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Messi beats Haaland, Mbappe to win 8th Ballon d’Or

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Lionel Messi is expected to lift his eighth Ballon d’Or later this month after the winners for both the male and female awards for 2023 were leaked.

This comes after the 36-year-old achieved glory with Argentina after leading them to World Cup triumph in Qatar last year.

The former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain star then joined Inter Miami in July and immediately set MLS abuzz with a string of spectacular performances.

According to Spanish media outlet SPORT, Messi will be awarded his 8th Ballon d’Or ahead of Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, who helped his club to a treble, and Kylian Mbappe who was the World Cup’s Golden Boot winner.

Mbappe guided France to the final in Qatar, where he scored a hat-trick against Argentina, only to lose the trophy on penalties.

In addition to Messi’s triumph, the report adds that Barcelona midfielder Aitana Bonmati has won her first-ever Ballon d’Or Feminin prize on the back of Spain’s success at the Women’s World Cup.

As was the case with Messi, Bonmati also won the Golden Ball at this year’s Women’s World Cup, and the 25-year-old also clinched Champions League and Primera Division glory with La Blaugrana.

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Manchester City midfielder, Matheus Nunes, arrested for alleged phone theft

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Manchester City midfielder Matheus Nunes has reportedly been arrested on suspicion of stealing a mobile phone at a nightclub in Madrid.

The 26-year-old Portuguese international was allegedly detained in the early hours of September 8 at La Riviera, a popular disco, and taken to a local police station for questioning, Dailymails reports.

His arrest occurred around 5:30 a.m. after Nunes was accused of taking a phone from a 58-year-old man who had attempted to photograph him in the nightclub’s restroom without his consent, according to Spanish daily El Mundo.

Born in Brazil, Nunes is said to have taken the phone in a moment of anger and refused to return it.

El Mundo stated that the police reportedly arrested him after being called to the scene and found the phone in his possession.

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Osimhen suffers muscle injury, doubtful for AFCON qualifiers

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Victor Osimhen has suffered a muscle injury that could rule him out of action for a few weeks.

Osimhen picked up a knock and was substituted early in the second half in Galatasaray’s Super Lig encounter against Kasımpaşa on September 28.

The 25-year-old had scored two first-half goals before he was forced off and replaced by Dries Mertens in the game that ended 3-3.

In a statement on Tuesday, Galatasaray said Osimhen was “diagnosed with strain (strain and bleeding) in his upper left posterior muscle group”.

The club added that Osimhen had started treatment, but no exact date for his return to action was revealed.

The striker is expected to miss Galatasaray’s Europa League clash against Latvia’s FK Rīgas on Thursday and may also be unavailable for the club’s league game against Alanyaspor.

Osimhen will also be doubtful for the Super Eagles’ double-header clash against Libya in the 2025 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers.

The first leg is scheduled to be held at the Godswill Akpabio stadium in Uyo on October 11 before the return leg in Libya four days later.

Osimhen scored in the previous round of games when Nigeria defeated the Benin Republic 3-0 in the first game, followed by a frustrating goalless draw against Rwanda.

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FIFA bans Eto’o from attending games for six months over misconduct

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Samuel Eto’o, president of the Cameroon FA (FECAFOOT), has been issued a six-month ban from attending any international matches involving the country.

According to a statement from FIFA on Monday, Eto’o was sanctioned for breaching two articles of the football governing entity’s disciplinary code.

“The sanction was imposed in connection with the FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup round-of-16 match between Brazil and Cameroon played in Bogota, Colombia, on 11 September 2024,” the statement reads.

The former Barcelona striker was adjudged guilty of “offensive behaviour and violations of the principles of fair play” and “misconduct of players and officials” during the match.

Eto’o and the Cameroon delegation saw red after Brazil was awarded a penalty. The Brazilians later won the game 3-1.

Since Eto’o became the FECAFOOT president in 2021, he has been embroiled in controversy.

In July, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) fined him $200,000 for violating “the principles of ethics, integrity and sportsmanship” by “signing a brand ambassador contract with the company 1XBET in exchange for remuneration.”

In 2022, he was caught on tape attacking a cameraman outside a stadium at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

A year later, CAF investigated him for alleged improper misconduct following complaints from several stakeholders of Cameroonian football.

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Bodex F. Hungbo, SPMIIM is a multiple award-winning Nigerian Digital Media Practitioner, Digital Strategist, PR consultant, Brand and Event Expert, Tv Presenter, Tier-A Blogger/Influencer, and a top cobbler in Nigeria.

She has widespread experiences across different professions and skills, which includes experiences in; Marketing, Media, Broadcasting, Brand and Event Management, Administration and Management with prior stints at MTN, NAPIMS-NNPC, GLOBAL FLEET OIL AND GAS, LTV, Silverbird and a host of others

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