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Victor Osimhen has become the highest ranked Nigerian in the Ballon d'or history having finished eighth in the 2023 edition of the award. Napoli striker Osimhen broke the long standing achievement of Kanu Nwankwo, who finished 11th in the Ballon d'or ranking at the age of 20 in 1996 for performance with Ajax and Nigeria. Osimhen 24, won the Capocannoniere last season having scored 26 goals to finish top scorer in the Seri A while leading Napoli to a first Scudetto success in 33years. He also helped the club reach a first-ever UEFA Champions League quarter finals while also finishing top scorer in the 2023 AFCON qualifiers with ten goals, doubling the tally of the next player in the list. Osimhen became the eighth Nigerian to be nominated for the prestigious award that celebrates individual brilliance, when his name was included in the 30 man shortlist released in September. He comes after  • Finidi George (1995) • Daniel Amokachi (1995) • Austin Jay-Jay Okocha (1995) • Nwankwo

Doping in sports is a huge crime as it damages its credibility, and athletes are viewed to have committed an offense when they test positive for illegal performance-enhancing drugs (PED). What is doping ? According to Merriam Webster defines doping as the use of a substance (such as an anabolic steroid or erythropoietin) or technique (such as blood doping) to illegally improve athletic performance. In sports, such action is regarded as cheat, and grave consequences always come with it. Not only that, but on the players' part and their safety, as in the long run, such substances have a long-lasting side effect on the health of the players. Why do athletes dope (take illegal performance-enhancing drugs (PED)) ? There are several reasons take illegal performance-enhancing drugs, and it also depends on the type of sports the athletes in question do. The majority of the reasons is to boost performance. Athletes are also tempted when injured and do not have enough time to recover before

Chelsea ended a run of three straight home defeats to Arsenal in an enthralling London derby match in the Stamford Bridge on Saturday evening. While many will see it as a positive omen for the host, which is rightly so, it was very poor game management by both the players and the manager to allow the visitors snatch a point later on the night. Arsenal was there for the taking. It was the worst display by Mikel Arteta's side in recent years and despite having a two goal cushion, Mauricio Pochettino's side were unable to see out the win from a very comfortable position. Cole Palmer and Mykaylo Mudryk continue to show signs of finally settling into their rhythm under Mauricio Pochettino, much to the delight of the home support as the Blues were all over their rival from the North for the first 70 minutes in the Bridge. Both players also scored in either half, with Mykaylo Mudryk scoring his first ever Chelsea goal in the Stamford Bridge with a wonderful cross-cum-shot, which caugh

Super Eagles earned a first friendly win in more than four years after coming from a goal down to beat Mozambique 3-2 in Portimao on Monday evening. In the penultimate international break before the African continental competition at the turn of the year in Ivory Coast, Nigeria sealed a somewhat unimpressive win to wrapup preparation before the pre tournament friendlies later in the year. It was an unconvincing performance against a 10man Mozambique, and ranked 20 places below them in the most recent FIFA ranking. The Super Eagles, who missed out on the last FIFA World Cup in Qatar sealed the ticket to the African Cup of Nations next year following a group campaign, where they picked up 15 points from possible 18 to finish top of Group A, in the company of Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau and Sao Tome and Principe. Their group run was highlighted by their only defeat, which came on home soil to Guinea-Bissau, a blemish that will not be soon forgotten by fans, after the Jose Peseiro's si

 

  Harry Maguire revealed he received career advice from Manchester United legend David Beckham after abuse from Scotland fans while on England duty. The United defender was ridiculed and mocked by the crowd at Hampden Park every time he touched the ball during the Three Lions' 3-1 win last month, where he also scored an own goal. Beckham got in touch with Maguire to lift him up after the game and remind him of the "big moments" of his career to help him get over the disappointment. “I actually spoke with David about three weeks ago after the Scotland game,” Maguire said. “He got in touch with me so it was really nice of him and I really appreciated that. It meant everything. I’ve spoken throughout my career about David Beckham being someone I looked up to and watched when I was a young boy. Unfortunately, I didn’t end up on the right wing scoring and assisting as many goals as he has, but he was a big role model when I was growing up.   "It shows how classy h

  

Arsenal finally earned their first Premier League win over Manchester City since December 2015 and a win which is their first in the competition over Pep Guardiola. Gabriel Martinelli's late goal made the difference when both clashed at the Emirates on Sunday evening, helping the host end a run of twelve straight League defeats against the treble winners, their most against a single opponent in the competition history. Since Theo Walcott and Olivier Giroud scored two quick fire double to help Arsene Wenger's side seal a 2-1 win over Manuel Pellegrini's Cityzens few days before Christmas in 2015, Arsenal had failed in all their attempts to secure maximum points against City in the Premier League. Manchester City were on a run of 15 League games unbeaten against Arsenal heading into Sunday's fixture, although Mikel Arteta had been victorious in other competitions like the in FA Cup semi final in his first six months, and the Community Shield earlier this season. City had