Category: Sports

Alan Pardew has challenged his players to avoid an unwanted hat-trick as he desperately attempts to inject new life into their season.

The Magpies slipped to a second successive home defeat and into the bottom half of the Premier League on Saturday when Swansea left St James’ Park with a deserved 2-1 victory.

Coupled with last Sunday’s 1-0 loss to West Ham, the latest setback left the natives in restless mood as hopes of matching last season’s top-five finish were dealt a further blow.

But Pardew’s men will run out in front of their home fans once again on Thursday to face Portuguese outfit Maritimo in a game which could clinch their progression to the knockout stage of the Europa League, and the 51-year-old is hoping that will be the springboard they need.

He said: “We certainly don’t want to lose three home games on the trot, that would be a blow.

“It’s a big game for us because if we can win it, it guarantees qualification, and that’s what we need to do, get one hurdle out of the way and then look for our first win away from home in the Premier League in the next game. They are the two immediate hurdles in front of us.”

NO FEWER than 800 athletes and officials will represent Team Lagos at the forth-coming National Sports Festival (NSF) tagged ‘Eko 2012.’

While 640 of the total number are athletes, 160 will be technical staff, coaches and other officials that will represent the state in the various sports during the event.

As things stand, Lagos has presented the largest number of entries among the states competing at the event as it will be participating in 25 sports at the Games.

In a chat with journalists yesterday, the Direcor, Technicals of the Lagos State Sports Council, Akin Ladigbolu said the team list for the athletes is ready, adding that every training equipment needed for the athletes to excel at the Games was provided by the State Governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN), and that as such there will be no excuses for failure.

“I don’t think there are states that have prepared as much as Lagos did. Prior to the commencement of the Festival, we have had four phases of camping and we are now at the last phase.

“Our athletes have scaled through the accreditation process at the Main Organising Committee (MOC) and so all our athletes has been cleared. They will soon be moving to the Games Village for the commencement of the Games proper,” he said.

He however assured that with what is on ground for the state athletes in terms of equipments and motivation, Team Lagos should surpass previous performances.

Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey warns that the Gunners must win their Champions League clash with Montpellier on Wednesday to feel secure about reaching the knockout stages.

With two games left to play in Group B, the north London outfit are one point behind leaders Schalke and one ahead of third-placed Olympiakos, with the Welshman looking to beat the already-eliminated French side at home in the hopes of taking first spot.

“The group is pretty tight, so I think you can say we have to win that game,” he told the club’s official website. “We are at home, so hopefully we can do that and put ourselves in a strong position to qualify.

“When we played them in France we were under pressure for periods of the game and we did well to get a result.

“They have competed against every team in the group and shown that they can create and can be a threat, so they will be no pushover. They will want to prove something as well. We have to be aware of that and be on top of our game on the day.”

Ramsey is keen for Arsenal to top their group, as such giving them a better chance of avoiding one of the bigger teams in the next round, though qualification is the primary aim.

“Finishing second has been quite costly in the last few years,” he continued. “We finished second in the group a couple of seasons ago and played Barcelona.

“So you know you’re going to have a strong team if you do finish second but, most importantly, we need to qualify and, if we do, we’re confident that we can compete and challenge against any team in the competition. But we must qualify first and then go from there.”

Under pressure Super Eagles ace, Nosa Igiebor has told Real Betis fans that he is not a magician and he also appealed for their patience.

The Nigerian scored a stunning goal in the 3-1 victory over Venezuela in an international friendly played Wednesday in Marlins Park, Miami.

“The fans need to be patient with me.

“I’m not a magician. It’ll take time for me to gain my confidence as I need to prove myself by getting more La Liga playing time.

“Moreover, I think I’m showing progress as my performance in the last two games, has gradually shown that I’m getting better in every game.

“Since I arrived in Seville, I found out that I don’t find myself in the coach’s match plans like I always did in the club I played for in Norway and Israel.

“The change was radical, hence it made me not to assimilate quickly. It’s not good for my mentality. I’m young, I know there’s a lot of competition among the twenty-six players who make up the team and also I still have difficulties communicating with my teammates and some coaching staff, “added the 21-year-old.

“Communication is essential. When I arrived, I noticed that almost no one spoke English in the dressing room, as I could only interact with Perquis and Campbell.

“It’s a bit better for me now as I quite understand some words and sometimes I need someone to translate what the coach says, but at least when we play I know whether to go to one side or another, up or down. To be honest, I’m not particularly smart or clever with languages.

“After three years in Norway I was unable to speak their language, but I hope that everything goes much better here in that sense.”