Governing Bodies
AFTER 100-DAY FREEZE, PREMIER LEAGUE RETURNS
The Premier League returns on Wednesday (June 17) after 100 days in the deep freeze, with Liverpool on the brink of winning the title in a radically changed football universe.
The English top flight follows Germany’s Bundesliga and La Liga in Spain in rebooting their seasons after the coronavirus lockdown, aiming to cram 92 games into six weeks of breathless action.
Aston Villa kick off against Sheffield United, to be followed later on Wednesday by Manchester City versus Arsenal, before a cascade of matches.
Despite vocal complaints from some clubs and stars, including Sergio Aguero and Raheem Sterling, “Project Restart” has largely gone smoothly, with regular testing of players and staff yielding few positives.
But when Villa and Sheffield United kick off, the watching world will be confronted with a jarring spectacle, with an eerie silence in the usually noisy stands.
Piped-in crowd chants, cardboard cut-outs of supporters and live video fan walls will add colour but it will be impossible to mimic the usual vibrant atmosphere.
In total, about 300 people will be allowed in stadiums for each match, with strict health protocols in place.
There will be widespread disinfection of changing facilities, dugouts, match balls, goalposts, corner flags and substitution boards.
People other than players and coaching staff on team benches must wear face coverings.
The games themselves will look different. Players have been told to maintain social distancing during goal celebrations and encouraged not to spit.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta admits that players will have to find motivation without the urgency provided by fans.
“The game is different,” he said in his pre-match press conference on Monday. “The intensity drops a little bit. That urgency from the crowd doesn’t exist any more; how passionate the crowds are in England. We have to adapt.
“We have to experience it. We have to find ways to motivate our players as well in moments.”
But Aston Villa manager Dean Smith said his players were desperate to return, talking about the honour of playing the first game.
“The eyes of the world will be on us and we are looking forward to it,” he said. “The players have been itching to get back.”
The hectic fixture list, warm summer temperatures and a lack of preparation time could lead to more injuries, so world governing body Fifa has given the green light for five substitutions per match.
Some believe that unfairly helps teams with bigger squads. Villa’s Smith said he was not in favour of the change.
Following the recent death of George Floyd, killed by a white police officer in the United States, the Black Lives Matter cause will also be visible.
Players’ names will be replaced on the back of their shirts with “Black Lives Matter” for the first 12 matches, while the league will back anyone who chooses to take a knee in protest before or during matches.
The subdued mood and constant fear of the virus making its presence felt will overshadow the remainder of a season that will always have an asterisk next to it in the history books.
When the campaign was halted on March 13, Liverpool were two wins from their first English title in 30 years.
Jurgen Klopp’s side, 25 points clear at the top, could be crowned champions as soon as this weekend if second-placed Manchester City lose at home to Arsenal on Wednesday and the Reds win their first game of the restart at Merseyside rivals Everton on Sunday.
Whenever they clinch that long-awaited 19th league title, it will be a moment to treasure for Liverpool.
But, with fans being told not to gather outside the stadium and no trophy parade planned because of social distancing rules, the celebrations are likely to be muted.
Since the Bundesliga resumed, there has been a drop in the number of home wins as teams struggle without the drive provided by their fans.
That could influence some key issues in the Premier League.
Chelsea and Manchester United will try to hold off unexpected challenges from Sheffield and Wolves in the race to reach the Champions League.
At the other end, Norwich, Villa and Bournemouth bid to climb out of the bottom three at a time when relegation could be more costly than ever.
-AFP
Governing Bodies
Nigeria becoming an epicentre of global badminton as Francis Orbih enters the Badminton World Federation Council
Laurels on the courts and now glory in the boardroom sums up the mark that badminton is making in Nigeria.
The President, Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN), Francis Orbih, has been elected as a council member of the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
The election took place during the BWF Annual General Meeting on Saturday in Xiamen, China.
Orbih emerged victorious over top contenders from other African countries.
He will join Cameroon’s Odette Assembe Engoulou on the council, while Chipo Zumburani (Zimbabwe) and Hadia ElSaid (Egypt) missed out.
An elated Orbih expressed his gratitude to fellow badminton presidents across the globe for their trust and support.
He said, “I am deeply honoured by the trust placed in me by my peers across the badminton world.
“I look forward to quality representation, driving development initiatives, and strengthening badminton’s global reach over the next four years.”
Orbih also acknowledged the support of the Federal Government of Nigeria, particularly the National Sports Commission (NSC), which he said played a significant role in his successful bid.
“The Chairman and the Director General of the NSC monitored the entire process. I’m grateful for their involvement and confident Nigeria will benefit from this,” he stated.
He further appreciated the BFN board members and the Nigerian badminton community for their prayers and continued belief in his leadership.
“From the day I declared my intentions, the board members of BFN have been supportive, and I promise not to disappoint them,” Orbih concluded.
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A former member of the FIFA Council, Mamoutou Toure, has been released from jail in Mali after almost two years in detention for alleged corruption, Malian media reports said on Wednesday.
Toure, president of the Malian Football Federation since 2019, was released after 622 days in prison on Tuesday.
He served on the FIFA Council, world football’s all-powerful decision-making body, for four years until last month when he lost his seat after failing to contest new elections.
The 67-year-old was arrested in August 2023 on allegations of embezzling $28 million of public funds but was granted a provisional release order by the Malian courts, reports said.
He was accused of misconduct during his time as the National Assembly’s financial and administrative director from 2013-2019.
Toure denied all charges and, during his time in jail, was last August re-elected as Malian Football Federation president for a second consecutive term, with his supporters claiming he was a victim of a conspiracy fuelled by detractors.
While in jail, he received a letter of support from FIFA president Gianni Infantino. However, as of last month, Toure is no longer a member of the FIFA Council or the Confederation of African Football’s executive committee.
-Reuters
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The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has denied reports of an outstanding debt to former captain Christian Chukwu and has challenged anyone with verifiable documents to prove otherwise.
Chukwu, a former national team captain and chief coach, died last Saturday.
The Nigeria Football Federation decried statements in a section of social media that the football-ruling body was indebted to the deceased.
Reacting to one statement on social media that claimed NFF owed the 1980 Africa Cup of Nations-winning team captain the sum of $128,000, NFF General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, said: “There is no record in the NFF of any outstanding indebtedness to ‘Chairman’ Christian Chukwu.
“During the first term of the Board headed by Amaju Pinnick, a committee was set up to diligently peruse the papers of coaches who were being owed, even from previous NFF administrations.
“That committee was given the clear mandate to verify all debts and ensure that the coaches being owed were paid immediately. I am aware that the ‘Chairman’ was in the employ of the NFF between 2002 and 2005, before he was relieved of the post following the 1-1 draw with Angola in a FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Kano in August 2005. There is certainly no record of indebtedness to him in the NFF.”
Sanusi challenged anyone with genuine and verifiable documents of NFF indebtedness to any coach, who has worked with any of the National Teams over the past two decades, to come forward and tender those documents.
“As a credible organization that is very much alive to its responsibilities, if we are confronted with any genuine document of indebtedness to any coach, we will offset the debt immediately.”
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