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Man United  climbed above Arsenal into third in the Premier League table for 24 hours at least with a 2-0 win at home to  Sunderland . Wayne Rooney, back up front, scored both goals with the first coming from the penalty spot. But there was controversy as referee Roger East wrong sent off Wes Brown when it was John O'Shea who brought down Radamel Falcao in the box. Rooney grabbed a brace Elsewhere,  Aston Villa 's troubles continued as a Papiss Cisse goal gave  Newcastle  a 1-0 win, a Kieran Tripper own goal saw  Swansea  win 1-0 at  Burnley  and Peter Crouch's 46th headed Premier League goal was enough for  Stoke  to beat  Hull . The final game between  West Brom  and Southampton  was decided by an early Saido Berhaino goal. In the day's early game, Alan Pardew returned to Upton Park and saw his  Crystal Palace  side put  West Ham United  to the sword to increase the pressure o...

CHELSEA have announced a £200m shirt sponsorship deal with Yokohama Rubber. How Chelsea's 2015/2016 jersey will look like   The agreement is one of the biggest ever in world football but is still second to Manchester United's £53m-a-year deal with Chevrolet. The Blues will pocket £40m a year for five years and Yokohama Rubber will replace Samsung one the front of the club's shirts from the start of next season. Chelsea's chairman Bruck Buck said: "It is an absolute pleasure to welcome Yokohama as our new Official Shirt Partner and we look forward to a successful relationship with them "Chelsea and Yokohama are a perfect fit. Both are global organisations with a focus on performance and innovation, as well as having huge ambition and an unwavering culture of success. "We believe that Yokohama will play a key role in helping us drive our global expansion in international markets such as the US, where they have operated with distinc...

Tolgay Arslan was the hero as Besiktas stunned Liverpool to knock them out of the UEFA Europa League on penalties on Thursday. The Turks went into the game looking to claw back a 1-0 first leg deficit but Arslan scored the only goal of the game at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium and then, following a goalless half hour of extra-time, struck the decisive penalty before Dejan Lovren blazed his effort for Liverpool over the bar. Lovren lost his penalty With a tough clash against Manchester City in the Premier League at Anfield on Sunday, it was the nightmare scenario for Liverpool manager Brendan Rogers. Not only did they play an energy-sapping 120 minutes of football but also had the mentally draining penalty shoot-out and a morale-sagging defeat to contend with before making the long trip home from Istanbul. Besiktas had levelled on aggregate in the 72nd minute with a stunning strike from Arslan, assisted by a deft back heel from Senegal striker Demba Ba, who had been the ...

Amajimbos marched into Sunday's final of the 2015 CAF U17 championships after a 1-0 victory over the Golden Eaglets, Khanyisa Eric Mayo's low cracker inside the box on 26minutes proving decisive in this exhilarating first semi-final at the Seyni Kountche. The Eaglets have already qualified for the world cup Reigning world U17 champions Nigeria rallied in the second half, hitting the wood-work twice and drawing at least two good saves from South African goalkeeper Mondli Mpoto.  But the Amajimbos held on to reach their first final at this junior level. Reeve Peter Frosler was in excellent form at the back and combining well with skipper Keanu Gregory, kept the menacing eaglets at bay throughout the match. In moments when the eaglets breached the backline, goalie Mpoto was in superb form, thwarting everything Nigeria threw at him.  After Mayo's goal and as the Nigerians poured forward in search of an equalizer, Mpoto saved well from Chukwueze Samuel, whose ...

An unexploded Second World War bomb has been discovered close to Borussia Dortmund's Signal Iduna Park ground. The 550lb device, reported by Germany's international broadcaster DW as being of British origin,  was found on Thursday. The discovery came just hours before Dortmund boss Jurgen Klopp was due to give a news conference ahead of Saturday's derby against Schalke. The 80,720-capacity stadium and the surrounding area was evacuated. "It is not yet known how long the stadium area will remain off limits," Dortmund, who shut their Fan World space and club museum, said in a brief statement. The bomb was found at a parking area to the west of the Signal Iduna Park and was discovered after viewing aerial photographs. Unexploded World War II ordnance is a relatively common occurrence in Germany where several million tonnes of bombs were dropped during the war by Allied and Soviet forces. The city of Dortmund suffered extensive destru...

ES Setif became the first Algerian side to win the CAF Super Cup after beating Egyptian giants, Al Ahly, 6-5 on penalties on Saturday at the Mustapha Tchaker Stadium in Blida. ES Setif captain lifts the trophy on Saturday ‘Black Eagles’ goalkeeper Abdel Wahab Khedairia saved the decisive kick from Ahly defender Basem Mahmoud to propel the Setif-based club to the historic feat after Ahly striker Emad Meteab had canceled Abdelmalek Ziaya’s 70th minute opener in stoppage time. The hosts were cruising to victory after Ziaya put them up by connecting in a cross from the left, only for Meteab, whose last gasp strike handed Ahly the Orange CAF Confederation Cup last December to scramble in the equalizer during the final seconds of added-on time. The equalizer forced the game into penalties which the homers triumphed, adding the Super Cup title to their trophy cabinet after the CAF Champions League. The North African country had to wait for 22-years to enjoy their first g...

Nigeria and Guinea stormed the semi-finals of the CAF Under-17 championships in Niger after finishing first and second respectively as Group 'A' play was concluded on Saturday. Nigeria vs Zambia  Nigeria beat Zambia 3-1 at the Stade Municipal to finish on seven points and grab the group's top spot. Hosts Niger handed Guinea a 2-1 defeat at the Stade Seyni Kountche but the four points collected in the first two group games were enough to see the Syli National juniors finish second. Zambia and Niger finished on three points each having won one and lost two fixtures respectively. At the Kountche, the hosts ensured that they finished the tournament on a high with two first half goals; the first as early as the second minute when Issoufou Boubabcar grabbed the opener after a good run into the Guinea box. Ismael Lara restored the hosts' advantage on 39minutes to the delight of the home crowd after Guinea goalkeeper Djibril Yattara failed to collect a loose ball i...

Former  Super Eagles’  captain, Austin Jay-Jay Okocha has been elected chairman of the Delta State Football Association. At the elections conducted in Asaba on Friday, and supervised by Member of the NFF Executive Committee, Alhaji Babagana Kalli, Okocha polled 26 out of the 27 votes cast. One of only two Nigerian footballers to play at three FIFA World Cup finals, Jay-Jay Okocha’s club career took him through Germany, France, England and Turkey, and he is presently Head of the NFF Technical Study Group. Jay Jay Okocha was vice-chairman to Amanju Pinnick Okocha, who had served as vice chairman before the elevation, replaces Mr. Amaju Melvin Pinnick, who announced his intention to relinquish the post on the very day he was elected President of Nigeria Football Federation, September 30, 2014. Enitan Obadina @enitanoba

Nigeria international striker Ikechukwu Uche scored for Villarreal in Thursday’s first-leg, round-of-32 clash against Austrian club Red Bull Salzburg which  Villarreal won 2-1. Ikechukwu celebrates his goal on Thursday Uche swept home a loose ball from inside the penalty area in the 32nd minute after the Salzburg defence failed to clear as the Yellow Submarine shot into the lead at Camp El Madrigal. The Salzburg captain, Jonathan Soriano, evened the scores on 48 minutes through a well-taken penalty but Villarreal ensured they would take a win to Austria for the second leg after Russian Dennis Cheryshev restored their lead in the 54th minute. Uche had missed Villarreal’s 0-2 loss to Rayo Vallecano at Vallecas in La Liga at the weekend. The 31-year-old had picked up a knee injury on February 13. Uche has now scored seven goals in all competitions for Villarreal this season. Akin' Odunsi @gr8akin

Steven Gerrard accused Mario Balotelli of showing "disrespect" by taking Liverpool's winning penalty against Besiktas ahead of Jordan Henderson. Balotelli asked Henderson to be allowed to take the kick Balotelli scored from the spot in Thursday's Europa League last-32 tie at Anfield to secure a 1-0 first-leg win. That came after a disagreement with captain Henderson and Daniel Sturridge over who should take it. Gerrard said: "Henderson is the captain and Balotelli showed Jordan a bit of disrespect there." The midfielder, who is currently injured, was working as a pundit on ITV's coverage of the game. Gerrard said that Balotelli was being "a bit mischievous" after the Italian striker took the ball off Henderson, who was set to to take the spot kick. Henderson stood in as Liverpool's captain against Besiktas, and Gerrard believes he should have taken the penalty. "Rules are rules," he said. "Cre...

Emmanuel Amuneke, Golden Eaglets' Head coach, has described the team's  first half performance in the pulsating 1-1 draw against Guinea here  at the 11th African U-17 Championship as the worst since he took over  the reins of the team almost a year ago. Emmanuel Amuneke with the U17 boys The lads seemingly collapsed in the first stanza as the young Syli Nationale had better initiatives and deservedly went into the lead after Nigeria conceded a soft penalty in the 11th minute. Captain Kelechi Nwakali later got the equalizer albeit through a spot kick towards the end of the match much to the relive of Nigerians at the stadium. But speaking at the post match conference, Amuneke said he was shocked about the team's performance especially in the first half, even as he praised their resilience for salvaging a point. "Frankly, this was our worst performance and the worst I have seen from these boys because we lost the ini...

Nigeria needed a late strike from the penalty spot from skipper Kelechi Nwakali to rescue a point against 10-man Guinea as both sides kept alive their hopes of progression at the CAFU17 championship match in Niamey. The Eaglets in action against Guinea Sam Diallo put Guinea ahead on 13 minutes. Enterprising play by Diallo, Abdoul Karim Conte and Yamodou Toure was a handful for the Nigerian backline anchored around Abbas Usman and Zakaria Halilu who brought down Toure in the box and referee Jean Jacques Ngsmbo had no option but to point to the spot. Guinea could have added to their advantage but wasted chances through Diallo and exciting playmaker Karim Conte in a first half the Nigerians hardly threatened. The Eaglets went into the second half with renewed energy and could have levelled through Kingsley Michael but his effort in the box. Efforts from Kelechi, Victor Osimeh and Christian Charles were well saved by Guinea goalie Moussa Camara, a darling of the crowd...

Captain Terry's current deal runs out at the end of the season. But the 34-year-old says he is ready to sit down and discuss a new contract at Stamford Bridge. "The club know my position," said Terry. "Hopefully I know theirs and it will get done. "No talks have happened yet, but we both respect each other's position. "There's more important players to deal with first, like Eden Hazard's (who signed a new five year deal last week). For me, that was the most important for the club. "Hopefully they'll be knocking on my door soon. "Last year, I was maybe a bit nervous and edgy and hoping, and knocking on the door myself. "I want to stay and hopefully my performances are showing that - and they want to keep me. "I'll be happy with one more year and then we'll see how we go year by year. I've not got much choice." Terry is having an outstanding season, with the team ...

FIFA President, Mr. Sepp Blatter on Wednesday held an official meeting with top officials of the Nigeria Football Federation at the  Home of FIFA  in Zurich, Switzerland. Blatter, who was in company with FIFA General Secretary Jerome Valcke, welcomed the team on arrival at the headquarters of world football, and assured the Nigerian bigwigs that FIFA would be ready to collaborate more with the new Nigeria Football Federation. NFF President Amaju Pinnick led the team, which also included NFF 1 st  Vice President, Barrister Seyi Akinwunmi, and the General Secretary, Barrister Musa Amadu. The Nigeria delegation will return to Abuja on Thursday. FIFA President Blatter with NFF President, Amanju Pinnick Meanwhile, the President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Amaju Melvin Pinnick has assured the parents of Nigerian footballers based in the United Kingdom, of their sons’ safety and progress should they choose to wear the colours of Nigeria. There i...

NFF President Amaju Pinnick held what was generally described as an “extremely positive and encouraging” meeting with the Manager of English Premiership side, Arsenal FC, Mr. Arsene Wenger on Tuesday. NFF President, Amaju Pinnick with Arsenal's Arsene Wenger   The legendary manager met with the NFF supremo in his office at Arsenal FC’s training ground where a wide range of issues were discussed, including the rising stock of Nigerian-born players at the club - players like Chuba Akpom and Semi Ajayi. After the meeting, the NFF President, who was accompanied by the new Special Envoy for the Federation on International Affairs, Tunde Adelakun, said: “As we had always known, Arsene is very knowledgeable; vast in his knowledge and appreciation of Nigeria as a footballing country, and widely philosophical in his general approach, ” he said, assuring that, contrary to what is reported about some clubs in Europe trying to steer their players to play for the countries where th...

LIVERPOOL agreed a £5m deal to sell Rickie Lambert to Aston Villa on deadline day. Lambert will join Aston Villa in June But after hours of deliberation, the boyhood Kop fan pulled the plug on the move at 9.30pm - 90 minutes before the transfer window slammed shut. Brendan Rodgers phoned Lambert and told him he was happy to let him go if the striker wanted first-team football. Villa put a two-and-a-half year deal on the table but Lambert snubbed it to stay and fight for his place at Liverpool. He told the  Liverpool Echo : “I wasn’t aware of any interest until deadline day. “I got a phone call from the gaffer about 4pm saying Aston Villa had come in. “I spoke to my agent, I spoke to my wife, I spoke to Aston Villa and it was close. It was very close. It was touch and go. We agreed everything. “The deal was agreed, but in the end, there just wasn’t enough time to say ‘yes’ - to make a decision in the space of four or five hours for the next two-and-a-...