Category: News

by Ben Ayuko

{image by AFP}

Portugal vs Slovenia turned out to be more dramatic than anyone might have thought it would be. When the draw first happened, it seemed like it would be just another stepping onto the ultimate goal for Portugal. Nobody expected the game to be somewhat of an exhibit showcasing Ronaldo battling some inner demons.

The first 90minutes was more of a tale of some missed chances and decent saves as Portugal struggled to find a way past Atlético Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak. Slovenia’s defense also looked very inspired, particularly Vanja Drkušić who was having quite a good game against the notorious Cristiano Ronaldo. With the score tied at 0-0 after 90min, we ventured into extra-time. This is where the drama really started.

First came the penalty. Portuguese substitute Diogo Jota picked up the ball from the halfway line before carrying it all the way into the Slovenia penalty box, where he was then brought down by the aforementioned Drkušić. This would kick off a domino effect whereby previously known heroes would turn into momentary zeroes. First, it was Drkušić for giving away the penalty. Next came Ronaldo, ready to routinely tuck away the spot kick and ensure safe passage for Portugal into the quarter finals. Except, he missed. Or should I say Oblak saved it. Either way, it didn’t enter. And Ronaldo couldn’t hold back the tears as he felt the weight of his country’s disappointment on his shoulders. The 2nd zero.

Still, we had 15min to go in extra time, and anything could happen.

And it very nearly did. A mistake from Portuguese veteran, Pepe, the 3rd zero, let Benjamin Šeško run through on goal, one on one with Diogo Costa, the Portuguese goalkeeper. Sesko, the young jewel of Slovenian football, would add himself to the list as the 4th zero, as he missed the opportunity to secure qualification for his country. Or should I say the keeper saved it. Either way, it should’ve been a goal, but it wasn’t. Extra time was now up. It was time for the dreaded penalty shoot-out.

Now, this is where everything changed. Because, as close as the game actually was, the gulf in quality between the 2 sides shone brightly here. Up stepped the Slovenian heroes, Josip Iličić, Jure Balkovec and Benjamin Verbič vs Diogo Costa. 3 penalties they took and 3 times they missed, Costa saving each penalty with relative ease. 3 more zeroes.

On the other side, Ronaldo stepped up first, seeking redemption, which he got after slotting the kick passed Oblak and then turning to the crowd and begging for forgiveness for his earlier miss quite earnestly. Next was Bruno Fernandes, who made a mockery of the tense affair, then Bernardo Silva sealed it with an expertly taken shot.

Portugal safely through, Slovenia sent packing, but not before giving us one of the more memorable cup ties of the competition.

by Ben Ayuko

{image by TSN}

Before we get into it, I just want to say, it was a thoroughly entertaining battle. Both drivers wanted to win, and they drove each other to the limit in order to earn the victory. Unfortunately for them, they both lost out on the victory. Fortunately for us, we may have just witnessed the beginning of a rivalry.

Christian Horner, Red Bull’s team principle, was quoted as saying “Lando Norris kept divebombing Max…. He was a little too over eager” A sentiment shared by Max Verstappen. Lando Norris was quoted as saying, “He knew what he was doing. He was on the Wrong.” Which brings us to the topic at hand. Who actually was on the wrong?

Max Verstappen is obviously notorious for his aggressive, uncompromising, elbows-out style of driving that often leads to incidences on the track. That is to say, this isn’t the first time we have seen him get into such an altercation in a race, the Brazilian Grand Prix in 2021 being a very good example of this. However, did he actually break any rules? Are Formula 1 drivers allowed to be so aggressive in defense of their track position?

The rules of attack/defense on the track are as follows. When defending, you, as a driver, are not allowed to move more than once. Which means, you have to predict which direction you think the driver behind you is going to go, and then time your move strategically and commit to it. Once committed, you cannot then move to the other side. Another rule states that you are not allowed to force another driver off the track, whether in attack or defense. Lastly, you are not allowed to leave the track in order to gain an advantage, whether attacking or defending.

Now, these 2 drivers battled for the lead of the race for nigh on 7 laps. And in every lap, these rules were being pushed further and further. Too Norris’ credit, he chose to be quite the gentleman and gave Verstappen fair room to manoeuvre around and even let him take the lead back ahead after he masterminded an overtake from off the track. Verstappen, however, as we all know by now, does not take any prisoners and he ensured that Norris would have to almost physically take the position from him if he wanted to take the lead. He would genuinely risk crashing out of the race rather than surrender the position. Some would say it is dirty driving. Others would argue it is only the mark of a winner who cannot stand to lose, a la Michael Schumacher and Ayton Senna.

One argument gaining a lot of traction states that it has been too long since Verstappen actually had to fight anybody on the track and the sudden pressure put on him by Lando Norris was a lot for him to cope with on the day. And as much as he seemed to have evolved into a more levelheaded and tactical driver, this showed that he was still the same old bullish Max Verstappen.

There is also an argument to be had that Lando Norris was a little too naive when attempting to overtake him. Verstappen may have been overly aggressive, but Norris should have known better than to simply expect him to willingly give up the position, as has been the case in earlier incidents when the roles were reversed.

At the end of the day, all we can say is, more of the same please. Red Bull and Verstappen have had a strangle hold on the game for far too long now. It is refreshing to see things shaken up a bit.

by Ben Ayuko

{image by BBC}

There was drama on the track at the Austrian Grand Prix on the 30th of June 2024 as the fight for the race win resulted in both drivers losing out.

For about 50 to 55 laps of the Austrian Grand Prix, it was relatively business as usual. Max Verstappen had opened up a lead in his Red Bull, Lando Norris was trying to keep up with him in his Mclaren and George Russell was sneakily going about his business in the last podium position in his Mercedes. Apart from some fireworks between teammates Sebastian Ocon and Pierre Gasly of Alpine as they engaged in their usual wheel to wheel duel, there was little else to write that is. That is until the teams made their second pit stop of the day.

After complaining about tyre performance, Max Verstappen made a pit stop to swap out his hard tyres for the mediums. Lando Norris had the same idea. Norris’ pit stop went smoothly. Verstappen’s did not. Some extra time taken to fit the left rear tyre meant that by the time they got out of the pit lane, Verstappen’s 7sec lead had been cut down to just 2.5sec.

Norris then began applying the pressure. Lap after lap, constantly hounding Verstappen, looking for a way past him. More than once, he attempted a brave dive bomb into the corner, but Verstappen’s cheeky antics made it impossible for Norris to position his car for a proper overtake. The tension was building with every passing lap, until finally…they made contact. Norris attempted an overtake around the outside on a hairpin corner and because Verstappen edged slightly to his left to try and put him off, they came together in the most dramatic fashion. Both cars suffered a puncture and had to limp back to the pit lane, with Norris suffering front wing damage as well, resulting in him retiring the car.

George Russell, who was quietly going about his business in 3rd, suddenly took the lead of the race with about 5 5 laps to go. He couldn’t believe his luck as he took the chequered flag to claim his 2nd ever Grand Prix win.

Norris’ teammate, Oscar Piastri pipped Carlos Sainz for 2nd as the latter rounded up the podium positions.

by Ben Ayuko

{image by Reuters}

India was crowned world champions after beating South Africa in the ICC (International Cricket Council) Twenty20 world cup final.

India was looking to reclaim some pride after losing the ODI series to Australia in front of their home crowd earlier this year. The Indian team came up against an inspired South African side who had just come from demolishing Afghanistan in the semi-final, limiting them to just 56 runs in total. The game was always going to be won by whoever wanted and the India side definitely showed its intent by beating England, the defending champions, in the semi-final by a mammoth 68 runs. This was promising to be an epic clash.

And it was. It was a tense finale as South Africa found themselves needing at least 2 boundaries from 2 balls. Kagiso Rabada, the batsman, had no choice but to throw caution to the wind. Go big or go home, as they say. Unfortunately, he didn’t go big enough as his attempt to knock one over the line fell just short, right into the hands of an Indian fielder. India emerged victorious but only by a mere 7 runs. They definitely earned their victory after battling a worthy adversary.

Virat Kohli was voted the MvP (most valuable player) finishing the game with 76 runs from 58 balls.

Jasprit Bumrah capped the final game by winning the Player of the Tournament award, no doubt because of his proficiency at bowling.

The fans may have been disappointed by how the ODI series ended, but at least they were afforded some sort of redemption for the mishap in the Twenty20.

by Ben Ayuko

{contact info: gnrlspecific@gmail.com}

{image by Getty Images}

What in the world is going on in Group E?

It genuinely feels as though each member of the group had a pact agreed at the launch of the tournament, but one of them found out too late that they were going to be the sacrifice. I know it sounds like I’m being pretty dramatic but hear me out.

Romania qualified for the next round after finishing top of the group after their 1-1 draw with Slovakia, thanks to goals from Ondrej Duda of Slovakia and Răzvan Marin of Romania. Slovakia qualified in 3rd position. Had Slovakia won that game, it would have been they who finished top of the group and Romania would have been packing their bags and going home. Likewise, if Romania won, then Slovakia would’ve been packing their bags. Such fine margins.

Belgium tried to get up to speed versus Ukraine in order to finish top of the table, but the longer the game went on, the more they slowly began to accept that they would probably not get that elusive goal that they were looking for. In fact, it was looking more and more likely that Ukraine would score. Their closest effort came directly from a corner kick after Ruslan Malinovskyi almost caught the Belgian keeper Koen Casteels off guard at his near post. That scare seemed like the off switch for Belgium as from then on, they opted not to take unnecessary risks knowing a draw would get them through anyway.

0-0 after the final whistle meant that Belgium qualified in 2nd while Ukraine drew the short straw and had to pack their bags. If either team had got a goal, they’d have finished top of the group while the other was sent packing. Such fine margins.

Every team in Group E finished the group stages on 4 points. Every team had 1 win, 1 draw and 1 loss. The rank in the group was determined exclusively by goal difference from top to bottom, and in some cases where the goal difference was the same, they had to compare the number of goals scored. It’s madness.

by Ben Ayuko

{image by sportsmole}

Sorry Georgia, I was not familiar with your game.

Neither were you, reader. I don’t think anybody was. Or at least, I don’t think anybody thought Georgia would beat Portugal, deservedly, let alone qualify for the knockout rounds of the European championship. On their first time in the competition no less.

And I mean “Deservedly“. Quite literally from the 1st minute of the game {technically 1:30} when Georgia Starboy, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, raced through on goal after latching onto a through ball from teammate Georges Mikautadze and finished tidily passed the Portuguese keeper, Diogo Costa. This early goal seemed to spark a seemingly dormant flame that had been inside this Georgia team all along, just waiting for a chance to shine. And shine they did.

Now, Portugal is one of the best teams in the world, so obviously they had chances to score from the likes of Ronaldo, Joao Felix, Pedro Neto, etc. But none of them managed to breach this very inspired Georgian defense. Their goalkeeper, Giorgi Mamardashvili, in particular had quite a stellar performance, making 5 saves including a particularly powerful freekick from Ronaldo. And with every chance he saved, it only seemed to spur Georgia on. They were trading shots on either end of the pitch with Georgia holding their own and going toe-to-toe with one the best teams in the world let alone in Europe.

Just as Portugal started to get a handle on the game and it seemed like the inevitable outcome, we all knew was going to happen, was going to happen, Georgia earned themselves a penalty kick and Georges Mikautadze , after registering the assist for the first goal, dispatched the spot kick with finesse to seal the deal and confirm Georgia’s progress into the Round of 16.

The dream lives on.

Elsewhere, Cenk Tosun scored in the dying minutes of injury time (90min+4) to secure 2nd spot for Turkey and ensure safe progression through to the round of 16. Hakan Çalhanoğlu’s powerful drive into the bottom corner had given Turkey the lead before Tomáš Souček equalized for the Czech Republic. It was quite a comeback considering they’d had a man sent off in the 1st half.

Portugal progressed as group winners followed by Turkey then Georgia. Let us see what they can muster in the next round.

by Ben Ayuko

{image by Sky News}

England set out to secure their status as the top team in Group C when they took on Slovenia. Gareth Southgate, the England Manager, has recently come under fire from his own people (the English) after some lackluster performances in the opening 2 group games. Knowing this he really needed a performance from his team to get the fans on his side.

If anything, he may have started riot. A protest. A demonstration even. Like the taxbi- look, it wasn’t good.

England had one or two good moments in the whole game. 1st, a goal ruled out due to an offside in the buildup {admittedly, a good play}. And 2nd was good sequence of play that culminated in a weak effort on goal from substitute Cole Palmer. Other than that, England failed to create anything of real note for the whole 90min. They were equally as likely to lose the game as they were to win it. The spectators were so displeased, they began throwing their empty beer cups at Gareth Southgate. Okay, maybe they’re treating him a little harshly considering he is literally coaching their national team. But English fans have always been that way with their own people. Who can forget the whole Beckham episode before he “mad up for it” with ‘That’ freekick vs Greece. Or the whole racist debacle at the last Euro tournament with Saka, Rashford and Sancho because they missed their penalties in the final. All we can ask is, is anyone really surprised they never win anything?

Anyway, the game ended 0-0.

Elsewhere, Denmark and Serbia played out a 0-0 draw, securing Denmark 2nd spot in Group C and qualification for the next round.

Fun fact, there has only been 1 win in 12 games in this group, which came from England on the opening day against Serbia. Denmark and Slovenia have drawn all their games, while England and Serbia drew 2 of theirs, each. This, of course means Serbia’s loss to England is also the only Loss experienced in this group.

It just might have been the most uneventful group.

by Ben Ayuko

{contact info: gnrlspecific@gmail.com}

{image by Getty Images}

Austria put on a show against the Netherlands as they edge them out 3-2 to get the victory and sail to the top of the group D table.

Austria took the lead through ana unfortunate own goal by Donyell Malen. He attempted a sliding tackle to try intercept a pass but ended up inadvertently putting the ball into his own net. Austria took a hold of the game from then as Netherlands found it difficult to play efficiently right up to half-time. After the break, Netherlands came out flying and immediately hit back through Cody Gakpo, the Liverpool man finishing off a swift counter-attacking move. At this point, it seemed like the Netherlands were going to run away with the game as they looked sharper than before, connecting plays and testing the keeper. They had wrestled the game back from Austria. So, it was a surprise when Austria then went 2-1 up.

A nice passing move around the Netherlands penalty area ended with a floated ball to the back post for Romano Schmid to nod home. Against the run of play, they had taken the lead. This is when Koeman, Netherlands coach, called on his trump card from the bench. Wout Weghorst, the Dutch giant, who has developed somewhat of a reputation for having an impact off the bench was substituted in and it didn’t take long for his impact to be felt. A ball was hung in the air for him t attack and he nodded it down onto the path of Memphis Depay who finished it with a plomb. They were level again. Surely now, they were going to win it and retain top spotting their group, right?

Obviously not, because not more than 5minutes later, Austria launched a devastating counterattack with Marcel Sabitzer on the end of it. He took one touch and rifled it in at the near post to the roof of the net.

Austria saw out the game and won 3-2, ascending form 3rd to 1st and comfortably through to the next round.

Elsewhere, it was a game of 2 penalties as Kylian Mbappe and Robert Lewandowski traded spot kicks for their respective teams meaning the game ended France 1-1 Poland. This also meant France could only finish 2nd in the group, having missed the chance to take advantage on the Netherlands slip up. Poland was sent home, but their fans left on a high.

by Ben Ayuko

{image by Getty Images}

{contact info: gnrlspecific@gmail.com}

Croatia just got brutally dumped out of the Euros tournament with a last-minute goal in the 8th minute of injury time (90min +8) from a wonderful finish by Mattias Zaccagni.

Croatia had initially taken the lead through their captain, Luka Modric, who, after a good save by the Italian keeper, Donnarumma, showed good poacher instincts by finishing off the rebound. Modric, who had earlier missed a chance to give Croatia the lead from the penalty spot, had taken the moment only minutes in a bid to make amends for his error and gift his country a place in the knockout stages. This probably being the Croat’s last tournament, it seemed written in the stars that he should receive such a fairytale moment as the dream lived on. The Italians, however, had other plans.

Just as the referee was pursing his lips to blow on the tip of the whistle, Italian Centre back Riccardo Calafiori picked the ball in his own half, and, as though fed up with his own team’s attackers’ constant failure to create chances, proceeded to carry it all the way into the Croatia penalty are. There, he laid it off to Zaccagni, who curled the ball expertly into the top corner to seal Italy’s spot in the knockout rounds and send Croatia packing.

Delight for the Italians meant Heartbreak for the Croats.

Elsewhere, an early goal by Ferran Torres was enough to secure victory for Spain as they maintained their perfect start to the Euros campaign, maintaining their top of the table status. They sail through to the knockout stages having won every single group game, scored 5 goals and conceded none.

I’m sure many people have them as their favourites.