Sports
SEE FULL LIST: Lookman, Ekong, Oshoala shortlisted for 2024 FIFA Best awards
Four Nigerians have been nominated in multiple categories of the 2024 FIFA Best awards.
Ademola Lookman, Wiliam Troost-Ekong, Paul Onuachu and Asisat Oshoala were among the nominees announced by FIFA on Friday.
Lookman, who ranked 14th in the 2024 Ballon d’Or ceremony, was shortlisted in the Best Attacker category alongside Vinicius Junior, Lamine Yamal, Bukayo Saka, Erling Haaland, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, among others.
Troost-Ekong will compete in the Best Defender category against Dani Carvajal, Antonio Rüdiger, William Saliba, Achraf Hakimi, Manuel Akanji, Jonathan Tah and many more.
Onuachu was named among the best goals up for the Puskas Award for his sumptuous bicycle-kick strike in the colours of Trabzonspor against Konyaspor in the Turkish Super League in November 2023.
Oshoala was nominated for the newly introduced Marta Award for the best goal in women’s football. The 30-year-old’s acrobatic strike for Barcelona Femeni against Benfica in the women’s Champions League in November 2023 got the nod.
Rodri and Vinicius will again go against each other for the men’s best player award. The duo were nominated alongside nine other players, including Jude Bellingham, Mbappe, Toni Kroos and Federico Valverde.
Rodri was crowned the 2024 Ballon d’Or winner in October, a decision that was met with mixed excitement and criticism from fans and footballers alike.
Votes for the 2024 FIFA Best awards will be weighted equally between fans and an expert panel. Fans can cast their votes on the FIFA website until 10 December 2024.
FULL LIST
The Best FIFA Women’s Player nominees
Aitana Bonmati (Spain), Barcelona
Barbra Banda (Zambia), Shanghai Shengli/Orlando Pride
Caroline Graham Hansen (Norway), Barcelona
Keira Walsh (England), Barcelona
Khadija Shaw (Jamaica), Manchester City
Lauren Hemp (England), Manchester City
Lindsey Horan (USA), Olympique Lyonnais
Lucy Bronze (England), Barcelona/Chelsea
Mallory Swanson (USA), Chicago Red Stars
Mariona Caldentey (Spain), Barcelona/Arsenal
Naomi Girma (USA), San Diego Wave
Ona Batlle (Spain), Barcelona
Salma Paralluelo (Spain), Barcelona
Sophia Smith (USA), Portland Thorns
Tabitha Chawinga (Malawi), Paris Saint-Germain/Olympique Lyonnais
Trinity Rodman (USA), Washington Spirit
The Best FIFA Men’s Player nominees
Dani Carvajal (Spain), Real Madrid
Erling Haaland (Norway), Manchester City
Federico Valverde (Uruguay), Real Madrid
Florian Wirtz (Germany), Bayer Leverkusen
Jude Bellingham (England), Real Madrid
Kylian Mbappe (France), Paris Saint-Germain/Real Madrid
Lamine Yamal (Spain), Barcelona
Lionel Messi (Argentina), Inter Miami
Rodri (Spain), Manchester City
Toni Kroos (Germany), Real Madrid (now retired)
Vinicius Jr (Brazil), Real Madrid
The Best FIFA Women’s Coach nominees
Arthur Elias (Brazil), Brazil
Elena Sadiku (Sweden), Celtic
Emma Hayes (England), Chelsea/USA
Futoshi Ikeda (Japan), Japan
Gareth Taylor (England), Manchester City
Jonatan Giraldez (Spain), Barcelona/Washington Spirit
Sandrine Soubeyrand (France), Paris FC
Sonia Bompastor (France), Olympique Lyonnais/Chelsea
The Best FIFA Men’s Coach nominees
Carlo Ancelotti (Italy), Real Madrid
Lionel Scaloni (Argentina), Argentina
Luis de la Fuente (Spain), Spain
Pep Guardiola (Spain), Manchester City
Xabi Alonso (Spain), Bayer Leverkusen
The Best FIFA Women’s Goalkeeper nominees
Alyssa Naeher (USA), Chicago Red Stars
Ann-Katrin Berger (Germany), Chelsea/NJ/NY Gotham
Ayaka Yamashita (Japan), INAC Kobe Leonessa/Manchester City
Cata Coll (Spain), Barcelona
Mary Earps (England), Manchester United/Paris Saint-Germain
The Best FIFA Men’s Goalkeeper nominees
Andriy Lunin (Ukraine), Real Madrid
David Raya (Spain), Arsenal
Ederson (Brazil), Manchester City
Emiliano Martinez (Argentina), Aston Villa
Gianluigi Donnarumma (Italy), Paris Saint-Germain
Mike Maignan (France), AC Milan
Unai Simon (Spain), Athletic Club
Sports
Olympic sprinter Fred Kerley arrested by police
United States Olympic sprinter Fred Kerley was tasered and arrested by police following a confrontation with officers in Miami, Florida.
The 29-year-old, who won 100m bronze at last summer’s Paris Games, faces charges of battery, resisting a police officer and breach of the peace following the incident on Thursday evening.
Officers were investigating another incident when Kerley approached them with an “aggressive demeanour” over concern about his car, according to a police report.
The report said Kerley “continued to resist officers and used evasive movements to avoid being arrested” before being wrestled to the ground by four officers.
Police bodycam footage shows Kerley getting back to his feet then being tasered and falling back to the floor before being taken into custody.
Local media in Miami reported, external that on Friday Kerley made an appearance in court and he has now been released on bail.
His lawyer said the incident had been a “total misunderstanding”.
As well as his bronze in Paris, Kerley also won 100m silver at the Tokyo Games in 2021 and gold at the 2022 World Championships.
He has also won world 4x100m and 4x400m gold medals, and has recorded the sixth-fastest 100m time in history with 9.76 seconds.
Sports
Gift Orban joins Hoffenheim after one year at Olympique Lyon
Gift Orban, former Super Eagles invitee, has completed a move to Germany’s Hoffenheim from Olympique Lyon.
The German Bundesliga side announced the 22-year-old centre forward’s signature in a post on their X handle.
Orban signed a four-year deal and will wear jersey number 14 at his new club.
The move ends Orban’s torrid one-year spell at Lyon, in which he featured in 21 matches, scoring only five times.
He has only played five times this season, playing three Ligue 1 and two Europa League games, respectively.
The pacey striker has not been included in nine of the last 10 league matches for Lyon. Orban’s previous league appearance was on September 22, while he last played in a match for the former French League champions in the Europa League, coincidentally against his new club. The game ended 2-2, with Orban lasting 62 minutes before substitution.
Orban, who scored 32 goals in 52 matches for Genk before his move to Lyon, posted on his X that he handled his excitement about swapping France for Germany. He described his new home as “wonderful.”
“New year, new adventures! Excited to be part of This Wonderful Club Hoffenheim,” said Orban.
Andreas Schicker, Hoffenheim’s sporting director, was also excited about the player’s joining the club and believed his attacking skills would improve the struggling side.
“In Gift Orban, we have found exactly the fast striker with good depth that we were looking for. He has proven time and time again his goalscoring talent and his enjoyment of playing.
“We are therefore confident that he will bring our team greater offensive variability thanks to his abilities.”
Sports
AC Milan appoints Sergio Conceicao as new coach
Sergio Conceicao was named the new coach of AC Milan replacing his fellow Portuguese Paulo Fonseca who was sacked earlier on Monday, the Serie A club announced.
“AC Milan announces that Sergio Paulo Marceneiro da Conceicao has been appointed as the Head Coach of the men’s first team until June 30, 2026,” Milan said in a statement.
Conceicao takes over a Milan side that lies eighth in Serie A, eight points off the Champions League places.
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