Guirassy Scores Again As Stuttgart See Off Bremen

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Guirassy Scores Again As Stuttgart See Off Bremen

Stuttgart needed to win a two-legged relegation playoff to stay in the top division last season but now sit third after 13 matches, two points behind second-placed Bayern Munich.

Stuttgart striker Serhou Guirassy continued his remarkable Bundesliga scoring form this season, scoring a second-half penalty in a 2-0 home win over Werder Bremen on Saturday.

Guirassy, making his first start since mid-October after injury, was brought down in the box by Bremen defender Niklas Stark.

The striker chipped his spot-kick down the middle to chalk up his 16th goal of the season in just 11 games.

Brighton loanee Deniz Undav had given Stuttgart the lead after 17 minutes, tapping in from close range for his eighth goal in his past eight games.

Stuttgart needed to win a two-legged relegation playoff to stay in the top division last season but now sit third after 13 matches, two points behind second-placed Bayern Munich.

Leipzig Win At Home 

Leipzig won 2-1 over promoted Heidenheim, goals from Lois Openda and Yussuf Poulsen sending the home side past Borussia Dortmund to fourth in the table.

Leipzig took the lead from the penalty spot, Openda winning and converting for his 10th goal in 13 league matches this season.

Poulsen doubled up for the hosts shortly before half-time taking advantage after wing-back David Raum beat two defenders.

“In the first half we were like a rabbit in front of a snake,” admitted Heidenheim manager Frank Schmidt.

His side hit back immediately after, Benedikt Gimber steering in through a crowded penalty area after a corner.

The goal would have raised some bad memories for the home side, who gave away a two-goal lead to lose 3-2 at European champions Manchester City in midweek.

But Marco Rose’s side dug deep against the energetic promoted side, securing a fifth home win of the season.

“We had so many chances to score, we should have killed the game earlier today,” said Poulsen.

Borussia Moenchengladbach needed a late winner to beat Hoffenheim 2-1 at home, left-back Luca Netz setting up Nathan Ngoumou for the winner with 10 minutes remaining.

Brought down in the box by former Liverpool centre-back Ozan Kabak midway through the second half, Gladbach’s Alassane Plea converted a penalty to give the home side the lead.

The visitors equalised just 90 seconds later however, with one-time Manchester United striker Wout Weghorst heading in from close range.

Elsewhere, Bochum won just their second match of the season, beating a disappointing Wolfsburg 3-1 at home to open a welcome gap from the relegation places.

Bochum ran out to a two-goal lead thanks to goals from Patrick Osterhage and Bernardo, but Wolfsburg pulled a goal back later in the first half through Mattias Svanberg.

Christopher Antwi-Adjei scored the winner with three minutes remaining, continuing Wolfsburg’s horrid away form, with just one win from seven games.

“Our away form this season has been a catastrophe,” said Wolfsburg midfielder Yannick Gerhardt. “I’m sorry for the fans who travelled to see it”.

Bayern’s home game against Union Berlin was postponed earlier Saturday due to heavy snowfall in the Bavarian capital.

Bayer Leverkusen can go five clear atop the table with a win at home against Dortmund on Sunday.

Israel, Hamas Trade Strikes As Palestinian Toll Mounts

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Israel, Hamas Trade Strikes As Palestinian Toll Mounts

Israel and Hamas brushed off international calls to renew an expired truce Saturday as air strikes pounded militant targets in Gaza and Palestinian groups launched volleys of rockets.

Israel and Hamas brushed off international calls to renew an expired truce Saturday as air strikes pounded militant targets in Gaza and Palestinian groups launched volleys of rockets.

Smoke again clouded the sky over the north of the Palestinian territory, whose Hamas government said 240 people had been killed since a pause in hostilities expired early Friday and combat resumed.

In Israel, the military’s Home Front Command reported 40 missile alerts in the south and centre of the country, and the Palestinian groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad announced “rocket barrages” against multiple Israeli cities and towns including Tel Aviv.

“Over 250 rockets have been fired at Israel since Friday morning,” Israeli military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Peter Lerner told reporters. “The vast majority of those have not been successful in reaching their destination. Each one of those, obviously, is intended to kill Israelis.”

According to the United Nations, an estimated 1.7 million people in Gaza — more than two-thirds of the population — have been displaced by eight weeks of war.

Fadel Naim, chief doctor at the Al-Ahli Arab hospital in Gaza City, said his morgue had received 30 bodies on Saturday, including seven children.

“The planes bombed our houses: three bombs, three houses destroyed,” Nemr al-Bel, 43, told AFP, adding he had counted 10 dead in his family and “13 more still under the rubble”.

The population is short of food, water and other essentials, and many homes have been destroyed. UN agencies have declared a humanitarian catastrophe, although some aid trucks did arrive Saturday.

“Homes, hospitals and other infrastructure critical to the survival of the civilian population have suffered colossal destruction,” said Pascal Hundt, head of operations in Gaza for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

“Current conditions do not allow for a meaningful humanitarian response, and I fear will spell disaster for the civilian population,” he added.

After the truce between Israel and Hamas expired on Friday, Israel had told NGOs not to bring aid convoys across the Rafah border crossing from Egypt, the Palestine Red Crescent Society had said.

But on Saturday, the charity said its Egyptian colleagues had managed to send over a number of trucks.

Israel Withdraws Negotiators 

 

Both sides blamed each other for the breakdown of the truce, which before it expired had enabled the release of 80 Israeli hostages in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners.

The deal had been brokered with the help of Qatar, backed by Egypt and the United States, but on Saturday Israel said it was withdrawing its negotiators from Doha after reaching a dead end in talks aimed at securing a renewed pause in hostilities.

French President Emmanuel Macron appealed for “stepped-up efforts to reach a lasting ceasefire” to free all hostages, allow in more aid and to assure Israel of its security.

During an unprecedented attack on October 7, Hamas fighters broke through Gaza’s militarised border into Israel, killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took around 240 Israelis and foreigners hostage, according to Israeli authorities.

Israel vowed to eliminate Hamas in response and unleashed an air and ground campaign that has killed more than 15,000 people, also mostly civilians, the Hamas authorities who run Gaza say.

Since the end of the pause, Israel’s air, naval and ground forces have attacked more than 400 targets in Gaza, the army said on Saturday.

The figure is roughly in line with the daily average number of strikes prior to the pause, according to military figures released previously.

Warplanes hit “more than 50 targets in an extensive attack in the Khan Yunis area” of Gaza’s south, according to the military.

Separately, members of an Israeli armoured brigade “eliminated terrorist squads and directed fire against terrorist targets in the north of the Gaza Strip”, the military said.

 Fighting Spreads 

 

International leaders and humanitarian groups condemned the return to fighting.

“I deeply regret that military operations have started again in Gaza,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on X, formerly Twitter.

The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which like Hamas is backed by Iran, said two of its members were killed Friday in Israeli strikes on Lebanon, as its fighters resumed attacks against Israeli targets following the end of the truce.

Israel’s military said its artillery struck the sources of “launches” from Lebanon.

Syria said Israel carried out air strikes near Damascus on Saturday. A British-based war monitor said the strikes on “Hezbollah sites” killed two Syrian pro-Hezbollah fighters.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard accused Israel of killing two of its members in Syria who it said had been on an “advisory mission”.

Hamas in October last year said it had restored relations with Syria’s government. Israeli attacks on targets in Syria have intensified since the Israel-Hamas war began.

The week of hostage-prisoner exchanges yielded tearful reunions of Israeli families with their released relatives and jubilation in the streets of the Israeli-occupied West Bank as Palestinians walked free from Israeli jails.

Twenty-five other hostages, mostly Thais, were also freed in separate arrangements.

The Israeli army on Friday said 136 hostages were still being held in Gaza, including more than a dozen women.

The end of the pause meant bitter disappointment for the families of those still not freed.

“We saw a chance for people to come out, be reunited with their families and resume their old lives,” said Ilan Zharia, the uncle of Eden Yerushalmi, 20, one of the women still held captive.

Romania said it had been told by Israel that a Romanian-Israeli hostage had died in Gaza.

COP28: Nigeria To Rollout 100 Electric Buses – Tinubu

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COP28: Nigeria To Rollout 100 Electric Buses – Tinubu

The "pioneering initiative" is to "significantly" reduce Nigeria's carbon footprint and modernise the country's transportation systems," Tinubu said in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on the margins of the COP28 climate summit.

Nigeria will rollout 100 electric buses in a step towards a sustainable and eco-friendly future, President Bola Tinubu said Saturday. 

The “pioneering initiative” is to “significantly” reduce Nigeria’s carbon footprint and modernise the country’s transportation systems,” Tinubu said in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on the margins of the COP28 climate summit.

”This initiative stands as a testament to our dedication to environmental stewardship as clearly exemplified through our collaboration with the Africa Carbon Market Initiative. Our visionary plan is a strategic guidepost, directing Nigeria towards becoming an investment-friendly destination for carbon market investments,” presidential spokesman Ajuri Ngelale quoted his principal as saying.

”We recognize the imperative of fostering an environment that not only attracts investment but also upholds standardized and sustainable industrial practices. As a manifestation of our forward-thinking approach, we are actively looking to implement robust, enabling policies and frameworks that will serve as the catalyst for the burgeoning growth of the carbon market within our national borders.”

President Tinubu also appointed the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Zacch Adedeji and the Director-General of the National Council on Climate Change (NCCC) Dahiru Salisu to co-chair the Nigeria Carbon Market Activation Plan.

While the move is part of efforts to position Nigeria and Africa as the pioneering frontier of green manufacturing and industrialization, Tinubu is urging other countries on the continent to follow suit.

”As we unveil our initiatives, I challenge other nations to emulate our strides in mapping out their sustainable futures with a clear understanding that Africa is a beacon of innovative solutions to climate-related challenges,” he said.

Tinubu said Nigeria’s “plans for a greener and cleaner economy can serve as an inspirational narrative for nations worldwide”.

“Our comprehensive approach, rooted in visionary leadership and pragmatic action supported by our technical partners, is poised to become a blueprint for countries aspiring to also develop and catalyze their markets for sustainable growth,” the president added.

Nigeria To Continue Engagement For Release Of Deposed Niger President, Says Minister

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Nigeria To Continue Engagement For Release Of Deposed Niger President, Says Minister

"We are asking them to release President Bazoum so that he will be allowed to leave Niger. He will no longer be in custody. He will go to a third country that is mutually agreed upon."

Nigeria will continue to engage with the government of Niger Republic to ensure the release of the country’s deposed President Mohamed Bazoum, Minister of Foreign Affairs Yusuf Tuggar has said.

Bazoum has not been released since the junta struck in the West African country earlier in the year.

But Tuggar said Nigeria, which plays a critical role in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) bloc, won’t relent on pressing for Bazoum’s freedom.

Speaking to Channels Television on the sidelines of the United Nations Climate Conference in Dubai, the Minister said Nigeria is not under any pressure to act against the Niger Republic.

“And we have made it clear, we spelled it out. We are asking them to release President Bazoum so that he will be allowed to leave Niger. He will no longer be in custody. He will go to a third country that is mutually agreed upon. And then we start talking about the removal of sanctions,” the minister said.

“So, let no picture be painted that Nigeria is the one being difficult or that ECOWAS  – because it was an ECOWAS decision – is being difficult. We continue to talk with them; to engage and our doors will continue to be open to those in charge in Niger as of now. You know, the opportunity is there. We are always ready, willing, and able to listen to them and the ball is in their court.”

‘We Remain Consistent

 

Although many had claimed Nigeria was being controlled by some external forces, the minister says the country’s track record on the continent says otherwise.

“There is no conflict between Nigeria and Niger. The people of Nigeria and Niger, we are brothers. We are not against them, and don’t let anybody fool you that Nigeria is being dictated to by some other country what to do,” the minister added.

“That’s pure propaganda. Those are lies. Everybody knows Nigeria’s track record when it comes to standing for what is right –  the fight for freedom in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Angola, and Mozambique. We are always there. We remain consistent. We see what we’re doing also about Palestine and what is happening in Gaza. This is exactly what we’re also saying about the situation in Niger. “

Pochettino Wants ‘Emotional’ Caicedo To Free His Mind

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Pochettino Wants ‘Emotional’ Caicedo To Free His Mind

Pochettino splashed out a British record £115 million ($146 million) to sign Caicedo from Brighton in August.

Mauricio Pochettino has told Chelsea’s Moises Caicedo to free his mind as the Blues boss tries to get the “emotional” Ecuador midfielder back on track.

Pochettino splashed out a British record £115 million ($146 million) to sign Caicedo from Brighton in August.

But the 22-year-old’s frequent 11,000-mile round trips to South America to play for Ecuador have limited the time he has been able to spend working with Pochettino and his coaching staff.

Recovering from a red card on his disastrous debut against West Ham, Caicedo has become a regular in Pochettino’s side but is yet to recapture his superb Brighton form.

He revealed in an interview with Chelsea’s website this week that he spent much of his first 10 days in England alone in a hotel room in tears due to homesickness after joining Brighton from Ecuador’s Independiente del Valle in 2021.

Caicedo went on to become one of the key figures for Brighton in their rise up the Premier League, sparking a bidding war between Liverpool and Chelsea earlier this year.

“When we signed him we knew what is going to happen. He’s an emotional guy, an emotional player that needs time to recover,” Pochettino told reporters on Friday.

“It didn’t help also the international games, travelling to Ecuador, to South America. That is really tough every single month, two or three weeks then go 10, 12 days away, then come back sometimes with some injury.

“It’s not an excuse but it’s the reality. In some situations like his, we need to give time and not to be unfair in the way that we assess him.”

In a bid to help Caicedo settle at Chelsea, Pochettino met with his star one on one this week.

The Argentine’s message was to keep calm as Caicedo navigates life at struggling Chelsea amid Ecuador’s hectic World Cup qualifying schedule.

“Before this press conference, he was in my office for twenty minutes,” Pochettino said.

“It is easy because we speak Spanish. It is a subconscious process and that is a problem, only in time can you adapt.

“We had no pre-season with him. We talk about footballers; it is physical and mental, and there is the talent.

“If you want to express your talent, you need to be clear in your mind and be good in your legs. Otherwise, it is not possible to move.”

Messi Leaves Door Open To 2026 World Cup

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Messi Leaves Door Open To 2026 World Cup

Messi, who recently won his eighth Ballon d'Or, raised the World Cup almost a year ago after starring for Argentina in the final against France in Doha.

Lionel Messi is not ruling out another bid for World Cup glory with Argentina in 2026 despite acknowledging that time is working against him.

Messi, who recently won his eighth Ballon d’Or, raised the World Cup almost a year ago after starring for Argentina in the final against France in Doha.

The 36-year-old had suggested at the time that the tournament in Qatar would be his last and that he wouldn’t be around for the next tournament which will be co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.

But having moved to Major League Soccer’s Inter Miami and continued performing for the national team in qualifiers for 2026, he says the door remains open.

“I’m not thinking about the World Cup and I’m not saying 100 percent that I won’t be there because anything can happen. Because of my age, the most normal thing is that I won’t be there. Then we’ll see,” said Messi in an interview with Argentina’s Star+.

The Argentina captain said his focus on June’s Copa America which will be held in the United States.

“Maybe we’ll do well at the Copa America and everything will work out for us to continue. Maybe not. Realistically it’s difficult,” he said of the chance of a sixth consecutive appearance in the World Cup.

Messi said he would be “the first to know when I can be there and when I can’t. I’m also aware that I’ve gone to a lesser league. But it’s all about the personal side of things and the way you deal with it and how you compete.

“As long as I feel I’m well and can continue to contribute, I’m going to do it. Today all I’m thinking about is getting to the Copa America. After that, time will tell if I’m there or not.

“I’m going to arrive at an age that, normally, doesn’t allow me to play in the World Cup. I said I don’t think I’m going to be there. It looked like after the World Cup I was retiring and it was the opposite. Now I want to be there more than ever,” he added.

I’m careful about kissing in movies — Sandra Okunzuwa

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I’m careful about kissing in movies — Sandra Okunzuwa

An actress, Sandra Okunzuwa, says that she is usually careful when it comes to kissing in movies.

According to her, she was taught when kissing another actor, there should not be any form of tongue contact, to avoid the exchange of saliva.

She told Saturday Beats, “I was told that the individuals could just play with their lips and eyes, then moan to give the impression that they were doing something really intense. I have always abided by that, and I avoid any form of tongue contact or exchange of saliva, because I don’t know who that other person has been with. I don’t know their medical condition.

“Sometimes, people ask if I get emotionally attached to any actor that I kiss. The answer is actually ‘no’, because the place that one is filming in is not even so conducive. The air conditioner is off, and the lighting usually makes one feel hot. Besides, there are a lot of people in the same room behind the camera watching, what one is doing. This is even as one is sweating and trying to memorise one’s lines.”

Asked about the highlight of her year so far, Okunzuwa said, “One of my highlights of the year was when I produced the movie, ‘Something like Gold’. From the feedback I got, people loved and enjoyed it. This is my fifth year in the industry, and producing a box office movie that is doing well is definitely one of my highlights. I also started my YouTube channel, which I had been procrastinating on for years.”