Aluko Still Hoping To Play In The World Cup

Sone Aluko (25), the Hull City forward and Nigerian international has recovered from his injury and is back in squad of his club.

He first played for Nigeria in 2009 and played his last game for the country in June, 2012.

Nigeria will be playing friendly match against Mexico on the 5th of March in Atlanta, George USA.

The Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi has released the names of the 23 players he invited to prosecute the match.

Aluko was not named in the list but he has not given up the dream to play in the World Cup in Brazil. Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com

He believes that he still has a chance to be in the coach Keshi's selection for the World Cup.

''I believe I do have a chance of making the World Cup squad, even though I have been out of the squad for a time,'' he told BBC.

''Until the 'Big Boss' (Stephen Keshi), decides the team then many players will believe they still have a chance and I'm no different, we all want to be in Brazil playing,'' Aluko said.

The player still believes that there is enough time and matches for him to do well and be called back to the national team.

''There's enough time and matches, which hopefully should be enough to break into the Super Eagles team again,'' he added. 


Champions League Results (25 and 26/02/14)

Olympiakos                    2  -  0   Man United

Zenit St Petersburg        2  -  4    Borussia Dortmund

Schalke 04                     1  -  6    Real Madrid

Galatasaray                    1  -  1    Chelsea

Sochi Winter Olympics 2014 Final Medal Count

The following is the final medals count of the just concluded 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics. As is with every sporting event, there were winners and there were losers.

 Many hopes were dashed and many others celebrated their victories. One can safely say without any equivocation, that it was the year of small countries.

 Many small countries did very well, such as Norway which won eleven gold medals and was only second on the table to the host, Russia, which won 13 gold medals.

Another small country which did amazingly well was the Netherlands, which won eight gold medals and placed fifth on the table, a gold medal behind the mighty USA which finished fourth.

Anyway, without much ado, the following table is the final standing of the event. Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com


Country                       Gold           Silver          Bronze          Total

1.   Russia                    13               11               9                    33

2.   Norway                  11               5                 10                  26

3.   Canada                   10               10               5                    25

4.   USA                        9                7                12                   28

5.   Netherlands            8                 7                9                     24

6.   Germany                 8                 6                5                    19

7.   Switzerland             6                 3                2                    11

8.   Belerus                    5                 0                1                    6

9.   Autstria                   4                 8                5                    17

10. France                     4                 4                7                    15

11. Poland                     4                 1                1                    6

12. China                       3                4                 2                    9

13. S. Korea                   3                3                 2                    8

14. Sweden                    2                7                 6                    15

15. Czech Rep.              2                4                 2                     8

16. Slovenia                  2                2                  4                    8

17. Japan                       1                4                  3                    8

18. Finland                    1                3                  1                    5

19. Great Britain           1                1                  2                    4

20. Ukraine                   1                0                  1                    2

21. Slovakia                  1                0                  0                    1

22. Italy                         0                2                  6                    8

23. Latvia                      0                2                  2                    4

24. Australia                 0                2                  1                     3

25. Crotia                     0                1                   0                     1

26. Kazastan                 0               0                    1                     1

             

           

Sochi Olympics Final Medals Count

The Sochi Winter Olympics has come and gone, and Vladmir Putin has shown the world, that with their mega oil money they can not only host the Winter Olympics, but also any other big world sports events, such as the FIFA World Cup, coming up in Russia in 2018.

Before the games began, there were media hype of the violence in the country, which fueled peoples fear of the visitors safety. There was the threat and fear, that the so called widow bombers will disrupt the games.

That is Moslem women from Chechnya, who are widows who lost their husbands in Putin's war with Chechnya. Some of them have been involved in suicide attacks in the past, and prompted fear among many that they may use the oppoturnity of the games, to stage an attck on the masses there.

Putin and his security men put them in check, as was shown on television before the games started. The games arena and accommodations were secured and the security people did a good job and there was no incident.
Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com

The issue of anti gay laws that was passed before the games began, which many western countries protested about and tried to use it, to turn the game into international politics did not cause much commotion as was anticipated by many.

Putin who spent $50b dollars of Russian oil money to stage a spectacular sports event, promised the world that nobody will be persecuted during the games, because of their sexual orientation.

He kept his word, though the punk band - Pussy Riot that seem to be a thorn in the flesh of Putin, protested against Putin and his authoritarian style of governance.

They were on each occassion of their demostrations arrested and released. The band members were even seen on telly being whipped by a security agent, for demostrating in a games area that was not designated for protest.

Putin designated an area far away from the games arena for demostration, which nobody wanted to use, because the media was not covering there as everyone was at the games village.

Inspite of these minor issues, one can say that the sporting event was a big success, which was one of the reasons Putin wanted to show the world. That is, that Russia can successfully host a world sporting event.

Some European League Results (21, 22, and 23/02/14)

        EPL

Chelsea         1  -  0    Everton
Arsenal         4  -  1    Sunderland
Cardiff          0  -  4    Hull
Man City      1  -  0    Stoke
West Brom   1  -  1    Fulham
C. Palace      0  -  2    Man United
West Ham    3  -  1    Soton
Liverpool     4  -  3    Swansea
Newcastle    1  -  0    Aston Villa
Norwich       1  -  0    Tottenham

French Ligue 1

Monaco            3  -  2   Reims
Bastia               0  -  2   St. Etienne
Marseille          1  -  0   Lorient
Bordeaux          2  -  1   Evian Thonon
Valenciennes    2  -  2   Sochaux
Montpellier       2  -  0   Ajaccio
Guingamp         1  -  0   Nice
Nantes               0  -  3   Rennes
Toulouse           2  -  4   PSG
Lille                  0  -  0   Lyon

David Alaba of Bayern

 

German Bundesliga

Schalke 04        0  -  0   Mainz 05
Freiburg            2  -  4   Augsburg
Stuttgart            1  -  2   Hertha
Wolfsburg         3  -  1   Leverkusen
Hamburg SV     3  -  0   B. Dortmund
M'gladbach        2  -  2   Hoffenheim
Nurnberg           2  -  1   E. Braunschweig
Hannover 96      0  -  4   Bayern
E. Frankfurt       0  -  0   Werder Bremen

Italian Serie A

Bologna           0  -  1     Roma
Livorno            2  -  3    Verona
Juventus           1  -  0    Torino
Chievo              2  -  0    Catania
Inter                  1  -  1    Cagliari
Sampdoria        0  -  2    Milan
Udinese             1  -  1   Atalanta
Lazio                 3  -  2   Sassuolo
Parma                    -       Fiorentina
Napoli                   -        Genoa


Spanish La Liga

Real Valldolid       1  -  1   Levante
Celta de Vigo        1  -  1   Getafe
Real Sociedad       3  -  1   Barcelona
Almeria                 0  -  0   Malaga
Real Madrid          3  -  0   Sevilla
Valencia                2  -  1   Granada
Real Betis              0  -  2   Athletics Bilbao
Osasuna                 3  -  0   Atletico Madrid
Espanyol                    -       Villarreal

Dutch Eredivisie

Ado Den Haag       3  -  2    Go Ahead Eagles
Heerenveen            0  -  0    NAC Breda
Cambuur                1  -  0    Roda JC
NEC                       0  -  2    PSV
Zwolle                    1  -  1    Heracles
Twente                   2  -  2    Feyenoord
Vitesse                   3  -  1    RKC Waalwijk
Ajax                       4  -  0    AZ  Alkmaar
Utrecht                   1  -  0    Groningen

Portuguese Premeira Liga

Academica        0  -  0    Nacional
Braga                2  -  2    Arouca
Rio Ave            1  -  2    Sporting
Maritimo           2  -  0    Belenenses
Porto                 0  -  1    Estoril Praia
Olhanense         2  -  1    Gil Vicente
Vitoria Setubal  4  -  0    Pacos de Ferreira
Benfica                  -        Vitoria Guimaraes


* Note please that the teams listed without results are yet to play their match. They will either play on Monday or the match has been postponed.
Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com

UEFA Charges Pellegrini With Misconduct

The European football governing body UEFA, has charge Manuel Luis Pellegrini, the Manchester City manager with misconduct for his statement after his team lost 2 - 0 to Barcelona in the Champions League encounter on Tuesday this week in Manchester.

Mr Pellegrini, said after the match, that the Swedish referee, Mr Jonas Eriksson was ''not impartial to both teams.''

In Pellegrini's angry conference after the match he said, ''From the beginning I felt the referee was not impartial to both teams.''

Manuel Luis Pellegrini

''I think it was not a good idea to put a referee from Sweden in charge of such an important match, especially a referee who has made an important mistake against Barcelona in a previous match,'' he said.

''It's more important football in Europe than Sweden. A big game with two important teams, that kind of game needs a referee with more experience.''

UEFA said that the case will be dealt with by a discilinary panel on the 28 of this month. Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com

A statememt from the football body said, ''Following an investigation by the Uefa disciplinary inspector, Uefa has opened disciplinary proceedings against Manuel Luis Pellegrini concerning the press interview given to the media after the above mentioned match.''

''The Manchester City head coach is charged for violation of the general principles of conduct,'' the statement said.

The coach is charged even after he apologised for his angry out-burst. He seem to have realised the enormity of his accusation.

But what I fail to understand from his statement, is why he didn't think that good referees can come out of Sweden. His statement about the referee, even if he is correct, why did he make such a derogatory statement about Sweden?

He implied that quality referees cannot come out of Sweden. The country has quality FIFA and UEFA referees that officiates high profile games in Europe and World Cup.

Carmelo Anthony Wants To Be Free Agent

The National Basketball (NBA) superstar player for New York Knicks, Carmelo Anthony (29), said that he plans to become a free agent this summer. His contract with Knicks will expire at the end of the season, he will only realise his free agent dream if he is not traded before the end of NBA trade deadline this week.

He said that he know for sure he will not be traded. He was very confident of that. If the Knicks does not trade their star player, they may lose him for nothing in July, if he decides to leave the team.

''I know for a fact I'm not being traded,'' he said. ''There's two things: I know for a fact I'm not being traded and I'm not going in there and saying I want to be traded.''

Carmelo Anthony of New York Knicks

He said that he is not worried about the money aspect, that whether he stayed with the Knicks or go to another team, he will be paid.

''As far as the money, it don't really matter to me. If I go somewhere else I get paid, if I stay in New York I get paid,'' Carmelo Anthony, said.

''So as far as the money goes, that's not my concern. My concern is being able to compete on a high level, at a championship level coming at this last stretch of my career,'' he said.

Carmelo said that he will not mind to take a pay cut if it will help them to build a stronger team. Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com

''I talk to people all the time. I always say if it takes me taking a pay cut, I'll be the first one on Mr Dolan's step saying, 'Take my money, lets build something stronger,'' he said, referring to the chairman of the team.

Mr Carmelo Anthony, has not indicated, if he was to leave the Knicks, where he will prefer to go. But obviously if he is to leave the team in the summer, he will certainly go to a franchise that has more chance of winning the championship, since he has not win any yet.

Sochi 2014 Latest Medals Standing (18/02/14)

While many countries in the Sochi Winter Olympics have been experiencing some kind of disappoinment in their overall performances so far in Sochi, example United States and China, small countries such as Norway and Netherlands have been raking in the medals.

There are more events to come, so it is expected that the big countries will do better in the medals table. Time will tell.

The picture below showed the Dutch gold winner of 1,500m speed skating
Jorien ter Mors. The Dutch athletes have been dorminating the speed skating medals table in Sochi.

Jorien ter Mors

Country                    GoldGold       Silver            Bronze         Total

1.   Germany               8                    3                    4                   15

2.   Norway                 7                    4                    7                   18

3.   Netherlands           6                    6                    8                   20

4.   Russia                    5                    8                    6                  19

5.   United States         5                    4                    10                 19

6.   Switzerland           5                    2                     1                   8

7.   Belarus                  5                    0                     1                   6

8.   Canada                  4                    8                     4                   16

9.   Poland                   4                    0                     0                   4

10. China                    3                    2                     1                    6

11. France                  3                     1                     4                    8

12. Austria                 2                     6                     1                    9

13. Sweden                2                     5                     2                    9

14. Slovenia               2                     1                     3                    6

15. S. Korea               2                     1                     1                    4

16. Czech Rep.          1                      3                     2                   6

16. Japan                   1                      3                      2                   6

18. Great Britain       1                      0                      1                   2 

19. Slovakia              1                      0                      0                   1


* Please note that only countries that has won gold medals were list here.
Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com
         

                   

Champions League Round of 16 Fixtures

The Champions League is once again resuming today after the break. Fans will be entertained with the best of European football. Stars of the beautiful game are expected to showcase quality display of their talents and skills which made the stars of the game of football. Without much ado, the following are the fixtures of the two leg matches.

Champions League match (Barcelona vs Milan)

                       First Leg Matches

18/02/14

B. Leverkusen      Vs   PSG

Manchester City   Vs   Barcelona


19/02/14

Arsenal     Vs    Bayern

AC Milan   Vs   Atletico Madrid


25/02/14

Zenit St Petersburg  Vs   B. Dortmund

Olympiakos              Vs   Man  United


26/02/14

Schalke 04       Vs     Real Madrid

Galatasaray      Vs     Chelsea


                          Second Leg Matches

11/03/14

Atletico Madrid   Vs    AC Milan

Bayern                 Vs    Arsenal


12/03/14

Barcelona           Vs    Man City

PSG                    Vs    B. Leverkusen


18/03/14

Chelsea            Vs    Galatasaray

Real Madrid     Vs    Schalke 04


19/03/14

B. Dortmund    Vs    Zenit St Petersburg

Man United       Vs   Olympiakos

Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com

Sports News In Brief

Roberto Martinez, the Everton manager, said that his club is not afraid of meeting Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, in the quarter final of the FC Cup.
He said, that one always hope to play at home but in order for a club to become champion, the team must be ready to play any team.
''The draw you always hope for is a home tie, but it doesn't matter - if you want to win the cup, you have to be prepard to face everyone.
We will have to be at our best but it is something to look forward to.''
Everton reach the quarter final by beating Swansea City 3 - 1. Mr Martinez was the coach of Wigan last season when they won the cup.


The very talented Manchester United striker, Wayne Rooney (28), is reported to be set to sign a new contract of five years that will catapult him to the apex of the mountain of highest football earners. In the new contract
he will be earning €365,000 per week. He is currently earning €304,000 per week. Rooney's current contract will be expiring in 2015.


Arsene wenger, the Arsenal manager said that Jose Mourinho, the Chelsea manager embarrassed his club when he called him a ''Specialist in failure.''
Mourinho made the remark after Wenger said that some EPL managers were not addmitting their title chances for ''fear to fail.'' After beating Liverpool on Sunday, Arsene Wenger, said that Mourinho's words about him were, ''silly and disrespectful''.
''I never spoke about him in my press conference. I know one thing, it is more embarrassing for Chelsea, than it is for me.''


The just retired National Basketball (NBA) commissioner, David Stern, has been elected into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and will be inducted into the Hall with the class of 2014 on August 8, in Springfield, Massachausette. Stern retired from the job on February 1, after serving exactly 30 years as the NBA commissioner. He brought the biggest success to the league. The chairman of the Hall of Fame, Jerry Colangelo, said that they hope to have a special spot to display a tribute to Mr Stern.
''He deserves to be recognised in a huge way,'' Mr Colangelo, said.

Arsenal Revenged Liverpool Humiliation

Arsenal revenged the humiliating crushing defeat of 5 - 1, they suffered from Liverpool in the last week English Premier League (EPL) encounter, at the Anfield, by knocking them out of the FA Cup competition, with a 2 -1 scoreline to advance to the quarter final.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain scored Arsenal's first goal of the match on Sunday, at the 16th minute and set up the second goal for the German Lukas Podolski, who did not miss the opportunity to increase the tally.

Liverpool was awarded a penalty in the second half, when Lukas Podolski tripped on Luis Suarez in the eighteen yard box.
Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com

Lukas Podolski with Mesut Ozil

 

The captain of the visiting team, Steven Gerard, stepped forward and coolly tucked away the ball into the net. The goal reduced the scoreline to 2 - 1, and that was how the match remained till the end.

Manchester City also beat Chelsea 2 - 0 and knocked them out of the FA CUP, thereby revenging the defeat they suffered in Manchester, when Chelsea defeated them 1 - 0 in the last week EPL encounter.

Arsenal will meet Everton in the quarter final, while Manchesater City will be playing the current holders of the Cup, Wigan Athletics.

Some European Weekend League Results (14 to 16th Feb. 2014)

German Bundesliga

Mainz                    2  -  0   Hannover
Hoffenheim          4  -  1   Stuttgart
Dortmund             4  -  0   Eintracht Frankfurt
Bayern                  4  -  0   Freiburg
E. Braunschweig  4  -  2   Hamburg
Werder Bremen    1  -  1   M'gladbach
Leverkusen           1  -  2   Schalke
Hertha                   1  -  2   Wolfsburg
Augsburg              0  -  1   Nurnberg

French Ligue 1

PSG                   3  -  0  Valenciennes
Rennes               2  -  2   Montpellier
Reims                1  -  0   Bordeaux
Sochaux             1  -  0   Guingamp
Nice                   0  -  0   Nantes
Lorient               1  -  3   Toulouse
Bastia                 0  -  2   Monaco
St. Etienne         1  -  1   Marseille
Evian Thonon    2  -  2   Lille
Lyon                  3  -  1   Ajaccio

Samuel Etoo of Chelsea

Italian Serie A    

Milan                1  -  0   Bologna
Fiorentina         1  -  2   Inter
Catania             3  -  1   Lazio
Roma                3  -  0   Sampdoria
Atalanta            0  -  4   Parma
Genoa               3  -  3   Udinese
Cagliari            1  -   2   Livorno
Sassuolo           0  -   2   Napoli
Juventus           3  -   1   Chievo

Dutch Eredivisie    

PSV                2  -  1   Heracles
Cambuur        3  -  1   Zwolle
Groningen      1  -  0   Go Ahead Eagles
NAC Breda    1  -  1   Feyenoord
Ajax               3  -  0   Heerenveen
AZ Alkmaar  1  -  1   Utrecht
Roda JC         0  -  1   Ado Den Haag
Twente           2  -  0   Vitesse
RKC               1  -  3   NEC

Spanish La Liga      

Sevilla                 0  -  0   Valencia
Getafe                 0  -  3    Real Madrid
Athletic Bilboa   1  -  2    Espanyol
Granada              1  -  0    Real Betis
Atletico Madrid  3  -  0    Real Valladolid
Levente               1  -  0    Almeria
Barcelona            6  -  0    Rayo Vallecano
Villarreal             0  -  2    Celta de Vigo
Malaga                    -        Real Sociedad

Portuguese Premiera Liga

Belenenses              0  -  0   Academica
Sporting                  1  -  0   Olhanense
Gil Vicente             1  -  2    Porto
Pacos de Ferreira    0  -  2    Benfica
Vitoria Guimaraes  1  -  0    Rio Ave
Arouca                    1  -  1    Nacional
Maritimo                 1  -  0   Vitoria Setubal
Estoril Praia                -        Sporting Braga

Note: The English Premier League (EPL) did not play league matches this weekend but they did play some FA Cup matches.
Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com

UEFA Award For Johan Cruff

The Dutch football legend, Johan Hendrik Cruyff (66), will be presented with the UEFA President's Award for 2013. The president of Uefa, Michel Platini will present him with the award on Sunday, the 16th of February at the Amsterdam Arena, during the Dutch Eredivisie match between Ajax and Heerenveen.

The President's Award is presented every year to a former football star who has contributed immensely through their career to the develoment and success of football in Europe and outside.

Johan Cruyff, will be joining a list of former winners of European footballer of the year, who have received the award.

The list includes stars such as Sir Bobby Charlton, Alfrdo Di Stefano, Kopa Raymond, Eusebio, Gianni Rivera and Franz Beckenbauer.

Michel Platini with Johan Cruiff
 

Cruyff won the European footballer of the year three times, - 1971, 1973 and 1974.

Regarding the award to the Dutch legend, the President of Uefa, Mr Platini, said in their media release, "It is a great privilege for me to present the UEFA President's Award to Johan Cruyff, one of the truly great footballers and ambassadors for the game.''

''First as a player and then as a coach, Johan Cruyff was committed to entertaining the public with his own unique brand of football.

''A phenomenal footballer who enthralled fans across the world with his grace and style, football has been his life, from his early years with AFC Ajax to his later success with FC Barcelona and his memorable contributions to Dutch national team,'' Mr Platini said.

''Johan Cruyff's social conscience is today reflected in the education of athletes, through the Cruyff Institute and numerous projects adopted by his own foundation, across the world for poor and disabled children - using football as a means of improving their lives,'' he added.

On his own part, when Cruyff got the message that he will be honoured with award on Sunday, the 16th of February, he said:

''It is a great honour for me to receive this award and to be part of this illustrous list of names.

''I would like to share this recognition with all the people I have worked with, and am still working with, who love the game of football and are willing to invest time and energy in making it better.''

''Not only the game itself, but also the organisation around it, and the important role that football has in society,'' Johan Cruyff, said.

Johan hanged up his boots in 1984 after a highly successful playing career, which saw him win numerous titles with clubs and on individual level.
Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com

He then became coach to two of the clubs, that made him a world class footballer. He first became the coach of his home town club where he made a name for himself - AFC Ajax. He became successful and won Dutch titles with the club.

He then moved to FC Barcelona as a coach and won many domestic titles with the club and also winning in 1992 the club's first Champions League title. His last coaching job was as the coach of the Catalonia, (2009 - 2013).

 His son Jordi Cruyff is a retired professional footballer, who has played for a number of clubs including FC Barcelona under his father and Manchester United. Jordi Johan Cruyff is currently the General Manager of the Isreali club Maccabi Tel Aviv. Like his father Jordi played for Dutch national team the (De Oranje) also.

Johan Cruyff has been involved in football and football related activities throughout his life. His foundation is doing a wonderful job in helping the poor and needy.

Mario Balotelli Is The Father

Mario Balotelli (23), the AC Milan and Italian national team - The Azzurri striker, has finally accepted the paternity of a baby girl born by his ex girl friend, Raffaella Fico on December 2012.

The very talented, but irrationally explosive player accepted the verdict, that he was the father of the baby girl named Pia.

Balotelli and Raffaella has been on media war over the paternity of the child. The player denied that the baby was his, while Raffaella maintained that he was the father and must take responsibility.

Mario Balotelli with Azzurri mates

A panel conducted the DNA test over the paternity of the baby and confirmed that he was the father of the baby indeed.
Read also.. africanfootie.blogspot.com

But before the result of the test was ready, Mario wrote an open letter, in which he stated, ´´As I had said, if the tribunal confirmed I was Pia´s father, I am ready to take my responsibility.

After the result was released and confirmed that he was the father he wrote in his Twitter handle, ´´Finally the truth... Pia...Sweet child of mine!!! your Dad.´´

´´I want to do it in silence, far away from everything that is media related, when dealing with such an important rapport as the one that ties a parent to their child.´´

´´I will not take part in any TV shows, because my work is performed on a pitch. I don´t want any speculation on this matter.

´´I wrote about the DNA results on Twitter because I grew up with manners, values and know the value of the word ´love´ and ´affection.´

´´Writing ´Dad´ game me an explosion of emotion, but now I want to keep this joy for myself. I hope my silence can help to avoid any further controversy on TV or in the papers.

´´I hope my silence can help people understand there is a child here who doesn´t know how the media or television worlds work. I hope my few words can help to definitively put an end to this affair.´´

I congratulate Mario on how he handled the matter after the verdict of the panel. I hope that this new responsibility will make him to grow up, and stop behaving like a spoilt brat. In the words of his new coach, Clarence Seedorf, Balotelli needs to grow up.

Sports News In Brief

Neil Lennon, the Celtic Glasgow manager is targeting an unbeaten run for his club till the end of the season of the Scotish Premiership. He has also challenge his players to make the dream happen.

The Italian Serie A club FC Napoli managed by former Liverpool and Valencia coach, Rafael Benitez, has booked their place in the final of the Coppa Italia by beating AS Roma on a 5 - 1 aggregate.

Roy Hodgson, the England manager said, that it will be a bit hard for Ashley Cole of Chelsea, to secure a place in his starting eleven. He said that, the fact that Cole is not playing often in his club, does not mean that he can be written off. ''I certainly wouldn't write Ashley Cole out of any plans, because he wasn't playing in his club team.'' He said that for a long time other players have been studying him and now is his turn to sit back. '' For years people have been understudy to Ashley. Now it's Ashley's turn to sit back,'' the English coach said.

The 20 year old Ajax Amsterdam striker and Dutch Under - 21 star Davy Klaasen, has been attracting a huge interest from some big clubs in English Premier League (EPL) such as Arsenal, Chelsea, Man United, Tottenham and Aston Villa. But according to report, the Ajax director of football and former Ajax and Arsenal star Marc Overmars, the youngster is not for sale. The talented boy is already being hailed by many as the new Dennis bergkamp.

In spain, the Spanish giant Barcelona has reached Copa Del Rey final against the other Spanish giant club Real Madrid by beating Real Sociedad with an aggregate of 3 - 1.
Read also: africanfootie. blogspot.com

The England manager, Roy Hodgson, said in an interview with Skysports that he will not recall the Chelsea captain, John Terry to the national team.
Mr Hodgson said that inspite of the fact that Terry is doing well with his club, he will not recall him. He said that the team has done very well without him. The manager said that as far as he is concerned, John Terry has retired from international football, and that is the end of the matter.

Sochi 2014 Table Standing So Far
                    
                         Gold     Silver    Bronze    Total

1.  Germany         7         2           1              10
2.  Canada            4         4           2              10
3.  Norway           4         3           6              13
4.  Netherlands     4         3           5              12
5.  USA                4         2           6              12
6.  Switzerland     3         0           1               4
7.  Russia             2         5           4               11
8.  China              2         1           0               3
9.  France             2         0           2               4
10 Poland             2         0           0               2
11 Austria            1         4           0               5
12 Slovenia          1         1           2               4
13 S. Korea          1         0           1               2
14 Belarus            1         0           0               1
14 Slovakia          1         0           0               1

This is the table as at today. But you notice that it is only countries that has won Gold medal were included here. It is due to space, so please bear with me.

      
 

Some European Weekend League Results (7, 8 and 9th Feb. 2013)

Dutch Eredivisie

Utrecht                    1  -   2    Zwolle
Ajax                        2  -   1    Groningen
Vitesse                    0  -   0    Ado Den Haag
Feyenoord               5  -   1    NEC
Go Ahead Eagles    2  -   1    AZ Alkmaar
PSV                         3  -   2    Twente
NAC Breda             2  -   0     Roda JC
RKC                        5  -   2     Utrecht
Zwolle                     1  -   1     Ajax
Groningen               1  -   3     Heerenveen
Almelo                    1  -   1     Cambuur

German Bubdesliga

M'gladbach            0  -   1     Leverkusen
Hamburg                0  -   3    Hertha Berlin
Wolfburg               3  -   0     Mainz
Bremen                  1  -   5     Dortmund
Freiburg                 1  -   1     Hoffenheim
E. Frankfurt           3  -   0     E. Braunschweig
Nurnburg               0  -   2     Bayern
Stuttgart                 1  -   4     Augsburg
Schalke                  2  -   0     Hannover

French Ligue 1

Toulouse               0  -   0     St. Etienne
Montpellier           1  -   1     Evian Thonon
Lille                       2  -   0    Sochaux
Valenciennes         2  -   1    Nice
Guingamp              1  -   2    Reims
Marseille                3  -   0    Bastia
Ajaccio                   3  -   1    Rennes
Nantes                    1  -   2    Lyon
Monaco                  1  -   1    PSG

Spanish La Liga

Espanyol              1  -   0    Granada
Rayo Vallecano   4  -   1    Malaga
Almeria                2  -   0    Atletico Madrid
Real Madrid         4  -   2    Villarreal
Valencia               5  -   0    Real Betis
Real Sociedad      0  -   0    Levante
Osasuna               2  -   0    Getafe
Real Valladolid    2  -   2   Elche
Sevilla                  1  -   4   Barcelona

EPL

The biggest news this weekend was the crushing revenge Liverpool inflicted on the London title contender - Arsenal. In the first round encounter Arsenal defeated Liverpool 2 - 0 at the Emirates Stadium.
Anyway without much ado, here is the result of the league.

Aston Villa         0  -   2    West Ham
Liverpool            5  -   1    Arsenal
Chelsea               3  -   0    Newcastle
Crystal Palace     3  -   1    West Brom
Norwich              0  -   0    Man City
Soton                   2  -   2    Stoke
Sunderland          0  -   2    Hull
Swansea              3  -   0    Cardiff
Tottenham           1  -   0    Everton
Man United         2  -   2    Fulham

Italian Serie A
Fiorentina         2  -   0    Atalanta
Udinese            3  -   0    Chievo
Napoli              3  -   1     AC Milan
Verona             2  -   2     Juventus
Sampdoria       1  -   0     Cagliari
Parma              0  -   0     Catania
Livorno           0  -   1     Genoa
Lazio               0  -   0     Roma
Torino             1  -   2     Bologna

Ronald Koeman To Quit Feyenoord

Ronald Koeman (50), the coach of the Dutch Eredivisie club FC Feyenoord, has notified the management of the club, that he will not renew his contract with the team at the end of the season when it expires.

He will complete three seasons at the club after this campaign season ends. The club was struggling in the Dutch Premier League known as the Eredivisie, when he took over and stabilized the team.

They started winning matches again and in his first season there, the club qualified for the preliminary phase of the Champions League.

In his second season with the Rotterdam giant, they finished third on the Eredivisie table.

Ronald Koeman

The club is currently on the fourth position on the table. Koeman said in the press conference, that he is quiting based on what his instinct is telling him.
Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com

His announcement came on the hills of Marco van Basten, the coach of FC Heerenveen doing the same with his club. Van Basten said he is quiting at the end of the season, because he does not have the correct feeling to continue with the club.

Ronald Koeman and his senior brother Erwin Koeman who was the former coach of Feyenoord and currently the coach of the Eredivisie club RKC, were members of the golden team, that won the European Championship in 1988. Marco van Basten, Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard and Henk Breuklen were some of the members that conqured Europe that year.

Both Ronald and Erwin started their senior and professional career as players, with the club their father, Martin Koeman played for - the Eredivisie club, FC Groningen.

 Their father Martin who also played for the team Marco van Basten is currently coaching - Heerenveen died last December.

Ronald was asked at the press conference, what he will be doing after the season ends and he has no job. He replied that he will spend time with his family untill someone with a good offer calls him.

And he also wants to take the time to reflect on the death of his father. As aforementioned his father Martin died last two months. His father played a match for the Dutch national team (De Oranje).

Ronald Koeman, played and coached the three top teams of Netherlands - Ajax, PSV and Feyenoord. He made his name as a player with FC Barcelona and De Oranje, later became an assistant coach of both teams.

He has coached many teams which includes Ajax, Vitesse, PSV, Benfica, Valencia and AZ Alkmaar. He won many awards as a footballer.

Vidic Confirmed Exiting Man United

Nemanja Vidic (32), the Serbian international and Manchester United captain, has notified the club that he will be leaving at the end of this season when his contract finishes.

The central defender told the club's website, ''I'm not considering staying in England, as the only club I ever wanted to play for here, is Manchester United.

''I never could have imagined winning 15 trophies. However, I have decided I will move on at the end of this season. I want to challenge myself again.''

He joined the club on the 25th of December, 2005 from Spartak Moscow on a transfer fee of €8.5m.

Nemanja Vidic (Man United captain)

He subsequently made his debut for the club on January 25, 2006 against the Blackburn Rovers. Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com

''I have had eight wonderful years here,'' the very dependable defender said.

''My time at this great club will always rank as the best years of my career.''

''I will certainly never forget that fantastic night in Moscow, memories that will live with me and the fans for ever,'' he added. Vidic was refering to the night in 2008, when they defeated another English club - Chelsea in the final of the Champions League.

The Serbian won many trophies with the club, among which are, five Premier League titles in 2007 to 2009, 2011 and 2013.

He also won three League Cups in 2006, 2009 and 2010. The player had some injury setbacks, during his time at the Old Trafford, which kept him out of action for some times. Vidic has made over 200 appearances for the club.

Marco van Basten To Leave Heerenveen

The former world renowed striker for AC Milan and the Dutch national football team (De Oranje), Marco van Basten (49), who is currently the coach of the Eredivisie club, FC Heerenveen, has informed the club that he will not renew his contract with them at the end of the season.

The club's statement in their official website stated, ''Coach Marco van Basten has informed Heerenveen that he has decided not to renew his contract with the club.''

It added, ''The board regrets his decision but has to respect this course,'' that the coach has chosen.

The club did not give any reason, why the coach wants to quit, but the Dutch national newspaper AD, mentioned in their sports section, that he does not have the correct feeling, as to contunue with the club.


Marco van Basten

Marco van Basten, started his coaching career with the Young Ajax - a B team of FC Ajax, which plays in the Dutch Jupilier league, which is the second division. He was their coach for a season 2003 - 04.

In 2004 he took charge of the national team till 2008. Then after that he became the coach of his former club FC Ajax from 2008 to 2009.
Read also: africanfootie.blogspot.com

He became the coach of FC Heerenveen since 2012. Last season the club finished 8th in the Dutch league table. At this moment of his announcement the club is sitting at the 5th position of the table.

Van Basten was a very highly gifted footballer as a player. His skills and talents on the pitch were amazing.

He won the Ballon d'Or thrice - 1988 the year the Dutch national team won the European Championship. He also won it in 1989 and 1992.

That same year 1992 he won Fifa Footballer of the year award. He won Uefa best footballer of the year award also thrice - 1989, 1990 and 1992. He won Champions League twice (1988 - 1990) with AC Milan. Marco won numerous other awards as a team member and as an individual.