Sports

Usyk Will Beat Joshua Again – Parker

Published

2 years ago

August 9, 2022

Eric

Joseph Parker believes it will be Oleksandr Usyk who prevails in his highly anticipated rematch with Anthony Joshua.

The New Zealand heavyweight is a former opponent of Joshua, with the two going head-to-head in 2018 which saw ‘AJ’ adding Parker’s WBO belt to his collection, as well as going the 12-round distance for the first time.

Joshua is now at a much different stage of his career since that bout, having lost his heavyweight belts twice, most recently being outclassed by Usyk at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last September.

Now the 32-year-old heads back to Saudi Arabia on August 20 looking to regain those heavyweight belts from the Ukrainian, just as he did against Andy Ruiz Jr. in 2019.

Despite having praise for his former opponent, Parker told Sky Sports he believes it will be Usyk with his hand raised at the end.

“He was a good champion, and he can be champion again. It’s just that it’s up to him now.”

“It’s up to him and his new team to make the changes that he needs to attack what Usyk’s going to bring.”

“There’s a lot of support for him. Everyone’s supporting him here in the UK. But also, Usyk’s got a lot of support as well from his home, so we’ll see what happens.”

Andy Lee trained heavyweight then made his pick for the rematch in Jeddah.

“I would have to side with Usyk (winning) just because the confidence that he’s going to come in with from the first fight. But it’ll be interesting.”

Sports

CAF Crowns Ademola Lookman As African Footballer of the Year

Published

6 days ago

December 16, 2024

Eric

Super Eagles winger, Ademola Lookman, has been named the CAF Footballer of the Year for the past year.

Lookman was announced as the winner at an elaborate event in Marrakech, Morocco on Monday night.

The Atalanta star won the prize ahead of Ivory Coast’s Simon Adingra and PSG’s Achraf Hakimi, Guinea striker Serhou Guirassy and South Africa goalkeeper Ronwen Williams.

It has been an incredible year for Lookman, who became the first player to score a hat-trick in the Europa League/UEFA Cup final since 1975, netting the three goals within 26 minutes against Bayer Leverkusen.

Lookman was included in the Team of the Year for the Europa League, and ended the season having had a direct hand in 18 top flight goals for La Dea.

The 27-year-old was ranked the 14th best player during the Ballon d’Or gala on October 28.

Sports

Panel Clears Mbappe of Rape Allegation

Published

1 week ago

December 13, 2024

Eric

The Swedish Prosecution Authority announced today that the inquiry into rape allegations against French footballer Kylian Mbappé has been closed due to a lack of sufficient evidence to proceed.

This is according to multiple reports on Thursday morning.

The allegations had drawn international attention, casting a shadow over the football star’s career.

Mbappé, who had consistently denied the allegations, has yet to make an official statement regarding the decision

His legal team had previously emphasised his commitment to due process.

Mbappe was “linked to rape investigation in Sweden” and that he intended to reserve any explanations for the Swedish justice system “if necessary,” according to his lawyer, Marie-Alix Canu-Bernard.

“He prioritises providing his explanations, if required, to the Swedish judiciary,” Canu-Bernard told AFP, while strongly condemning “media allegations suggesting that Kylian Mbappé had commented on the events of his trip to Stockholm.”

The case, which began earlier this year, involved accusations stemming from an alleged incident in Stockholm. The prosecutor’s decision not to press charges marks the end of months of scrutiny and speculation.

Sports

Man United Engage van Nistelrooy on Interim Basis As Ten Hag Gets the Boot

Published

2 months ago

October 28, 2024

Eric

Manchester United have announced the termination of Erik ten Hag’s contract after two-and-a-half years in charge at Old Trafford, with Ruud van Nistelrooy set to take interim charge.

The Dutchman was dismissed following a 2-1 defeat to West Ham, which left United sitting 14th in the Premier League table.

A club statement said: “Erik ten Hag has left his role as Manchester United men’s first-team manager.

“Erik was appointed in April 2022 and led the club to two domestic trophies, winning the Carabao Cup in 2023 and the FA Cup in 2024.

“We are grateful to Erik for everything he has done during his time with us and wish him well for the future.

“Ruud van Nistelrooy will take charge of the team as interim head coach, supported by the current coaching team, whilst a permanent head coach is recruited.”