SPORTS
Salah, Van Dijk Doubts for Southampton Trip
Liverpool are still assessing the fitness of Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk ahead of Tuesday’s Premier League trip to Southampton where they could close the gap on leaders Manchester City to one point, manager Jurgen Klopp said yesterday.
Forward Salah and defender Van Dijk were substituted during Saturday’s FA Cup final against Chelsea, which Liverpool won on penalties to lift their second trophy of the season.
“The process is not finished yet because we only played the 120 minutes two days ago… We have a lot of decisions,” Klopp told a news conference.
“Those extra 30 minutes made a big difference… We will have to make changes, I don’t know how many.
”Klopp added that defensive midfielder Fabinho, who missed the win over Chelsea with a hamstring injury, will remain sidelined for the game at St Mary’s Stadium.
“His recovery is going very well, but he will not be involved tomorrow,” the German said.
Liverpool trail reigning champions City by four points with two games left but Klopp said he did not expect Pep Guardiola’s side, who drew 2-2 at West Ham United on Sunday, to slip up again when they host Aston Villa this weekend.
“There is a chance (of winning the league) but is there a big chance? I don’t know the last time City dropped points two games in a row,” Klopp said.
“Aston Villa play midweek as well (at home to Burnley), which they are not used to, so I don’t expect (City) to drop points there. But this has no influence on our game for tomorrow. In an ideal world, we go into the last match one point behind.”
Southampton are 15th in the table with 40 points after a run of one win in 10 games hampered their hopes of a top-10 finish.
Ralph Hasenhuettl’s side beat Liverpool when they hosted the Merseyside club last season and the Austrian said they will look to repeat the result and leave their mark on the title chase.
“It’s fantastic for the Premier League to have such a close title race. Everybody is electrified from this battle and we are now part of this duel,” Hasenhuettl said. “It’s now up to us to show we can be competitive against a top team.
“I have not often won against Juergen so that was a special moment for me. We have a similar way of playing football and big respect for each other.
“We are up against possibly the best team in the world at the moment. As long as Juergen sees he still has a chance of winning the league, he will go for it with everything he has.”
Nasarawa United Football Club of Lafia on Saturday defeated Lobi Stars of Makurdi 1-0 in a pulsating North Central derby.
The matchday 16 fixture of the 2024/2025 Nigeria Premiere Football League (NPFL) was played at the Lafia Township Stadium, Nasarawa State capital.
The Makurdi side had adopted the Lafia Township Stadium as their home ground for the 2024/2025 NPFL season.
The only goal of the match was scored by Qamar Adegoke in the 12th minute of the match to give all three points to the Lafia side.
Adegoke’s goal, who joined the Lafia team recently, was his second in four matches.
The Nasarawa attacker capitalised on a defensive error by the opponent’s backline and hit the back of the net to give Nasarawa United the advantage.
In a post-match interview, Kabir Dogo, Technical Adviser of Nasarawa United, hailed his players for taking all three points.
He explained that his team had improved by scoring five goals in their last three matches and expressed optimism that they would do better in subsequent games.
“We had a problem in the area of goal scoring in the past, but this has changed in our last three games,” he said.
With the win, Nasarawa United climbed to 14th on the NPFL table, while Lobi Stars remain on 17th position. (NAN)
The Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) is organising a two-day National Coaching Seminar, with the theme: “Leadership and Management Skills”.
The event will take place from Dec. 17 to Dec. 18, at the Additional Sports and Entertainment (ASEP) Pro Limited, in Mowe, Ogun State.
The seminar will enhance the capabilities of Nigerian table tennis coaches, with a particular emphasis on female coaches, aligning with the International Table Tennis Federation’s (ITTF) Gender Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (GEDI) Initiative.
A statement issued by the Nigeria Table Tennis Federation, on Tuesday, said that the seminar was part of the one-week sports and leadership boot camp titled “Awaken the Giant, She Can 4.
0,” proudly supported by NTTF.“This seminar will also represent the third stage of the 2024 “My Gender, My Strength” programme, which has table tennis star Abosede Akinsete, as a beneficiary.
“NTTF President,Tikon Ishaku, Vice President, Adesoji Tayo, and other board members are dedicated to initiatives that support the development of coaches.
“Wahid Enitan-Oshodi, ITTF Executive Vice President, and President of ITTF-Africa, reaffirms his commitment to empowering women in sports, in line with the GEDI Initiative.
He explained that the seminar would feature people, who would speak on leadership and management skills, to enhance the abilities of coaches to identify and develop talents, as well as encourage the development of high-performance table tennis players capable of competing globally. (NAN)
Rivers United Football Club of Port Harcourt on Sunday returned to the 2024/2025 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) summit as strong rivals Remo Stars FC faltered on Match Day 13.
Report says that Rivers United beat visiting Abia Warriors of Umuahia 1-0 after an Ndifreke Effiong 58th minute goal from the penalty kick spot.
Effiong’s goal in the match at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium helped them to move to 25 points from 13 matches, after seven wins, four draws and two losses.
Former leaders Remo Stars dropped to second with 23 points from 13 matches after seven wins, two draws and four losses, following a 0-2 loss to hosts Katsina United.
Plateau United of Jos beat visiting Nasarawa United of Lafia 2-0 to bolster their position.
Shooting Stars Sports Club also struggled to a 1-0 win over visiting Bayelsa United of Yenago.
A 15th minute goal by Anthony Okachi at the Lekan Salami Stadium in Ibadan gave them the win.
El-Kanemi Warriors of Maiduguri had on Saturday beaten Akwa United of Uyo 1-0 to move into third place on the table with 22 points from 13 games.
Enyimba International of Aba remained in fourth place with 20 points from 12 matches, with their week 13 game against Sunshine Stars of Akure on hold.
Rangers International of Enugu are in fifth place with 20 points also, after a goalless draw with hosts Heartland FC ain Owerri on Saturday.
Bendel Insurance of Benin had also beaten Kwara United of Ilorin 3-1, while Lobi Stars of Makurdi drew 2-2 with visiting Kano Pillars in Lafia.
NAN reports that the league will enter Match Day 14 on Wednesday.(NAN)
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