Connect with us

AFCON

ALGERIAN TORMENTOR OF SUPER EAGLES, RIYAD MAHREZ IS LATEST PREMIER LEAGUE STAR TARGETED BY THIEVES

Published

on

Riyad Mahrez whose right flank cross William Ekong-Troost deflated in as an own goal in the nerve-wrecking semi-final clash at the Africa Cup of Nations last July and who also scored an expertly taken free kick at added time, has become the latest victim of burglary incidents targeted against Premiership players.

According to UK’s Daily Mail, Mahrez who plays for Manchester City has had three luxury watches stolen during a £500,000 raid at his penthouse.

The haul included a prized Richard Mille timepiece similar to one that knife thugs snatched from England star Dele Alli’s house two weeks ago.

Thieves broke into Mahrez’s luxury block and got hold of a key fob to gain access.

On top of the £230,000 Mille, the Man City star lost a £40,000 Rolex Daytona and a £35,000 Rolex Day Date.

The gang also stole more than £50,000 in cash, Cartier bracelets and rare football shirts worth up to £150,000. 

Advertisement

Milles cost up to £1.6million and are a favourite with the rich and top sports stars.

They are known for their precious stones and are made from the same material as space shuttles and F1 cars.

Ed Sheeran, Kanye West and Neymar all own different designs. 

Burglars carefully tracked Mahrez before sneaking into his Manchester City centre apartment.

A Greater Manchester Police spokeswoman said of the raid on Mahrez: ‘At around 5pm on Friday April 24, police were called to reports that four separate apartments had been burgled at a city centre block.’ 

Advertisement

This comes after Alli was held at knifepoint and punched after robbers broke into his house earlier this month.

As Sportsmail exclusively revealed, the Tottenham and England midfielder was thumped in the face during the ordeal but did not suffer serious injury.

Two males wearing balaclavas broke into the back of Alli’s north London property just after midnight on May 13 before threatening the Spurs star — who has been isolating with his brother Harry Hickford, their two partners and a long-term friend.

Alli’s team-mates Jan Vertonghan had his home robbed in March while he was playing for Spurs in Germany.

At the beginning of the year, Crystal Palace’s Mamadou Sakho lost more than £500,000 of items in a burglary. 

Advertisement

Leicester City star Hamza Choudhury became the latest Premier League footballer to invest in guard dogs earlier this month to heighten security. 

Several footballers have now beefed up their security by using firm Chaperone K9 after Alli was robbed at knifepoint.

Aston Villa‘s Jack Grealish spent £25,000 on a Belgian Malinois and Choudhury has splashed out £50,000 on the same breed and a German Shepherd, according to The Sun.  

K9 have already supplied dogs to Raheem Sterling and Marcus Rashford as well as former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand.

The highly-trained dogs come from police and military backgrounds and cost between £10,000 and £25,000 each.  

Advertisement

Kunle Solaja is the author of landmark books on sports and journalism as well as being a multiple award-winning journalist and editor of long standing. He is easily Nigeria’s foremost soccer diarist and Africa's most capped FIFA World Cup journalist, having attended all FIFA World Cup finals from Italia ’90 to Qatar 2022. He was honoured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup by FIFA and AIPS.

Continue Reading
Advertisement

AFCON

Mali scrape past Guinea-Bissau

Published

on

Mali secured a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Guinea-Bissau in the match day 3 of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. El Bilal Touré scored the only goal in the 62nd minute.

The Eagles struggled to break down their opponents, but the result keeps them in strong contention in their qualifying group.

Continue Reading

AFCON

Angola defeat Niger to strengthen AFCON hopes

Published

on

Angola secured a 2-0 win over Niger in the matchday 3 of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying series. Both goals come in the second half.

Mabululu converted a penalty in the 75th minute, and Milson added a second goal ten minutes later to seal the victory.

Despite Niger’s efforts, they were unable to threaten Angola’s defence, leaving Angola in a strong position in their qualifying group.

Continue Reading

AFCON

Equatorial Guinea edge Liberia to climb in Group E, Zambia frustrated by Chad

Published

on

Zambia’Kennedy Musonda challenges Charles Tchouplaou of Chad at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers

Equatorial Guinea edged past Liberia with a 1-0 win in their  Africa Cup of Nations Group E qualifier, thanks to a first-half penalty from Iban Salvador. 

The forward converted from the spot in the 34th minute after Sampson Dweh fouled Salvador inside the box.

This result moves Equatorial Guinea into second place in the group with four points from three matches, while Liberia remains rooted to the bottom with just one point from their three outings.

Algeria leads the group with a perfect nine points after three matches, and Togo is third with two points.

Despite Liberia pushing for an equalizer in the second half, they were unable to break down the Equatorial Guinean defense.

Advertisement

Several substitutions from both teams couldn’t alter the outcome, with Equatorial Guinea holding on for the vital three points.


Mozambique and Eswatini share the spoils in 1-1 draw

Mozambique and Eswatini played out a 1-1 draw in their AFCON Group I qualifier, with both teams finding the net in the second half. 

Mozambique took the lead in the 73rd minute through Stanley Ratifo, who slotted home from close range following a well-worked move.

Eswatini equalized just seven minutes later through Thubelihle Mavuso, whose left-footed effort found the top corner.

Advertisement

The result keeps Mozambique at the top of the group with five points from three matches, while Eswatini remain at the bottom with just one point.

Mali and Guinea Bissau, who each have games in hand, are closely trailing.

Both sides had chances to win the game late on, but neither could capitalize, leaving the group wide open as the teams prepare for their next fixtures.


Zambia and Chad play out goalless stalemate

Zambia and Chad played out a 0-0 draw in their Group G encounter at the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium.

Advertisement

Despite dominating possession, Chipolopolo failed to find the back of the net against a resilient Chad side, who were content to soak up pressure and counterattack when possible.

With this result, Zambia remains second in the group with four points from three matches, behind Cote d’Ivoire who lead with six points and a game in hand.

Chad, with two points, is third, and Sierra Leone is at the bottom with one point.

Zambia came closest to scoring when Francisco Mwepu hit the post in the 84th minute, but Chad’s defence held firm to secure a valuable point away from home.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Most Viewed