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Chelsea Beat Real Madrid to Set Up All-Premiership UCL Final Against Man City
Chelsea defeated Real Madrid 2-0 in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League (UCL) semi-final encounter at the Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night.
Thomas Tuchel’s side scored once in each half through Timo Werner and Christian Pulisic in a game that they dominated the Spanish side.
Chelsea deservedly win the tie 3-1 on aggregate to qualify for their third ever UCL final, and first since 2012, the year they last won the trophy.
Eden Hazard started against his former club for Real Madrid who also welcomed Sergio Ramos, their captain, back from injury.
Chelsea also started with Kai Havertz ahead of Christian Pulisic, their goal scorer in the first leg.
The Blues set out to stifle their opponents with a crowded defence and pressing forward that pounced on an interception from N’golo Kante to sweep forward.
Havertz’s deft flick hit the bar but Werner was on hand to head into the empty net for a 1-0 lead on 28 minutes.
Real Madrid twice went close through Karim Benzema but Edouard Mendy, Chelsea goalkeeper, brilliantly saved the French striker’s curler towards the bottom corner and palmed away another header.
The hosts totally dominated the second half and created a hatful of chances not capitalised upon. Thiago Silva and Mason Mount both failed to hit the target while Havertz and Kante were denied at point-blank range.
Real Madrid are winless in their last four away games against English sides and Pulisic finished the 13-time UCL champions off with a tap-in goal towards the end of the match.
The London club’s win sets up an all-English final against Manchester City in Istanbul, Turkey, on May 29.
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Donald Trump Sworn in As 47th American President, Pledges Swift Border Crackdown
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Hamas Releases Israeli Hostages As Ceasefire Agreement Comes into Effect
The first hostages freed from Gaza under a long-awaited ceasefire agreement are back in Israel. The news sparked jubilant scenes in Tel Aviv where large crowds gathered ahead of their release.
The three freed Israeli hostages – the first of 33 to be released over the next six weeks – are Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher and Emily Damari. They are said to be in good health and are receiving treatment at a medical center in Tel Aviv.
In exchange, 90 Palestinian prisoners and detainees are set to be released by Israel from Ofer Prison in the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli military withdrew from several locations in southern and northern Gaza after the truce began earlier on Sunday, an Israeli military official told CNN.
Displaced Gazans have started returning to their homes, while the aid trucks laden with much-needed supplies have crossed into Gaza. Here’s what we know about how the ceasefire deal will work.
Hamas, despite suffering devastating losses, is framing the Gaza ceasefire agreement as a victory for itself, and a failure for Israel.
One of Hamas’ main goals for taking some 250 people during its brazen October 7, 2023, attack on Israel was to secure the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. As Israel pounded Gaza in response, Hamas vowed not to return the hostages until Israel withdrew its forces from the enclave, permanently ended the war, and allowed for rebuilding.
Source: CNN
Headlines
Again, Kemi Badenoch Lashes Out at Nigeria Says Country’s ‘Dream Killer’
The leader of UK’s Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has said she doesn’t want Britain to be like Nigeria that is plagued by “terrible governments.”
Speaking on Thursday at an event organised by Onward, a British think tank producing research on economic and social issues, Badenoch expressed fears that Britain may become like Nigeria if the system is not reformed.
“And why does this matter so much to me? It’s because I know what it is like to have something and then to lose it,” Badenoch told the audience.
“I don’t want Britain to lose what it has.
“I grew up in a poor country and watched my relatively wealthy family become poorer and poorer, despite working harder and harder as their money disappeared with inflation.
“I came back to the UK aged 16 with my father’s last £100 in the hope of a better life.
“So I have lived with the consequences of terrible governments that destroy lives, and I never, ever want it to happen here.”
Badenoch has been in the news of late after she dissociated herself from Nigeria, saying she has nothing to do with the Islamic northern region.
She also accused the Nigeria Police of robbing citizens instead of protecting them.
She said: “My experience with the Nigeria Police was very negative. Coming to the UK, my experience with the British Police was very positive.
“The police in Nigeria will rob us (laughter). When people say I have this bad experience with the police because I’m black, I say well…I remember the police stole my brother’s shoe and his watch.”