Global Naija Info

Madrid players celebrate one of their goals Bruno Cesar appeared to have sealed the Portuguese side a famous victory away from home, but their former player scored from a set-piece before Morata sealed three points. Cristiano Ronaldo and Alvaro Morata spoiled the party for Sporting CP with two late goals bringing Real Madrid from behind to win 2-1 in a dramatic Champions League Group F encounter at the Santiago Bernabeu. The reigning champions looked set for a shock defeat before Ronaldo stepped up and picked out the top-right corner directly from a set-piece 25 yards out, and Morata secured all three points with a 94th-minute header. Ronaldo’s 350th appearance for Madrid came against the club where he made his debut, and it looked set to be a frustrating one when Bruno Cesar put Sporting ahead two minutes into the second half. The Portuguese side had coach Jorge Jesus sent to the stands for his remonstrations at referee Paolo Tagliavento’s decision to book William Carvalho for a...

Spurs slugging it out with Monaco during the match Tottenham’s opening Champions League match ended in defeat as they were beaten by Ligue 1 side Monaco before a record 85,011 crowd at Wembley. Spurs enjoyed the highest home attendance for an English club in the Champions League, but fell behind after sloppy first-half defending. Bernardo Silva finished a rapid counter-attack to put Monaco ahead and then Thomas Lemar doubled their lead. Toby Alderweireld halved the deficit by heading home Eric Lamela’s corner. Spurs improved after the break with Dele Alli going close with a first-time shot and Harry Kane missing a chance late on but they were unable to draw level. It was Tottenham’s first match in the Champions League since 2011 and held at Wembley as White Hart Lane’s capacity is reduced due to work being done on a new stadium. Despite defeat, it will have been a profitable evening for the north London club with the crowd being the highest home attendance for an English club. ...

Aguero Sergio Aguero struck a second hat-trick of the season as Manchester City dominated Borussia Monchengladbach in their Champions League group opener. In Pep Guardiola’s first group game in charge, Aguero pounced to prod in an Aleksandar Kolarov cross and added a penalty when Ilkay Gundogan was fouled. He rounded the keeper for his third in front of around 32,000 fans, a figure hit by Tuesday’s postponement. Advertisement Substitute Kelechi Iheanacho completed the scoring, firing in from 12 yards. Monchengladbach, who saw nearly half their fans fly home before kick-off due to the rearrangement, offered little and it seemed a matter of time before Aguero added another treble to the one he hit against Steaua Bucharest in qualifying. Monchengladbach keeper Yann Sommer also produced two close-range saves to deny Aguero, as Pep Guardiola’s side fired 22 attempts at goal against a side that finished fourth in last season’s Bundesliga. City’s Champions League record features two ...

Leicester City scored one of their goals Leicester City celebrated their first ever Champions League match by romping to victory away to Belgium’s Club Brugge. Marc Albrighton scored with the Foxes’ first shot after a defensive error from right-back Luis Hernandez’s long throw. Riyad Mahrez curled in a masterful free-kick for 2-0 before half-time. Mahrez smashed in a penalty after Jamie Vardy was brought down by the keeper before Brugge’s Jose Izquierdo hit the post, adding to his bad miss at 0-0. There will be more difficult games than this, but the Premier League champions displayed a maturity and composure that suggests potential to achieve plenty more success at the elite level of European club football. This was only the ninth European match in Leicester’s history, and their first win since a victory over Glenavon of Northern Ireland in the preliminary round of the 1961-62 Cup Winners’ Cup – when 1966 World Cup winner Gordon Banks was in goal. Danny Drinkwater went close w...

Desmond Tutu South Africa’s Archbishop Desmond Tutu has been discharged from hospital in Cape Town after a three-week stay. The outspoken 84-year-old anti-apartheid cleric was admitted for treatment to bring a recurring infection under control. Last week he underwent a minor surgical procedure to address the cause of the infection. A family statement gave his wife’s reaction. BBC News reports that Mrs Leah Tutu said she was overjoyed to welcome her husband home, and promised she’d be doing everything within her power to nurture him back to full health.” Archbishop Tutu, who retired from public life in 2011, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984 for his fight against white-minority rule.

Patience Jonathan Nigeria’s anti-corruption agency has confirmed to the BBC that former first, lady Patience Jonathan is taking the agency to court following an investigation into the four of her bank accounts. But the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) refused to confirm whether it had blocked any of her funds. A letter from her lawyers, published in several Nigerian newspapers on Wednesday alleged that $15m (£11.4m) was blocked in July – and that the money is for the former first lady to settle medical bills abroad. Her lawyers, Granville Abibo (SAN) and Co, told the BBC the firm had written to the EFCC on her behalf but refused to give further information. Muhammadu Buhari won elections last year, when he beat former President Goodluck Jonathan, promising to fight corruption. Several top former military officers and politicians are currently being prosecuted for corruption.

President Uhuru Kenyatta A 20-year-old man has been sentenced to 100 years in jail for sexually abusing three girls in a church in the village of Kangaru in central Kenya. Harrison Kinyua, 20, admitted trapping the girls in the church last December as they returned chairs borrowed for a funeral, the AFP news agency reports. At the time two of the girls were aged 13 and the other 10. After molesting the girls he bought them chips to buy their silence but they still told their parents about the incident, AFP says. In his ruling, Magistrate Maxwell Gicheru, who heard the case in Embu town, said the evidence proved without any doubt that Kinyua had committed the crime, Kenya’s Capital News reports. “The sentence should act as a deterrent,” he said. It is not clear if the man received sentences for each assault individually – and that these added up to 100 years. But journalists believe the judge intends the man to serve 100 years.

Dr Pius Odubu, Edo State deputy governor The Deputy Governor of Edo State, Dr Pius Odubu has denied having an altercation with the Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, over the shift in the Governorship election from September 10 to September 28. In a statement, the Deputy Governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr Kelly Odaro, said: “Our attention has been drawn to the falsehood being circulated by some disgruntled elements on the social media, especially by one Ugiagbe Josh Eseiwi that the Deputy Governor, Rt. Hon. Dr Pius Odubu is at war with his boss, Governor Adams Oshiomhole, over the shift in date of the Edo Gubernatorial Election. “The said post even went further to suggest that the Deputy Governor had an altercation with the Governor to the extent that the Governor directed his security details to walk his Deputy out of his (Governor’s) office. “This statement is entirely false, a figment of the authors’ imagination and a desperate and continuous move to drive a wedge between th...

Governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State A Magistrates’ Court in Abakaliki has remanded one Ogobuchi Ogbonna, 25, in prison custody for causing the death of his relation, Wisdom, by drowning him. Ogobuchi allegedly tied a stone to three-year-old Wisdom’s waist and threw him into a stream in their area which got him drowned. The incident occurred at Ndievor-Nchoko, Igbeagu community in Izzi Local Government Area which is within Abakaliki magisterial district. The suspect was arraigned on a one-count charge of unlawfully causing the death of Wilson on Sept. 9, which is punishable under the Criminal Code, cap 33: Vol 1; laws of Ebonyi 2009. The accused, who pleaded not guilty to the charge, had no counsel to represent him in the matter. The Magistrate, Mr Nnachi Olughu, ordered that the suspect be remanded in prison custody till Nov. 18. The magistrate also ordered that the case file be transferred to the Director of Public Prosecution for necessary action as the court lacked the juris...

Mr. Leye Oyebade, Abia State Commissioner of Police The Commissioner of Police in Abia, Mr Leye Oyebade on Wednesday said that men of the command had rescued a 15-month-old baby girl allegedly stolen from her mother. Oyebade, who said this while briefing newsmen on some of the major achievements of the command, noted that the baby was stolen on Monday in Umuahia. He said that the suspected abductors, identified as Lawan Nuhu and Lawal Ahmed, took away the little Chinonye after drugging her mother, Mrs Chioma Chijindu at their residence at No. 8 Ohafia Street, Umuahia. He said that the suspects were arrested following a tip off, while N170,000 cash and a 307 Peugeot car with Reg. No. AZ 166 KWL, were recovered from them. “During investigation, the suspects confessed that they drugged the baby’s mother before escaping with the baby,” Oyebade said. He warned parents to be vigilant about the activities of their neighbours and strangers in their areas. The police commissioner also s...

President Francois Hollande of France French President Francois Hollande will run for a second five-year term in the 2017 presidential race, Didier Guillaume, Head of the Socialist Group in the Senate said on Wednesday. Guillaume told newsmen that even after Hollande faced a term overshadowed by terrorism and other major crises, “France needs him.’’ He added that the president would make an official announcement in December or January. Struggling with a persistent rise in jobless claims and other social strains, Hollande said in a recent interview that he would announce by the end of the year whether he would run again. He stated that he would not seek a second term if he failed to lower a long-term rise in unemployment which currently stood at 9.9 per cent. Meanwhile, polls have shown that the Socialist leader would be eliminated in the first round of the next election regardless of the rival candidates that face him.

Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike has berated the Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole for what he called his penchant for lies and his confirmed inconsistencies, simply because he is in a panic mode over the rejection of the APC in Edo State. In a statement signed by Simeon Nwakaudu, Special Assistant to Wike on Electronic Media, the governor described as completely untrue Oshiomhole’s allegations that he and his Delta State counterpart, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, had mobilised militants to Edo State to disrupt the governorship election. Wike also denied allegations that he sent N2 billion to the Edo State PDP Governorship candidate. Speaking when he granted audience to the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Rivers State at the Government House, Port Harcourt, on Wednesday, Wike said it is shocking that at his age, Oshiomhole still believes in drama and lies. IPAC comprises of all registered political parti...

Dr Okezie Ikpeazu, Governor of Abia State, Abia State Independent Electoral Commission (ABSIEC) on Wednesday announced that it would conduct council elections in the state on December 17, 2016. Chairman of the commission, Justice Igbozuruike Akomas (retd), made the announcement in a statement in Abuja. He said that polls would hold in the 292 wards in the 17 local government areas in the state. “The development is in exercise of the powers conferred on the commission by Part II, Third Schedule, Section 4, Sub-section `a’ and `b’ of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. “It is in pursuant to the Fifth Schedule, Section160 of Abia State Local Government Law No. 9 of 2002,” Akomas said. He urged interested candidates of political parties to visit the headquarters of the commission for collection of nomination forms before October 14. He said that details relating to the conduct of the election would be communicated to all the concerned parties in due course.

Nigerian soldiers Troops of the 223 Light Tank Battalion , Gusau, Zamfara, have killed 15 bandits in two separate operations in the state, the Commanding Officer of the battalion, Lt. Col. Abdullahi Adamu, said. Adamu, who made the disclosure in Gusau on Wednesday, said the operations were carried out between Sept. 7 and Sept. 10. He said an early morning raid was launched on a suspected bandits’ hideout in Dumburum forest in Zurmi Local Government Area during which seven bandits were killed, while many others escaped with bullet wounds. The commanding officer said one round of 2.7mm calibre ammunition and a pair of army desert camouflage uniform were recovered from the camp of the fleeing bandits. He said the troops then invaded Bagega area in Anka Local Government Area, but that the hoodlums had already fled before their arrival. Nevertheless, Adamu said, the soldiers destroyed the camp along with one motorcycle which was abandoned by the criminals. Similarly, he said, the tr...

FILE PHOTO: Suspected armed robbers paraded in Kaduna along with arms and ammunition recovered from them The Police on Wednesday arraigned three suspected armed robbers at a Makurdi Upper Area Court in Benue. The accused, Suega Orban, 33; Terseer Ivase, 36 and Akkaayar Shija, 42 are charged with criminal conspiracy, kidnapping and armed robbery. The Police prosecutor, Sgt. Abdulkarim Abubakar, told the court that a team of Operation Zenda Special Crack Squad arrested the accused, suspected to be members of armed robbery group at Gboko, Buruku and Ugbema. Abubakar said that the police team was in the areas in continuation of their trail of kidnappers and armed robbers terrorizing the state. He said that investigation revealed that the accused, at different intervals, conspired with eight others to kidnap and rob many people in the state. “During investigation, we discovered that the accused conspired with Terwase Akwaza aka Ghana, Teryila Ugah aka Jugas, Terzungwe Shiaondo aka Ge...

Emir of Kano, Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II The Emir of Kano, Mallam Muhammad Sanusi II, has called on the Federal Government ‎to seek the advice of economic experts in tackling current economic crisis in the country.‎ Sanusi gave the advice on Wednesday during the traditional Sallah Durbar (Hawan Nasarawa) at the Government House, Kano.‎ He said ‎that consulting the experts would help in enunciating ‎proper solution to the crisis and reduce the hardship people were currently facing in the country.‎ The emir, who is a former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), urged wealthy Nigerians to support the less-privileged in the society in order to alleviate their sufferings. ‎‎He added that Nigerians, irrespective of religious beliefs and political inclinations, should continue to pray for economic growth and development of the country.‎ He also urged the people of Kano to remain law-abiding and be their brother’s keeper irrespective of religion or ethnic background.‎ Sanusi a...

For a minute, one would think Alhaji Abdulganiyu Kola Egunjobi, the Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Agege Local Government Area of Lagos  is a fashion freak given the attention he pays to looking good. But there’s more to him than good looks. He has got brains and politics to deal with on a daily basis. In an interview with journalists, the social media manager turned politician speaks about his ambition to become chairman of Agege and his agenda for the people Give us a brief history of your background I am Alhaji Abdulganiyu Kola Egunjobi better known as Egun, a grassroot politician and graduate of school of hard knocks. I am also a graduate of the Lagos State University, LASU, where I studied Sociology. I have diploma in Purchasing & Supply Management from University of Lagos. For primary education, I attended Iloro Grammar School and State Primary School, now Ife-Oluwa, both in Agege. You may wonder, which is the school of hard knoc...

NTA logo Suspected gunmen on Wednesday attacked the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) office in Onitsha, Anambra, torching some equipment and Star Times section in the premises. Acting Manager of the station, Mr Chris Nwigwe, disclosed in Onisha that the incident occurred at about 1.40 a.m. “Some armed men tried to attack the staff on duty but only succeeded in burning down the Star Times building,” he said, adding that no life was lost in the attack. An eyewitness said that an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) was planted at the security post of the station, while tyres were set around the premises to set the station ablaze. “There was a gun duel between the armed men and policemen who are manning the office. “They managed to burn down the Star Times office while the fire was later put out with the help of people around. “This type of incident has never happened,” the source said. The Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr Sam Okaula, who visited the scene with the Anti-Bom...

Gov. Muhammad Badaru of Jigawa State The police in Jigawa on Wednesday said it had arrested a 30-year old man, Haruna Barde, for allegedly killing a 70-year old woman and her son in Jahun Local Government Area of the state. The Police Public Relations Officer (PRRO), Alhaji Jinjiri Abdu, confirmed the arrest in Dutse, saying that the incident occurred on Sept. 13 at about 10.30 p.m. in Nahuce village of Harbo town in Jahun Local Government Area. Abdu said that the victims were 70-year old Zainab Abubakar and her 50-year old son, Hassan Abubakar. He said, “yes, on Sept. 13, we received a report around 10.30 p.m. that one Haruna Barde of Nahuce, Harbo town in Jahun, allegedly attacked one Zainab Abubakar with machete. “The 30-year-old Barde also attacked the woman’s son, Hassan Abubakar, who tried to save her. “Upon reception of the report, our men immediately arrived at the scene, rescued and took the victims to hospital and arrested the suspect. “However, the woman and her son ...

Flora Ugwunwa Flora Ugwunwa set a new world record in the women’s javelin – F54 event on Tuesday at the Rio Paralympics to give Nigeria its seventh gold medal. She recorded a throw of 20.25 metres after six attempts to win the gold medal and take Nigeria’s tally to seven gold, two silver and one bronze medals. On a day when Nigeria’s medals’ search was looking to be futile after some failure in the favourite hunting ground of power-lifting, the athletics event provided succour. NAN reports that Ugwunwa beat a field of nine to set new Paralympic and world records, while Tunisia’s Hania Aidi won the silver medal with a throw of 18.88m. South Africa’s Ntombizanele Situ completed the African sweep of the event’s medals by winning the bronze medal with a heave of 17.90m. Earlier in the day, Nigeria had been so close but still far from winning any medal on the day after some unsuccessful outings. In power-lifting men’s -88kg, Opeyemi Jegede could only place fifth, while Abdulazeez Ib...

Col. Muhammad Mustapha Abdallah (retd) The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) says it has arrested a man with parcels of methamphetamine (an addictive stimulant) valued at N31 million at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos. In a statement on Wednesday, the agency said the suspect was arrested during outward screening of passengers on a South African Airline flight to Johannesburg. “The parcels of drug tested positive as methamphetamine and weighed 3.435 kg with a street value of N31 million. “The drug was detected during a routine check on a passenger on South African Airline flight to South Africa. “Two bags belonging to a man (names withheld) a 45-year-old, were found to contain parcels of methamphetamine. “Inside the bags were food items, ingredients and clothes, but underneath were a thin parcel of narcotics carefully concealed. “He was immediately arrested; investigation is ongoing,’’ the agency said. NDLEA said the suspect, who resides in S...

Catholic Archbishop of Lagos Most Reverend Martins The Catholic Archbishop of Lagos, Most Rev. Adewale Martins, on Wednesday urged government at all levels to create job opportunities, to curtail rising cases of kidnapping in the country. Martins gave the advice in an interview in Lagos. He said that the increasing incidents of kidnappings including monarchs by the youths, should be seen as the direct effect of joblessness. “In the first instance, I do not think that anything should make an individual to take away the freedom of another individual. “Only the state has the right as it were, to restrict people’s freedom, and therefore kidnapping cannot be justified in any way, it is not right. “However, we know that there are certain circumstances that make people to toe that line of life such as the poverty that is there in the land.” “And I believe that as far as government is concerned, it ought to make efforts to create more employment opportunities for people. “Ensure that ...

Uber on Wednesday launched a groundbreaking driver-less car service, jumping ahead of Detroit auto giants and Silicon Valley rivals with technology that could revolutionize transportation. In an ambitious experiment, a fleet of cars laden with lasers, cameras and other sensors, but with no one’s hands on the wheel were to be deployed by the web-based ride service on the challenging roads of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, steering themselves to pick up regular Uber passengers who are used to being fetched by cars driven by humans. Four of the Ford Fusion hybrids with their ungainly rooftop load of technology will be deployed to a select customers on Wednesday, with the company showing at least a dozen more ready to put on the streets. And Uber is well-advanced in developing a self-drive car with Sweden’s Volvo, expected to become the mainstay of the program in the near future. The cars and their backing technology have been trained on the city’s complicated grid for less than two years,...

Boko Haram insurgents A Boko Haram assault against Nigerien villagers of Toumour on Eid el Kabir day, has ended with the insurgents getting more than they bargained for. Thirty members of the group and five Nigerien soldiers were killed in the fighting in the southeastern Diffa region of Niger, according to the defense ministry, which issued a statement late on Tuesday. Reuters reported that the clash took place Monday in the village near Lake Chad and the Nigerian border, an area that has been plagued by violence from the Islamist militant group. Boko Haram had taken the nearby town of Bosso in early June, in an attack that killed 32 soldiers and was the deadliest Boko Haram assault in Niger since April 2015. Since then, Chad has sent troops to help Niger wage a counterattack. Fighting began on Monday morning when the army fell into an ambush, the statement said, adding that six soldiers were also injured and two militants were captured. “The Boko Haram fighters were trying to ...

FILE Photo: Some stranded passengers. Scores of passengers travelling back to their bases on Wednesday besieged different motor parks in Osogbo, after the Eid-el-Kabir celebration. Some of the passengers, mostly civil servants, are in the state to celebrate with their loved ones. At the popular Idi-seke Park, a passenger, Mrs Olanike Yusuf, said she was at Ikirun, an ancient town near Osogbo, to celebrate with her in-laws. Yusuf said that she needed to catch up with business deals in Lagos, hence the need to leave early. She, however, described her experience during the celebration as pleasant with the high level of security put in place and the general serenity of the township. Another passenger at Ota-efun Park, Alhaji Saka Ilumoka, said he came to Osogbo to celebrate with his family and that he was returning to Abuja to get back to work. He said this year’s Eid-el-Kabir festival was not too “fun-filled”due to the harsh economic situation. He urged the government at all leve...

Nelson By Nelson Ekujumi With about 72 hours away to the conduct of the 2016 Edo state gubernatorial election and in the midst of repeated assurances by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of its preparedness to ensure a credible exercise, Nigerians and indeed, lovers of democracy were thrown into a state of shock by the sudden media briefing of the Nigeria Police and the Department of State security (DSS) in Abuja, the federal capital on Wednesday 7th September, 2016, calling on INEC to postpone the elections over security threats by those, it referred to as insurgents and extremists to cause mayhem in the country between September 12 and 13, 2016 of which Edo state was one of the targets. The disappointment and panic caused by this security advise on the heartbeat of our democracy is beyond description because nobody saw it coming as all the political parties and their candidates had campaigned vigorously and were on the eve of rounding it up, the local and inter...

File Photo: Ekiti State civil servants who arrived late to work begging Governor Ayo Fayose during his unscheduled visit to the state secretariat Public and private outfits in Osogbo, Osun, on Wednesday resumed for work after the two-day Eid-el-Kabir holiday declared by the Federal Government The Federal Secretariat appeared boisterous as a result of human traffic. The various offices in the State Secretariat in Abere, Olorunda Local Government had opened for duty as early as 8 a.m. A visit to both secretariats saw their staff members exchanging pleasantries and cleaning up their offices in readiness for the day’s work. Mr Jimoh Kabir, a civil servant with the Government of Osun State said that the break provided him the opportunity to celebrate the Sallah with his extended family in his town. “It is good to be back again. I had to resume for work this morning because I knew any extension would amount to my over reaching my boundary. “I will simply say this break was well deser...

Sen Abubakar Sodangi The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party Board of Trustees (BOT), Senator Walid Jibrin, on Wednesday said the party would lose nothing over the defection of Senator Abubakar Sodangi to the All Progressives Congress (APC). Jibrin told newsmen in Nasarawa, his country home in Nasarawa State, that the accusation of impunity against the PDP by Sodangi was laughable. Sodangi served as senator for Nasarawa west between 1999 to 2011 under the PDP. He defected from the party to the All Progressives Congress [APC] due to what he called the inability of the PDP to purge itself of impunity and imposition of candidates. The BOT chairman, however, dismissed the claim, insisting that the party, especially in the state, would not be affected by the defection. “I don’t want to mention Sodangi’s name because I have no business mentioning his name as we suffered to mobilise and vote for him as senator three consecutive times from 1999 to 2011 under our great part...

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton greets supporters U.S. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, who has been staying at home since swooning at a 9/11 memorial ceremony due to pneumonia, will return to campaign trail on Thursday. The former secretary of state is set to speak at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute gala in Washington D.C. on Thursday and due in several battleground states next week, said her campaign, which has promised to release Clinton’s medical records later this week. Donald Trump, her Republican rival, also promised to offer up more information about his health later this week, following quarrels between the two campaigns over which candidate is more secret about their health and wealth. A damaging video of Clinton’s faint at Ground Zero on Sunday has turned the issue of health transparency onto the central stage in their White House bids. Clinton was diagnosed pneumonia two days before she fainted on Sunday but her campaign h...

Lionel Messi of Barcelona in one of his daring moves during the match Argentina striker Lionel Messi scored his sixth Champions League hat-trick on Tuesday as a rampant FC Barcelona inflicted on Celtic FC their heaviest ever European defeat. The Argentina captain cracked in an early first goal in the Group C match. Celtic’s Moussa Dembele had a penalty kick saved before Messi poked in his second. In the second half, Neymar’s free-kick sailed into the net, Andres Iniesta volleyed a fourth, Messi slid home the fifth and Suarez scored with a volley and then a side-footed finish. In their two full seasons together at the Nou Camp, Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez have scored a combined 253 goals and have assisted 120 more. Those numbers are rising quickly in the early weeks of this season — 266 goals and 128 assists. In this latest masterclass, Messi got a hat-trick of goals and Neymar a goal and four assists. They are — more often than not — unplayable. All of the weaknesses in Cel...

Bayern Munich players celebrate one of their goals Bayern Munich began their bid for a sixth European Cup title on Tuesday by hammering UEFA Champions League debutants Rostov 5-0. Robert Lewandowski’s penalty kick gave the German champions the lead before Thomas Muller swept home on his 27th birthday. Joshua Kimmich stabbed in and quickly added a header as Bayern boss Carlo Ancelotti became the first man to manage seven clubs in the competition. Juan Bernat fired in from 10 yards for 5-0. Kimmich, 21, has now scored his first goal for Germany, first Bayern Munich league goal and first Champions League goal in a 10-day period. After beating the Russian side, Ancelotti, who has won the tournament three times as a manager, said: “Can we win the Champions League? “For sure our team will be competitive this season and for the moment everything is good, but the first objective is to win the group, and then we will see the draw.’’ In another match in the same competition, Atletico Ma...

Manchester City players celebrate a goal Manchester City’s postponed UEFA Champions League group match against Borussia Monchengladbach has been rescheduled to Wednesday. Heavy rain, thunder and lightning hit Manchester on Tuesday evening, forcing the Group C match to be abandoned because of adverse weather. In a statement, City said localised flooding led to a decision being made on “safety and security grounds”. Tickets bought for the scheduled Tuesday match will still be valid. The Bundesliga side wanted the kick-off to be at 18:00 BST, but City did not have the available stewards to facilitate the request. On Tuesday night, the goalmouth at one end was heavily waterlogged at one stage, while services were stopped on Manchester’s tram network. Referee Bjorn Kuipers and officials inspected the surface at about 18.55 BST and a decision to postpone was communicated around 30 minutes later.

Flora Ugwunwa wins gold medal for Nigeria Flora Ugwunwa set a new world record in the women’s javelin – F54 event on Tuesday at the Rio Paralympics to give Nigeria its seventh gold medal. She recorded a throw of 20.25 metres after six attempts to win the gold medal and take Nigeria’s tally to seven gold, two silver and one bronze medals. On a day when Nigeria’s medals search was looking to be futile after some failure in the favourite hunting ground of power-lifting, the athletics event provided succour. Ugwunwa beat a field of nine to set new Paralympic and world records, while Tunisia’s Hania Aidi won the silver medal with a throw of 18.88m. South Africa’s Ntombizanele Situ completed the African sweep of the event’s medals by winning the bronze medal with a heave of 17.90m. Earlier in the day, Nigeria had been so close but still far from winning any medal on the day after some unsuccessful outings. In power-lifting men’s -88kg, Opeyemi Jegede could only place fifth, while Abd...

FILE PHOTO: Passengers waiting to board an Arik Air flight Arik Air will resume normal flights Wednesday morning, 24 hours after it suspended operations over problems with insurance. In a statement on its website, Arik Air, Nigeria’s biggest airline, said it will resume flights at 11 am on Wednesday, having resolved its insurance issues. The company also said that it is in the process of changing its ‘airline Liability Insurance providers’. “Arik Air, West and Central Africa’s largest airline, is pleased to announce that scheduled flights will resume from 11 am tomorrow, Wednesday September 14, 2016. “Members of the public and our customers are advised to discountenance the disparaging allegations, unsubstantiated and uninformed claims about the airline’s inability to meet its financial obligations to aviation fuel marketers and a purported withdrawal of insurance services to Arik Air by its insurers. “While the current scarcity of aviation fuel (JET A1) has impacted on the oper...

Boko Haram insurgents A new video by Boko Haram has surfaced, with the insurgents threatening to capture President Muhammadu Buhari. The footage, narrated in Hausa, is said to have been shot somewhere in Borno State, northeast Nigeria where the sect has its base. It showed suspected terrorists praying on what the narrator said is an Eid ground on Sallah day Monday, according to PREMIUM TIMES. The video was posted on YouTube Tuesday and the group said it was using it to send out message that it remained a strong force. The terrorists have lost several territory they once controlled as the Nigerian military continues its onslaught against them. The group’s leader, Abubakar Shekau, did not appear in the video, but the narrator said his deputy, whose name was not mentioned, represented him at the gathering. In the video, which was recorded in composite to capture two Eid grounds, the group stated its willingness to continue its jihad against the Nigerian state. The group also calle...

Pipeline A militant group, Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate, NDGJM, in the early hours of Tuesday, blew up the Afiesere-Iwhrenene major delivery line to UPS/UQCC, operated by Nigeria Petroleum Development Company, NDPC/Shorelines Petroleum in Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State. Vanguard reports that the attack confirmed by a leader of the group, self-styled Gen. Aldo Agbalaja, came as the Niger Delta Avengers, NDA, which ceased hostilities, last month, accused the military of harassing old men, women and innocent youths in the region under the guise of hunting for militants. Meanwhile, the Ijaw People Development Initiative, IPDI, has warned that the Federal Government’s plan to continue to militarize the region and intimidate the people despite the fact that NDA and other dangerous militant groups had opted for dialogue will not make the region to forsake the Niger Delta struggle. Also, acting Secretary of the Gbaramatu Traditional Council, GTC, Chief Godspow...

MASSOB members The Police Command in Anambra said 14 suspected members of the Movement for the Actualisation of Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) had been arrested in Onitsha over alleged illegal procession. Mrs Nkeiruka Nwode, Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, made the disclosure in an interview with newsmen in Onitsha on Tuesday. Nwode said that the arrests were carried out in different parts of the town during a procession by the group to mark 17 years of its existence. She explained that the persons were arrested for illegal procession, adding that no life was lost in the confusion that followed the arrest of the members. However, Religious Administrator of MASSOB, Rev. Apostle Ezichukwu, claimed that more than 50 members were arrested, with 20 missing and one person allegedly shot by the police. Ezichukwu, who said that the procession was peaceful, wondered why the police arrested members of the group. He alleged that security personnel from the Army, P...

Shimon Peres Former Israeli president Shimon Peres has been rushed to a hospital following a stroke, a spokeswoman said on Tuesday. The 93-year-old, who suffered a light heart attack in January, received a pacemaker last week. Peres served as Prime Minister for eight months after the assassination of Premier Yitzhak Rabin in 1995 and for a brief term between 1984 and 1986, under a rotation agreement with Yitzhak Shamir. He later was elected Israel’s ninth President between 2007 and 2014. Widely respected abroad as a “warrior for peace,” he shared the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize with Rabin and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat for signing the 1993 interim Oslo peace accords.

Donald Trump, official Republican Presidential nominee Let me start by disclosing that I have been a Republican throughout my donkey’s years in America. This affinity is shaped by my values as an African. For we are fundamentally religious, pro-life, support prayers in school and advocate school choice. More profoundly, we promote traditional marriage between a man and a woman. We also work very hard, strongly oppose higher taxes, and are very cold to radical feminism. These conservative principles are widely shared by most people of colour as well as the Republican Party. Therefore, even as the minorities have generally owed their allegiance to the Democratic Party in recent decades, there is always a high possibility for a dramatic shift. Such shift had seemed ripe in the 2016 presidential election that determines which party takes over from President Barack Obama. Vaulted to power on the mantra of hope and change, Obama has been painted as opaque by the minority groups that anch...