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Arsene Wenger has revealed that he has no communication with the Arsenal board.

The Frenchman wrote himself into club history thanks to a 22-year spell in charge of the north London outfit, in which he won three Premier League titles, leading them to an undefeated 2003-04 league campaign and the Champions League final in 2006, only to lose 2-1 to Barcelona.

He has since taken up a role with FIFA as the governing body’s chief of global football development - but he no longer has any association with the Gunners.

Speaking to The Athletic, he was asked whether he still talks to anyone at the top of the club and replied: “No.”

He was pressed as to what he meant when he wrote in his book that he faced “a hostility from a section of the fans and the board” that he felt was “unjustified”.

The 70-year-old would not elaborate but did add: “That's how I experienced it. I didn't like to do a book where I don't give my honest feelings about what happened. That's why the link has been cut off completely after my stay at the club so I can understand, but that's what happened.”

Although he no longer has ties with the club, he has called upon the current board to look to Thierry Henry, the Gunners’ all-time leading scorer, to take charge after Mikel Arteta has stamped a strong identity onto the club and led them to a first Premier League title since his departure two years ago.

Wenger took charge of Arsenal on 1,235 occasions from October 1996 until May 2018 and earned 707 wins during that time.

His influence was such that he is widely credited with introducing a new, broader outlook to the Premier League, having been just the fourth foreign manager to take charge of an English top-flight club.

He started his managerial career with Nancy, who he took charge of for three years from 1984 before moving on to Monaco and then Nagoya Grampus Eight in Japan.

In 2002, he was awarded the Legion d'honneur, the highest order of merit in France.

Joint Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Manqoba Mngqithi has made light of the club's somewhat unusual coaching setup.

Following the departure of serial winner Pitso Mosimane to Africa's most successful club, Egyptian giants Al Ahly, the Tshwane club appointed Mngqithi and Rhulani Mokwena, Mosimane's two former assistants, as the two head coaches.

They then added another element to the mix with the appointment of Steve Komphela, a former Bafana Bafana head coach, as a 'senior coach'.

Mngqithi has traditionally been more low-key and has not often made headlines, preferring to operate quietly yet efficiently.

Mokwena and Komphela on the other hand are both far more outspoken and have provided journalists with a succession of juicy and sometimes controversial quotes over the years.

There are certainly question marks over the compatibility of the three and time will tell if they can even come close to matching Mosimane's legacy.

Their chemistry will be put to a first test on Sunday when the Brazilians take on Bloemfontein Celtic in an MTN8 quarter-final showdown.

According to Mngqithi though, a bit too much is being made of the situation.

“The only unfortunate part in our society, which I think we all need to learn from, is that we are too entrenched into thinking about positions," he was quoted saying by IOL.

“I always tell people, positions are the lowest part of leadership.

“The most important elements in leadership are beyond positions. If you are a father in the house, you can’t be telling your kids that you are the father, because it’s not about being known whether you are a father or not, but about responsibilities.”

Mngqithi won the MTN8 in 2009 while in charge of Golden Arrows.

He is adamant that the 'three wise men', as the coaching trio have been dubbed, are already enjoying a productive relationship.

"In our society it is so important for people to know who’s the father, the mother, the coach, assistant and this and that," he explained.

“Those things are not important because when the three of us are sitting down, it’s very easy to know who’s contributing what and what."

Rio Ferdinand has suggested Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer should rest Harry Maguire after a difficult few weeks. 

The England defender was sent off in a midweek Nations League loss against Denmark and has struggled to find form at club level this season with the Red Devils losing 6-1 to Tottenham prior to the international break.

Off the pitch, Maguire was caught up in an incident in Greece over the summer that saw him handed a 21-month suspended prison sentence that he has appealed. 

With so much going on for the centre-back, Ferdinand believes a break could be the best thing for Maguire right now ahead of United's next game against Newcastle. 

"In these situations - that I've been in as well - you sometimes need to be taken out of the oven," Ferdinand said about Maguire via the BBC.

"Ole has a big job on his hands and I think quite an important role to play in this. Whether maybe it's time to give him a little rest, let him gather himself and build that confidence back up.

"I got brought off in one game, I think it was Middlesbrough away, the manager spoke to me and said 'Get yourself back to basics, train well and you'll come back in'. That's what happened and I was fine. It's just sometimes that bit of pressure being taken out that can actually help you.

"When you're going game-to-game every three or four days, it's very hard to see through the fog. But when you're taken out of the firing line, you get time to sit back and actually analyse yourself, your performance, your preparation, your recovery - all aspects of what goes around a football match or 90 minutes.

"It's then about rebuilding yourself and playing simple. Effectively trying to get through a game without being seen.

"It might sound silly but that's the way I used to look at it when I was lacking a little bit of confidence. Because at the moment you're being seen for all the wrong reasons."

Jamie Redknapp leaped to Maguire's defence during the week and stressed that he deserves some slack considering everything that's going on his life. 

Women's football in India is on the rise recently with the establishment of the Indian Women's League and such. 

How much do you know about women's football and its history?

This edition of Goal 's 'Sharp Minds' quiz is for the die hard fans of the Gaurs.

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.

It has been a good few months for esports professionals and content creators around the world.

The coronavirus pandemic has forced people to spend more time at home and in the modern world, that directly results in more time spent in front of screens.

"It has directly affected esports and content creation in a lot of different ways," Saransh Jain, an esports professional who won the Indian leg of the Virtual Bundesliga last year, told Goal.

"It could be said that it was a blessing in disguise, especially for content creation. Now that everyone has understood the importance of gaming and content, there has been a lot of growth for streamers on Youtube and Twitch," the ESL Asia Season 2 winner added. "There hasn't been any growth directly, with no LAN events possible. So it has been difficult but also helpful."

Esports athletes and content creators have seen growth in what can be considered as a rapidly booming industry in India. And with EA's decision to include India as one of the regions for the FIFA Global series, this could be a pivotal moment in the graph for esports in India. 

Saksham 'Sakky' Rattan, a Pune-based professional FIFA gamer who is only the second Indian to win an international trophy for FIFA, became the first player from the country to take part in the Global series last year. But how? He did so from Turkey.

"I finished in the top 500 in the world for Playstation last season without participating in any tournament that awarded Global series points," Saksham, who plays for Turkey-based team Futblistco (where footballer Nuri Sahin as an investor), told Goal . 

Saksham, who has been competing for six years, is confident of doing well in the much-anticipated series. "So I am pretty sure I will be able to finish with a higher rank this year now that India is eligible. We should be having many more tournaments where we can win global series points and I am sure I will be able to participate in many of those."

While esports' growth is certainly remarkable, there are certain aspects that need to be improved if India is going to be a world-class gaming nation. 

"Esports is a massively booming industry in India. It has had a slow start in India but the investors have begun to realise the growth. But in our society, it is not directly looked at as a career option, that is something (that needs to change)," Saransh explained. 

"Most important aspects that need improvement are financial investment and media coverage. Also, the fact that there is a 31.2 per cent of tax deducted at source (TDS) on all prize money given to esports athletes need to be worked on." 

The 19-year-old from Pune also believes the Global series is going to have a big impact on esports in India and is looking forward to kickstarting the new journey with FIFA 21. 

"It is going to completely change the scene for us, I am expecting big things for FIFA esports in India. (With FIFA 21) I am looking forward to the first-weekend league which starts from 16th (October) initially and then the regional qualifiers from November 2020." 
 

Former Ghana international Baffour Gyan has rejected allegations of assault levelled against him and his brother, the Black Stars all-time caps holder Asamoah Gyan after a tennis match in Accra on Wednesday.

The incident allegedly occurred following a singles match between Asamoah Gyan and complainant Godwin Martey, where Baffour acted as the umpire, according to the report on Myjoyonline.

Baffour denied the allegations on Pure FM radio.

”I and Asamoah Gyan didn’t throw our hands at Godwin Martey. It was just an exchange of words. The tempers were high, so some of the words were harsh and I apologise for that but we didn’t fight him physically. How can we fight at the soldier’s premises?” Baffour responded to the allegations on Pure FM.

According to Myjoyonline, Godwin became frustrated during the game because of decisions by umpire Baffour Gyan.

Martey has since threatened to sue the Gyans on charges of assault.

Myjoyonline reports a complaint has been lodged at the Cantonment Police Station in Accra.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp believes his thoughts on Carlo Ancelotti were never a secret as he reinforced his great respect for the Everton coach. 

Ancelotti currently has the Toffees flying high in the Premier League with four wins from their first four games of the new season. 

Klopp's reigning champions meanwhile will look to bounce back from a 7-2 defeat at the hands of Aston Villa when they travel to Goodison Park on Saturday.

The German coach has previously come up against Ancelotti in the Bundesliga and Champions League, with Klopp's admiration for his counterpart clear for all to see. 

"Top team, top manager. What I think about Carlo Ancelotti was never a secret," Klopp told Premier League Productions. "I couldn't respect him more as a person and as a coach. He's a wonderful human being, to be honest. 

"I knew from the first day when I heard that he will sign for Everton, I thought, 'Ah, the next proper challenger in line.' 

"Now I think they did perfect business in the summer. They found pretty much exactly the players they needed to improve an already pretty good football team. Together with being more used to what Carlo wants them to do makes them a pretty strong team. I'm really not surprised about the way they play."

Recent Merseyside derbies at Goodison Park have generally been quite tight affairs with their previous meeting at the ground ending 0-0 in June. 

Klopp admits away games against the Toffees have been difficult in the past but is determined for his side to still approach them the right way. 

"Of course it's different but in the end, that's one thing. It's what you think in the morning of a derby day but then during the day you have to make sure that you do the right things again because the pure football things are not different to other games," Klopp said.

"Now people will say, 'try and do it different' because we were not unbelievably successful at Goodison in the last few years – we didn't lose a lot but we didn't win a lot there, that's true as well. 

"The games were not highest quality – neither Everton or us played their best football in these games. But I think we still should give it a try. The home games for us were obviously different so far but they were difficult anyway as well." 

New Bayern Munich signing Eric Choupo-Moting was pleased to make a positive first impression on his return to Germany after netting two goals on his debut for the club on Thursday. 

Choupo-Moting completed a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain at the end of the transfer window, but had to wait to make his bow due to the international window. 

He finally got the chance to start in Thursday's DFB Pokal clash against Duren, as part of a much-changed Bayern line-up. 

And he made an instant impact, scoring twice as fifth-tier Duren were dispatched 3-0 in the Allianz Arena. 

The 31-year-old Cameroon international, who was born in Hamburg and spent his entire career in German football prior to his move to Stoke City in 2017, affirmed that he was pleased to be back and among the goals so soon.

"It was a nice evening. I am happy to be back in Germany and glad I scored two goals. It was a good debut," Choupo-Moting explained to Sky after the final whistle.

Thomas Muller was also on target for Bayern on Thursday, converting the second goal of the evening from the penalty spot, and the Bayern stalwart was surprised by the resistance put up by their amateur opponents in the cup tie.

"Duren copied the way we usually play and at the beginning we had some difficulties with that. It did not feel like there were so many leagues between us," the forward explained to Sky.

Choupo-Moting spent two years in Paris prior to his Bayern move, and was offered the chance to extend his contract by the Ligue 1 champions.

But the striker ultimately opted for the team that ended his dreams of lifting the Champions League title back in August's final, and he admitted that he could not pass up the chance to play for the German giants. 

"Paris wanted me to stay, but I turned them down. There were some interesting offers. My choice was made as soon as Bayern contacted my agents,” Choupo-Moting told the media upon signing for Bayern.

 “It wasn't a shock they came in for me, but it's a huge honour. They're the Champions League holders, the biggest team in Germany. It's a great league. Munich is a beautiful city. I am super happy.”

Eric Choupo-Moting has been named the man of the match on his Bayern Munich debut against Duren in Thursday’s DFB Pokal game.

The attacker hit the ground running for the Bravarians in the encounter to help them secure a 3-0 victory over the Blue and Yellow.

The Cameroon international signed for Bayern on a free transfer after leaving French giants Paris Saint-Germain, where he shone.

The centre-forward opened his goal account against Duren with a sublime finish after a fine assist from Senegalese forward Bouna Sarr.

Choupo-Moting then grabbed his second in the encounter with 15 minutes left to play to seal his side’s victory after Thomas Mueller had doubled the lead.

The centre-forward’s impressive performances at Allianz Arena have won him the best player of the game.

Choupo-Moting, who had previously featured for German sides Hamburger, Mainz 05 and Schalke 04, has expressed his joy with his displays on his return to the European country.

 "It was a nice evening. I am happy to be back in Germany and glad I scored two goals. It was a good debut," Choupo-Moting told Sky Sports.

Choupo-Moting had previously explained he was given an option to extend his stay with PSG following his eye-catching performances for the club but revealed he turned down the offer to sign for Bayern.

"Paris wanted me to stay, but I turned them down. There were some interesting offers. My choice was made as soon as Bayern contacted my agents,” Choupo-Moting told the media.

 “It wasn't a shock they came in for me, but it's a huge honour. They're the Champions League holders, the biggest team in Germany. It's a great league. Munich is a beautiful city. I am super happy.”

The forward will hope to continue his impressive showings for Bayern in their next Bundesliga game against Arminia Bielefeld on Saturday.

Besides previously playing in Germany, Choupo-Moting had also featured for Stoke City in the Premier League before their relegation to the Championship.

England manager Gareth Southgate has hit out at critics who claim he is being too cautious with both his tactics and team selection.

Southgate’s management has been questioned in some quarters following Wednesday’s disappointing 1-0 Nations League defeat against Denmark at Wembley.

It has been suggested he is being too loyal to some of the more established members of the squad and reluctant to put too much faith in flair players such as Jack Grealish, who was man of the match on his first international start in the 3-0 win over Wales last week, but then did not feature at all against Belgium or the Danes.

The Wales win aside, goals have been a problem for England this season, scoring just one goal from open play in their four Nations League ties - Mason Mount’s deflected winner against Belgium on Sunday.

Southgate, though, has dismissed any concerns about his approach, pointing to the fact he gave youngsters Reece James and Ainsley Maitland-Niles their first starts against Denmark, with a youthful-looking midfield in front of them.

“We gave another two 20-somethings their debuts against Denmark, alongside Mason Mount, Declan Rice and Kalvin Phillips, who has had four games in the Premier League – along with Harry Kane and Marcus Rashford up front,” Southgate said.

“So I think we’ve been pretty bold in many of our decisions over a long period of time.

“I think we’ve been top scorers in the World Cup, we were top scorers in the Euro qualifiers and we’ve been to two semi‑finals.

"We’ve blooded any number of young players. I suppose I would point to that body of work but it’s for others to have that opinion. I’m not really too concerned.”

Southgate also defended his team’s performance against Denmark, which was decided by a controversial first-half penalty just minutes after Harry Maguire had been shown a second yellow card.

“I leave the camp frustrated that two decisions have cost us the game against Denmark, but in the end I'm so proud of what the players have done and the way they've been across the 10 days,” he added.

“They're a joy to work with. They are growing in resilience. They know how the level of training has to be every day. They know what's expected of each other.

“They fight and dig in for each other and their performance with 11 and with 10 against Denmark was very mature and, in my opinion, a very high level.”

Timo Werner may have endured a slow start to his Premier League career, but former boss Ralph Hassenhutl believes it is only a matter of time before the Chelsea forward begins to shine. 

Werner moved to Stamford Bridge in the summer from RB Leipzig for a fee worth £47.5 million ($60m), missing the Bundesliga club's first trip to the Champions League semi-finals where they went out to Paris Saint-Germain. 

The Germany international has gone on to struggle in his introduction to English football, failing to score in his opening four Premier League games, although he did break his duck in the Carabao Cup against Tottenham. 

Hasenhuttl, who worked with Werner in Leipzig before taking on the Southampton job, nevertheless has full faith that his former charge will soon start finding the net.

"I have worked with a lot players and he is one of the quickest. He is really hard to defend against,’ the manager told reporters ahead of the Saints' weekend clash with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

"He is getting a more complete striker now and is learning a lot. He is a fantastic signing for Chelsea and he is only happy when he scores, so I hope he is unhappy after the game. ‘They haven’t seen the best of him yet, at Chelsea, in his first games. He has only scored one goal, I think, in the [Carabao] cup.

"It would be a mistake to reduce Chelsea to just Timo, though. They have plenty of other good players in the squad.

"I hope I get to speak to him but not to congratulate him on a goal. I know this player very well. I had two fantastic years with him.

"We brought him in from Stuttgart for small money if you want. ‘We knew the game that we played at Leipzig was perfect for him but he also showed development with the ball last year.

"He was fantastic for me in his first year and scored plenty of goals."

Southampton have begun their 2020-21 Premier League campaign with two wins and two draws and currently sit 11th in the standings, one point shy of Chelsea who occupy seventh. 

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has revealed he sent his players a long text message the morning after their 7-2 defeat against Aston Villa. 

The shock loss for the reigning Premier League champions came just before the international break meaning Klopp didn't get the chance to chat to his players once he had time to properly dissect the game. 

After a tough night dwelling on the result and unable to talk directly to his players, the Reds boss decided to send them all a text message relaying his thoughts and feelings. 

Klopp believes that by addressing the situation straight away, Liverpool can now move on and prepare for an upcoming clash against Everton. 

"The night after the game was not the best night of my life but I got up in the morning and I knew I had to speak to my boys but they were not here," Klopp told BBC Sport.

"So I texted them a long, long message which was pretty much my thoughts about the things which had happened and after that I felt much better because then it was out and from that moment we could carry on and that's what we did.

"Now we are here and we have had enough time to deal with it. Losing a game is the exact opposite of what you want, losing it 7-2 makes it of course worse but sometimes we have to show that it can be useful.

"We have the chance to show that on Saturday lunchtime against Everton so that makes it really interesting because we face a team who is flying obviously and we got a proper knock. So now let's see who deals better with what."

The Toffees are currently top of the Premier League after winning all four of their league games so far this season. 

Klopp isn't surprised to see Everton performing so well under manager Carlo Ancelotti - a man he has plenty of respect for. 

"Top team, top manager. What I think about Carlo Ancelotti was never a secret," Klopp told Premier League Productions. "I couldn't respect him more as a person and as a coach. He's a wonderful human being, to be honest. 

"I knew from the first day when I heard that he will sign for Everton, I thought, 'Ah, the next proper challenger in line.'" 

Peru defender Carlos Zambrano launched a scathing criticism of Neymar's behaviour, labelling the Brazil star a "clown".

Neymar scored a hat-trick as Brazil twice came from behind to beat Peru 4-2 in CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying on Tuesday.

In a repeat of last year's Copa America final, Neymar earned two penalties and converted both as he leapfrogged Ronaldo for the second most goals in Brazil's history.

Zambrano was sent off in the final minute of regulation, after substitute team-mate Carlos Caceda saw red three minutes earlier in Lima.

While acknowledging Neymar's quality and status within football, Zambrano – who plays for Boca Juniors – hit out at the former Barcelona forward.

"Honestly, he is a great player, one of the best in the world, but for me he is a real clown," Zambrano told American Television program 'La banda del Chino'.

"[Neymar] is aware of everything he did on the field, he is a great player but he was looking for the slightest foul.

"In the penalty area he threw himself four or five times to see if they would award him a penalty and in the end he achieved his goal, with two penalties, but they weren't."

Zambrano added: "It's Brazil and at the touch [immediately] they went to look at the VAR. Whether the play was positive or negative, they did review the images because it is Brazil."

With 64 international goals, Neymar moved past Ronaldo (62), only adrift of Pele (77) for Brazil's all-time record at the age of 28.

Neymar's treble performance against Peru was also the fourth occasion he has scored three or more goals for his country in a game, but the first time in a competitive fixture.

While Zambrano wasn't impressed by Neymar's performance, Ronaldo praised the 28-year-old for surpassing his goal haul and backed him to keep shining. 

"All my respect for you @neymarjr!," the 44-year-old former striker wrote via Instagram. "He plays a lot, gives assistance, plays, dribbles and thrashes. The sky is the limit. Fly, kid!

"What a beautiful story you are writing. A complete and increasingly mature player. Keep trusting your instincts because the talent is yours and nobody can take it from you.

"You have a lot of records to overcome and marks to leave. Proud to see a Brazilian at the top!"

Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting scored twice on his Bayern Munich bow as the treble winners eased past fifth-tier Duren 3-0 in the first round of the DFB-Pokal.

The international break limited Bayern to a makeshift side, but they comfortably came through a tie postponed until Thursday to allow them to recover from last season's Champions League triumph.

Free transfer signing Choupo-Moting was among those to get his chance and the striker opened the scoring midway through the first half before having a hand in Thomas Muller's penalty.

Duren, the designated home team who decided not to host the fixture, were certainly not embarrassed at Allianz Arena but Choupo-Moting's excellent second sealed victory for the Bundesliga champions.

The minnows had openly targeted simply bettering Barcelona and Schalke by conceding fewer than eight goals, yet they almost struck first as Marc Brasnic nodded straight at Alexander Nubel - another of four Bayern debutants in the starting line-up - after just 23 seconds.

Chances predictably followed at the other end, though, and Choupo-Moting twice might have scored before stabbing Bouna Sarr's square ball past Kevin Jackmuth for the opener.

The former Paris Saint-Germain forward then won a penalty from Joran Sobiech after Jackmuth's poor clearance, allowing Muller to get on the scoresheet from 12 yards.

A sublime Douglas Costa run and shot was met with an equally good save from the goalkeeper, who also kept Choupo-Moting at bay after half-time.

The officials were next to deny Bayern as Choupo-Moting's delicate finish appeared to cross the line before David Putz headed clear, then Jamal Musiala's mazy dribble concluded with a low shot against the post.

Bayern's new striker persisted, however, and turned on the edge of the box to rifle a right-footed shot into the top-left corner and complete the scoring, although there should have been a fourth when Javi Martinez nodded against the upright.

What does it mean? Duren achieve target, Bayern advance

Duren's aim was to be competitive and they were certainly that. Bayern did not test Jackmuth until the 18th minute and gave up eight shots at the other end, while Jerome Boateng was fortunate to win a free-kick after slipping inside his own area late in the first half.

But ultimately, this was comfortable for the Bavarian giants, who had the opportunity to blood new players while progressing to the second round.

Bayern's full-back balance

When fit, Bayern had a settled back four for much of last season, with Benjamin Pavard at right-back. While the World Cup winner is a natural defender, though, he does not offer the same threat as Alphonso Davies going the other way.

That is where Sarr comes in. The full-backs were marauding down both flanks here - Sarr creating two chances, including an assist, with Davies playing one key pass.

Daylight after Duren errors

Jackmuth was largely excellent in the Duren goal, making five saves in all, but his dismal pass set up the attack that led to the second. Sobiech rashly brought Choupo-Moting down and the game was taken out of the underdogs' reach.

What's next?

Bayern go to Arminia Bielefeld in the Bundesliga on Saturday and will aim to take top spot.

Kaizer Chiefs coach Gavin Hunt will not be with injured duo Samir Nurkovic and Leonardo Castro in Sunday’s MTN8 quarter-finals against Maritzburg United.

Nurkovic has been injured during the current pre-season preparations while Castro is yet to recover from an injury sustained last season.

“I came here and a lot of these players have been injured,’ Hunt told the media.

“Samir, the top goalscorer, has been injured and he won’t play. He’s had an operation, hasn’t trained a single day and I think he will be out for some time. Castro was obviously also injured before the end of the season. He also hasn’t trained much. I think those are the two major injuries.

“They were the cornerstone of the team last year and had done very well. That is a problem going forward – but we will have to realign ourselves and reshape to play to the strengths of the players that we’ve got, that’s important and I will try and do that."

Hunt arrives at Chiefs on the background of an attractive CV that has seen him winning four league titles.

Expectations on Hunt see him pressed to help Chiefs win the Premier Soccer League (PSL) for the first time since 2015.

It would be a task for Hunt to dislodge reigning champions Mamelodi Sundowns who enter the 2020/21 season smarting from winning a third straight league title.

But after Downs lost former coach Pitso Mosimane to Al Ahly, Hunt feels that there will be lesser competition in the league.

Hunt says the Premier Soccer League (PSL) is now “weaker’ following the departure of Mosimane.

“I think‚ certainly from my perspective‚ yes‚ we’ve had some great battles in terms of football battles,” said Hunt.

“I think the league is weaker because you’re losing the fantastic expertise of a fantastic coach who’s done a good job. So I think the league is certainly‚ for me‚ weaker.

“It doesn’t mean that Sundowns are weaker. They’ve certainly strengthened their technical department – they’ve got guys who know.

“And obviously their most important thing is they have the squad of players who can play all different formats‚ different ways‚ different competitions.

“It’s a fantastic club. Kaizer Chiefs have been knocked off a bit and we need to get back‚ certainly up there and challenging and trying to be as competitive as them‚ and I think we can.

“That might take a bit of adjusting and some time. Chiefs were so close last year. You can’t say they gave it away. It certainly was a real fight to the end. But yes‚ certainly the league is weaker and not better off by him leaving‚ that’s for sure.

“He’s gone to a great opportunity and I wished him well‚ and sent him a message. Great challenge. And a club of our size at Chiefs‚ we’ve got to be competing on those fronts.

“I’ve played against Al Ahly many times with an inferior squad than they had‚ and we did very well. And I think with a club of our size and support base‚ we can do well on that front too.”

Maduka Okoye has set a target of becoming the Nigeria national team's first-choice goalkeeper following his performances against Algeria and Tunisia.

The Sparta Rotterdam shot-stopper was afforded his full debut against the Desert Foxes on Friday and did enough to keep the scoreline at 1-0 at the end of the game, making a number of saves in the encounter.

His showings against the African champions earned him his third Super Eagles cap and second start against Tunisia in Tuesday's friendly. 

The 21-year-old again gave a good account of himself in the encounter to ensure the West Africans avoided defeat.

Okoye featured for the entirety of the games as Super Eagles regular goalkeepers Daniel Akpeyi, Ikechukwu Ezenwa and Francis Uzoho were not involved in the matches.

The young shot-stopper is disappointed with his inability to keep a clean sheet in the outings but has promised to keep working hard to become Nigeria top goalkeeper.

“Of course, it’s great and it’s cool playing 90 minutes in the two friendlies. It was not easy games but I am happy with my performance,” Okoye told the Punch.

“In the Algerian game, we conceded in the fifth minute and it was not good. There was too much on our minds.

“A goal that early was bad but we had to keep on going. We kept on going for over 85 minutes. As I said, it’s not nice to concede goals but that’s football.

“I’m happy to be in the team. It’s always better to have a clean sheet but I’m looking forward to more games with the team.

“I will keep doing my thing and do my best and give my coach the reason to make me the Eagles first-choice goalkeeper.”

Nigeria have struggled to replace Vincent Enyeama since his retirement from international duty in October 2015.

Ezenwa was the Super Eagles first-choice goalkeeper during their 2018 World Cup qualifiers but Uzoho was preferred ahead of him at the global tournament.

At the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt, Akpeyi was made the first-choice goalkeeper as Nigeria managed to finish third in the competition.

Okoye recently changed his club from Fortuna Dusseldorf II to Eredivise side Sparta Rotterdam in an effort to enjoy top-flight football. 

The goalkeeper will hope to deliver impressive performances for his Dutch side to boost his Super Eagles target.

Fikayo Tomori believes turning down a loan move to West Ham was the best decision for the sake of his career and he is now fully focused on earning a regular place in the Chelsea side.

The Hammers had agreed a deal with Chelsea to sign Tomori on a season-long loan on transfer deadline day earlier this month.

However, the 22-year-old pulled out of the deal shortly before the window closed, choosing instead to fight for his place in west London.

Tomori admits he had wrestled with the idea of leaving Stamford Bridge, but is confident he has made the right decision to stay.

"I had a plan going into this season going off the back of last season," he told the Chelsea Mike’d Up podcast. "Obviously, in football, things change so quickly so I wanted to make sure whatever decision I made was really thought out and to try and do what’s best for me.

“I made the decision in the end to stay, to improve more, get some more games, gain some more experience and try and get to the levels I was at last season.”

Despite being willing to let Tomori move to east London, Chelsea’s stance had been different earlier in the window, having previously rejected offers from Rennes and Everton for the defender.

Tomori admits the uncertainty was frustrating, particularly as the West Ham deal eventually arrived so late.

“I wanted everything to be thought out and I thought about what was happening, especially when we had a few weeks off leading up to the new season,” he added.

“I was talking a lot with my agent, to get some clarity what was going on. With transfers I prefer if it wasn’t last minute, but situations happen where you have to take a decision quickly.

“It was one of those situations and, as you all know, I made a decision to stay.”

Tomori faces intense competition for a first-team place at Stamford Bridge, with Kurt Zouma, Andreas Christensen, Thiago Silva, Antonio Rudiger and Cesar Azpilicueta among the centre-back options available for boss Lampard.

However, it is a challenge the England international relishes and one he thinks his manager will, too.

“He [Lampard] knows there is a big squad here and its more competitive than last year,” he said.

“We’ve brought in some amazing players and I’m sure the manager is looking forward to working with every single player, to get us to gel as much as we can, try and get some results on the board and close that gap to the top of the table.”

Ghana international Richard Ofori is reportedly set to undergo a medical at Premier Soccer League (PSL) giants Orlando Pirates.

This comes after Ofori's current club, Maritzburg United accepted an offer from the Buccaneers, who are keen to reinforce their goalkeeping department.

Bucs have parted ways with French shot-stopper Joris Delle and Ofori is expected to fill the void left by the former Feyenoord player at the Houghton-based giants.

"Ofori is leaving Pietermaritzburg today for Johannesburg. He is expected to sign a three-year contract with Pirates," a source told Kick Off on Thursday.

The 26-year-old had a successful 2019/20 season in which he established himself as one of the best keepers in the country.

Ofori kept 11 clean sheets from 28 league matches and only Pirates shot-stopper Wayne Sandilands and SuperSport United captain Ronwen Williams had more clean sheets with 12 and 13 clean sheets respectively.

The former Legon Cities FC player also played an instrumental role in helping the Team of Choice reach the 2019 Telkom Knockout Cup final where they lost Mamelodi Sundowns.

Bucs have already signed Wayde Jooste (Highlands Park), Collins Makgaka (Baroka FC), Thabang Monare, Thulani Hlatshwayo, Deon Hotto and Terrence Dzvukamanja (all Bidvest Wits).

Meanwhile, Pirates are reportedly in the market for a quality striker with the current transfer window set to close next month.

The Buccaneers are known to be long-term admirers of Bafana Bafana international Bradley Grobler since last year.

However, his current club, SuperSport United are said to have decided to keep the proven goalscorer, who hit the back of the net 17 times across all competitions for the Tshwane giants. 

"The club is also searching for a top international striker after SuperSport United decided to keep Grobler," a source told the same publication. 

Pirates have parted ways with Zambian forwards Augustine Mulenga and Justin Shonga after they were both deemed surplus to requirements by the club. 

The duo struggled for game time under Bucs head coach Josef Zinnbauer in the recent 2019/20 campaign. 

The Buccaneers are scheduled to take on Cape Town City in a 2020 MTN8 quarter-final match at Orlando Stadium in Soweto on Saturday. 

Azam FC maintained their 100% winning record in the Tanzania Mainland League after a 3-0 win over Mwadui.

The Ice-cream Makers came into the match aiming at extending their winning record against the Shinyanga-based side.

The Chimazi-based charges needed 27 minutes to set the ball rolling at the Azam Complex. The in-form Zimbabwean Prince Dube picked Mudathir Yahya in a good position. The Tanzania international passed the ball to Richard Djodi in the danger zone who in turn headed the ball down for Obrey Chirwa to open the scoring.

It happened to be the only goal in the first half with Mwadui being fortunate not to have conceded more.

Azam doubled their advantage in the 61st minute. Yahya managed to release a long ball to Dube who managed to hold off his markers before beating the goalkeeper expertly.

Dube was once again involved two minutes later, putting the defender under pressure and the ball eventually fell to Chirwa who took his time before beating the goalkeeper to score Azam's third.

The one-time champions have now collected 18 points from the six matches played. Defending champions Simba SC are second on the log with 13 points, the same as Yanga SC who are third but with an inferior goal difference. 

In another top-tier match played on Thursday, Gwambina FC defeated Mtibwa Sugar 2-0 to move to 10th position.

Having lost their last two matches, it was the Sugar Millers who came into the match determined to get maximum points. However, it was the Mwanza-based side who opened the scoring first.

A goal-bound effort struck a defender's arm in the 20th minute and the referee pointed to the penalty spot. Yusuph Dunia rose for the occasion, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way to open the scoring for the hosts.

The visiting defenders were caught napping once again with three minutes to go and were caught in a swift counter-attack. Meshack Abraham had all the time to set himself up before unleashing a fierce strike which left the goalkeeper with no chance.

As a result, Mtibwa are now in 13th position with five points from six matches played.