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Super Eagles captain Mikel Obi has admitted he used to be a naughty chap during his early days at Chelsea under the tutelage of Jose Mourinho. Mikel now 31, joined Chelsea from Lyn Oslo in 2006 after a long transfer battle with Manchester United following his impressive performance during the 2005 U-20 World Cup in the Netherlands where he was the tournament’s second best player behind Argentina’s Lionel Messi. In an interview with the BBC World Service’s Sportsworld monitored by newsmen, Mikel recounted the struggles he encountered during his early days because of the demands of Jose Mourinho (Chelsea’s manager at that time), and the pace of the league. The Nigeria midfielder played 372 games for the Blues over 10 seasons, but he admitted that he had a difficult time adjusting to the Premier League when he first arrived in the summer of 2006 “Got sent off on my first game against Reading. Mourinho killed me,” Mikel now with English Championship side, Middlesbrough told th

The Pepsi  Football Academy in Nigeria have produced so many stars that have represented the country’s National team, and are still doing well in their various clubs across the world. Examples of players that went through the academy are John Mikel Obi and Elderson  Echiejile. As a youngster, if you are interested in developing your football skills and you want to enhance your football career, then it is wise you follow the footsteps of those that had achieved greater heights by enrolling in a football academy during their early life. In this post you will find some few guidelines and requirements on how to register for the Pepsi football academy in Nigeria. How To Register For Pepsi Football Academy In Nigeria Background And Aim Of The Pepsi Football Academy For over a decade now, the Pepsi and 7up bottling company have contributed immensely towards the development of youth programs in Nigeria, and the Pepsi football academy is one of such initiative. The academy have be

​Paris Saint-Germain superstar Neymar did not take too kindly to his side's elimination at the hands of ​Manchester United in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday, with the Brazilian going on to slam the UEFA officials on a penalty decision in a foul mouthed rant on Instagram. Marcus Rashford's spot-kick in the fourth minute of stoppage-time helped United register an unbelievable comeback victory to progress to the quarter-final stage, but the penalty was awarded in controversial circumstances. The penalty was awarded by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) when Diogo Dalot’s shot struck Presnel Kimpembe on the arm, but Neymar was adamant the visitors’ winning goal at Parc des Princes should not have stood. The 27-year-old took to social networking site Instagram to express his unhappiness at the decision, writing, "This is a disgrace, they put four people that know nothing about football in charge of looking at the replay for VAR. There is no penalty. How can i

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is targeting to have Microfinance Bank branches in all the 774 local governments of the country. The capital base of the new NIRSAL Microfinance Bank will initially be N5 billion and as a first step, the apex bank said this new Microfinance banks which is a collaboration between the Bankers Committee, NIRSAL and NIPOST will see the establishment of seven Microfinance banks in the six geopolitical zones and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Thereafter the number will be scaled up to 50 Microfinance banks which are expected to become operational in the second phase of the launch of NIRSAL Microfinance bank. The first seven branches to be opened will be located in Ibadan, Port Harcourt, Bauchi, Kaduna, Enugu and Lokoja in addition to the one in Gwagwalada Abuja. Governor of the CBN Mr. Godwin Emefiele made this known on Wednesday at Gwagwalada, in Abuja when he embarked on a facility tour of Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Ag

The reported death of Bala Haruna, went viral yesterday. Haruna, a staunch supporter of President Muhammadu Buhari in Bauchi State, had vowed to spend 10 minutes inside a gutter and drink the drainage water if Buhari wins the presidential election. Immediately Buhari was declared winner of the February 23 presidential election in the early hours of last Wednesday, Haruna made good his promise as he swam in a gutter and drink dirty water from it. He immediately made social media blitz after his feat. But yesterday, he was reported to have died after battling with Gastrointestinal bleeding in the hospital for days after his public stunt. According to reports, Haruna was rushed to the hospital after complaining of severe abdominal pains and severe stooling of blood for two days. After series of tests conducted, he was diagnosed with Gastrointestinal bleeding, which was contacted from the contaminated water he drank. May his soul in peace.

​​Real Madrid's shock 4-1 defeat to Ajax in the round of 16 second leg of the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday has angered the club fans, with a number of furious supporters chanted former manager Jose Mourinho's name and calling for current incumbent Santiago Solari to resign from his post. The Los Blancos have had a poor fortnight off late, with the Los Blancos knocked out of the Copa del Rey, falling 12-points behind rivals Barcelona in the La Liga and now being dumped out of Europe. As per ​Spanish publication AS, a number of Los Blancos fans were seen staging a protest outside the Bernabeu, calling for under fire boss Solari to stand down. The fans were also heard calling for Mourinho to return, with the Portugese currently available after being sacked by Manchester United in December. Mourinho has been strongly linked with a return to the Bernabeu and recently spoke glowingly about his former club. "I have fantastic memories. Working at Real Madrid i

The longstanding rivalry between two giant Catalan football clubs, Real Madrid and FC Barcelona, has claimed the life of a Barcelona fan in Kano after the latest showdown weekend. Tragedy struck when a 17-year-old diehard Madrid fan, Salisu Muhammad of Yakasai quarters in Kano, was said to have stabbed Mujittafa Musa three times on his chest shortly after an encounter that favoured FC Barcelona. Family sources told newsmen that the assailant laid in ambush for his victim after the match, and the unsuspecting deceased walked into his death. An eyewitness identified as Suleiman was not spared by the irate football fan who also stabbed him twice on his knees. The family account confirmed that “passersby in the neighbourhood apprehended the suspect and handed him over to the police.” The family source explained that “it is our hope that the departed soul will get justice”. Confirming the tragic incident, the state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abdullahi Haruna, to

Kamaru Usman the Nigerian nightmare beat Tyron Woodley of America to win the UFC welterweight title. Kamaru Usman is the first African-born and the first Nigerian champion in UFC history after recording a victory over American Tyron Woodley in a UFC 235 encounter on Sunday, March 3. The 31-year-old Usman from Auchi beat Woodley across all five rounds to get a winning decision from the judges. Usman nicknamed the Nigerian nightmare was very cautious in the opening round in the Octagon at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. He attempted several take downs but his opponents had answers but was unable to connect his punches to Usman. Kamaru Usman beat Tyron Woodley to emerge champion [UFC] Usman suffered minimal knocks and won all five rounds convincingly, controlling Woodley with some dropping elbows and punches as well as a huge take down. Speaking after the encounter he said, “You think I’m going to wrestle and then I strike you, you think I’m going to strike a

Nigeria’s refineries posted a cumulative loss of N114.3bn in the first 11 months of 2018, latest industry data have revealed. Figures obtained from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation on Friday in Abuja showed that the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company, Port Harcourt Refining Company and Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company made losses in the months under review. The KRPC made a deficit of N31.62bn, PHRC recorded N44.2bn loss, while WRPC lost N38.5bn. The losses were from January to November 2018. Further analysis of figures received from the national oil firm showed that the expenses incurred by the refineries were higher than the revenue they generated during the specified period. Among the three refineries, it was observed that Kaduna refinery earned the lowest revenue of N3.1bn, while its expenses in the same period was put at N34.73bn. Port Harcourt refinery garnered a revenue of N140.82bn, while its expenses for the 11-month period was N185.03bn.