Headlines
‘Manchester United Players Are Getting Worse’
Michael Owen claims Manchester United’s supposed stars are “getting worse”, with a squad that has seen considerable investment “devaluing” with each passing performance to leave only three players that should have a long-term future at the club.
The Red Devils have endured another stumble out of the blocks in 2019-20.
Some 12 months ago a similar situation eventually led to the downfall of Jose Mourinho, with the Portuguese relieved of his managerial duties in December 2018.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer helped to deliver an initial upturn in fortune, but has since suffered the same issues as his predecessor.
United have taken just nine points from eight Premier League games this season, with that sorry return leaving them 12th in the table and only two points clear of the relegation zone.
Owen believes those at Old Trafford are regressing every time they take to the field, with a 1-0 defeat to Newcastle heading into the international break seeing them hit a new low.
The former Red Devils striker told Premier League Productions: “They haven’t got the players, they’re simply not good [enough].
“That first XI, I’d say there’s three players, maybe four, that should be Manchester United players for the future.
“If you’re looking to build that club back to where it was, then there’s probably three or four in that first team.
“Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in his interview afterwards, I was almost slipping down my chair, it was almost like he doesn’t know what’s going wrong, let’s say.
“We can all speculate as to what’s going wrong. He can look over his shoulder and think ‘down the road you’ve got Jurgen Klopp, you’ve got [Pep] Guardiola – these are managers that are actually improving their players, they’re getting the best out of their squad’.
“I’m looking at that [United] squad and, if anything, the players are getting worse.
“They’re devaluing, as a squad they’re getting worse. Where is it all going to end?”
The Super Eagles of Nigeria defeated Egypt 4-2 on penalties to win the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 third-place playoff on Saturday.
Goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali proved the hero of the night with two crucial saves during the shootout, including one from Egyptian star Mohamed Salah.
Ademola Lookman then calmly converted the decisive penalty to secure the bronze medal —Nigeria’s ninth third-place finish in AFCON history.
With neither side able to break the deadlock in a cagey second half, the game ended 0-0, sending the contest directly to penalties.
Despite Fisayo Dele-Bashiru missing Nigeria’s first kick, Nwabali’s immediate saved from Egypt’s first two attempts shifted the momentum.
The Supreme Court has dismissed the appeal of the son of a former Jigawa State governor, challenging the decision of the trial court, which convicted him for failing to declare $40,000 at Kano airport.
In a unanimous decision, the apex court panel dismissed the appeal of Aminu Sule Lamido, the son of former governor Sule Lamido, for lack of merit.
Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arrested Aminu on December 11, 2012, at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport while preparing to travel to Cairo, Egypt.
The prosecution said Aminu declared $10,000 to the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), but was found with an additional $40,000, which was not disclosed on his currency declaration form.
The EFCC charged him before the Federal High Court in Kano on a one-count offence of false declaration of foreign currency, contrary to provisions of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act.
On July 12, 2015, the court convicted Aminu and ordered him to forfeit 25 per cent of the undeclared sum to the Federal government.
Dissatisfied with the ruling, Aminu approached the Court of Appeal in Kaduna to overturn the conviction and set aside the forfeiture order.
In a judgment delivered on December 7, 2015, however, the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has ordered that the trial of former governor Lamido, his two sons, and others, over alleged N1.35billion fraud, should continue before the Federal High Court in Abuja.
A five-member panel of the apex court issued the directive in two unanimous judgments, in the two appeals filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The Supreme Court upheld the decision of the trial court, which dismissed the no-case submission filed by the Lamidos and held that the defendants had a case to answer.
Both appeals were against the July 25, 2023, judgments of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, which upheld the no-case submission made by Lamido and others and struck out the 37-count charge on which they were being prosecuted, on the grounds that the Federal High Court in Abuja lacked the jurisdiction to hear the case.
In the lead judgments of the Supreme Court, Justice Abubakar Umar set aside the July 25, 2023 judgments of the Court of Appeal and affirmed the earlier decision by Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Federal High Court, Abuja, which overruled the no-case submissions by Lamido and others and ordered them to enter their defence.
The EFCC, in the 37-count charge, among others, accused Lamido of abusing his position as a governor between 2007 and 2015, allegedly laundering sums of money received as kickbacks from companies that were awarded contracts by the Jigawa State Government under his leadership.
The other defendants charged alongside Lamido are his two sons – Aminu and Mustapha; Aminu Wada Abubakar and their companies – Bamaina Holdings Ltd and Speeds International Ltd.
