FA considering 800M bid on Wembley Stadium

The FA have confirmed that Shahid Khan has offered an 800m bid to buy Wembley Stadium. The FA are considering this enormous bid from the billionaire who owns Fulham and Jacksonville Jaguars. He plans to strengthen the Jaguar’s presence in the capital of England. London has started attracting interest from other NFL teams as Tottenham Hotspur signed a 10-year deal with the NFL that will see the White Hart Lane host some of the games at their 61 000-seater when it is completed. It is also believed that not many changes will be seen from the stadium as the FA are expected to keep their headquarters at the stadium free of rent while Fulham will remain at Craven Cottage. This money can be reinvested by the Football Association and finance the building of 1,500 new full-size pitches across England.

One Wembley source was quoted as having said, “If we are ever to have the chance to change the face of football in this country, this offer could make that happen.”

The terms of the deal are not quite clear at the moment but the England national team will be expected to maintain the stadium as their home. An issue could be the potential clashes between the international games and the NFL games which commence in September. The UK is really eager to grow the NFL and are excited by the potential purchase of the stadium.  

Arsenal fail to capitalize on disadvantaged Atletico as they draw 1-1 at home

The Emirates Stadium looked packed for the first time in a while ahead of the clash between Arsenal and Atletico Madrid in the semifinals of the UEFA Europa League. The night marked Arsene Wenger’s last home match in Europe and he was looking to end it on a climax. The fans were pumped up and ready to give their all as the ready whistled kick off. The referee wanted to let the players know that he was the one in command he did not waste time before flashing a yellow card to Vrsaljiko for a late challenge on Jack Wilshere. The player was standing in for Juanfran at right-back since the Spaniard is injured. Vrsaljiko was silly to make a challenge on Lacazette and the referee showed him a second yellow in the 10th minute and Atletico Madrid were down to 10 men with more than 80 minutes to go. Hector Bellerin was involved in a clash with Koke shortly after and Diego Simeone reacted outrageously which saw the referee sending him off to the stands. The Gooners could not have a better advantage to put it a great performance against the wounded Madrid side. Wenger’s men, however, failed to produce a goal before the referee called for halftime. Atletico Madrid reshaped pretty well and showed discipline.

The Spanish club never really looked like they were a man down as they also created chances to match what Arsenal were doing. Both teams wasted a couple of opportunities before Jack Wilshere’s cross was headed past Jan Oblak by Lacazette. 1-0 and Arsenal looked like they were going to score more. Atletico Madrid went back into their shell and defended with their lives while waiting for counterattacks. As you might have guessed, it only took one counter-attack and Griezmann was through on goal with only Koscielny as a threat. The French defender failed to clear the ball and Griezmann got past the on-rushing Ospina. Mustafi had the chance to block Griezmann’s shot from going in but he slipped and saw the want-away striker score Atletico Madrid’s equalizer in the 82nd minute. That was it as Arsenal failed to capitalize on their advantage. The return leg would be a steeper mountain to climb with Diego Costa expected to be fit and will start from the beginning of the match. Will Arsenal have enough to win in Spain after struggling in their away form this season?

There is hope for Santi Cazorla

The 33-year old Spaniard was seen running on the pitch today ahead of Arsenal’s match with Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Europa League. Santi Cazorla has been injured since 2016 with an Achilles that has been operated 10 times to date. The player was told by the doctors that he would not be returning to the pitch anytime soon and might not be able to walk if he is not careful after the injury had a terrible infection. The player has since been on the recovery even though his return date still remains a mystery.

Wenger has confirmed that Arsenal will assess the player’s fitness at the end of the season before offering him a new contract. The player has been missed in the heart of midfield because of his ability to dribble past any tight situations and whisker a pass with any foot to turn defense into attack. We hope that his light session in the warm-up is an early sign that the player is ready to finally make a return and challenge for a place in Arsenal who will have a new manager in the summer after Wenger leaves.

Abroad: Kalidou Koulibaly on his way to Chelsea?

Senegal and Napoli centre-back, Kalidou Koulibaly could become the world’s second most expensive defender after reports in Europe suggested that he could be leaving the Italian side. The reports cite that Chelsea are front-runners in the race to secure the Senegalese’ services and are preparing a bid of around £65 million which is only £10 million less than what Liverpool paid for Virgil Van Dijk in a world record deal for a defender.

The 26-year old has been an exceptional player for Napoli attracting interest from an array of English Premier League teams such as Arsenal, Liverpool, and Manchester City. He recently blew the Italian Serie A title race open by securing a 1-0 win over leaders Juventus for his club with a fine fine header. He joined Napoli in the summer of 2014 from Belgian side KRC Genk for a fee of £7 million and has made 161 appearances, scoring eight goals for the club.

Chelsea are looking to defensively strengthen a side that has typically failed to defend a Premier League title and sit in fifth place, five points adrift the final champions league spot occupied by Tottenham. They, however, have a chance to salvage some silverware, should they overcome Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United in the FA Cup final. Perhaps Antonio Conte’s “dark days” could end with some silver lining.

Abroad: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on why he is the “batman”

Gabonese forward, Pierre, has revealed why he has and would from time to time continue wearing superhero masks on the field of play. Speaking to Arsenal Player, the forward, who joined the North London club in January commented on the first incident where he was caught in the act:

“The very first time I put a mask on, it was Spiderman when I was at Saint-Etienne, it was a tribute to a goalkeeper at the club, Jeremie Janot. When I was younger he came out onto the pitch in the full Spiderman suit and played in goal. It was crazy! On his birthday, I put the mask on to celebrate that.” - Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

The 28-year old is clearly more than just about stylish haircuts, summersaults or bags full of goals, he has a father’s heart:

“The second time, it was my son's birthday, when I was playing for Dortmund. I did Batman and Robin with Marco Reus against Schalke in the derby.” - The “Batman”

In his eight Premier League appearances for the Gunners, the Gabonese has scored six times and registered three assists. And for all the Arsenal fans who have crying out for some swag, there is more to come:

“There are others [for fans to see], for sure. Don't worry about that! Of course, after a few goals, I'll share some nice celebrations with the fans." - P.E Aubameyang

Abroad: King Salah gives Egyptians goosebumps

It is true that Mohamed Salah has become the only soundtrack on global media houses’ playlists. But away from all of that and how much we are loving him, we look at what Cairo and Egypt as a country feels about the lad turned King. Reuters TV took a tour and here is what they got:

"Honestly as soon as Salah scores we all feel goosebumps all over our body." Coffee Shop Worker, Sherif Hussein

"Despite not being a football fan, I am very proud of Mohamed Salah. was able to present a very good picture of to the international world. About Egyptians, Arabs, and Islam. He was able to present an image of us elegantly and easily." - Cairo resident, Fatma Saad

"Mohamed Salah is the best player in Egypt and is really representing us. He will be the best player in the world. He is royalty and everyone loves him. Everyone is proud of him. He is making Egypt proud abroad." - Unnamed Cairo Resident

 More than just the endless accolades and records broken, Salah gives a whole nation of more than 90 million people, hope, a sense of pride and fulfillment and other positive feelings best explained the phrase, “he gives us goosebumps.” He just plays football and puts it in the back of the net more often than most at a humble club in Liverpool, Merseyside - but in turn, he gives people more than they could adequately articulate. That’s the amazing power of the game we all love.

Apart from being endorsed as President of Egypt in the recent elections, Salah is leading the race for both England and Europe’s golden shoe having already scored more than Messi and Ronaldo at 45 goals in all competitions.All his current successes and the possibility of him leading Liverpool to a UEFA Champions League trophy presents an exciting prospect of winning the world’s best player accolade (Ballon d’or), breaking Messi and Ronaldo’s ten years of dominance.

Can he win it?

Police arrest 2 suspects for attempted murder on a Liverpool fan

Violence has no place in football! The game between Liverpool and Manchester City created a hostile environment which saw the Manchester City bus attacked by Liverpool fans. UEFA responded to that incident and issued a penalty towards Liverpool because of the behavior of their fans. Because of that, some Roma fans thought that they could copy this unlawful behavior as they attacked a Liverpool fan near the stadium. The man who was attacked goes by the name Sean Cox who is a father of three. The 53-year old was attacked near the Kop Stand where the fans were gathering before the semifinal game between AS Roma and Liverpool started. The incident took place around 7.35pm and some witnesses have come forward to say that the victim was hit with a belt before going to ground. He was treated by the paramedics at the scene before being carried to Walton Neurological Centre by an ambulance where he is in a critical condition. He is being treated for a head injury and the police are appealing to anyone who has any information or evidence that can help their case. In the interim, two suspects have been apprehended believed to be between the ages 20 and 29 on suspicion of attempted murder.

Liverpool issued a statement after the incident saying, “Liverpool Football Club will continue to work closely with the relevant authorities to establish an understanding of the facts, following a serious and disturbing incident at Anfield last night which has left a 53-year-old supporter in a critical condition in hospital.”

This is such a shame that some fans would go all the way to fight over the beautiful game that we all love. UEFA also denounced these actions and we are waiting to see how this matter will be handled. Merseyside police have also arrested 7 other men on suspicions of affray, criminal damage, possession of an offensive weapon, among others. Our thoughts are with the victim. Let us end violence in the game.

Real Madrid win 2-1 against Bayern Munich in the semifinals first leg

Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane shocked the audience as he omitted Gareth Bale, Asensio and Benzema from his starting XI to face Bayern Munich on Wednesday night. It is not the first time that he has made these kind of changes but it had become quite predictable that he usually picked a pair of Vazquez and Asensio or Benzema with Bale but today he shacked things up a bit. Luka Modric retained his place even after a poor show in the quarterfinals against Juventus and he wanted to prove himself again.

The match kicked off and Bayern were unfortunate to lose Arjen Robben to injury in just the 5th minute of the match. He was replaced by Thiago and Bayern started to dominate Madrid in possession. It was not long before Jerome Boateng pulled a hamstring when he tried to reach for a ball that was also being contested by Marcelo. He left the pitch which disheartened the Bayern Munich fans before being replaced by Sule. It was sad to lose another first team player after the absence of Alaba, Coman, Neuer, and Robben who could not finish the game. However, this did not stop them from giving their best and they managed to score the opener in the 28th minute. Marcelo had gone on the attack which failed to produce the goal and Bayern Munich capitalized on his absence. The ball found its way to James Rodriguez who is on-loan from Real Madrid and he slid a defense-splitting pass to Joshua Kimmich. The youngster pushed the ball and looked like he was going to cross for either Lewandowski or Ribery on the far corner before taking a vicious shot that flew past Navas. The Real Madrid goalkeeper should have done better after being beaten on the near post and his weak attempt saw him touch the ball before going into the net.

The game was really end to end before Vazquez crossed the ball into the box for Ronaldo. The striker looked like he was going to repeat that overhead strike against Juventus but he probably saw that the ball was far behind him so he instead left the ball for his teammate Marcelo who connect the ball on the half-volley and it went straight to the bottom right corner. 1-1 at the Allianz Arena on the 44th minute was not what they were expecting and Bayern started to push on. They saw a couple of chances missed by Lewandowski and Muller before the referee blew for half-time. Asensio came on in the second half and he combined well with Vazquez on the break before being released to chip the ball over the on-rushing goalkeeper. Asensio made it 2-1 to Real Madrid and the Los Blancos go into the second leg at home with an away goal advantage.

Oxlade-Chamberlain to miss FIFA World Cup

What a sad day it has been for new signing Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain after finding out that his dreams of playing in a major international tournament will not come true once more. The midfielder joined Liverpool from Arsenal last summer and slowly found his rhythm before claiming a place in the starting XI for Liverpool. He dispatched the indispensable Dutchman, Wijnaldum, who had been the heart of the Liverpool side since joining from Newcastle. Chamberlain had proved his worth in some of the biggest matches that Liverpool played e.g. the UEFA Champions League clashes against Manchester City where the club was victorious on both occasions. Tuesday night was like any other working day for Chamberlain and little did he know that it was going to be the last time he would kick the ball this season. The player picked up an injury in an attempted challenge on the 18th minute and he went down in tears. He left the pitch on a stretcher and the club had to replace him Wjinaldum.

Chamberlain has been disappointed by this injury and had this to say, “Absolutely devastated to have picked up that injury at such a crucial time in the season. Gutted I won't be able to play any further part now in our Champions League run for Liverpool, and also the World Cup with England.”

This was after finding out the results of an assessment made by the club doctors at Melwood who confirmed that he will be ruled out for the rest of the season. An expected return date was not even set to show how bad his injury really is. Now he will have to sit on the sidelines and watch his teammates push for the UEFA Champions League. Will he join his teammate Lallana in rehab in Africa? We hear they have some of the best facilities in the world in Cape Town.

John Terry still has the hunger to play on next season

Former Chelsea captain John Terry left Stamford Bridge at the end of last season after having fallen down the packing order. The defender felt that he still had a lot to contribute so he decided to look for greener pastures. The thought of playing against his old club were unbearable to him so he decided to turn down offers from some of the clubs in England to go and play for Aston Villa who were in the Championship. Steve Bruce welcomed the veteran defender and it took little time before his partnership with James Chester became rock solid and they collectively helped the team to secure a championship play-off spot which can see them back in the English Premier League if they win. Now, John Terry’s worst fears will come true of having to face the club of his heart after playing for them during his teenage years till last year.

Terry said, “I still have the appetite and hunger for sure,” when he was interviewed by talkSPORT and he was eager to get the season behind him.

The defender feels that he is ready to continue to play football at the highest level but is still yet to decide on his future. If he is hell-bent on not facing Chelsea ever again then that might mean retirement for him or leave for another Championship side. However, the prospect of coming back to the English Premier League with a team that he fought for this season is an enticing prospect for the 37-year old. The player thanked the Villa fans for welcoming him and their support throughout this campaign. Joining Villa in the summer is a decision that he does not regret as he has enjoyed his time at Villa Park.

Carlo Ancelotti offered Italy job

The Italy national team did not want to waste their time in offering the experienced Carlo Ancelotti to become the head coach. This decision came from a meeting that helped between Ancelotti and the representatives of the Italian Football Association in a meeting that is believed to have lasted for an hour-and-a-half. The manager has been out of a job since being sacked by Bayern Munich in September last year and was replaced by Jupp Heynckes. The manager has since been on the radar of Arsenal who are looking for a perfect replacement for the outgoing Arsene Wenger.

Ancelotti is still yet to accept the offer for the Italy national team job which fuels speculation as to why he has not. Rumors are circulating that the 58-year old is interested in the soon-to-be-vacant job in the English Premier League with a club that has been well run over the years. He recently refused to rule himself out of the job and some fans have since expressed their admiration of a manager who is great at bringing out the best in players as well as playing an attractive form of football that has since become the identity of Arsenal since 1996. We are to believe that Ancelotti will use this offer to push Arsenal into reacting if they are seriously considering the experienced Italian boss who has managed the biggest clubs in Europe. He has managed to win 3 UEFA Champions League trophies and that is definitely something that Ivan Gazidis should be looking at considering that Arsenal are still yet to win one European competition. Will Ancelotti accept the offer or will he risk it and wait for Arsenal who might not even be considering him?

Mo Salah on target as Liverpool win 5-2 at home

The Egyptian King showed no mercy on his return. We are almost running out of words of describing Mo Salah’s debut season in England. The Liverpool forward has been on fire this season and has already scored 31 league goals. Liverpool were wounded by losing Coutinho in January but Salah has made that loss almost look like it is not a big deal. Roma also lost Palmieri who left for Chelsea, Salah who left for Liverpool as well as their legend Totti who went into retirement. The two teams are almost in the same predicament but they have believed in their abilities this season which has seen them go places.

Liverpool faced Roma tonight in the first leg of the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League and this feature was unthinkable at the start of the season. The most obvious names of PSG, Juventus, Barcelona, Manchester City, and Manchester United are already out but yet these two teams remain. Liverpool kicked off the match with a fierce attacking play that saw them create chances that were missed by Mane and Firmino in succession. It took a while before the man of the moment found the back of the net from a nicely curled effort at the edge of the box. Salah could not celebrate out of respect for his former club but what a beautiful strike it was. With his abilities, Messi has not been missed at this stage of the competition. Dejan Lovren almost made it 2-0 to Liverpool when his header hit the crossbar. Liverpool were eager to score more and Firmino found Salah on the break and the forward chipped the ball over the keeper to score his second of the night in the 45th minute. This was his 43rd goal of the season and he is now 3 shy of the all-time record at Liverpool held by Ian Rush who was in the stands to watch the African player shine against Roma.

Sadio Mane came from the break to score on the 56th minute to make it 3-0 to Liverpool. It looked all Liverpool in this match before the man of the match, Roberto Firmino scored a brace between the 61st and the 68th minutes. 5-0! Surely, Roma were out. But the team continued to fight until they scored two; the first from Dzeko and a penalty from Perotti in the 85th minute. Roma reduced the defeat to 3 goals and are planning to pull off another come back like they did against Barcelona. Will they make Liverpool regret conceding two goals in this 5-2 win at home?

World Cup Rush: Iheanacho next in line for Leicester’s No.10 role

Nigerian international, Kelechi Iheanacho who plies his trade with English top flight side, Leicester City; is tipped to end the season on a high as he sets his eyes on being part of Gernot Rohr’s final 23 man squad for the FIFA World Cup Finals in Russia. Kelechi has struggled to get some consistent game time since moving from Manchester City in a £25 million deal in the summer. He has scored five times in 23 appearances inclusive of only ten starts in all competitions since moving to the King Power Stadium. This lack of game time at his club might have somehow influenced the extent of his role in the Super Eagles squad as Rohr used him mostly as a substitute in Nigeria’s world cup qualification campaign.

There is new hope for the Nigerian to make a statement before the season comes to a close as Leicester City boss, Claude Puel hinted at trying him out on the No.10 role as opposed to his familiar No.9. It’s a position that Puel has not been satisfied with even after deploying Riyad Mahrez and Demarai Gray in it. Could the 21-year-old ace it ahead of Okazaki and build some momentum to be considered for a crucial role in Nigeria’s squad for Russia 2018? Nigeria could actually benefit from having more attacking options since they have not been very good going forward.

“I think until the end of the season it will be an opportunity for different players to play and take some habits, perhaps to give a good solution. We know all the hard work from Okazaki, for example, and, in the last game, Kele had good intensity and quality. Yes, Kele is a young player he can have game time, he can improve and give a good option for the future. We will see. We have different options and it is interesting to try.” - Claude Puel, Leicester City Manager

Leicester City will play Crystal Palace on the 28th of April where Kelechi could start for the foxes in the No.10 position.

Zimbabwe: Referee hailed for rejecting a bribe

The Zimbabwean football association (ZIFA), commended the nation’s top referee, Norman Matemera for turning down a (USD) $10 000 bribe from Equatorial Guinea’s Desportivo Niefang. The club was working the Togolese match commissioner, Lawson Mawume to reach out to the Zimbabwean referee delegation led by Norman Matemera to influence the result of their decisive CAF Confederation play-off tie against Williamsville Athletic Club of Ivory Coast. The match eventually ended with Desportivo winning 2-1 but failing to progress as they lost 2-0 in the reverse encounter. After the match, the match commissioner and Desportivo dumped the vigilant referees to pay for their meals and transport themselves to the airport.

The 35-year-old Zimbabwean Matemera reported the attempted bribery case to CAF who are expected to take appropriate action to bring the accused to book. Matemera is one of the top officials in Southern Africa (COSAFA) to resist a bribe after South Africa’s Victor Gomes did the same. Here is what the ZIFA official had to say about the issue:

"You must recognize that there are attempts to fix a match, you must resist those attempts and you must report those attempts. In this regard, we feel proud that our referees did just that. It is quite unfortunate that in this case, it involved a match commissioner and it is a situation which makes you wonder who is going to guard the guard when those entrusted to guard are the guilty ones because the match commissioner was the one being used as the go-between in the home team's bribery attempts.But really what Matemera did speaks volumes of our honesty as a country on such issues.The referee reported the matter to CAF and I believe CAF are already seized with it. We believe CAF have adequate machinery to deal with such issues.”  - Gladmore Muzambi, ZIFA Referees Committee Vice-Chairman

PSL South Africa: Chiefs lose again

Kaizer Chiefs’ woe continues to escalate after Golden Arrows beat them 3-1 in an Absa Premiership match that took place on Tuesday night. Amakhosi’s last chance at some silverware went begging after Free State Stars dumped them out of the Nedbank Cup semifinal on Saturday. After the match, some Chiefs took it onto the pitch to level matters by instigating violence which injured eighteen people. As if that was not enough, the Soweto club’s coach resigned.

Tuesday was a chance for the club to influence some positive vibes but Lerato Lamola’s fourth-minute goal did the exact opposite. The speedy Arrows forward dribbled past Tsepo Marisela and beat the acclaimed Itumeleng Khune to slot the ball home. To add insult to injury, Chiefs’ Leonardo Castro was red carded in the 10th minute. Somehow, Amakhosi managed to limit Arrows to only one goal before they equalized through Parker on the stroke of half-time. Three minutes in the second half, Abafana Bes’thende (The BackHeel Boys)  found their mojo back and Lamola bagged his second for the night. Clinton Larsen’s men became then became fairly comfortable with sitting in before Ndwandwe grabbed a third goal for the Arrows in stoppage time. The win moved Arrows up to ninth on the log whilst Chiefs remain in fourth.

In other Absa matches played on Tuesday, Bloemfontein Celtic and Chippa United played out to a goalless draw while Ajax Cape Town eased relegation fears by edging Baroka FC, 1-0.

UCL Road To Kiev Final: Bayern Munich vs Real Madrid

These two European giants seem to meet in the knock out stages quite often. With this being their 25th meeting, it is now the most played tie in Champions League history. Last season, it was Madrid that emerged victorious over the two-legged quarterfinal affair, and they will again rely on the sensational form of Cristiano Ronaldo to provide the decisive edge for them. Bayern, however, have been consistently good since the arrival of Jupp Heynckes this season. He knows how to get the best from his best players and Muller and James, in particular, have performed better under his management. With the Bundesliga already wrapped up for Bayern, they have had the luxury of rotating their better players. Madrid have also engaged in such rotations, albeit because the deficit is so large between them and Barcelona in first place in La Liga. Real Madrid are one knockout tie away from a third final in 3 years. Zidane deserves massive credit for managing what has always been a demanding Madrid job to deliver Champions League success twice in two seasons. Having been to a record eight straight semi-final ties, Madrid will feel that the final in Kiev is theirs to arrive at.

Bayern have lost their last three semi-final ties, however, they had won the previous four. Madrid have won their last two semi-final ties, however, they lost 5 of the previous 6.

Jupp Heynckes may prove to be Bayern’s luck charm having always won the competition whenever he previously coached in it. Two previous victories; one when he previously coached Real Madrid in 1997-98 and the other one during his last season as Bayern coach.

Lewandowski has been subject to increasingly consistent rumors that a move to Madrid will be on the horizon in the summer. Cristiano has been the in-form player of this Champions League campaign with a number of decisive goals and an unprecedented streak of scoring in every single CL game. Which player will prove to be more influential during this tie?

James will be playing against his former teammates after being loaned out to Bayern this season. Having lost favor with Zidane, James has found a new lease on life in Munich and will certainly be extra motivated.

World Cup Rush: Nigeria’s Ighalo picking up form and Elneny injury scare

One of the Super Eagles’ likely striking options at this years’ FIFA World Cup finals in Russia seems to be picking up form just the moment they desperately need him to. Gernot Rohr’s men were criticised for not being decisive or picking out the right passes in the final third over the international break when they succumbed to a 2-0 defeat against Serbia. The Chinese Super League based, Odion Ighalo stepped up in a huge way over the weekend, scoring four times in Changchun Yatai’s 5-2 win away at Guizhou Hengfeng. He has now found the back of the net, five times in seven matches.

"I have not been lucky in front of goal but today God gave me all the ones that haven't been entering since the start of the season at once." - Odion Ighalo

Meanwhile, Egypt got an injury scare ahead of the world cup finals after Arsenal midfielder, Mohamed Elneny had to be stretchered off their match at home to West Ham United. The North London club has confirmed that Elneny suffered an ankle ligament injury and are hopeful that he would return to action before the season expires.

"We are hoping that Mo will available for Arsenal again this season and we are keeping in regular contact with the Egyptian Football Association."  - Arsenal FC

The 25-year-old midfielder has recently become a favorite in the Arsenal defensive department of the midfield in Arsene Wenger’s last days at the club. He also possesses the ability to charge forward and pick out the right passes or even threaten the goal. He is expected to link up nicely with the PFA Player of the year, Mo Salah, in Russia, for the Egyptian Pharaohs.

Weekend Wrap: PSL heavyweights humbled & fan violence incident steals the headlines

This years’ Nedbank Cup finalists are Free State Stars and the Team of Choice, Maritzburg United. The above dumped two of the most successful clubs in South African football who were easily perceived as favorites to win the silverware. The Team of Choice tactically squeezed the life out of the PSL Champions in waiting, Mamelodi Sundowns to ease to a 3-1 victory also gifting the Brazilians their first loss in fifteen matches.

Another uninspiring performance by Kaizer Chiefs saw them losing 2-0 to Free State Stars who now have a chance to capture some silverware after 24 in waiting, should they go past an “awkward” Maritzburg United as described by the Sundowns’ boss, Pitso Mosimane. The Amakhosi loss led inspired an eventful weekend where we witnessed their fans run onto the pitch and cause some scene which many would wish they could be quickly erased from the memories of the beautiful game. The frustrated Chiefs fans were literally shoving down cameras, throwing rubbish on the pitch and chasing down the retreating players and coaching staff from both teams.

As if that was not enough, the end of it all was the resignation of the under-fire Kaizer Chiefs gaffer, Steve Komphela, who hit out at the new generation, describing them as being impatient.

The Chiefs chairman, Kaizer Motaung has issued a statement condemning the unruly scenes that took center stage at Moses Mabhida stadium. The club will still have to appear before a PSL Disciplinary Committee on the 3rd of May 2018. The SA Premier Soccer League has since promised to beef up security at all domestic matches.