SPORTS
Benzema Treble as Real Madrid beat UCL Holders Chelsea, Bayern Munich Lose
Karim Benzema scored back-to-back UEFA Champions League hat-tricks as record winners Real Madrid took a big step towards the semi-finals with a 3-1 victory at title-holders Chelsea on Wednesday.
France striker Benzema headed home twice within three minutes midway through the first half.
He completed his treble seconds after the restart owing to a terrible blunder from goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.
Benzema had also scored a hat-trick in the previous game Real Madrid won with the same 3-1 scoreline, against Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in the last 16.
Kai Havertz was on target shortly before half-time for the Blues who eliminated Real Madrid in last year’s semi-finals.
They now face an uphill battle next week at the Bernabéu.
“They’re magic nights, like the other day at the Bernabéu against PSG. Today (Wednesday) we came out to win, to show we’re Real Madrid,” Benzema later said.
There was more joy for Spain as Europa League winners Villarreal beat harmless Bayern Munich 1-0 with the goal from Arnaut Danjuma’s early strike.
It was their next upset bid following a last 16 elimination of Juventus.
The other two first leg games were played on Tuesday, with Liverpool well placed winning 3-1 at Benfica while Manchester City edged Atletico Madrid 1-0.
Former Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti tested negative just in time to make it to Stamford Bridge after a coronavirus infection at the helm of Real Madrid.
He then saw the unmarked Benzema head the opening goal in the 21st minute off a cross from Vinicius Junior who had hit the top of the bar earlier.
The goal rattled the Blues who had crashed 4-1 at the weekend against Brentford.
Three minutes later, Benzema wrong-footed Mendy by artistically heading Luka Modric’s cross into the far corner.
Havertz revived Chelsea’s hopes in the 40th minute when he headed in Jorginho’s chipped ball over the Real Madrid defence.
But Chelsea’s comeback attept stalled seconds after the restart when Mendy made a mess out of a routine pass to Antonio Rüdiger.
It left Benzema with an easy shot into the empty net for his 11th goal of the competition.
Romelo Lukaku came on only to head wide from a perfect position in the culmination of Chelsea’s woes.
“It is a heavy loss. It was one of the worst first halves that I saw from us here at Stamford Bridge,” Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel later said.
“If we keep playing like this … we will get hammered at Bernabeu.”
In Villarreal, Bayern Munich left-back Alphonso Davies played his first game of the year after heart issues but it was the hosts who drew first blood after eight minutes.
That was when Danjuma fired in a low shot to complete a slick move on the right wing with his sixth goal of the campaign.
Bayern Munich were out of sorts but lucky because Francis Coquelin was ruled offside before his seemingly attempted cross went in.
Also, Gerard Moreno was denied by the left post, and he then missed the empty net from his own half after a mistake from goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.
“It was a deserved defeat. We weren’t good today. We didn’t defend well and lost too many balls,” Bayern Munich coach Julian Nagelsmann said.
Forward Thomas Müller vowed: “We must now prepare for the return leg and hit back.”(dpa/NAN)
The finals of Gov. Peter Mbah Secondary Schools Games, on Thursday began in Enugu with the arrival and accreditation of athletes at Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium Enugu.
Dan Onwuegbuna, Director, Information, Ministry of Youth and Sports, Enugu State, said in a statement on Thursday that the games would be held between Aug.
7 and Aug. 10 at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium and the Enugu State Sports Council.“The games is designed to help the state discover talents to represent the state at the forthcoming U15 National Youth Games scheduled to take place in Asaba, Delta, from Aug. 26 to Sept. 6,” he stated.
Onwuegbuna said that apart from representing the state at the Youth Games in Asaba, talented athletes discovered would represent the state in other competitions.
He quoted the Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Lloyd Ekweremadu as thanking Gov. Peter Mbah for approving the games.
Onwuegbuna said that the games was made possible following the collaboration between the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the state Post Primary Schools Management Board (PPSMB).
The games finals followed the outcome of the inter- Secondary Schools competitions held at the local government areas in the six Educational Zones in the State – Enugu, Agbani, Awgu, Udi, Nsukka and Udenu.
“The games will feature athletics, boxing, chess, basketball, volleyball, football, tennis and scrabble,” Onwuegbuna stated.
Super Falcons goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie has been nominated for the 2025 Women’s Yachine Trophy, the Ballon d’Or award for the best female goalkeeper.
The 24-year-old recently joined Brighton Women FC from Paris FC after helping the French side win their first major title in nearly two decades.
Nnadozie delivered a heroic performance in the final of the 2025 Coupe de France Féminine, where Paris FC edged Paris Saint-Germain 5-4 on penalties following a goalless draw at Stade de l’Épopée in Calais.She was also instrumental in Nigeria’s success at the 2024 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), where the Super Falcons secured a record-extending 10th continental crown against host nation, Morocco.
Her standout displays earned her the Best Goalkeeper award and a place in the Team of the Tournament.
Other nominees for the Yachine Trophy include Ann-Katrin Berger (Gotham FC), Cata Coll (Barcelona Femeni), Hannah Hampton (Chelsea Women) and Daphne van Domselaar (Arsenal Women).
Nigeria’s Super Falcons maintained 36th position in the latest FIFA women’s world ranking.
The latest ranking was released on FIFA’s official website yesterday.
While the Super Falcons remain the number one team in Africa, WAFCON 2024 runners-up Morocco are third on the continent and dropped to 64th spot in the world.
Former WAFCON champions Banyana Banyana of South Africa maintained 54th place in the world and second in Africa.
Ghana’s Black Queens who claimed third place at the WAFCON dropped to 67th position in the global ranking.
The Super Falcons recently won their 10th Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) after coming from 2-0 down to beat hosts Morocco 3-2 in the final.
Second half goals from Esther Okoronkwo, Folashade Ijamilusi and substitute Jennifer Echegini completed the turnaround.
Okoronkwo, scored a goal and provided two assists against the Moroccans was Named Player of the Match.
Chiamaka Nnadozie was named Goalkeeper of the Tournament while Captain Rasheedat Ajibade won the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award.
Meanwhile, World champions Spain (1st, up 1) had an impressive run to the final of the UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 with five back-to-back wins, which was enough to see them reclaim top spot in the ranking, a position they previously held from December 2023 to June 2024.
The USA (2nd, down 1) have therefore been knocked off their perch, which they had occupied since August 2024.
However, three convincing home wins in friendlies during this period have kept the USA in contention, and they are now sitting less than two points behind Spain.
The top 10 has been shaken up completely since the June edition of the ranking, with France (6th, up 4) performing best among them.
France completed a flawless group stage at the European Championship before falling to Germany in the quarter-finals.
The next edition of the Women’s World Ranking will be published on 11 December 2025.
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