Tyavkase: Lobi Stars will bounce back against Wydad
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Several readers have asked me why Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp did not do any business during the transfer window which ended on Thursday. I put this to my club insiders and here is what they told me: The manager is happy with his squad and is feeling confident despite injuries like the fractured leg Joe Gomez suffered at Burnley in December. Jurgen is content with his team options because he has four players coming back into contention. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has almost recovered from the nasty knee injury he suffered last April and Jurgen Klopp is excited that his attacking midfielder will be available very soon. As protection for Alex he will play for only part of each of Liverpool’s Premier League matches as Klopp eases him back into the team. Self-proclaimed “I am one of the world’s top defenders” Dejan Lovren has had a lot of bad luck since the World Cup. A stomach problem, concussion and a hamstring injury have kept him out of the team for several months. But he is steadily recovering and will be fit to play very shortly. Adam Lallana was an important part of Klopp’s team during his first 18 months in charge of Liverpool. Two lengthy injuries meant several months as a spectator and the team playing approach has moved on but Adam still remains a valuable option in midfield. Finally, Daniel Sturridge is a striker who will always score goals as he did when Salah and Firmino were off form after returning from the World Cup. He will not commit himself regarding his intentions when his contract expires in six months because injuries have lost him a starting place on the team sheet however for Jurgen Klopp having Daniel available helps him sleep at night. Solskjaer has to wait My understanding, after talking with contacts at Manchester United, is that Ole Gunner Solskjaer will have to wait in line with other potential managers to see if he is on the short list to take over the role permanently. There has been pressure from players, assistants and fans to appoint the Norwegian now but both Executive Vice-Chairman Ed Woodward and United’s American owners, the Glazer Brothers, are determined to wait until the end of this current season. Following their draw with Burnley on Tuesday, Solskjaer has notched up an incredible nine matches without defeat and this Sunday look for their tenth at Leicester. It is hard to imagine how any manager could deliver a more impressive job application and the players and fans agree! However, several members of the board are still keen on Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino despite Spur’s management saying they will fight to keep him. Earlier in the season under the tactical style of Jose Mourinho, Paul Pogba, David De Gea and Anthony Martial were all considering their futures and not signing new contracts. Solskjaer has ended all that unrest. Ander Herrera underlined the new spirit at United by saying, “We enjoy scoring goals and we enjoy defending together. We are playing free and with a smile and everyone is playing for each other and results come much easier. I can make runs into the box, Paul (Pogba) can make runs and drive us forward, and we are allowed to go for goal. Ashley Young and Luke Shaw are also allowed to win the ball in our box and make runs up field and even into the opponents box. Even Nemanja Matic is allowed to shoot. We could not do that previously. We now have the belief that we can win every game.” Perhaps the United board and owners should take notice because every football club on the planet would love that amount of confidence and team spirit. Can Higuain cope with the Premier League? I am a fan of Gonzalo Higuain and I think Chelsea have loaned a striker who could solve their low scoring record despite Wednesday’s 4-0 hammering by Bournemouth. However, there are doubts and buying him is a risk. During spells at Real Madrid, Juventus, Napoli and AC Milan he has scored over 250 goals. The worry is, how fit is Gonzalo? The Premier League is without doubt the world’s toughest league and he will find it more difficult to put the ball in the back of the net in the company of tough, hard tackling defences. Chelsea manager Mauricio Sarri has bet heavily on the Spaniard to solve his problems upfront and has instructed his physio team to work hard on reaching maximum fitness for the new man. I have discovered that Sarri’s plan is to use his wide players, such as Hazard, to work down the wing and then cut inside to give the ball to Higuain who then holds the ball and moves towards goal where he will be expected to add the lethal strike into the back of the net. Sarri’s assistants have been told to train him hard and toughen him up for the physical battles ahead. Higuain is rather like Diego Costa, who left Chelsea last year, in that he likes to fight for the ball, likes to get inside the penalty area and boss defenders but we will have to see how he copes with the tough demands of battling the Virgil Van Dykes of the Premier League. If Higuain does well the loan can be turned into a permanent deal for £31.6million. Make no mistake, if Higuain fails and Sarri does not finish in the top four then expect owner Roman Abramovich to show him the exit door.
In a heartfelt exclusive interview Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku said he is fighting for his future at the Reds. Under the guidance of manager Ole Gunner Solskjaer, Marcus Rashford has firmly established himself as one of the first names on the team sheet. At the same time Anthony Martial has improved beyond all hopes and now Alexis Sanchez is starting to play some of the football we know he is capable of. Lukaku has been left on the bench for the last four league games and only started in the FA Cup which usually gives second pick players a chance to get first team action. In the 3-1 win at Arsenal he set up two of the goals for Sanchez and Jesse Lingard and played very well. He said, “Competition is tough and intense - but in a good way. It’s all about the team.”
During Newcastle’s amazing win against Manchester City on Tuesday evening, the fan’s hatred against their owner Mike Ashley was red hot. Ashley owns a huge sports retail business and online internet empire and fans held up posters which discouraged people from buying goods from his company Sports Direct and given that the match was on TV their protest probably worked. There were also banners shouting “Ashley Out of our Club” and “Where has all the money gone?” On Tyneside, the area where Newcastle play, Ashley is enemy No1. Ashley and his board of directors have spent less on new players than any other Premier League club and he is still looking to sell up. Season tickets are up for renewal and many supporters are walking away and not renewing them as part of their Ashley protest. Meanwhile, Liverpool supporters cheered Rafa Benitez and Newcastle’s win because it meant their main title rivals Manchester City has lost three valuable points. Rafa is still a legend at Liverpool and much loved from the time he managed the team. He still supports many charities in the area, because that is the sort of man he is, and his family still live near Liverpool.
Lobi Stars inspirational player, David Terzungwe Tyavkase is optimistic that his team will bounce back in their CAF Champions League campaign with a win against former champions, Wydad Casablanca of Morocco today at the Nnamdi Azikiwe stadium in Enugu.
The Nigerian representatives suffered a 0-1 loss to Asec Mimosa of Cote d’Ivoire in Abidjan in their second group A match and are looking to their third match against the Moroccans for revival.
Lobi Stars had started the group matches in sparkling form with a convincing 2-1 win over Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa before the mishap in Abidjan.
Anything short of victory against Wydad today will spell doom for Lobi Stars who are currently at the bottom of the group.
However, when he spoke to Trust Sports, a former winner of the CAF Champions League with Enyimba FC, Tyavkase said Lobi Stars are primed to get the maximum points against their North African opponents.
He said after their slim loss in Abidjan, Lobi Stars have played two matches in the NPFL which have kept them in good shape for the tie against Wydad.
Tyavkase who WBO light-heavyweight champion Eleider Alvarez defends his belt against Sergey Kovalov, whom he stopped in the seventh round in August last year, in a return match on Saturday night at the Ford Centre at the Star in Frisco, Texas.
The 34-year-old Alvarez (24-0; 12) from Colombia, who fights out of Montreal, Canada, was obliged to face Kovalov again in terms of a rematch clause.
In the first fight, Kovalov was ahead 59-55 on all three judges’ scorecards when he was knocked down on three occasions before referee Dave Fields stopped the fight at 2:45 into the seventh round.
If Alvarez wins again there are options for him to meet either WBC champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk or IBF champion Artur Beterbiev, as both fight under the Top Rank banner. experienced player in Lobi Stars said “We are going to face tough opponents because the Moroccans are star-studded.
“North African teams are usually tricky but we shall take the fight to them. We are not going to give them too much space to play.
“Our target is the maximum points. Although we slipped away at Asec Mimosa, we have moved on from that loss.
“When we returned, we played two matches in the NPFL. We drew 0-0 with Enyimba in Aba and won 3-0 at home against Kwara United.
“These results will surely propel us against Wyad. We are going to give our best to win the maximum points,” he said.
The WBA champion is Dmitry Bivol.
There are two other title fights on this card, with WBO featherweight champion Mexican, Oscar Valdez, 28, who has a record of 24-0; 19, making the fifth defence of his belts against 34-year-old Carmine Tommasone (19-0; 5) from Italy.
Valdez is returning to action after retaining his belt against an overweight Scott Quigg, who broke his jaw in a closely-fought contest in March last year.
Also on the card is a clash for the vacant IBF lightweight belt between Ghana’s Richard Commey (27-2; 24) and Russia’s Isa Chaniev (13-1; 6).
Another interesting matchup is the fight between Teofimo Lopez (11-0; 9) and former world title challenger Diego Magdaleno (312; 13) for NABA, NABF and USBA lightweight titles.