Author: Bonface Osano

Following another low key season which is certain to end trophy-less AFC Leopards are plotting a massive player-overhaul ahead of the next KPL season. Having parted ways with Argentine manager Rodolfo Zapata and handed the management of the team to Tom Juma and Gilbert Selebwa on an interim basis, Leopards have announced that they will be dropping 11 players. They will then sign five players for a lean 25-man squad from current 31 ahead of the new KPL campaign starting early December. “We are restructuring, because we do not want to have a bloated squad again, we need to have…

World football star Cristiano Ronaldo has “firmly” denied sexually assaulting former US model Kathryn Mayorga. The Juventus striker took to Twitter to clear his name against Kathryn accusations that he assaulted her at a hotel in Las Vegas in 2009. https://twitter.com/Cristiano/status/1047490574687907841 Mayorga filed a civil lawsuit in Nevada last week seeking monetary damages from Ronaldo, according to lawyer Larissa Drohobyczer. According to the lawsuit, Ronaldo bought Kathryn’s silence for $375,000 following the sexual assault incident. Drohobyczer said she was “emotionally fragile” then and agreed to an out of court settlement because she never wanted her name made public. Do you…

The Transitional 2018-19 Kenyan Premier League new season has been confirmed to run from 6 December 2018 to May 2019. This in a bid to comply with the new Confederation of African Football (Caf) calendar which mirrors the European’s. “The new season as stated earlier will kick off in December and we have set Saturday 8 as the date for the opening games. Before the ties, we will have the Super Cup which will take place on Sunday 2,” KPL CEO Jack Oguda confirmed. “We have a short duration for the upcoming season since the following season (2019/20) should kick…

Gor Mahia forward George “BlackBerry” Odhiambo has cleared the air over claims that he snubbed Harambee Stars call up saying he was injured. He has also dispelled rumors that he is among ringleaders within Gor Mahia, who organize strikes and go slows. Berry was among a provisional squad of 38 players who coach Sebastien Migne called to camp for the 2019 Afcon qualifier against Ghana last month. However, he was among three notable players including Tottenham’s Victor Wanyama and goalkeeper Boniface Oluoch who did not show up. “I told them that I could not make it because I had a…

Club Desportivo 1 de Agosto shocked Esperance de Tunis 1-0 in Luanda as Al Ahly beat ES Setif 2-0 in Cairo in the African Champions League semifinals first leg Tuesday to inch closer to the finals. Surprise package de Agosto of Angola edged out two-time champions Esperance of Tunis 1-0 to keep their fairy tale run in this campaign alive. Congolese Luvumbu “Bua” Pedro was the toast of the evening for the army-backed-side, notching in the lone goal with just ten minutes to go for the slim but important win. Prior to the goal, the game was generally lackluster with…

Cameroon President Paul Biya has assured that the country will be ready in time to successfully stage the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon). Biya was speaking after hosting a delegation from the Confederation of African Football (Caf) led by president Ahmad in Yaoundé Tuesday. “Cameroon will be ready for the D-Day,” the long serving president, who will be seeking to extend his 36-year rule during Sunday’s presidential election, said. Ahmad on his part said that Caf has never intended to take away the hosting rights from Cameroon and that they do not have a “plan B.” The meeting that…

Police on Monday said they had reopened an investigation into a sexual assault accusation made by a former model who says soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo attacked her in his Las Vegas hotel penthouse suite in 2009. Ronaldo, who now plays for Juventus in Italy’s Serie A, rejected the charges as “fake news” during a live chat on Instagram. “What they said today, fake — fake news,” the 33-year-old star of the Portuguese national team said in a post that was later deleted. Kathryn Mayorga, 34, of Las Vegas, accused Ronaldo, in a 32-page complaint filed last month with a district…

Nigeria captain Obi Mikel has been “excused” from coach Gernot Rohr’s squad for next week’s double header Afcon 2019 qualifier against Libya due to injury. The 31-year-old former Chelsea midfield kingpin is yet to feature for the Super Eagles since Russia World Cup mid this year. He missed the last qualifier against Seychelles which Nigeria won 2-0 away. “Mikel has been excused because he is just recovering from injury in China and needs time to fully regain fitness,” team spokesman Toyin Ibitoye told BBC Sport. “We expect him to be available for the November game against South Africa.” Nigeria are…

African Champions League enters semis stage with Al Ahly taking on ES Setif in a North African derby and Club Desportivo 1 de Agosto hosting Esperance de Tunis Tuesday. Round of four debutants de Agosto entertain two-time champions Esperance in the first kick-off match at 11 November Stadium, Luanda Angola. To book the semis berth, the army-backed side edged out five-time champions TP Mazembe on away goal’s rule after forcing a 1-1 draw in Lubumbashi. The first leg in Luanda ended in a barren draw. Having achieved the historic feat, Serbian manager Zoran Manojlovic is baying for more blood and…

Ghana skipper Asamoah Gyan has responded to a critic of his recent return to the national team saying “I’m coming back whether you like it or not.” Gyan leads group of ten players who are making a comeback to the Black Stars after a while in the cold ahead of back to back 2019 Afcon qualifiers against Sierra Leone next week. The names were revealed Monday by the head coach Kwesi Appiah, eliciting sharp reactions over its composition. Ghanaian journalist, Michael Oti Adjei, argued in a story published on Kwese Sports that Appiah “is hosting a returnee’s party” and is…

Arsenal will make do without midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan for their Thursday’s Europa League fixture away to Qarabag KF in Baku, Azerbaijan. Armenians are not allowed entry into Azerbaijan over a long standing dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh region. The government can nonetheless allow exceptions but due to security concerns Henrikh did not make the 6-hour journey. Read: Puerto Rico Hand Malkia Strikers Second Loss In Japan “Safety and security of our players and staff is always a top priority,” said a club spokesman. “We will be looking into this situation, talk to the player and make a decision after that.” Do you have a story you…

Malkia Strikers lost 3-0 (20-25, 22-25, 15-25) to Puerto Rico in their third match of the FIVB Women’s World Championship in Hamamatsu, Japan Monday. The Kenyan queens beat Kazakhstan in their opener before falling to Serbia in their second outing. Against Puerto Rico, Kenya put up a good fight, coming close severally in the opening set despite trailing all through. The scores stood at 13-13 at some point and later on 16-14 in favour of the Caribbean country. Japheth Munala’s charges would rally to level at 19-all but then again fizzled to lose by a five-point margin. With 13, Enright…

Kenya’s international striker Michael Olunga has continued with his bullish form in the Japan’s J-League ahead of Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers next week. Olunga, also called Engineer, was on the mark as his side Kashiwa Reysal fell to Urawa Red Diamonds 3-2 at Saitama Stadium, Saitama Sunday. The former Gor Mahia marksman opened the scoring in the 32nd minute but Kazuki Nagasawa leveled for the homies six minutes later. Shinzo Koroki put Urawa in the lead in the 41st minute but Yusuke Segawa managed to restore parity at the hour mark. Shinzo sealed the win for Urawa with nine…

Gor Mahia coach Dylan Kerr has accused the treasurer Sally Bolo and Mr. Ongudi of taking the KPL trophy from him and players. Gor were officially crowned the 2018 KPL champions Sunday in Kisumu and Kerr wanted to present the trophy to Nairobi fans at the Tom Mboya monument this morning (Monday). https://twitter.com/legend3/status/1046624574476046336 According to Kahawa Tungu sources, Kerr wanted to go out with the trophy late last night which was deemed a security risk and hence it was hidden away from him. “It is not true we have taken the trophy away from him but we had to keep…

Gor Mahia have been officially crowned as the 2018 Kenyan Premier League champions at colorful ceremony at Moi Stadium, Kisumu Sunday. The elaborate ceremony was proceeded by a KPL week 33 match pitting the hosts against Mathare United which ended in a 2-2 draw. Buoyed by a vibrant home crowned Gor scored through Rwandan Jacques Tuyisenge and skipper Harun Shakava. But Mathare managed to rally back netting  through substitute Klinsman Omulanga and Cliff Nyakeya, who leveled matters from the spot. Read: Coach Rodolfo Zapata Thanks AFC Leopards As He Quits At the blow of the final whistle, the stadium burst into song…