Our Reporters, Author at Trendbrio.com

FA Cup: Arsenal draws holders Man Utd in third round

Our Reporters4 months ago4 months ago03 mins

Holders Manchester United face a trip to Arsenal in the third round of this season’s FA Cup as two of the favourites for the trophy lock horns early in the New Year. The real glamour ties see Tottenham Hotspur visit non-league Tamworth and Bromley, in their first season in the Football League and playing in the FA Cup third round for the first time in their history, heading to St James’ Park to face Newcastle United. Premier League leaders Liverpool, who beat Arsenal in the third round last season, face Accrington Stanley whilst Manchester City face Salford City in an intriguing between two sides in close proximity to each other. The third-round ties will be played over the over the weekend of January 10-13, with the FA to confirm the full schedule in due course. FA Cup third-round draw in full Southampton vs Swansea Arsenal vs Man Utd Exeter vs Oxford Leyton Orient vs Derby Reading vs Burnley Aston Villa vs West Ham Norwich vs Brighton Man City vs Salford Millwall vs Dagenham and Redbridge Liverpool vs Accrington Stanley Bristol City vs Wolves Preston vs Charlton Chelsea vs Morecambe Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Bournemouth vs West Brom Mansfield vs Wigan Tamworth vs Tottenham Hull vs Doncaster Sunderland vs Stoke Leicester vs QPR Brentford vs Plymouth Coventry vs Sheffield Wednesday Newcastle vs Bromley Everton vs Peterborough Wycombe vs Portsmouth Birmingham vs Lincoln Leeds vs Harrogate Nottingham Forest vs Luton Sheffield United vs Cardiff Ipswich vs Bristol Rovers Fulham vs Watford Crystal Palace vs Stockport Quarter-final: Saturday March 29, 2025 Semi-final: Saturday April 26, 2025 Final: Saturday May 17, 2025

56 crushed to death in Guinean stadium

Our Reporters4 months ago4 months ago02 mins

A controversial refereeing decision led to violence and a deadly crush during a football match in southeast Guinea, leaving 56 people dead, according to the government on Monday. The incident occurred during the final of a tournament held in honor of Guinea’s military leader, Mamady Doumbouya, at a stadium in Nzerekore, one of the country’s largest cities. The chaos began when some fans threw stones, causing panic and a stampede, the government reported. A video authenticated by Reuters showed people desperately scrambling over high walls to escape the scene. Prime Minister Mamadou Oury Bah condemned the events, stating that the stampede occurred during a match between the Labe and Nzerekore teams. He promised an investigation into the incident. Local authorities were working to restore order, with many victims, including minors, caught in the confusion after police deployed tear gas. Some parents were seen retrieving bodies before they were officially counted. Online videos and photos showed victims lying on the ground, with some images showing several lifeless bodies, including children. The opposition group, the National Alliance for Change and Democracy, blamed the authorities for organizing the tournament to gain political favor for Doumbouya, arguing that it violated the transition charter ahead of a promised presidential election. There was no immediate response from the military junta to these claims.

EFCC makes single largest asset recovery till date

Our Reporters4 months ago4 months ago05 mins

Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie, on Monday, December 2, 2024 gave a ruling on a final forfeiture of an estate in Abuja measuring 150,500 square metres and containing 753 Units of duplexes and other apartments. This is the single largest asset recovery by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, since its inception in 2003. The Estate rests on Plot 109 Cadastral Zone C09, Lokogoma District, Abuja. The forfeiture of the property to the federal government by a former top brass of the government was pursuant to EFCC’s mandate and policy directive of ensuring that the corrupt and fraudulent do not enjoy the proceeds of their unlawful activities. In this instance, the Commission relied on Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud And Other Fraud Related Offences Act No 14, 2006 and Section 44 (2) B of the Constitution of the 199 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to push its case. Ruling on the Commission’s application for the final forfeiture of the property, Justice Onwuegbuzie held that the respondent have not shown cause as to why he should not lose the property, “which has been reasonably suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities, the property is hereby finally forfeited to the federal government.” The road to the final forfeiture of the property was paved by an interim forfeiture order, secured before the same Judge on November 1, 2024. The government official which fraudulently built the estate is being investigated by the EFCC. The forfeiture of the asset is an important modality of depriving the suspect of the proceeds of the crime. The justification for the forfeiture is derived from Part 2, Section 7 of the EFCC Establishment Act, which stipulates that the EFCC “has power to cause investigations to be conducted as to whether any person, corporate body or organization has committed any offence under this Act or other law relating to economic and financial crimes and cause investigations to be conducted into the properties of any person if it appears to the Commission that the person’s lifestyle and extent of the properties are not justified by his source of income.” The Commission’s Executive Chairman, Mr. Ola Olukoyede, has repeatedly described asset recovery as pivotal in the fight against corruption, economic and financial crimes and a major disincentive against the corrupt and the fraudulent. Addressing members of the House of Representatives Committee on Anti-corruption recently, he said, “If you understand the intricacies involved in financial crimes investigation and prosecution you will discover that to recover one billion naira is war. So, I told my people that the moment we start investigation we must also start asset tracing because asset recovery is pivotal in the anti-corruption fight; and one of the potent instruments that you can deploy as an anti-corruption agency for an effective fight is asset tracing and recovery. If you allow the corrupt or those that you are investigating to have access to the proceeds of their crime, they will fight you with it. So one of the ways to weaken them is to deprive them of the proceeds of their crime. So, our modus operandi has changed simultaneously. The moment we begin investigation, we begin asset tracing. That was what helped us to make our recoveries.”

CHAN 2025 Qualifier: Eguavoen invites Rabiu Ali, 29 others to camp for Ghana

Our Reporters4 months ago4 months ago05 mins

Head Coach Augustine Eguavoen has invited a total of 30 players to camp as the Nigeria Football Federation activates its commitment to ensuring the qualification of the Super Eagles B for next year’s African Nations Championship finals. The 8th edition of the continental championship – reserved exclusively for footballers plying their trade with clubs in their country’s domestic Leagues and possessing standard contracts – is scheduled to run the length of February 2025 in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. Kano Pillars’ evergreen midfielder, Rabiu Ali, who has scored eight goals this season, is among the players called, alongside Remo Stars’ goalkeeper Kayode Bankole, Rivers United defender Steven Mayo, and Abia Warriors’ exciting forward Sunday Megwo. There are also Enyimba FC goalkeeper Henry Ozoemena, Remo Stars’ wing-back Ismail Sadiq, Enugu Rangers’ midfield ace Kazeem Ogunleye and Nasarawa United forward Anas Yusuf. Victor Collins, the Nasarawa United defender called up for last month’s 2025 AFCON qualifying matches against Benin Republic and Rwanda, and Plateau United’s Adamu Abubakar, are also called up. All the invited players have been instructed to arrive at the Remo Stars Sports Institute, Ikenne-Remo, Ogun State on Wednesday, 4th December 2024, where the team will train ahead of the first leg of the qualification fixture against Ghana’s Black Stars B, billed for the Accra Sports Stadium on Sunday, 22nd December. The second leg will take place at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium, Uyo on Saturday, 28th December. Ghana stopped Nigeria from reaching the Africa Nations Championship finals in 2009 and 2023. In the qualifiers for the inaugural edition hosted by Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria took a 2-0 first-half lead in the opening leg in Accra, only to concede three goals in the second half. The return leg in Calabar ended 0-0. In the qualifiers for the last edition hosted by Algeria, Ghana won 2-0 at home and lost 0-2 in Abuja, but prevailed after a penalty shootout at the MKO Abiola National Stadium. 30 PLAYERS FOR SUPER EAGLES B CAMPING IN IKENNE-REMOGoalkeepers: Henry Ozoemena (Enyimba FC); Kayode Bankole (Remo Stars); Nurudeen Badmus (Kwara United) Defenders: Ismail Sadiq (Remo Stars); Waliu Ojewole (Ikorodu City); Imo Obot (Enyimba FC); Taiwo Abdulrafiu (Rivers United); Junior Nduka (Remo Stars); Victor Collins (Nasarawa United); Ifeanyi Onyebuchi (Rangers International); Steven Mayo (Rivers United) Midfielders: Jide Fatokun (Remo Stars); Rabiu Ali (Kano Pillars); Saviour Isaac (Rangers International); Musa Zayyad (El-Kanemi Warriors); Emmanuel Ogbole (Kwara United); Papa Daniel Mustapha (Niger Tornadoes); Kazeem Ogunleye (Rangers International) Forwards: Anas Yusuf (Nasarawa United); Adamu Abubakar (Plateau United); Osy Martins (Lobi Stars); Sikiru Alimi (Remo Stars); Temitope Vincent (Plateau United); Samuel Ogunleye (3SC); Abiam Nelson (Kano Pillars); Meyiwa Oritseweyimi (Bendel Insurance); Ngbemena Ikechukwu (Heartland FC); Sunday Megwo (Abia Warriors); Umar Al-Amin Ibrahim (El-Kanemi Warriors); Adams Aminu Sani (Kano Pillars)

Italian footballer Edoardo collapses during Serie A game

Our Reporters4 months ago4 months ago03 mins

Fiorentina midfielder Edoardo Bove is in a medically induced coma after collapsing on the field during his team’s Serie A match at home to Inter Milan, with the game abandoned shortly afterward. Bove’s teammates immediately called for medical help and both sets of players surrounded the 22-year-old while he was being treated before he was swiftly stretchered off to an ambulance near the pitch and taken to Careggi Hospital in Florence on Sunday. “Fiorentina and the Careggi University Hospital announce that the footballer Edoardo Bove… is currently under pharmacological sedation and hospitalised in intensive care,” Fiorentina said in a statement. “The first cardiological and neurological tests performed have ruled out acute damage to the central nervous system and the cardio-respiratory system. Edoardo Bove will be re-evaluated in the next 24 hours.” ACF Fiorentina and the Careggi University Hospital have announced that footballer Edoardo Bove, who was treated on the pitch following a loss of consciousness during the Fiorentina v Inter match, is currently under sedation and is hospitalised in intensive care. Sky Italia reported that the player regained consciousness while he was in the ambulance and was managing to breathe on his own. Bove’s parents and his girlfriend have arrived at the hospital along with Fiorentina coach Raffaele Palladino and most of his teammates, as well as club directors and the city’s mayor. Fiorentina fans have also gathered outside the hospital and displayed a banner with the words: “Forza Edoardo, Florence is with you.” Fiorentina president Rocco Commisso echoed that sentiment and the club said he and his family are in constant contact from the United States to support Bove and his family. “Forza Edoardo, we’re with you,” Commisso said. “You’re a strong boy with a great character.”

Tinubu departs France for South Africa

Our Reporters4 months ago4 months ago03 mins

President Bola Tinubu will leave France on Monday for Cape Town, South Africa, to co-chair the 11th session of the Nigeria-South Africa Bi-National Commission alongside President Cyril Ramaphosa. The presidential BNC, scheduled for Tuesday, December 3, will be preceded by a ministerial meeting on December 2, 2024, at the South African Parliament Building in Cape Town. President Tinubu and President Ramaphosa will engage in substantive talks on a wide range of issues of mutual interest, including bilateral, regional and international matters. Building on the commitments from their June 20, 2024, meeting in Johannesburg shortly after President Ramaphosa’s inauguration for a second term in office, the two leaders will review the progress achieved since the 10th session of the BNC held in Abuja from November 29 to December 1, 2021. The 11th session of the BNC will feature deliberations across eight working groups, each focusing on a specific area of mutual interest. These include political consultations, consular and migration, banking and finance, defence and security, manufacturing, social sector, mines and energy, and trade and investments. At the high-level meeting, officials of both countries will sign several Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) and agreements. The Nigeria-South Africa Bi-National Commission was established in 1999 to further strengthen the ties of friendship and cooperation between the two nations. The first session at the Heads of State level was held in October 2019 in Pretoria. The BNC provides a platform for sustaining high-level dialogue and promoting cooperation in critical areas such as diplomacy, economy, trade, security and other areas of mutual interest. This year’s meeting is particularly significant as it coincides with the 25th anniversary of the Commission, a testament to the enduring friendship and cooperation between Nigeria and South Africa. President Tinubu will be accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising state governors, ministers, and senior government officials, He will return to the country after the BNC meeting.

Habeeb Akeem wins 1st Kwara Governor’s Cup Open Golf Tourney

Our Reporters4 months ago4 months ago07 mins

The 1st edition of the Kwara State Governor’s Cup Open Golf Tournament took place from the 15th to 17th November, 2024 at the prestigious Ilorin Golf Club. Akeem Habeeb of Ilorin Golf Club has emerged the champion of maiden Kwara Governor’s Open golf tournament. The rising star playing handicap 4 emerged winner with a gross of +5, 149 over 36 holes. Habeeb who also won the 7th edition of the Kwara Open Golf Tournament which took place at same venue in August and Insurance Open at Ibadan Golf Club carded +6; 78 on Sunday after opening the event with a – 1, 71 gross on Saturday. Despite the hot pursuit by the Nigerian number one amateur golfer, Olajide Owolabi of Abeokuta Golf Club and Oladele Samson of Ekiti Golf Club, Habeeb held tightly to his lead to see of the two challengers who finished +7, 151 and +8, 152 gross in 2nd and 3rd respectively. The event which featured over 140 players from different clubs across the country such as Sagamu, Abeokuta, Ekiti, Tiger, Ibadan, Ikeja, Dolphin, IBB, Rosanny golf clubs and of course Ilorin Golf Club saw Olaitan Kayode of Ilorin Golf Club winning the best net prize with a net of 137 over 36 holes, beating Onoyivwe D. of Sagamu Golf Club to 2nd place with a net of 143 and pushing Oladele I of Rossany Golf Club to the 3rdplace with a net of 145. Adekeye Ayanfeoluwa and Paul Adache both of Ilorin Golf Club returned 146 and 149 net to clinch 4th and 5th positions respectively. For Handicap 13-28 category it was an Ilorin Golf Club affairs with Hamza Ojo clinching the star price with 137 net, followed by Dr. Lucky Itsekor in 2nd place with 139 net, Ibrahim Adeyemi in third place with a net of 140 Babatunde Abdulwahab returned 141 net to clinch the fourth place while Muhammed Ibrahim 142 net was good enough to earn him the fifth position and Aliu Shola losing on count back with 142 net to Muhammed Ibrahim in the 6th position. Part of the participants who registered his name in the winning list is the B.O.T. Chairman of the Club, Hon. Justice Lambo Akanbi (Rtd) of Ilorin Golf Club who won the BOT category with 70 net over 18 holes. Men’s veteran went to Alaba Yahaya of Ilorin Golf Club, who carded 73 net pushing Commodre A.J. Taiwo (rtd.) to the 2nd Position with 74 net. Super Veterans category went to Prof. Ben Ogunlade of Ogbomoso Golf Club. Best gross ladies was won by Opeyemi Adenigba of Ekiti Golf Club with a gross of 171 over 36 holes while Nihilola Olawuyi of Ilorin Golf Club won the best net with 128 net over 36 holes. Folashade Ajala and Patience Ekwere both of Tiger returned 152 net and 160 net to finish 2nd and 3rd in the ladies net category respectively. The ladies super veterans’ prize category went to Ms Zulu Omo-Ikerodah of Ikeja Golf Club. In his remark, Director of the tournament and representative of Slqufort Nigeria Limited, the marketing outfit that put the event together, Barr. Oludare Akanbi thanked the Title Sponsor, Kwara State Government and other co-sponsors and donors for their financial and material support which contributed to the huge success of the tournament. Among the corporate sponsors are First Bank Plc, Femtech IT, Emirates Global Hotels Limited, Yolas Consultants, Momrota Pharmacy, Rotamedics Pharmacy, Kam Abioye Estates and Adeslam Properties Limited. Other sponsors are Senator Sadiq Umar, Senator Lola Ashiru, Hon. Justice Lambo Akanbi (Rtd), Engr. Lanre Sagaya, Otunba Olusola Adekanola, Otunba Layi Malik, Dr. AWA Ibraheem, Professor Dibu Ojerinde, Hon. Tunji Olawuyi Ajulo Opin, Dr. Isaac Ishola, and Engr. Babatunde Ibikunle (ATM). In his speech, Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq pledged government’s continuous support towards the development of Golf and sports generally in the state. The Governor who was represented by the Executive Chairman Kwara State Sports Commission, Malam Bolakale Mogaji pledged the State Government continued support for the next edition of the tournament which he promised will be bigger and better and the forth coming Ilorin Ladies Open Golf Tournament slated for early 2025.

EFCC arrests suspected internet fraudster in Abuja

Our Reporters4 months ago4 months ago01 mins

Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Wednesday, 27 November 2024, arrested one suspected internet fraudster. The suspect was arrested at No.25 Aliyu Modibbo Street, Guzape Hills, Abuja following credible intelligence on his alleged involvement in internet fraud. Items recovered from him include a Range Rover Velar 2019 model, $4100 (Four Thousand One Hundred United States Dollars), N2,000,000 (Two Million Naira) cash, One AP silver wrist watch, two mobile phones and one laptop. He will be charged to court upon conclusion of investigations.