Sports

LaLiga Stars to watch out for at 2019 Africa Cup of Nations

Published

5 years ago

June 14, 2019

grassroots

BY: Ikenna Oluka

With the 2019 instalment of Africa’s premier international tournament set to kick off in Egypt, here’s a look at some of the very best LaLiga Santander representatives across the 24 competing nations.

Roll Call:

Algeria: Aïssa Mandi (Real Betis)

Angola: Jonás Ramalho (Girona), Jérémie Bela (Albacete)

Cameroon: Wilfrid Kaptoum (Real Betis), Karl Toko Ekambi (Villarreal CF)

DR Congo: Giannelli Imbula (Rayo Vallecano)

Ghana: Mubarak Wakaso (Alavés), Thomas Partey (Atlético Madrid), Kwabena Owusu (CD Leganes)

Guinea: José Kanté (Gimnàstic de Tarragona)

Kenya: Ismael Athuman (Las Palmas)

Mauritania: Aly Abeid (Alcorcón), Moctar Sidi El Hacen (Real Valladolid)

Morocco: Munir Mohand Mohamedi (Málaga), Bono (Girona), Sofiane Boufal (RC Celta), Youssef En-Nesyri (Leganés)

Nigeria: Kenneth Omeruo (Leganés), Moses Simon (Levante), Samuel Chukwueze (Villarreal)

Senegal: Moussa Wagué (Barcelona), Alfred N’Diaye (Málaga)

Tanzania: Farid Mussa (CD Tenerife)

THOMAS PARTEY (ATLETICO DE MADRID & GHANA)

As a regular starter at title-challengers Atlético de Madrid, Partey is one of the poster boys for this summer’s Africa Cup of Nations. The 25-year-old tends to play a more attacking role for Ghana than he does for Diego Simeone at Atleti, we may be set to see one or two of his trademark long-range strikes as he looks to lead the Black Stars to their first AFCON title of the 21^st century.

YOUSSEF EN-NESYRI (CD LEGANES & MORROCO)

En-Nesyri scored his first international goal during the 2017 AFCON and has come a long way since then. Still just 22, the Fez native has turned heads in LaLiga Santander this season with Leganes and finished the season as the side’s top scorer. The versatile striker went from strength to strength through the campaign – becoming the first player in club history to score a hat-trick in February – and will be looking to finish his breakout season with some international silverware in Egypt.

MOUSSA WAGUÉ (FC BARCELONA & SENEGAL)

Just 20 years of age, Moussa Wagué has already scored at a World Cup and played for the Barcelona first team. That’s not bad at all! The up-and-coming full-back – of whom those in the Camp Nou offices have very high hopes – has impressed mostly for Barcelona’s reserve side this season and now turns his focus to the AFCON where Senegal are set to face Algeria, Kenya and Tanzania in Group C.

KENNETH OMERUO (CD LEGANES & NIGERIA)

Leganés registered their highest-ever finish in LaLiga Santander in 2018/19 (13^th), conceding just 43 goals along the way – the fifth-best record in the whole league – thanks in no small part to the performances of Nigerian centre-back Kenneth Omeruo. The Abia State native, who has voiced his desire to make his loan switch from Chelsea permanent this summer, is now gunning for his second African Cup of Nations title after winning the 2013 edition while still a teenager.

MOSES SIMON (LEVANTE UD & NIGERIA)

Moses Simon went from strength to strength in his first season in LaLiga with Levante, featuring in 14 of his side’s last 16 league games as they steered clear of relegation. The versatile Simon proved his worth to coach Paco Lopez either as a wing-back or traditional winger on both flanks and now goes into his first major tournament with the Super Eagles.

AÏSSA MANDI (REAL BETIS & ALGERIA)

Mandi, who made his international debut in 2014, is set to play in his third AFCON tournament. The Real Betis centre-back will now be hoping it’s third time lucky after rounding off an impressive season in LaLiga; not only was the 27-year-old as strong as ever in defence, but he also took his passing game to new heights, finishing the season with a pass completion rate of 92.6%, behind only Barcelona’s Arthur and Real Madrid’s Toni Kroos.

KARL TOKO EKAMBI (VILLARREAL CF & CAMEROON)

Karl Toko Ekambi is set to play a key role in attack as Cameroon look to retain the title they won in 2017. The frontman impressed with 18 goals in his debut season with Villarreal and heads to Egypt brimming with confidence after helping the Yellow Submarine steer clear of relegation in what was a difficult season for the side from Spain’s east coast. Toko Ekambi, still just 26, has even captained his country on a few occasions and has quickly established himself as one of LaLiga’s deadliest strikers.

MUBARAK WAKASO (D. ALAVES & GHANA)

This will be Mubarak Wakaso’s fourth Africa Cup of Nations and the 28-year-old will be determined to make this one to remember after the disappointments of 2013, 2015 and 2017. The Alavés midfielder boasts bags of experience and travels to Egypt after an impressive year in LaLiga which saw Alaves in contention for the European spots for months before finishing a creditable 11^th.

The LaLiga players to watch out for at AFCON 2019

SAMUEL CHUKWUEZE (VILLARREAL CF & NIGERIA)

The 20-year-old from Umuahia in Abia State has been linked with a number of top clubs across Europe this summer for good reason. Promoted to the Villarreal senior squad midway through the 2018/19 season, Chukwueze wowed fans with his electric dribbling and direct style and picked up five goals as Villarreal secured their LaLiga Santander status for another year. He could have represented Nigeria at the Under-20s World Cup this summer but will instead travel with the senior squad to Egypt. A potential secret weapon off the bench for Gernot Rohr.

ALY ABEID (AD ALCORCON & MAURITANIA)

It’s not just LaLiga Santander players that’ll be representing Spanish football at this summer’s tournament. There are also a number of talented players from LaLiga 1l2l3, Spanish football’s second tier, and one of them is Aly Abeid. A left-back for AD Alcorcon on loan from Levante this season, the rangy wide man has been called up to the Mauritania national side for the first as they head to their first-ever AFCON.

Sports

QNET and Man City Mark 10th Anniversary of their Partnership

Published

2 months ago

September 15, 2024

grassroots

QNET and Manchester City 10th year anniversary (Photo: Techeconomy)

Man City counts 28 trophies in the last 10 yearsQNET, an Asian direct selling giant and Manchester City, a top Football club in and outside England, are celebrating 10 years of partnership with great results.

The anniversary was part of the 26th V-Malaysia Conference (VCON) at Penang in Malaysia.

The long-standing partnership will see QNET continue as Official Direct Selling Partner for City’s men’s and women’s teams, according to Techeconomy report.

This partnership marked a significant milestone in May 2018 when City welcomed QNET as the first sleeve partner in the Women’s Super League.

Throughout the next phase of this partnership QNET will continue to provide City-led football clinics to communities around the world, as well as engaging with consumers and distributors through this relationship with City.

In a message to the leaders of QNET and the 8,000 VCON participants from over 30 countries, Ferran Soriano, the chief executive officer of Manchester City FC, said they are pleased to achieve great milestones that would not have been possible without the support and the commitment of everybody at QNET, “and every single one of you. I do remember back in 2014 when I met the leadership of QNET for the first time, and we discussed our plans, our ambitions, and we promised a lot.

“We promised that Manchester City would be a great football team, and that they would play beautiful football. Now, 10 years since then, we hold 28 trophies. I have to be honest and say that when we promised we were going to do well, we didn’t think we were going to win 28 trophies.

“We’re excited now we’re starting a new season, and guess what? We want to win again, and if we do, it would be another record. Maybe we can win the fifth Premier League in a row. Obviously, something that hasn’t happened before. I can promise that we will fight for all the trophies like you fight for all your objectives. Manchester City and QNET have the incredible power to engage people from every country, create a sense of community and empower individuals and teams to achieve their aspirations”.

He promised Manchester City’s support to the QNET brand to achieve even more successes in the coming years.

Trevor Kuna, the CEO of QNET said that the partnership with Manchester City has made positive impacts on the business.

QNET’s grass-roots business model enables ordinary people from all walks of life to start their own business with minimal overhead.

With hard work and dedication, QNET distributors, known as Independent Representatives (IRs) have the opportunity to become economically self-sufficient, raising the standard of life for their families and communities.

QNET is driven by two important philosophies: RYTHM (Raise Yourself to Help Mankind) and InService.

Meanwhile, the highlight of the QNET and Manchester City celebration was the presentation of a 10-year partnership anniversary plaque by John Kirton, senior partnership marketing manager, Manchester City Football Club to the QNET team.

Sports

Robinho To Serve A 9 Year Jail Term Over Gang Rape

Published

8 months ago

March 21, 2024

Alice Ginika Simon

Former Manchester City and Real Madrid striker Robinho will reportedly serve a nine-year jail sentence for gang rape – Imposed on him by an Italian court — in Brazil, judges in Brasilia has ruled.

The 40-year-old was found guilty in Italy in 2017 and according to Globo, Brazil’s Superior Court of Justice (BSCJ), made the ruling on Wednesday, March 20, 2024.

The former Premier League player, whose real name is Robson De Souza, was one of six men who were found guilty of a§§aulting an Albanian woman in an Italian nightclub in January 2013.

In January 2022, the Supreme Court in Rome dismissed his final appeal against the conviction, according to the report.

Robinho claims he is innocent and has been living in Brazil for the past seven years. It came after nine of the court’s 15 ministers had voted in favour of the decision to incarcerate the footballer in Brazil.

Globo also claims that the ex-footballer, who also spent time at AC Milan and Real Madrid, will now be arrested in Santos, where he currently resides.

Robinho, who was 28 and was playing for AC Milan at the time, admitted during his appeal to having ‘contact’ with the woman, but the Brazilian insisted it was consensual.

The Milan Court of Appeals found Robinho had ‘belittled’ and ‘br¥tally h¥miliated’ the victim as it upheld his original sentence in December 2020.

Intercepted phone calls between the Brazilian and those allegedly involved in the assault were used as key evidence in his initial conviction.

Sports

Former Tennis Champion, Tania Okpala Returns To Tennis After Rehabilitation

Published

9 months ago

March 1, 2024

Alice Ginika Simon

Anambra State Governor, Charles Soludo, has revealed that former tennis champion, Tania Okpala, has resumed playing on the courts.

This development follows Soludo’s assurance that she would undergo rehabilitation after a video surfaced online showing her in distress on the streets of Awka, pleading for assistance.

In an update on his social media handle on Thursday, Soludo expressed his satisfaction with Okpala’s return, stating, “Tania Okpala is back on the courts!

“A few months ago, social media was flooded with a viral video showing Ms. Tania in a distressing state on the streets of Awka. I am pleased to report that we have successfully restored Tania to her winning ways.”

Okpala, who hails from Anambra and has a Belarusian mother, represented Nigeria in the 1990s.

Here are pictures of her in the tennis court.