrey GBR, photo credit US Sailing

Women’s 470

In the Women’s 470 racing, London 2012 gold medalists Jo Aleh and Polly Powrie of New Zealand, “had just made it around the gybe mark” of race one, Aleh said, when THE SQUALL hit.

“We looked back and the blast was fairly flattening the fleet. You wanted to ask, where did everybody go? But we got the kite down, we stayed on our feet and we made some nice gains.”

The day wrapped up with Aleh and Powrie leading the standings off a pair of seconds.

Two top British teams, Hannah Mills/Saskia Clark and Sophie Weguelin, won a race apiece and stand second and third, respectively.

“The team of the moment,” in the words of a close series observer, fared less well. That would be Austria’s Lara Vadlau and crew Jolanta Ogar The 2014 World and World Cup champions presently stand ninth off finishes of 15th and 16th – remarkably consistent, but.

Again, stories and stories. Americans Anna Haeger and Briana Provancha were gybing at the mark when squall’s blast arrived. It did not go well. Haeger and Provancha had an 11-10 day and some body pain to take home.

Men’s RS:X

Louis Giard (FRA), conqueror of the inaugural ISAF Sailing World Cup Final title, resumed in Miami from where he left off in Abu Dhabi – leading the way.

Although he sits pretty on two points at the top, he discards an 11th, which could prove deadly to his points total if he finishes lower than that as the week pans out. A scoreline of 3-1-2 is more of a solid foundation to build upon and second placed Byron Kokkalanis (GRE) is the proud owner of that run.

“All the races were good with lots of shifts and a lot of ups and downs,” commented Kokkalanis. “I managed to do well by finishing third, first and second. I had to catch up in the first and third race but the second race was really good. I had a good start and was fighting hard with Nick Dempsey, it was really fun and a good day.”

Solid foundations are key for a week long RS:X competition. Races are short, frequent, intense and compelling. Thirteen more are scheduled for the week with gold fleet racing commencing on Wednesday and Kokkalanis knows he has to be in top shape to defend his title, “Tomorrow I will take the same approach and try to do my best as always. That’s what everybody is trying to do.

“I’ll try to stay on top and then the real racing, gold fleet, starts on Wednesday. All the good guys will be together so until then I’ll try and get as few points as possible.”

Tom Squires (GBR) laid an equally impressive foundation, a 1-3-3, rounding off the top three after day one.

ISAF SAILING WORLD CUP MIAMI 2015-Sunday prerace boat prep. US SAILING Center Miami

Women’s RS:X

In a field that features Olympic medallists, World Champions and an ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year, home nation sailor Marion Lepert had a dream start.

From two races Lepert notched up a fourth and a bullet to top the pack of 37. She holds off Flavia Tartaglini (ITA) and Olga Maslivets (RUS), who are second and third respectively.

A recent graduate from youth competition, Lepert made in-roads in the Techno 293 where she claimed a silver medal at the 2011 World Championship. She moved up to the RS:X and a fourth at the 2013 Sail First ISAF Youth Worlds confirmed her promise. Albeit a dream start, Lepert will have her work cut out to maintain such a performance it in amongst a field of seasoned professionals.

Nacra 17

Taming the Nacra 17 beast came as a challenge to many of the 49-boat Mixed Multihull fleet. With gusts hitting the 30 knot mark, thrills and spills were inevitable and that was certainly the case with as many as 26 boats either unable to finish the second race or deciding enough was enough in advance of the start.

A night of boat work and maintenance will be in order for several of the competitors whilst leaders Gemma Jones and Jason Saunders (NZL), Vittorio Bissaro and Silvia Sicouri (ITA) and Billy Besson and Marie Riou (FRA) will all rest easy after a job well done from three races.

ISAF SAILING WORLD CUP MIAMI 2015 Charlie Buckingham 206151 Laser, Newport Beach, CA USA

49erFX

Like the Nacra 17 sailors, the Women’s Skiff competitors on the 49erFX also found the Miami breeze extremely tough to handle.

Of the 40 teams, just eight of them successfully worked their way around the course to complete the single race of the day.

Alex Maloney and Molly Meech (NZL) are two of the most experienced 49erFX competitors around, with well over two years of boat experience behind them. With a range of knowledge behind them they comprehensively claimed the day’s race win by more than a minute.

Nina Keijzer and Claire Blom (NED) came through in second with ISAF Sailing World Cup Melbourne winners Tess Lloyd and Caitlin Elks (AUS) in third.

49er

Spain’s Diego Botin and Iago Lopez got off to a flying start in the 49er, controlling the proceedings in the blue fleet. Right from the off they put in a composed performance in a competitive pack to take the opening race bullet.

They remained at the front for the next bout, coming through in second behind John Pink and Stuart Bithell (GBR) before they rounded off a superb day by taking the final race victory

Being at the top of the 49er leader board, after the opening day, is not uncommon ground for Botin. The young Spaniard had an outstanding start at the 2014 editions of World Cup Mallorca and Hyères. However, he was unable to convert that into consistent results over a gruelling six day ISAF Sailing World Cup regatta.

For now, Botin and Lopez lead, but with five days and 13 races remaining, time will tell if Botin can continue his form.

Results were mixed in the yellow fleet with no team taking the bull by the horns. Federico and Arturo Alonso (ESP) sit second after they recorded a discarded 20th and a second and a third. David Gilmour and Rhys Mara (AUS) occupy the final podium sport at the early stages.

ISAF SAILING WORLD CUP MIAMI 2015 Diego Botín Iago Lopez 900 49er Santander, Cantabria ESP, photo credit US Sailing

Finn

Hand it to hardy Briton Giles Scott, who has taken over the throne of the longest-serving dinghy class in Olympic sailing. The Finn has been raced in 16 Olympiads. It is known as the boat in which Paul Elvstrom redefined the racing sailor as an athlete. And it is known as the boat that tests athletes as no other.

Scott has not lost in 15 months, and he didn’t do it through cherry-picking the easy stuff. He won seven ranked regattas in that time, and on Monday Scott won both races. His countryman, Ed Wright, has often come closest to unseating him, but following the opening day of racing here Wright stands fourth on scores of 3-7.

In second is Australia’s Jake Lilley, 2-3, with Croatia’s Ivan Kljakovic Gaspic third, 8-2.
American hope Caleb Payne retired from the second race.

Paralympic Events

It was a double bullet day for John Robertson, Hannah Stodel and Steve Thomas (GBR) the Sonar. They dominant Brits top the leader board and are followed by Paul Tingley, Logan Campbell and Scott Lutes (CAN) who saw the back of the British boat on two occasions with a pair of seconds.

John McRoberts and Jackie Gay (CAN) started well in the SKUD18 with a second and a first. They lead on three points with Alexandra Rickham and Niki Birrell (GBR) second on five points.

2015 SWC Miami – Welcome To Miami
URL –
Embed – http://youtu.be/ZrsDDTQms9k

Flying Eagles Defender Omego Out Of Danger, Undergoes Scan

Flying Eagles defender Prince Izu Omego is out of danger after a head injury in Monday’s Super 4 match against Pillars and will undergo a scan later on Tuesday.

“Izu is much better now. He will have a scan to further ascertain the extent of the injury,” said Flying Eagles team doctor, Ozi Salami.

The central defender was rushed to hospital late in the Pillars game after a flying boot crashed against his head, but he has since rejoined the rest of the Flying Eagles squad at the Serob Hotel in Wuye, Abuja.

The Flying Eagles are top of the expanded Super 4 with six points from two matches, same as Nigeria U23 team, but enjoy a better goals difference.

They take on Warri Wolves in their next game at the round-robin tournament on Wednesday.

Kick-off time is 1pm at the Abuja National Stadium.

Roman Reigns Wins 2015 WWE Royal Rumble

The 2015 WWE Royal Rumble event took place on Sunday night and it lived up to its exciting reputation.

The annual 30-man chaotic melee saw a few surprise inclusions as former ECW star, Bubba Ray Dudley, for WCW champion Diamond Dallas Page (DDP) and the legendary Boogeyman all fought for the chance to feature in the main event at Wrestlemania 31.

Also, fans were shocked at the early exit of former WWE champion, Daniel Bryan after the fan favourite was eliminated by Bray Wyatt.

Roman Reigns entered the chaos as contestant number 20 and immediately set to assert his dominance. The Authority giants of Kane, Big Show and Rusev soon made their way to the ring and immediately set out to clear the desk.

Dolph Ziggler entered the Royal Rumble as the final contestant and his energetic display light up the arena. However, his influence was cut-shot by Big Show who promptly eliminated him.

Roman Reigns photo credit Miguel Discart
https://www.flickr.com/photos/miguel_discart/10923194256/in/photolist-hDfe6s-dS2yFZ-81FFRQ-nYZZeR-cP1p37-5StRQY-dvVtMv-dmxCu9-6ZeHSR-fjKj7L-6BT9tB-81TPhb-bL89Kz-nsMjJA-itQu56-8S5pVu-nqHJJr-a13Q8a-bn3fRA-fjvrRP-6ZiJyh-nvPrqp-h7BS3h-81TKTL-8RWE7u-fJCLeT-fJCKKD-fJCKna-bzWZGX-4nTDei-jz8Ga7-5RSKH2-9yNmQZ-ntk7xu-81TPHs-dmx4Ry-6xADyZ-dmxdkY-81CM4H-dmx5QC-fJVggE-81TT2W-NiLkG-9RhQT8-81FvGb-9QfTAe-hDfzPj-62s9DS-dU9Ekz-4EaihM

In the end Reigns, Ambrose, Big Show and Kane (Rusev had sneaked out of the ring) were left in the ring. Big Show eliminated Ambrose before he and Kane turned their attention to Reigns.

However, the Authority hatchet men turned against each other giving Reigns the opportunity to eliminate both of them at the same time.

It appeared Reigns had won the Royal Rumble but both Kane and Big Show returned to the ring and proceeded to give the former Shield strong man a beat down. But just as it seems the night will end in tragedy, The Rock made a surprise entry to the ring and helped Reigns disperse the assaulting duo.

But the night was not over yet as Rusev who had stayed out of the ring but has not been eliminated from the Royal Rumble got back in the ring and tried to initiate a sneak attack on the Reigns, however, the former tag team champion sealed his Royal Rumble win by eliminating Rusev and earned a chance to battle for the WWE World Heavyweight Title at Wrestlemania 31 in March.

Shehu Bello

GLO SUPER 4: ​Dolphins Lose Again

Dolphins lost again in the Super 4, this time to the Nigerian Under 23 side.

After 90 minutes, it was U23 1-0 Dolphins, a goal scored in the 61st minute by Newman Doubra.

Despite the loss, Dolphins coach, Stanley Eguma said his team had improved from their first game against Kano Pillars.

“There is a little bit of progress in our game. We have not reached our peak since we only started training exactly a week ago. This is all part of preparations.

“I also do not agree that because we lost both games and haven’t scored a goal, it means we are not improving.

Dolphins

“In the last game we virtually ran round the field but today we made our opponents run. We have not scored a goal yet but we will,” Eguma said.

Under 23 team coach, Fatai Amoo did not look down on the losers.

“We know Dolphins as a strong side even though they lost their first game. The essence of this tournament is to pick the best players from our pool so we had to rotate in order to use as many players as possible.

“It was a tough game, tougher than the first one and we are happy we won,” Amoo said.

Dolphins next game is on Wednesday against Enyimba

Nigeria’s Toriola Chairs ATTF Athletes’ Committee

One of the Africa’s most decorated players, Nigeria’s Segun Toriola has been named as the chairman of the newly constituted Africa Table Tennis Federation (ATTF) Athletes Committee.

In a statement issued on Tuesday by the President, African Table Tennis Federation (ATTF), Khaled El-Salhy, the committee is made up of players from the seven zones across Africa including the continental representative in the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Athletes Committee, Egypt’s El-Sayed Lashin, who will serve as ex-officio in the committee.

ITTF AFRICA

The new committee takes effect from January 2015, while their tenure will expire in 2016, when an election into the committee will hold at the next ATTF Congress in Morocco in 2016.

“I have the pleasure to inform you that ATTF has decided to compose a new African Athletes Committee starting of January 2015 by nomination for the coming two years, then by the end of 2016 and in the next African Congress Meeting to be held in Morocco we will have elections among all delegates for the whole ATTF Council Board for four years and elections among all participating players for ATTF Athletes Committee for four years
Toriola emerged from Zone three while other members of the newly constituted ATTF Athletes Committee include Moh. Sofiene Boudjadja (Algeria) of Zone One, Mohamed Gueye (Senegal) of Zone two, Sarrah Hannfou (Cameroun) of Zone four, Osama Mohamed (Sudan) of Zone five, Danisha Patel (South Africa) of Zone six, Widaad Gukhool (Mauritius) of Zone seven, while El-Sayed Lashin (Egypt) is ex-official member as ITTF Athletes Committee member.

Football Transfer Rumours, Done Deals And Titbits

Here are the top transfer rumours, done deals and football transfer gist making the rounds as compiled by our man Paul Ayorinde.

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:

– Millwall have signed Jos Hooiveld on loan from Southampton until the end of the season.

– Inter have completed the signing of Marcelo Brozovic from Dinamo Zagreb on a two-year loan with option to buy.

– Besiktas have completed the signing of Tolgay Arslan from Hamburg.

– Bolton have completed the signing of Cardiff striker Adam Le Fondre on loan until the end of the season.

Today’s football reports and transfer rumours:

– Robin van Persie is uncertain whether his Manchester United contract will be renewed when it expires at the end of next season. “It is not up to me. For the moment, I am staying here for 18 months. That is it really: I can’t look into the future. I don’t know what is going to happen after that, we shall have to wait and see.” He said

– According to reports, Paris Saint-Germain are keen to sign Manchester United’s Brazilian teenager Andreas Pereira.

– According to reports, Crystal Palace could beat West Brom to the signature of Newcastle striker Shola Ameobi.

– There are reports Mattia Destro will undergo a medical at AC Milan, as Roma need to sell him before signing Luiz Adriano.

– According to reports, Gabriel Paulista has been granted a work permit ahead of his proposed move from Villarreal to Arsenal

Arsenal Target Gabriel Paulista

– Cologne are reportedly interested in signing Rubin Kazan midfielder Carlos Eduardo

– Nani has claimed Manchester United want to keep him, suggesting that he will be back at Old Trafford next season.

– According to ESPN sources, Liverpool are increasingly confident that they will sign James Milner in the summer

– Manuel Pasqual has reportedly been offered a three-year contract to move to Milan from Fiorentina.

– Empoli defender Daniele Rugani is reportedly a target for Arsenal.

– Cardiff City manager Russell Slade says his top scorer Kenwyne Jones, 30, will be staying at the club.

– Tottenham are considering a £5millon bid for 22-year-old Burnley striker Danny Ings

– Parma have announced that Antonio Cassano’s contract has been rescinded.

– It’s reported that Juventus have agreed a deal to bring Stefano Sturaro back from Genoa.

– Stoke City manager Mark Hughes is keen on signing Barcelona young winger Adama Traore on loan.

– Hull City are tracking Tottenham winger Aaron Lennon.

– According to reports, Premier League side Swansea have made a €4million offer for St Étienne winger Franck Tabanou.

– Manchester United winger Adnan Januzaj’s representative Dirk De Vriese has confirmed that PSG have made a formal enquiry regarding the player.

– Real Madrid are keen on signing Aymeric Laporte from Athletic Bilbao.

– Chelsea are reportedly keeping tabs on Raheem Sterling’s contract situation at Liverpool.

Football tit bits:

– Dutch FA president Michael van Praag is to stand against Sepp Blatter for the FIFA presidency

– Newcastle have confirmed John Carver will remain in caretaker charge of the Premier League club until the end of the season.

– Barcelona forward Neymar says he understands Cristiano Ronaldo’s frustration boiling over after he was shown a red card during Real Madrid’s 2-1 win over Cordoba, though he believes he should be punished by the league’s authorities. “It is difficult because sometimes there is provocation. It happened to Zinedine Zidane, it happened to me. Nobody has the coolness to remain calm 100 per cent of the time. We must think with our heads. I think he should be punished.” He said

– Senegal coach Alain Giresse has accused West Ham United striker Diafra Sakho of setting a dangerous precedent by playing in the FA Cup after pulling out of the African Nations Cup with a back injury. “I’m very surprised to learn that he played (on Sunday),when you cannot fly for six weeks and then suddenly you’re playing a football game … there must be miraculous medicine in England. This sets a dangerous precedent because in future you are going to have players claiming they cannot catch planes to Africa but who can still play football (for their clubs). It is a debate that deserves more discussion.” Giresse said

– Congo coach Claude Le Roy got a congratulatory text from French President Francois Hollande on Sunday after enhancing his legendary status at the African Cup of Nations by taking unheralded Congo to the last eight.

AFCON 2015 Group B results:

DR Congo 1-1 Tunisia

Cape Verde 0-0 Zambia

AFCON 2015 Group C fixtures:

Ghana V South Africa

Algeria V Senegal

FA Cup Fifth Round Draw:

Crystal Palace V Liverpool or Bolton

Arsenal V Middlesbrough

Aston Villa V Leicester City

West Bromwich Albion V West Ham

Bradford City V Sunderland or Fulham

Blackburn Rovers V Rochdale or Stoke

Derby County V Reading

Preston or Sheffield United V Cambridge or Manchester United