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Bayer Leverkusen coach Peter Bosz says Kai Havertz has made a decision regarding his future and admits he could make a transfer any day now.

The 21-year-old has been linked with a move away from the Bundesliga side this summer, though Leverkusen want around €100 million (£90m/$118m) for him.

Chelsea are the main contenders to land him, but Leverkusen director Simon Rolfes insists they have not received any offers for the Germany international .

Bosz has been impressed by the way Havertz has handled the constant speculation around his future, but says there is no guarantee he will be staying put.

"I talk to Kai a lot and try to feel what all this does to him. For example, these daily rumours about transfers," he told Deutschen Presse-Agentur .

"I keep finding that Kai is handling all of this very well. I don't think he will stop playing at 29 [like Andre Schurrle].

"Yes, I know what he wants to do, but of course I'm not going to give it away, it's up to him."

Asked when a decision will be made, Bosz added: "I couldn't say. Perhaps the crucial call will come today, maybe next week, maybe not at all."

Havertz scored 17 goals and registered eight assists for Leverkusen in 2019-20 and is already being tipped to become one of the best players in the world.

While Bosz is not sure if he will reach the level of current global superstars Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, the Dutchman says he is already being regarded as among the best in Germany. 

“You never know [if Havertz will become world-class player like Messi or Ronaldo]. But in Germany he is treated as if he was already one," he said. "That is why I try to do something about it when the headlines are always about Kai. We have a lot of great players in the squad."

Leverkusen finished fifth in the Bundesliga, narrowly missing out on a place in next season's Champions League. 

They will continue their Europa League campaign on Thursday when they meet Rangers in the second leg of their last-16 tie, having beaten Steven Gerrard's men 3-1 in the first leg in Glasgow.

Cesar Azpilicueta admits that nobody knew who he was when Chelsea snapped him up from Marseille in 2012, but the Spaniard insists that quitting the Blues was never an option.

The versatile defender arrived at Stamford Bridge as a relative unknown after seeing a £7 million ($9m) transfer put in place.

Few knew what to expect from that deal, with Azpilicueta facing fierce competition for places from the likes of John Terry, Gary Cahill, Ashley Cole and Branislav Ivanovic.

He was, however, to see his hard work and remarkable consistency nail down a regular role and now, at the age of 30 and with eight years of experience in England behind him, he is club captain and a two-time Premier League title winner.

As he prepares to go in pursuit of more major silverware in the 2020 FA Cup final, Azpilicueta told the Daily Mail of his early experiences in west London: “Most of them didn't know who I was.

“There wasn't a big fee or a lot of talk about me as a player. I knew I would have to fight. I knew many players came here and had to go on loan because they couldn't find their place.

“My first game in a Chelsea shirt was for the Under-23s on an academy pitch. I remember it well. My first months, nearly every time on the bench. I didn't play a lot but I didn't think to quit. This was a massive opportunity for me and from the bench, I thought I could start to learn and understand the English game.

“Ivanovic was in my position. Branna was an amazing player, great passion and desire and I watched how he would counter-attack on the set-plays. We scored lots of goals like this. So, in the League Cup against Arsenal, in my second year, I tried my luck and that's how I came by my first Chelsea goal.”

Azpilicueta is now a long-serving stalwart at Stamford Bridge and has retained his place under a succession of managers.

He has seen a number of coaches and talented performers come and go, with the challenge being for him to help nurture the club’s exciting young class of 2020 into potential title winners of the future.

“I have played with the past generation who won all those trophies. Football changes and this is a time for change. They have done the first steps,” Azpilicueta added.

“They went through the academy and the process of going on loan. They trained hard and did well but it is different to going into the first team, to have an impact and be consistent. You're not going to have a clear path. There will be bumps and you have to take them and be stronger for the next one.

“It is important to have confidence in them. Our future is bright. They won trophies with the academy. Most of them won the FA Youth Cup. Now we will see if they can replicate these trophies with the first team. They have the opportunity to go to Wembley and fight for the FA Cup as a senior.

“At Chelsea we fight to be at the top. It is important to develop players who were not in the Premier League last season. They have played in the Champions League but we know there is a gap of more than 30 points to Liverpool and that means we can be better.

“It's up to us to close that. We can do it by being humble and accepting when we don't do it well we must train harder to make it right.”

Kenya international Michael Olunga scored yet again as Kashiwa Reysol defeated Nagoya Grampus 1-0 on Saturday.

Olunga found the back of the net in the 71st minute with an assist from Ataru Esaka as Kashiwa Reysol picked up their fourth win in the last five matches.

There were four yellow cards recorded in the tightly fought tie at Aichi. Olunga’s teammate Tatsuya Yamashita was the first player to be cautioned in the 23rd minute before Kosuke Nakamura was booked in the 29th minute.

Nagoya Grampus’ Sho Inagaki entered into the referee's book in the 32nd minute before his Brazilian teammate Joao Schmidt was yellow-carded in the 53rd minute.

Olunga has turned out to be a dependable and prolific striker for the 2019 J2 League champions in the top-flight as he has now scored in the last four matches.

The former Thika United, Tusker and Gor Mahia centre-forward failed to score in the first three matches since J1 League restarted on July 4 but his recent fine form now sees him top the scorers’ chart with nine goals.

Olunga’s closest Golden Boot challengers include Yu Kobayashi of Kawasaki Frontale, Musashi Suzuki of Consadole Sapporo, Marcos Junior of Yokohama Marinos, Leonardo Perreira of Sanfrecce Hiroshima and Kyogo Furuhashi of Vissel Kobe.

Saturday's win has enabled Olunga and his teammates rise on the log and are now placed at position three, temporarily though, with 15 points from eight games, with one more point than Nagoya Grampus, who have played seven matches so far.

Wins for Cerezo Osaka against Shonan Bellmare and Tokyo against Sagan Tosu in the other Saturday actions will see Kashiwa Reysol drop to fifth.

Olunga, who scored his first J1 League hat-trick against Vegalta Sendai on July 26, has established himself as one of the clear runners for the Golden Boot at this stage.

He was the runner-up in the second division when he managed 27 goals in a successful campaign which pushed Kashiwa Reysol back to the top tier.

In other matches, Vegalta Sendai recorded a second consecutive loss after falling 1-0 to Yokohama Marinos

Yokohama FC were defeated 2-0 by Sanfrecce Hiroshima with more games yet to conclude.

On Sunday, eighth-placed Consadole Sapporo will host Vissel Kobe, who are 11th after playing seven matches.

Olunga will have another opportunity to try and add more goals when Kashiwa Reysol face Shonan Bellmare on August 5.

Former Bafana Bafana and SuperSport United defender Nasief Morris has revealed he was once close to signing for Orlando Pirates. 

This was when Morris was playing for Santos just before he went abroad, after having a discussion with Augusto Palacios who was then coaching the South African U20 national team. 

According to Morris, the desire to play in Europe was enough for him to turn Pirates down even after receiving a call from Dr Irvin Khoza at the time. 

"I few years before I even to Europe... while I was at Santos, Augusto Palacios was my coach at the U20 national team. He asked me if I would be interested in coming to Orlando Pirates. I said to him, 'definitely, we can look at it' and things like that," Morris told Goal.  

"Then suddenly the break for me came when I was invited to come to Greece for a trial." 

Morris' response to Khoza was that he would like to go try his luck abroad first and he would come back to join the Sea Robbers if things didn't go well.

"And I think a week before I left, I got a call from Mr Irvin Khoza himself asking that he spoke to Mr Palacios and he wanted to know if I wanted to come to Orlando Pirates. I said, 'by all means, I'd like to come but my first goal is that I want to go to Europe. If I don't make it in Europe, I'll definitely come to Orlando Pirates," he recalled.   

"And that was my goal and I made sure when I got the opportunity, I took it."

The retired defender went on to sign for Aris Thessaloniki in Greece before cementing his legendary status at Panathinaikos. 

Morris spent seven years at Panathinaikos - but he would spend the final two years of his contract on loan at Real Club Recreativo de Huelva and Racing de Santander. 

He returned to South Africa in 2011 to join SuperSport United before returning to the Mother City to reunite with his former club Santos. 

Morris, now 39, retired from professional football in 2017 after three seasons with Milano United.  

Kieran Tierney is “just like” Virgil van Dijk, according to former Celtic and Scotland manager Gordon Strachan, with the Arsenal defender considered to boast a “lunatic mentality” and the ability to “smell danger”.

The Gunners bought into that skill set when luring the 23-year-old away from Parkhead in the summer of 2019.

A move to the Premier League had been mooted for some time, with Tierney having caught the eye across five seasons as a senior performer at his boyhood club.

He is now treading a familiar path when it comes to ex-Celtic stars illuminating an English stage, with Liverpool centre-half Van Dijk among the more prominent to have made that transition with ease in recent times.

Strachan believes Tierney will scale similar heights, with his “first-class” attitude and undoubted ability set to carry him to the very top of the game.

“He has what I call that lunatic mentality, and I mean that in a good way,” Strachan told the Daily Mail .

“He was like Scott Brown at Celtic. It gets cold in Glasgow you know but those two would walk around with just their T-shirts on.

“Kieran has a first-class approach. He listens and takes in information and, crucially, he listens to what you are telling other players too so that he understands their roles also.

“He is bright and he smells danger, just like Virgil van Dijk does at Liverpool. He isn't in that class yet but there are similarities.

“And he backs himself. He is brave like that.

“Many full backs or central defenders won't push out on to a winger, for example. They are happy to let them cross. At least they can't get beaten or embarrassed that way.

“Kieran won't do that. He will get out there and say, ‘If you are going to cross this, you will have to get by me first’.”

Strachan handed Tierney his international debut back in 2017, with his versatility put to good use after finding himself in direct competition with Andy Robertson – who is now another Premier League title winner at Liverpool – for a more natural left-back berth.

Strachan added: “He has the type of mind that allows him to think that whatever he tries will come off. He has complete faith in himself and it's totally justified.

“I played him at three positions for Scotland - left back, left of three centre-backs and also right-back.

“My two best players were left backs — Kieran and Andy Robertson — so I shifted Kieran across. He never complained. He just got on with it. That's how good he is and that's how good his attitude is.”

SuperSport United coach Kaitano Tembo has bemoaned his side's lack of practice matches, saying his players would only be “about 70 to 80 percent ready” by the time they resume their Premier Soccer League (PSL) campaign.

Tembo and his men get back to action by hosting Bloemfontein Celtic at Bidvest Stadium on August 16.

Since the beginning of July, SuperSport have been training on the pitch but players were working out in small units, before starting full training as a whole group “a few days ago.”

“I think we will probably be about 70 to 80 percent ready by the time we play our first match. We are going to take that match as a preparation match because we have not had time to play friendly matches because of this Covid-19‚” said Tembo as per Sowetan Live.

“Confirmation of the restart date by the chairman of the league Dr Khoza is helpful because it allows us as coaches and the players to plan properly. I am not saying things are going to be easy but it definitely makes planning a little bit better when you know when‚ what time and where you are going to play.”

While Tembo is unhappy about the lack of friendly matches, his side would restart against a Bloemfontein Celtic outfit that would have gained some match fitness following their Nedbank Cup semi-finals clash with Baroka FC on August 8.

“It is not going to be easy because we only started training as a group a few days ago as we had to observe social distancing rules when we returned to training about a month ago,” Tembo said.

“We will only know after the first match where the guys are in terms of match fitness because the reality of the situation is that players are not match fit now. We have been training for a few weeks but it was difficult to plan and load players not knowing when we are going to start.

“It was also difficult to push the guys at training in terms of fitness but we are excited that the league is going to resume and we want to thank all the people who worked hard behind the scenes to ensure that we get back to action.”

Currently placed third on the PSL standings, a top-three finish would see SuperSport return to the Caf Confederation Cup, where they reached the final in 2017 but lost to Tour Puissant Mazembe.

SuperSport’s remaining six league games include visiting Orlando Pirates, who also have a top-three finish as realistically the best they could end the season.

Simba SC coach Sven Vandenbroeck has explained the importance of the FA Cup final by revealing he will field his best squad to battle Namungo FC on Sunday.

The Wekundu wa Msimbazi will be keen to seal a treble this season, having won the Mainland Premier League title and the Charity Shield Cup - as they come up against a Namungo side who finished fourth on the league table, at Nelson Mandela Stadium in Sumbawanga, Rukwa.

The Belgian coach has now told Goal he will not underrate their opponents and will, instead, pick his best squad for the final.

“It will be our final match of the season and we will, therefore, field our best squad to finish the job,” Vandenbroeck told Goal on Saturday.

“I will not underrate [Namungo], they are not a team to look down upon and therefore, I have told my players what to do and what to expect in such a final, it will be difficult because they can also spring a surprise, so we must be ready to deal with them.

“I am happy we have been training for the last few days since we ended the league and all the players are fit to play, I will go for my best squad, to finish the job and give us another trophy.”

Speaking ahead of the final, Simba captain John Bocco, who has enjoyed a good season with the club, admitted they are aware of the kind of opposition Namungo will give them, insisting they have to be at their best to achieve their target.

“I am sure we all know we are coming up against a very tough opponent,” Bocco also told Goal on Saturday.

“Namungo is one of the teams who always give us trouble in league matches, they know us very well, they know how we play and for that reason, it will be a very difficult final for both teams.

“But I am happy we have had good preparations going into the final, we have trained very well and we don’t have injuries, the squad is good and ready to go, and I know in the name of God, we will play well and win the trophy on Sunday.”

On what they want to achieve on Sunday, Bocco explained: “We want to write history as the only team to have won three trophies in one season, we won the Shield Cup in the season opener, won the league and now if we win the domestic Cup, we will have three trophies in one season.

“The desire to win three trophies in a season is pushing us hard to go and do the job against Namungo, all the players are psyched up and we are all burning to do the history and I hope we will achieve the dream.”

Simba defeated Yanga SC 4-1 in the semi-final to advance to the final, while Namungo narrowly defeated Sahare All-Stars by a solitary goal in the other semi-final.

Former Orlando Pirates midfielder Steve Lekoelea has hailed coach Josef Zinnbauer’s work with his former team, saying he expects them to win silverware if they continue doing well next season.

‘Chippa’ would not commit regarding which team will emerge as the new Premier Soccer League (PSL) champions at the end of the current campaign, saying there are many factors that will determine the race for the title.

On the other hand, the retired dribbling wizard believes the so-called small teams will be at an advantage against the likes of Mamelodi Sundowns, Kaizer Chiefs, and the Buccaneers because the games will be played behind closed doors.

“The Pirates coach [Zinnbauer] is doing a very good job. If the team can continue playing well, they will definitely win a trophy next season,” Lekoelea told Isolezwe.

“Maybe the only position they need to fix is the defence because it’s not solid. That was evident when the team was coached by Rhulani [Mokwena].”

Taking a look at the race where Amakhosi lead with 48 points from 22 games, the Brazilians have 44 from 21 matches and are in second place, whilst the Buccaneers and SuperSport United share the third spot with 40 points.

With that in mind, Lekoelea says the winners will be decided after two or three games.

“It’s very difficult to say who will win the league because the players will not have the same momentum before the games were suspended [in March],” added the retired midfielder.

“I would answer this question easily if you would have asked before the suspension of the season. I think it will take two games for the teams to adjust to playing without the fans - for now, it remains open.”

On the other hand, the former Moroka Swallows and Bafana Bafana midfielder is of the view that coach Ernst Middendorp, Pitso Mosimane, and Josef Zinnbauer’s troops will struggle behind closed doors.

“It will be very difficult to play without the supporters. Teams like Chiefs, Pirates, and Sundowns will definitely struggle,” he continued.

“It’s going to be like the players in training, this will be different than before the season was suspended. I am sure the so-called small teams are delighted because they know they have a chance to win the games.”

Former Arsenal, Inter Milan and Nigeria striker Nwankwo Kanu has been celebrated on his 44th birthday.  

Leading the tributes is the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), who lauded the two-time African Player of the Year for his contribution to the Super Eagles.

“Happy birthday to two-time Africa Player of the year and Nigeria football legend, Kanu. Have a good one Papilo,” NFF tweeted.

The Confederation of African Football (Caf) recollected the performances of Kanu for Nigeria at the Africa Cup of Nations, where he helped the West Africans win bronze medals and finished as runner-up in the 2000 edition.

“Legendary African footballer Nwankwo Kanu turns 44 today. The Nigerian is one of the continent's greatest talents, dazzling fans all over the world throughout his career,” read a tweet from Caf, accompanied by a video.

Fifa also recalled, in a video, how the heroic last-minute strike from the forward helped Nigeria stun Brazil in the semi-finals of the 1996 Olympic Games to secure a place in the final and subsequently win the gold medal in the tournament.

“Happy 44th birthday to the magician who was twice named African Footballer of the Year,” read a tweet from Fifa.

Kanu started his career in Nigeria with Iwuanyanwu Nationale before moving to Europe to join Ajax in 1993, where he enjoyed great success.

The forward helped the Dutch club to win the Champions League, three Eredivisie titles, Uefa Super Cup and Intercontinental Cup trophies before departing the side in 1996 to join Inter Milan.

His eye-catching performances then earned him a move to Arsenal in 1999 and won two Premier League titles and the FA Cup, among other accolades with the Gunners.

Kanu ended his five-year stay with the Emirates Stadium outfit in 2004 to team up with West Bromwich Albion and played for Portsmouth for six years, winning the FA Cup title with the side before his retirement.

Kanu scored 12 goals in 87 appearances for Nigeria during a 17-year career with the three-time African champions.

He is is currently the Super Eagles ambassador and his 'Kanu Heart Foundation' helped in treating children with heart diseases, having suffered a similar problem during his football career. 

Wazito FC defender Johnstone Omurwa has stated he has to be patient and let his club handle negotiations with Petro Atletico of Angola.

The Central African side has been in touch with the lanky defender, hoping to have his services in the 2020/21 season. While the Kenya international admits he would love to play for the club, he has stated the 2018/19 National Super League champions are handling the issue on his behalf.

"I am aware Petro Atletico are serious about having me in their team for next season," Omurwa told Goal.

"However, I am still contracted by Wazito, and I am remaining with about two years in my current deal. All I can do is let the two parties negotiate and reach an agreement before I leave.

"Yes, I would love to play abroad, but again I have to respect the fact that I am employed here in Kenya by Wazito. I cannot interfere with the negotiations, all I can do is wait for the outcome which I believe will be positive.

The 21-year-old has challenged upcoming footballers to go a step ahead and work harder to stand a chance of playing in the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) or even better leagues abroad.

"The game has changed and currently, we have youngsters dominating the industry," Omurwa added.

"Chances are everywhere but to get it, you have to work hard, without doing so and maintaining your discipline, it will be tough

"I cannot even explain how I have managed to find myself at the top. Things have swiftly moved and I have reached where a few people expected.

"Anybody who is out there wanting to be a footballer, no shortcuts, they have to push harder on and off the pitch in order to be successful. There is nothing tough, sacrifice and remain concentrated and you will realize your objectives."

In an earlier interview with Goal, the Kenya U23 international also revealed why he continued to do his best for the side despite all the changes at the club over the last 12 months.

"And this being our full-time job, if you do not give your best, then you can easily be released," Omurwa said. 

"But if you give your best, there will be no worries. It is for this reason I have been ensuring my work rate is good, the same as the qualities I offer."  

   
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MYDA FC CEO Hannington Muwanguzi has claimed he has not received any report indicating they have been fined USh1 million for failing to submit the mandatory club licensing documents.

MYDA, the newly-promoted side and Onduparaka FC, were each fined one million shillings but Muwanguzi said the club has not learned of the development from the Federation of Uganda Football Associations (Fufa).

“I haven’t received any communication from the Federation (Fufa) about the fine,” Muwanguzi said as was quoted by Sports Nation.

“Our file of documents for licencing is already at Fufa as I talk now. It was received by the licensing manager and I was still in the timeframe given to us.

“I have to say we were not late because we cannot submit papers before the Club Pro agenda which we did last weekend.

“We were given a period of a week to submit our documents and so the papers were submitted and I haven’t seen any fine slapped on us – I think there is just miscommunication.”

URA, Busoga United, BUL, Mbarara City, Police, Bright Stars, UPDF, Express, SC Villa, Kyetume and Vipers SC have already submitted part of the minimum requirements and were consequently fined USh500,000.

The deadline to submit the documents was extended to August 7 as none of the Fufa Big League sides had brought forward their documents.

Muwanguzi also explained what they plan to achieve in the Premier League.

“Our target is to remain in the league because we have never dreamt of taking a step backwards for the time we have spent in football, so we have not just come to play but to compete,” he concluded.

“We have something new we are bringing in Ugandan football, something which has been missing so everybody should get prepared to see flair in Ugandan football called ‘MYDA Storm’.

“We are still recruiting but we have our initial younger players we started with from the beginning.

“We are just looking forward to adding only those players who are going to add something different and special which we need at this stage we are at.”

An irate Thomas Tuchel insisted he is not concerned by Paris Saint-Germain's lack of goals after they completed a domestic clean sweep of trophies on Friday.

PSG added the Coupe de la Ligue trophy to their triumphs in the Trophee des Champions, Ligue 1 and Coupe de France this season when they beat Lyon 6-5 in a penalty shoot-out.

The showpiece at the Stade de France was not befitting the last ever Coupe de la Ligue final as neither team could find a goal across 120 minutes, with PSG clearly missing the brilliance of injured forward Kylian Mbappe.

Since their season resumed, PSG - who found the net 75 times in 27 Ligue 1 games in 2019-20 - have only scored twice across 210 minutes when Neymar netted the winner in the Coupe de France final last week.

Yet when such a statistic was put to Tuchel, he reacted angrily.

"So, what's the big deal," he said to reporters.

"Yes, we're still lucky. You can write it down. It's the only thing, we're lucky. That's the way it is, no quality, only luck.

"It's football. It's football. It's only football.

"Do you know the result of Liverpool against Barcelona in Barcelona [when Liverpool lost 3-0 in 2019]? How they played and then they won the Champions League. Give me a team that scores four or five goals in every match... it's not possible.

"But you are always looking for something negative - 99 positive points but no, we'll look for the 100th one which will be negative. We're going to look for problems.

"There's no problem, we won. I'm not going to apologise for this goal story. Since how many games have we had? No need to find excuses for that."

Tuchel said he is proud of his squad after their latest successful campaign, adding: "They are reliable guys who play, enjoy working and suffering together.

"That makes me very happy. I am proud and happy.

"We did not lose the concentration, the hunger to win, the confidence, we won on penalties and that counts," he said. 

"We won these four titles, there is a good atmosphere in the locker room. And I'm very happy because everyone thinks it's okay to win, but it's not that easy. 

"Winning four titles is the merit of this team and I am happy."

PSG's campaign is not over yet as they have a Champions League quarter-final against Atalanta to look forward to in Lisbon on August 12.

Tuchel has already admitted that Mbappe, who sprained his ankle in the Coupe de France final, needs "a miracle" to be fit for that game.

Musa Matovu has become the fourth player to renew his contract with Uganda Premier League (UPL) side Police FC.

The ambitious Law Enforcers have promised to challenge for trophies in the coming season and vowed to keep their best players whilst signing the best in the market.

And true to their words, the 20-year-old Matovu has joined the list of players to have renewed their stay after penning a two-year contract that will see him stay with ‘the Cops’ until 2022.

The club have confirmed on their social media pages the latest news by stating: “Musa [Matovu] extend stay at Police. The 20-year-old has penned a two-year deal and will stay at the club until 2022.”

On penning the extension, Matovu revealed: “It’s a pleasure having renewed my contract with the club. I learnt a lot from the previous season and can’t wait for the next one.

“I am assuring everyone a great display next season because I got everything it takes. I am using this Covid 19 pandemic to work upon myself so as to improve on my performance.”

Police CEO Fahad Lumu, who was present to witness the signing also stated: “We are beefing our team and to consolidate especially the young blood. We can’t start from scratch but somewhere.

“Our fans should expect a competitive display as the team is comprised of youngsters and experienced players.”

The signing of Matovu, who has previously featured for FC Kampala and Aspire Academy in Qatar, took place on Saturday at the club’s offices situated at Kibuli, Sports Office.

Matovu now joins Dennis Rukundo, Yusuf Ssozi, and Johnson Odong as the players to have renewed their stay with Police.

Meanwhile, the club has already signed Ikara from Mbarara City, experienced midfielder Tony Mawejje from Al-Arabi SC in Kuwait, and Hassan Muhamood from Onduparaka FC.

Ikara’s signing caught many by a surprise as the towering keeper had been linked with a move to newly crowned UPL champions Vipers SC and URA FC, a transfer he turned down to settle for Police.

In a recent interview, Ikara revealed why he opted to sign for the club ahead of the new season.

"What I considered for signing with Police was the quality playing time that I expect to have than elsewhere. I want to use this playing time to bounce back to the Uganda Cranes set up,” Ikara told reporters.

“I want to be part of the competitive Police we know of with solid performances match after match.”

On unveiling Mawejje a week ago, Police chairman Asan Kasingye stated they will make sure they leave a mark in the league come the new season.

Ghana international Bernard Tekpetey is excited by the prospect of playing Champions League football following his loan move to Bulgarian side Ludogorets.

The attacker joined the Eagles on a two-year deal from German side Schalke 04 on Thursday, the same day he terminated his loan spell at relegated Bundesliga fold Fortuna Dusseldorf.

The latest signing of the side following the acquisition of Brazilian attacker Alex Santana, Tekpetey will wear the No.37 jersey at Ludogorets.

“Everything I’ve heard about Ludogorets so far made me choose this club," Tekpetey said at his unveiling on Friday, as reported by the Eagles' official website.

"They play good football and they are always part of the Champions League and Europa League too. This is important for every player who wants to develop his career.

“It [Bulgarian league] is different compared to the Bundesliga but my first impression is that training is on a high level here. The coach wants us to create more attacks.

"I was happy to see the players so motivated to play for the win. I am also glad to be part of a club with such ambition. I need to work hard and that is the most important thing. This way, I will reach my goals."

Tekpetey left Dusseldorf under controversial circumstances.

After a frustrating season with Die Kraichgauer, where he made only nine league appearances involving five starts, the Ghanaian swore not to continue his stay with the club which was due to expire in 2021.

In his bid to force a move away, he decided against turning up for training, incurring the wrath of the club.

"If a player is disappointed, he cannot simply say that he doesn't want to come anymore. I made it clear to him and his adviser in a personal conversation that I gave my opinion. We won't just give Bernard the go-ahead," Dusseldorf Sports Director Uwe Klein told news portal Express.

Earlier this week, the club announced a decision to give the Ghanaian some time off to decide his future, days before terminating their contract with the 22-year-old.

Tekpetey, who transferred to parent club Schalke from Ghanaian side UniStar Academy in 2016, has also had loan stints with Austrian fold Altach and relegated Bundesliga outfit Paderborn.

Simba SC striker John Bocco has revealed they are aware of the threat posed by opponents Namungo FC when the two sides clash in the FA Cup final on Sunday.

The Wekundu wa Msimbazi will be keen to seal a treble this season having won the Mainland Premier League title and the Charity Shield Cup - as they come up against a Namungo side who finished fourth on the league table, at Nelson Mandela Stadium in Sumbawanga, Rukwa.

Speaking ahead of the final, Bocco, who has enjoyed a good season with Simba, has admitted they are aware of the kind of opposition Namungo will give them, insisting they have to be at their best to achieve their target.

“I am sure we all know we are coming up against a very tough opponent,” Bocco told Goal on Saturday.

“Namungo is one of the teams who always give us trouble in league matches, they know us very well, they know how we play and for that reason, it will be a very difficult final for both teams.

“But I am happy we have had good preparations going into the final, we have trained very well and we don’t have injuries, the squad is good and ready to go, and I know in the name of God, we will play well and win the trophy on Sunday.”

On what they want to achieve on Sunday, Bocco explained: “We want to write history as the only team to have won three trophies in one season, we won the Shield Cup in the season opener, won the league and now if we win the domestic Cup, we will have three trophies in one season.

“The desire to win three trophies in a season is pushing us hard to go and do the job against Namungo, all the players are psyched up and we are all burning to do the history and I hope we will achieve the dream.”

Simba defeated rivals Yanga SC 4-1 in the semi-final to advance to the final, while Namungo narrowly defeated Sahare All-Stars by a solitary goal in the other semi-final.

Having won the league, the Sven Vandenbroeck-led side will play in the Caf Champions League next season and as a result, Namungo are set to represent Tanzania in the Caf Confederation Cup even without kicking a ball in the FA Cup final.

The winner of the domestic Cup usually gets full rights to play in Africa's second-tier club competition, but since Simba are already in continental competition, the runner-up gets the berth.

This will be the first time for the club to play in a continental assignment in their history. Last season, Azam FC, who won the FA Cup, and KMC, who finished fourth on the league table, played in the Confederation Cup.

East Bengal are celebrating their centenary on Saturday, a historic occasion for one of Indian football's biggest clubs.

The Red and Golds were founded on August 1, 1920. As their fans and the Indian football fraternity celebrate the Kolkata giants, we have a quiz on their history for you.

This edition of Goal 's 'Sharp Minds' quiz is for the fans of the Red and Golds.

As we see football take a backseat among the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, here's your chance to while away some time.

We will bring you a set of 10 questions, a mixture of easy and tough ones, every week on Indian football. Try answering them on your own (without googling, we hope) and see how much you know about Indian football.

Share your scores with others and showboat. The latest edition of Sharp Minds is right here. Have fun.

NOTE : You are welcome to contact us through social media, if you need any clarification on the answers. We will try, to the best of our abilities, to explain.

Joe Aribo has expressed his delight after winning the Rangers Young Player of the Year and Goal of the Season awards.

The young midfielder delivered impressive performances during his debut campaign with the Ibrox Stadium outfit.    

Aribo teamed up with the Gers last summer after turning down a contract extension with Charlton Athletic, where he spent four years.   

The 24-year-old played a key role as Steven Gerrard’s men finished as runner-up in the 2019-20 Scottish Premiership season, which was abruptly concluded due to the outbreak of the coronavirus.

The Nigeria international scored eight goals and provided eight assists in 45 appearances across all competitions, amid other dazzling displays.

His four goals in the Europa League propelled the Ibrox Stadium outfit to the Round of 16 of the tournament, where they face Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen. 

Following his performances, the midfielder was named the club’s young best player of the season and his wonder goal against Sporting Braga was adjudged the best in the campaign.

Aribo has taken to social media to share his feelings after scooping the two prizes in recognition of his efforts last season.

“Thanks to God [for winning the] Young Player of the Season and Goal of the Season awards,” Aribo posted on Instagram.

Aribo has also been in fine form in Rangers’ pre-season games, scoring two goals as they clinched victories over Motherwell, Coventry City, Lyon and Nice to earn the praise of his manager Gerrard.

The midfielder will hope to replicate his eye-catching pre-season performances for Rangers when they begin their 2020-21 Premiership campaign against Aberdeen on Saturday.

The 24-year-old has two goals in four appearances for the Super Eagles since he made his debut for the West Africans against Ukraine in a friendly in September 2019.

Aribo will be expected to play a key for Nigeria during their Africa Cup of Nations and World Cup qualifiers.

Nemanja Matic is determined to claim Premier League title glory with Manchester United and says he and his team-mates "cannot allow" Liverpool to win the league with seven games to spare, as they did in 2019-20.

United have been unable to mount a proper challenge for the English top-flight crown since Sir Alex Ferguson's final season in charge in 2013.

The Red Devils were fifth in the table before they embarked on a 14-game unbeaten run to climb to a third-place finish, beating Leicester City on the final day to secure their spot in the Champions League.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's team did, however, finish 15 points behind rivals City and a further 18 adrift of champions Liverpool, but midfielder Matic believes they should be aiming to put pressure on the top two in the 2020-21 campaign. 

"Me, personally, I would like to win the Premier League with Manchester United. I think that our club always needs to fight for the title," the 32-year-old said in an interview with the club's magazine, Inside United .

"We always need to try to do the best for this club, which we are doing at the moment, and I think we cannot allow any club to win the league seven or 10 games before the season finishes. So we have to fight until the end.

"Of course, we have a young team, but this cannot be an excuse. I think these young players already have a few seasons behind them playing. So, from the next season, we have to fight for the title. I don’t know if we’re going to win [it] but I’m sure that we can fight until the end.

"That’s my personal target and I think the rest of my team-mates think the same."

While United's domestic campaign is over, they will return to Europa League duty next week when they take on LASK in the second leg of their last-16 tie.

United won 5-0 in the first leg in Austria, with Odion Ighalo, Daniel James, Juan Mata, Mason Greenwood and Andreas Pereira all finding the net.

Awaiting the English club in the quarter-finals will be either İstanbul Basaksehir or Copenhagen. The Turkish side are 1-0 up from the first leg of their tie.

Ghanaian forward Bernard Morrison has refused to rule out a conspiracy that Young Africans (Yanga SC) were involved after he was arrested in Tanzania two days ago.

The 27-year-old was arrested on Thursday by police in Tanzania, who was doing a routine check at a roadblock and was later released.

Morrison has since come out to clarify that he had done nothing wrong when the police impounded his vehicle and that he had seen the hand of Yanga in the whole saga to have him arrested.

“You know I am a visitor here in Tanzania and I have a feeling the whole plan [to arrest me] was planned by people at Yanga,” Morrison is quoted by Sokaletu.

“I just have that feeling Yanga were involved in the whole saga but anyway all is in the past now and I leave everything to God.”

On what transpired during his encounter with the police, Morrison explained: “I was on my way to the bank when the police officers stopped the car I was driving in, they demanded we come out which we did.

“They also started demanded for my phone saying I am a foreigner and that is when a commotion ensured and that was it, after that, they realised we had done nothing wrong and they allowed us to proceed our way.”

Morrisson was signed by disgraced former Yanga SC coach Luc Eymael at the beginning of the season, and while he struggled in South Africa, the West African settled quickly for the Timu Ya Wananchi and became an instant hit.

His goal on March 8 against Simba SC in the Kariakoo Derby won maximum points for the Jangwani-based side, although it's not been entirely plain sailing for the attacker, who has been accused of ill-discipline on occasion. 

The latest incident was a failure to report back to the camp after his team lost 4-1 against Wekundu wa Msimbazi in the FA Cup semi-final.

It was during this match when Morrison’s conduct came under scrutiny after he was substituted for Patrick Sibomana, and instead of going to the bench, the player threw a tantrum close to the technical bench and headed straight to the dressing room, where he changed and duly left the stadium.

Yanga have always insisted Morrison, who has been linked with a transfer to Simba, has two years left on his contract but the player insists he had run down his deal and was free to leave.

Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates legend Pollen Ndlanya has urged his former clubs to purchase quality players.

The retired striker believes that it is the only way the two Soweto giants can start winning major trophies again and also compete with serial winners, Mamelodi Sundowns.

Chiefs are hoping to end their five-year trophy drought this season, while the last time Pirates won major silverware was in 2014 and both clubs have been inactive in the transfer market thus far.

On the other hand, Sundowns have already signed experienced central midfielder George Maluleka and gifted playmaker Lesedi Kapinga, from Chiefs and Black Leopards, respectively.

“For a team like Pirates and Chiefs, they need to buy quality players for the sake of their reputation," Ndlanya told The Citizen.

"These are two big teams and they have to buy quality so that they can maintain their standard. I really do not know how Pirates and Chiefs do their dealings but Sundowns have an edge over them and they need to catch up?

“You cannot take a Toyota and a Ferrari and want the Toyota to win the race for you, never! The Ferrari is expensive because it has got all those qualities. You cannot take a Toyota to race a Ferrari, you are risking."

Reigning Telkom Knockout Cup champions Sundowns, who have won the last two PSL titles, have been successful scouting players abroad, having signed influential South Americans Gaston Sirino and Ricardo Nascimento.

Ndlanya lifted major trophies with both Chiefs and Pirates during his playing days and he has urged the two powerhouses of South African football to adopt vigilant scouting departments.

"But it looks like they have got someone who has got an eye on players and at the same time they open the cheque book," he added.

"If you need quality, you must open the cheque book, that is just reality. Yes, you can develop your own players but you cannot take all of the young players and put them in the senior team," he added.

"You need to at least have three players from the development and buy quality players. Sundowns are really on top in scouting and opening the cheque book.

"You look at the likes of Gaston Sirino, Mauricio Affonso, those are the top players and they are delivering.”

The 2019/20 season, which has been suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic since March, will resume next week in a Biologically Safe Environment (BSE) in Gauteng.