Football

Christian Eriksen wins Laureus comeback of the year award

Published

1 month ago

May 9, 2023

Olayiwola Quadril

Manchester United midfielder Christian Eriksen has won the Laureus World Comeback of the Year award.

Christian suffered a cardiac arrest while on duty for Denmark at Euro 2020 – a moment that made the world stop – and he has since made a truly remarkable recovery to play football at the highest level once more.

Our no.14 first returned to football in January 2022, following the fitting of a cardioverter-defibrillator, and impressed at Brentford in the second part of last season before moving to Old Trafford in the summer.

The 31-year-old has been a key player for Erik ten Hag this season, displaying his quality on the ball and dictating matches at will.

He also represented Denmark once more at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, lining up alongside the best from around the globe.

Such is Eriksen’s recovery, and subsequent contribution for both club and country, he was named among the nominees for the prestigious Laureus award.

Alongside the 31-year-old on the shortlist were cyclist Annemiek van Vleuten, motor cyclist Francesco Bagnaia, athlete Jakob Ingebrigtsen, basketballer Klay Thompson and golfer Tiger Woods.

The winner of the award was determined by the 71 members of the Laureus World Sports Academy, which consists of Olympic champions, world record holders and plenty of other sporting greats, such as United legend Sir Bobby Charlton.

Eriksen’s success was announced at the awards ceremony on Monday evening, which he attended

Football

Messi Won’t Find Life Easy In MLS –Rooney

Published

4 hours ago

June 9, 2023

Olayiwola Quadril

Former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney has warned Lionel Messi that he should braze up for tough time in Major League Soccer (MLS).

Recall that Messi confirmed this week that he is joining Inter Miami as a free agent.

Rooney, who is currently in charge of DC United, is hoping that the 35-year-old’s MLS debut could come against his side.

Inter Miami are due to face DC United in Washington on July 8.

Rooney told reporters: “It’d be nice if we were his first opponents for D.C. fans to see him up close and for us to challenge ourselves against him.

“One thing I will say is that it’s not going to be easy for him. The league’s a difficult league, and I don’t think he’s going to come over here and absolutely tear it up immediately.

“He’ll have to adapt because it’s a bit different; it won’t be an easy ride for him.”

Football

UCL final: Guardiola afraid of Italian teams – Di Matteo

Published

5 hours ago

June 9, 2023

Olayiwola Quadril

Former Chelsea coach Roberto Di Matteo has claimed that Pep Guardiola fears Italian clubs.

Guardiola’s Manchester City will take on Inter Milan in Saturday’s Champions League final.

The Premier League champions are favourites heading into the game in Istanbul, as they close in on a treble after they also lifted the FA Cup.

But Di Matteo believes Guardiola is a little bit scared of taking on Italian sides, knowing what a challenge they can pose.

He told Football-Italia: “You go to church with the whole team and pray; jokes aside, motivation makes the difference, and we had it. We were not fully fit, but convinced we could make it. Inter have the same spirit; they don’t look like a scared team.

“Guardiola is more than a coach; he is a visionary, but he knows how competitive Italians are and fears us.”

Football

Transfer: Real reason I didn’t join Saudi Arabian club – Messi

Published

1 day ago

June 8, 2023

Olayiwola Quadril

Argentina captain Lionel Messi has explained why he didn’t move to Saudi Arabia.

Messi, who played his last game for Paris Saint-Germain last Sunday against Clermont Foot, had been linked with a move to Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal.

The Argentina World Cup winner was also linked with a return to Barcelona, but he is now set to join Major League Soccer (MLS) side Inter Miami.

However, according to Messi, he opted not to move to Saudi Arabia because he had made his final decision to go elsewhere [Inter Miami] and not because of money.

“If it had been a matter of money, I’d have gone to Arabia or elsewhere. It seemed like a lot of money to me”, Messi told Mundo Deportivo.

“The truth is that my final decision goes elsewhere and not because of money.”