Thierry Henry announces retirement from football

Thierry Henry has brought an end to his illustrious playing career by announcing his retirement from professional football. The former Arsenal striker left New York Red Bulls at the end of the MLS season

Fireworks(Banger) Has Been Baned This Festive Period – Lagos Police

The Lagos state police command  have placed a ban on the use of fireworks, popularly called ‘Banger’ as the festive season approaches, Punch reports.

In a statement released yesterday by the command’s Public Relations Officer,  Deputy Superintendent of Police, Kenneth Nwosu, the police said the ban was necessary to safeguard the lives and properties of Lagosians.

According to Nwosu, the command took the decision to avert the dangers usually associated with the use of fireworks during the harmattan season.

Consequently, the police urged parents and guardians to warn their children and wards to desist from the use of fireworks, Vanguard reports.
The statement read: “In a bid to ensure public safety and avert all dangers associated with the use of bangers and other fireworks especially during harmattan season, the Lagos State Police Command wishes to inform the general public that the use of such fireworks is banned.

“Parents and guardians are therefore advised to warn their children and wards to desist from the use of such fireworks to avoid being caught on the wrong side of the law as defaulters will be punished.”

The police also assured Lagosians of adequate security during the festive period.

It will be recalled that a fire outbreak was widely reported at the Lagos state Police headquarters, Obalende, last week Friday.

TINUBU BLASTS PDP: Don’t insult Buhari, he is puppet to no one

Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, national leader of the All Progressives Congress and former governor of Lagos state has blasted the Peoples Democratic Party for claiming that he will control the government of Major General Muhammadu Buhari if he is elected as president of Nigeria in the 2015 general elections.

It would be recalled that the PDP re-christened the APC as Asiwaju Personal Consortium and also chided the party’s presidential torch-bearer, General Muhammadu Buhari of compromising his principles by submitting his powers to nominate a vice-president to Tinubu.

In a statement released by Tinubu’s media office, he said Buhari was elected at APC national convention because of his qualities. “He is a man of principle and one who is committed to the nation. His overriding concern is the wellbeing of Nigeria.”

Tinubu noted that Buhari can never be a stooge to anyone. “A man of such principle and leadership presence cannot ever be a puppet. Those who claim he is a puppet do grave insult to an outstanding patriot and millions of Nigerians who support him.”

Tinubu then adviced PDP to put its house in order. “PDP would do better if they spent their time trying to fix their rickety ship after such dismal primaries than to cast stones at the APC’s more democratic and genuine process. They speak in this manner because they are afraid the APC will confront them with a ticket they cannot beat by fair means.

“We will do our own internal consultations and arrive at a ticket we believe is best suited to govern Nigeria. If they are so interested in who we pick they are free to quit their bankrupt party and join the party that offers the best hope for this nation and its future

Manu- Flying Eagles Aiming to Go All the Way to 2015 World Cup

Coach of the Nigeria U-20 team Manu Garba has set his sights on qualifying for the 2015 Fifa World Cup in New Zealand as African champions.

Nigeria’s Flying Eagles have already clinched qualification for the 2015 African Youth Championship in Senegal and will realise their fate on Sunday, when the draw for the finals is conducted in Cairo Egypt.

Speaking ahead of the draw, Manu is expressed optimism concerning the team’s ambition for Senegal 2015, scheduled for March 8 through 22.

“The target for the team is to win the AYC and so qualify for the World Cup in New Zealand as the best team in Africa, Manu declared.

Manu Garba Says Flying Eagles Want to Qualify for the Fifa U-20 World Cup as African Champions. Image: Getty.

“We want to be champions again and we want to do this in style.
“We know it won’t be easy, but we are working very hard to achieve this target.”

Nigeria have won the AYC a record six times, with their last triumph being in 2011. They finished third-placed in the previous edition behind winners Egypt and Ghana.

As part of the team’s preparation for next year’s tournament, Manu’s side beat Jamba Academy 4-1 and Standard FC of Zaria 12-0 in their first two test matches.

They will play Ace Academy of Kaduna on Wednesday morning at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium in Kaduna. They have also lined up another test game against YSFON national selection at the same venue on Friday.

The team will break for the Christmas on Saturday and reconvene in Kaduna on December 27.

UEFA Champions League draw: Manchester City to play Barcelona, Chelsea face PSG

Manchester City will face Barcelona in the last 16 of the Champions League for a second year running following Monday's draw at UEFA's headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.

City reached the knockout stages of the competition for the first time in their history last season, only to lose 4-1 on aggregate to Barca.

And after finishing second in Group E this term despite failing to register a win in their first four games, their reward is a repeat last-16 clash against the Catalan club, while Chelsea have also been handed a tough tie against PSG. Arsenal meanwhile, have been drawn against Arsène Wenger’s former side, Monaco.

The Manchester club lost 4-1 on aggregate to Barcelona at the same stage in last season’s competition and Manuel Pellegrini’s side will host the Catalan side in the first leg at the Etihad stadium in February.

City’s director of football Txiki Begiristain, a former Barcelona player and director labelled the draw as “unbelievable”, adding: “Every tie’s the same, we had Bayern Munich and CSKA Moscow in the group phase, and now we have to deal again with Barcelona.

“Beating Bayern Munich and then beating Roma away, we are confident and will arrive in a good moment to these games.”

Chelsea finished top of their group and could have drawn any one of Juventus, Basel, Bayer Leverkusen, Shakhtar Donetsk or PSG but landed the French champions, who finished runners-up in their group behind Barcelona. Chelsea drew PSG in the quarter-finals in last-season’s campaign, beating them on away goals, with Demba Ba scoring what proved to be the decisive goal in the dying moments of the second leg at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea secretary David Barnard said: “Obviously PSG are known to us because we played them in the quarter-finals last year and they’ve got the added ingredient of David Luiz playing for them. José [Mourinho] said before the draw that he’d have liked to see PSG for our supporters, for the travel and the logistics, and he was right.”

Arsenal’s draw against Monaco is seen as a favourable one, with the London club avoiding playing any one of Atlético Madrid, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Porto and Barcelona. Arsène Wenger made his name at Monaco, managing the Ligue 1 side from 1987-1994.

Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey was quick to respond to the draw, writing on Twitter: “Monaco! I’m sure our fans will enjoy the away trip... great place, great draw!” Arsenal secretary David Miles added on Sky Sports News: “We’ve picked some of the biggest teams in Europe over the last five years but we’re certainly not taking anything for granted, Monaco have earned the right to be here. It’s the first time we’ve played Monaco in a competitive match so I’m sure Arsène will be delighted at going back to one of his former teams.”

Current European champions Real Madrid will again play Schalke, having thrashed the German side 9-2 on aggregate at the same stage last year, while last season’s beaten finalists Atlético Madrid face Bayer Leverkusen in another Spain-Germany match-up following the draw in Nyon on Monday.

Five-time winners Bayern Munich take on Shakhtar Donetsk, Juventus will play Borussia Dortmund in a repeat of the 1997 final while Basel’s Portuguese coach Paulo Sousa will seek to eliminate Porto.

First-leg ties will be played 17-18 February or 24-25 February and second-leg ties will be played on either on March 10-11 and March 17-18 next year, with the final being played on 6 June in Berlin’s Olympiastadion.

The last-16 draw in full

PSG v Chelsea

Manchester City v Barcelona

Bayer Leverkusen v Atlético Madrid

Juventus v Borussia Dortmund

Schalke v Real Madrid

Shakhtar Donetsk v Bayern Munich

Arsenal v Monaco

Basel v Porto

Which club has the hardest and easiest Champions League draw?

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I didn’t know that Stella planned a tummy tuck surgery - Obasanjo

A former President, Olusegun Obasanjo has said that he had no knowledge of his late wife, Stella’s plan to undergo the cosmetic procedure that led to her death.

Mr. Obasanjo disclosed this in his autobiography, My Watch, which was released on December 8.

The late first lady died on October 23, 2005, following a botched tummy tuck – elective liposuction – procedure in Spain. The surgery was scheduled towards the commemoration of her 60th birthday.

“After the internment, I decided to look into the circumstances of her death,” Mr. Obasanjo wrote on page 240 of Volume two of the book. “I found that part of her 60th birthday anniversary, which was unknown to me, was her operation for her tummy and her shape.”

Mr. Obasanjo also addressed the insinuations that his wife’s death may have been a “sacrifice” he carried out for success in his job.

“Before the verdict in Spain, I was unaware of what I came to hear later that I might have caused the death of my wife to sacrifice her for success in my job,” he wrote. “That is how wicked and satanic some Nigerians can be in their rumours and mischief.”

He referred to the doctor who carried out the surgery as “careless” and narrated how with the help of the Nigerian Embassy in Spain and the Spanish authorities, he got justice for his wife’s death.

“I instructed that the doctor and the clinic be prosecuted,” he said. “The lost life cannot be brought back but the successful prosecution would prevent carelessness and loss of life in the future.”

The doctor, according to the former president, was made to pay damages, which was collected by Olu Obasanjo, Stella’s son, and his licence withdrawn for a period of time.

Mr. Obasanjo was however full of praises for his wife, whom he married in 1976, four years after the formal dissolution of his first marriage.

He commended her for handling the confrontations she had with his first wife, Remi, with maturity, for accepting children he had with other women as her own, and for campaigning for his release while he was in jail as well as supporting him during his presidency.

Mr. Obasanjo said shortly before her death, Stella, who was Roman Catholic, ensured that her marriage was blessed by the church in a small private ceremony at the Aso Villa conducted by Mathew Kukah, now the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese.

According to Mr. Obasanjo, after the ceremony, his late wife thanked him and said, “You have relieved me.” Mr. Obasanjo’s book was met with controversy following its publication and launch.

An Abuja High Court had granted an exparte injunction stopping the public presentation of the book over claims the three volume series contained details of a libel case already before another court.
The case involves a drug trafficking allegation by the former president against a leader of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Buruji Kashamu.

On Wednesday, Justice Valentine Ashi found Mr. Obasanjo guilty of contempt, after he defied his directive barring him from releasing the book.

SEE Full list of Headie awardees

The 9th Most Prestigious Award In Nigeria was Held Last Night At The Eko Hotel And Suite, Lagos – Nigeria. The Award And As Usual It Was A Total Success. Hosted By Toke Makinwa And Basket Mouth, Awards Were Presented To A Selected Few Who Simply Ruled The Music Charts And Had Us Swaying In All Directions To Their
Songs.
Check Out The Full Winner List Of Headies 2014 Below:-

Best R&B Single – Let Somebody Love You (2Face Idibia)

Best Pop Single – Dorobucci – (Mavin Records)

Best Rap Single – Parcel (Phyno)

Best Street Hop – Double Wahala (Oritshe Femi)

Best Vocal Performance [Male] – Iyawo Mi (Timi Dakolo)

Best Vocal Performance [Female] – Love To Love You (Niyola Ft Banky W)

Best R&B Pop Album – The Journey (Sean Tizzle)

Best Rap Album – Baddest Guy Ever Liveth (Olamide)

Best Raggae/Dancehall Single – Girlie “O” (Patoranking Ft Tiwa Savage)

Best Collabo – Emergency (WizzyPro FT Patoranking, Skales & Runtown)

Hip Hop World Revelation – Kcee

Best Recording of The Year – Cobhams Asuquo

Best Alternate Song – BOTM (B.O.J)

Best Producer – Don Jazzy

Best Lyricist on The Roll – god on the Mic – Jesse Jagz

Next Rated – Patoranking

Best African Artiste – Sarkodie

Rookie of The year – Reekado Banks

Best Music Video – Clarence Peters

Best Song Of The Year – Aye (Davido)

Best Album Of The Year – Baddest Guy Ever Liveth (Olamide)
Adeniyi Adebayo at 20:18