Ten Times Barcelona Suffered Heavy Defeats In Champions League Since 2017

Published

1 year ago

December 9, 2021

NewTimes

Ten Times Barcelona Has Suffered A Heavy Defeat In Champions League Since 2017

Barcelona’s embarrassing Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich on Wednesday night made it ten defeats they’ve suffered in just the last four years.

Xavi Hernandez’s arrival in the dugout was meant to signal a new era for the Blaugrana, but it was more of the same in Bavaria, with the Catalans looking no match for their elite opponents.

It’s unfair to throw too much of the blame at Xavi’s door, given how far back the problems date from.

Indeed, the first of those 10 thrashings was in 2017 at the Parc des Princes against Paris Saint-Germain.

That 4-0 almost seemed like an accident, given it occurred to a Luis Enrique team that contained the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Andres Iniesta.

And the 6-1 remontada back at the Camp Nou certainly papered over the cracks that the Parisians had exposed.

But it was a sign that an era was ending, and the 3-0 loss to Juventus three weeks later confirmed just that, as did the exits of Luis Enrique and Neymar.

The humbling results in Europe came thick and fast in the ensuing seasons, with the 3-0 reverse at the hands of Roma in 2018 followed by the well-documented 4-0 to Liverpool.

But worse remarkably was to come with the now infamous 8-2 hammering by Bayern in 2020, a result that led Messi to send his Burofax message demanding a transfer.

The little maestro ended up staying but the embarrassments continued, with a 3-0 loss to Juventus followed by a 4-1 defeat to PSG.

As such, and with the club’s issues so well known, the beatings have been more expected this term but no less painful, going down 3-0 twice to Bayern and also to Benfica.

That makes up the 10 terrible nights, and now comes the ignominy of competing in the Europa League after their group phase exit from the Champions League.

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30 percent of Pele’s Assets Go To Widow – lawyer

Published

2 weeks ago

March 8, 2023

NewTimes

Pele

The 30 percent of the assets of the late legendary footballer Pele will go to his wife,according to his will disclosed by his lawyer.

The will states that Marcia Cibele Aoki, Pele’s third and last wife, will inherit his mansion in Guaruja, a seaside resort town south of Sao Paulo, where the couple lived, according to her lawyer Luiz Kignel.

Other assets belonging to Pele, who died after battling cancer in late December at age 82, include more real estate and a stake in the Pele brand, Kignel said, adding that a complete inventory has yet to be made.

The remaining 70 percent is reserved for Pele’s children, including an unrecognized daughter that he may have.

“He indicated the possibility of the existence of another daughter, whose recognition will depend on a DNA test, which could not be carried out (on Pele) due to the pandemic and the state of his health,” said Kignel.

According to Kignel, the woman in question is a Brazilian national and she has taken legal steps to be recognized as Pele’s daughter.

In September 2022, a court in Sao Paulo ordered Pele to submit to a DNA test, according to the G1 website. The test must now be performed on one of his seven recognized children.

Sports

Obasanjo Shines, Scores Hat-trick As BBHS Mark 100 Years

Published

2 months ago

January 24, 2023

NewTimes

Obasanjo Shines, Scores Hat-trick As BBHS Mark 100 Years

By John Michael Ojo
It was a moment of joy yesterday in Ogun State as former President Olusegun Obasanjo, captained the football team of Baptist Boy High School, Abeokuta the state capital to a glorious victory in a novelty match as part of the activities lined up to mark the 100th anniversary of the college.

As a former student of the college, Obasanjo who toed the path of contemporary European stars like Messi, Ronaldo, Mbappe and Neymar in the match, was the star attraction for spectators, many of whom are also former students of the school.

READ ALSO: Why Nobody Can Stop Me From Supporting Obi – Obasanjo

The encounter which saw the old students battle it out with former teachers of the college ended in a 3-0 victory in favour of the old students with all three goals coming from the former president.

Among the high-profile old students present at the event are Bukola Olopade, a former Sports Commissioner in Ogun State; and Hakeem Akintunde, who is the Chairman of the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) in the state.

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Sports

Everton Fires Frank Lampard

Published

2 months ago

January 23, 2023

NewTimes

By John Michael Ojo
Relegation threatened Premier League side, Everton has relieved its manager, Frank Lampard of his role as the club’s head coach.

Frank Lampard, a former Chelsea midfielder and coach was sacked on Monday after an agreement was reached by Everton’s board, following a run of poor performances recorded under the tenure of the former British star.

With only three wins so far this season in the Premier League, Everton currently sits in 19th place with 15 points after 20 games played.

READ ALSO: Chelsea Fires Lampard

The news of his sack, was convened to him by Farhad Moshiri, the club’s major shareholder through a telephone call after a 357-day spell in charge of the club.

There have been wide speculations over his sack after Everton’s 2-0 loss to West Ham, with Lampard reportedly in a meeting with Moshiri, Chairman Bill Kenwright and Everton’s Director of Football, Kevin Thelwell.

Frank Lampard took over at Goodison with Everton 16th in the table, six points above the relegation zone.

Everton had 10 defeats in the remaining 18 games of the season, but secured their survival with a 3-2 comeback victory against Crystal Palace on what Lampard called “one of the greatest nights” of his career.

He won only 12 of his 44 matches in charge in all competitions, a win percentage of 27.27 that is far worse than his record at Derby (42.1%) and Chelsea (52.4%).

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