Sports
S’Africa beat Morocco to win first WAFCON title
Hildah Magaia scored twice in eight minutes after the hour mark to hand South Africa a first-ever Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title as they beat hosts Morocco 2-1 in a grueling final in Rabat on Saturday.
It ended a run of five finals without success for Banyana Banyana, who completed the tournament in Morocco with a 100 per cent record, as well as securing qualification to next year’s Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand
Magaia tapped in an excellent cutback from Jermaine Seoposenwe, who ran onto a loose ball to create the opening goal as she held off her marker to provide an excellent pass in the 63rd minute.
It took the sting out of a frenzied atmosphere at the sold-out Prince Moulay Abdallah Stadium, where only weeks earlier South Africa’s men had lost to Morocco in a Cup of Nations qualifier.
Magaia then doubled the lead in the 71st minute with another close finish, this time from a cross out wide from Karabo Dhlamini, which Morocco’s defence failed to deal with.
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But a lapse in concentration saw Banyana lose possession and offered Morocco hope of a comeback as Rosella Ayane pulled one back in the 80th minute after being set up by Fatima Tagnaout.
It meant an anxious last 10 minutes for Desiree Ellis’ team – plus another nine minutes of referee’s time added on – before they could get their hands on the trophy.
The game started with a high tempo, fueled by the large crowd who greeted every Moroccan touch with a cheer and Banyana move with a chorus of whistles.
After 11 minutes, there was a muted shout for a penalty, but the tackle by Morocco came close to conceding a penalty while Tagnaout’s challenge on Magaia in her own penalty area was risky, it proved expertly timed.
Both sides pressed high to allow little space for chances and, as a result, the first 30 minutes went by without goals scoring opportunities.
South Africa had a chance with a long-range free kick in the 32nd minute that Nomvula Kgoale hit onto the roof of the net and three minutes later Seoposenwe played through an inch-perfect pass for Magaia, but her left-footed effort was blocked by a brave save by the home goalkeeper Khadija Er-Rmichi.
Punch
Sports
UCL: Dortmund sink Atletico Madrid to reach semi-final as 10-man Barca suffer blow against PSG
UCL: Dortmund sink Atletico Madrid to reach semi-final as 10-man Barca suffer blow against PSG
Borussia Dortmund rallied to defeat Atletico Madrid 4-2 in their quarter-final second leg on Tuesday, securing a 5-4 aggregate victory and their first Champions League semi-final appearance since 2013.
After trailing 2-1 in the first leg, hosts Dortmund stormed into a 2-0 half-time lead but fell behind again in the tie before Niclas Fuellkrug and Marcel Sabitzer struck in the space of three minutes to put the Bundesliga club through.
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In the same event, French giants, Paris Saint-Germain qualified for the UEFA Champions League semi-final after making a turnaround from the 3-2 first-leg defeat in France.
Two goals a piece from Dembele and Vitinha, and two spot kicks from captain Kylian Mbappe were enough for the Parisians to seal a place in the semi-final with a 6-4 aggregate score.
Barca coach, Xavi Hernandez and defender Ronald Araujo were both given their marching orders.
UCL: Dortmund sink Atletico Madrid to reach semi-final as 10-man Barca suffer blow against PSG
Sports
United in hot chase for Osimhen amid transfer speculations
United in hot chase for Osimhen amid transfer speculations
Reports from Malu Mpasinkatu, Italy’s foremost pundit on African football, suggest that Manchester United is actively working on securing a deal for Napoli striker Victor Osimhen as the competition to acquire his services intensifies.
This season, Rasmus Hojlund remains Manchester United’s leading goal scorer, netting 13 times across all competitions. However, with his last goal dating back to February 13, the Premier League giants are eager to bolster their attacking options in the upcoming transfer window.
Manager Erik ten Hag’s team has been linked with several top strikers, including Brentford’s Ivan Toney, Bologna’s Joshua Zirkzee, and Osimhen.
Manchester United’s pursuit of the Nigerian striker dates back to last summer, where both Osimhen and Harry Kane were top targets on Ten Hag’s transfer wishlist. However, neither deal materialized, with Kane eventually moving to Bayern Munich and Osimhen opting to stay at Napoli after guiding them to their first Scudetto in thirty years.
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Recent reports suggesting Osimhen’s proximity to a move to Paris Saint-Germain, with a lucrative four-year contract on the table, have spurred Manchester United to revive their interest and potentially hijack the deal.
Speaking on Radio Goal, Mpasinkatu revealed that United is ready to enter a bidding war for the 25-year-old striker.
“From my information, there is talk of [Marcus] Thuram at PSG instead of Mbappe. Osimhen wants to play in the Premier League, and Manchester United and Chelsea are keen on him. As for [Jonathan] David, he could be a suitable replacement for Osimhen, being young yet experienced in European football. Lille may demand a high fee for him, but their sold players have shown good performances elsewhere.”
While Osimhen’s goal-scoring output this season hasn’t matched his previous campaign, where he secured the Serie A top scorer accolade with 26 goals, his contribution of 15 goals and four assists in 27 appearances across all competitions still stands out, especially considering Napoli’s challenges.
United in hot chase for Osimhen amid transfer speculations
Sports
EPL: Liverpool suffer title blow in loss to Crystal Palace
EPL: Liverpool suffer title blow in loss to Crystal Palace
Andy Robertson insisted Liverpool will “keep fighting” despite their English Premier League (EPL) title hopes suffering a huge blow as they fell to a 1-0 defeat by Crystal Palace at Anfield.
Eberechi Eze converted from Tyrick Mitchell’s cut-back to finish off a flowing Palace move early on and the visitors were deservedly in front at the break.
Jurgen Klopp’s Reds ramped up the pressure in the second half but, just as in recent games against Manchester United and Atalanta, their finishing let them down as they fell to a first league loss at home since October 2022.
Defeat leaves Liverpool two points behind leaders Manchester City.
“I think we are always still in it. We are still there,” Liverpool full-back Robertson told Sky Sports. “We will keep fighting, keep going to the end, and let’s see where it gets us.
“With six games to go we will give it everything we have got. The problem is there’s two world-class teams doing it as well and that’s the difficult part.”
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Palace started brightly and led through Eze’s well-worked opener, before a slip from Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk gave Jean-Philippe Mateta a golden opportunity to double their lead.
The striker was clean through and lifted his effort past the returning Alisson Becker but Scotland skipper Robertson sprinted back to hook the ball off the line.
Liverpool rallied and Wataru Endo struck the bar after Palace failed to deal with a corner before Dean Henderson made a fine reaction save to deny Luis Diaz.
Oliver Glasner’s Palace retained a threat on the counter-attack until the break but were largely penned inside their own half in the second 45 minutes.
Henderson made another superb stop from Darwin Nunez, Diogo Jota’s close-range effort was blocked by Nathaniel Clyne with the goalkeeper nowhere to be seen and Curtis Jones somehow sliced wide when through on goal.
Mateta did have another big chance to score the visitors’ second from a rare Palace attack but Alisson made a remarkable save from point-blank range.
Liverpool kept pushing for an equaliser but could not find a way through, with Mohamed Salah’s goalbound effort from inside the six-yard box blocked by Mitchell in stoppage time.
The Reds are now left to reflect on a potentially decisive loss with just six matches remaining in the league campaign.
EPL: Liverpool suffer title blow in loss to Crystal Palace
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