Real Madrid win 14th Champions League title over Liverpool after late start in Paris

29, May 2022

Real Madrid win 14th Champions League title over Liverpool after late start in Paris 0

Vinicius Junior scored the only goal of the game as Real Madrid beat Liverpool 1-0 in Saturday’s Champions League final in Paris to become kings of Europe for a record-extending 14th time after a night marred by problems outside the ground that led to the kick-off being delayed by over half an hour.

Brazilian winger Vinicius turned in Fede Valverde’s enticing low cross in the 59th minute at the Stade de France and Liverpool could not find an equaliser as Jurgen Klopp’s side lost to the Spanish giants in a Champions League final for the second time in five seasons.

The Anfield side will wonder what might have been had the outstanding Thibaut Courtois not pushed Sadio Mane’s shot onto the inside of a post when they were on top in the first half, as they fell short of a trophy treble.

Winners of the English League Cup and FA Cup this season, they just missed out to Manchester City for the Premier League title and were denied a victory here which would have put them level with AC Milan on seven European Cups.

Instead Real have a fifth Champions League in nine seasons to go with their Spanish title, as Carlo Ancelotti becomes the first coach to win European club football’s greatest prize for a fourth time.

Ancelotti was also in charge of Real when they won the 2014 final having also triumphed with AC Milan in 2003 and in 2007, the latter victory coming against Liverpool.

Delayed kick-off

The match kicked off 35 minutes later than the planned 9:00 pm (1900 GMT) start in the French capital after chaos at entrances to the stadium led to fans being unable to get to their seats.

UEFA said it was “sympathetic” towards those affected and put the huge build-ups of supporters at gates down to “thousands of fans who had purchased fake tickets which did not work in the turnstiles”.

Tear gas was also fired by police as a small number of people could be seen trying to scale fences around the perimeter of the ground.

The final was only moved to the French capital after Saint-Petersburg was stripped of the game following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February.

The delayed kick-off may have been responsible for the slow start to the game itself, as it took 16 minutes before there was an incident of note, Mohamed Salah turning a low Trent Alexander-Arnold cross towards goal only for Courtois to save.

Liverpool were seen as favourites to avenge their loss to the Spanish giants in the 2018 final in Kyiv and they began to take control of the game.

Mane came agonisingly close to opening the scoring in the 21st minute as he skipped his way into a shooting position inside the box only for Courtois to tip his net-bound shot onto his right-hand post.

Klopp’s side, with Fabinho and Thiago Alcantara starting in midfield after overcoming fitness worries, were on top but could not turn their superiority into a lead.

Outstanding Courtois

Real, meanwhile, created almost nothing in the first half with Karim Benzema quiet, but their captain briefly thought he had got the breakthrough two minutes before the interval.

The Frenchman prodded home after the ball broke back to him inside the area but the offside flag was raised.

The decision to disallow the goal was upheld after a lengthy VAR check, despite Fabinho deflecting Valverde’s touch through to Benzema.

Yet Ancelotti’s side kept their nerve and were rewarded with the goal as the hour mark approached.

Valverde drove forward down the right before firing a low ball across the face of goal for Vinicius to turn it in at the far post past his Brazilian national team colleague Alisson.

Just like in 2018, Real had drawn first blood, but this time there was no need for them to send on Gareth Bale in order to ensure victory.

Courtois was superb, flying to his right to keep out a Salah curler before two saves in quick succession late on.

First the Belgian got down low when substitute Diogo Jota deflected Salah’s effort towards goal, and then he produced a strong arm to turn a Salah strike behind.

It was Real Madrid’s night.

Source: AFP

Liverpool and Real Madrid ready for Champions League final rematch

28, May 2022

Liverpool and Real Madrid ready for Champions League final rematch 0

Liverpool and Real Madrid meet in the Champions League final for the second time in five years in Paris on Saturday, with Jurgen Klopp’s side aiming to end the season with a trophy treble while the Spanish giants will look to Karim Benzema to inspire them to a 14th European Cup victory.

A crowd of 80,000 will be inside the Stade de France for the final, which kicks off at 9pm in Paris (1900 GMT), including around 20,000 supporters of each side who have officially got their hands on precious tickets for the game.

The final promises to be a fitting climax to the European season, with Liverpool looking to win a second Champions League in four seasons since losing 3-1 to Real in Kyiv in 2018, when Mohamed Salah went off injured in the first half and Gareth Bale scored twice for the Spaniards.

Victory would round off a campaign in which Liverpool won the English League Cup and FA Cup, and finished just a point behind champions Manchester City in the Premier League.

“If you are a football person you know what my boys did so far this season was exceptional,” Klopp said on Friday.

“But we all know you are judged by the colour of the medal after a game.

“I’m more than happy and proud of what we did so far, it’s really special. I will feel better if we win the game and that’s all that I am concerned about,” added Klopp, who has been boosted by the news that midfield duo Fabinho and Thiago Alcantara are fit to play.

Seventh heaven?

The Anfield club can win their seventh European Cup, a tally that would see them go level with AC Milan and leave only Real with more victories.

Indeed Madrid are looking to win their fifth Champions League in nine seasons and, ominously, have won on all of their last seven final appearances.

While Liverpool saw off Inter Milan, Benfica and Villarreal in the knockout rounds, Carlo Ancelotti’s Real produced a series of memorable comebacks to beat Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and then Manchester City.

“It is a great success for all of us to be here. We know very well the demands at this club, the history, but for us to get here is huge,” said Ancelotti, who last year was in charge of Liverpool’s local rivals Everton.

“We are convinced that the season has already been very, very good but now we are very close to getting the big one.”

Liverpool look to have the stronger side on paper, with Alisson in goal, Virgil van Dijk marshalling their defence and Salah and Sadio Mane leading their attack.

Yet Real are pinning their hopes on Karim Benzema, the 34-year-old Frenchman who has 15 goals in the competition this season.

Eyes on Benzema

He has scored 44 times altogether this season to lead Real to the Spanish title and is the favourite to win the Ballon d’Or.

“He is for sure one of the best players in the world, probably the best forward in the world, and I’m sure the most underestimated player maybe in history,” UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin told AFP on Friday when asked about Benzema.

“He has more personality and leadership on and off the field now but what has not changed is his quality and he remains as humble as ever,” said Ancelotti, who won the 2014 Champions League with Real in his first spell as coach.

Ancelotti can become the first coach to win the Champions League four times, having also triumphed with AC Milan in 2003 and 2007 — he is currently level on three wins with Zinedine Zidane and Bob Paisley.

Fans descend on Paris

This will be the third final between the clubs, who also met in Paris in 1981, when the English side triumphed thanks to Alan Kennedy’s goal at the Parc des Princes.

This final — which will be refereed by Frenchman Clement Turpin — is only being played in Paris after Saint-Petersburg was stripped of the game following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

There is some concern about the new pitch at the Stade de France which was only laid this week after the venue was used for a concert last weekend — Klopp suggested playing on a brand new surface was “obviously not the best news”.

Around 40,000 Liverpool fans without tickets for the game are also expected to be in Paris, while around seven thousand police will be on duty as part of a massive security operation.

Source: AFP

Buea: Sports journalist Eyong Macdella Bessong assaulted over accreditation card dispute

28, May 2022

Buea: Sports journalist Eyong Macdella Bessong assaulted over accreditation card dispute 0

Cameroonian authorities must identify and hold to account the policeman who assaulted journalist Eyong Macdella Bessong while she was covering a May 18 football match in Buea, the capital of the Southwest Region, and should hold accountable the stadium official who manhandled her and asked police to remove her from the property, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Thursday.  

Bessong, a reporter for pan-African privately owned sports news website kick442.com, was accosted and dragged away from the main pitch minutes before the opening whistle by Njonje Mbua, the Molyko Omnisport Stadium’s director, because she could not produce a hard copy of her press accreditation and only had a digital one on her cell phone, according to news reports, kick442.com editor Angu Lesley, and Bessong, who both spoke to CPJ via messaging app and phone. Minutes earlier, the digital copy of her press accreditation was accepted by an official controlling access to the match, those sources said.

Mbua refused to recognize the press pass on Bessong’s phone and insisted that she either buy a ticket or return home to retrieve her physical press pass, the journalist said. She told CPJ that the stadium director manhandled her and grabbed her torso, touching her breast, so she bit his hand, prompting him to order a group of six policemen to remove her from the property.

Bessong said two uniformed police officers, whose names she did not know, grabbed her and tried to drag her away. When a group of footballers recognized her as a journalist and asked what was going on, Bessong explained and pulled out her phone to show them her press card. One of the two policemen mistakenly believed she had taken photos of him and was showing them to the footballers and ordered her to delete them, Bessong said. The policeman then pulled her hair, slapped her at least three times across her face and neck, head-butted her, threw her on the ground, kicked her, and called her a prostitute, she told CPJ.

“Authorities and the Cameroonian Football Association must take swift and decisive action against the stadium official and policeman who humiliated and viciously assaulted sports journalist Eyong Macdella Bessong while on assignment,” said Angela Quintal, CPJ’s Africa program coordinator, in New York. “The chauvinism and sexist slurs that female sports journalists endure are bad enough, but to compound these with gratuitous violence is simply intolerable. Journalists must be free to do their jobs without harassment from any quarter.”

Cameroon sports journalist Eyong Macdella Bessong reports for kick442.com. (Credit withheld)

Lesley, Bessong’s editor, told CPJ by phone that Bessong, who was running late and was focusing on photographing the start of the match, heard Mbua calling her but ignored him because she didn’t realize that the call was coming from a stadium official. Instead, she believed she was the subject of an unwanted advance, a common hazard for women in Cameroon. Mbua then confronted the journalist, grabbed her and touched her breasts, and began dragging her away, resulting in the journalist biting his hand to free herself, said Lesley. Mbua then summoned the police, who assaulted her, he said

The police officer “slapped me, [head-]butted me, and then threw me to the floor and kicked me,” Bessong told CPJ. “He was talking in French, saying ‘’you prostitute, you are coming to look for customers, you can’t identify yourself, you come to claim you are a journalist, but you’re a prostitute, you think I’m one of those clients, you come and lure men to sleep with you, you come to the stadium and  pretend you’re a journalist, you cannot identify yourself. Bordell [prostitute]’,” Bessong told CPJ.

Bessong said she received medical treatment at a clinic the following day. A copy of a signed medical certificate, reviewed by CPJ, states that Bessong had “generalized body pains, bilaterally swollen eyes, sprain on upper arm and bruise on rt [right] lateral leg following physical assault.”

Lesley said he drove to the stadium after Bessong called him and recounted the events. He said he tried unsuccessfully to intervene with Mbua and another football official to ensure she would be allowed back in to cover the remainder of the match, and only succeeded when he called a top football administrator in the capital, Yaounde, who ordered the stadium director to allow the journalist back in. Lesley said Mbua eventually apologized to him, but not to Bessong.

After the game ended and they were leaving the stadium, Bessong pointed out the two policemen, Lesley said, adding that he warned them not to ever do that again to his worker. The policeman who assaulted Bessong proceeded to insult Lesley, calling him a dog and other “names that I won’t repeat,” said Lesley. 

Mbua, the stadium director, has been summoned to appear for questioning in connection to the attack at the judicial police in Buea on May 31, Lesley said, adding that he did not know the name of the policeman and that he hoped the director would identify him to the authorities.

Contacted by phone, Mbua denied assaulting Bessong and claimed the “issue took place among uniform people.” “I do not have the power to ask a uniformed person to beat somebody, I am not a governor, I am not in the military,” he added.

“I called her three times, but she refused to come,” he said of Bessong. “I went and blocked her, she refused, and I asked her to introduce herself. She held my right hand with her two hands,” he said.

Mbua also claimed that when the police called Bessong to check her accreditation she refused and insulted them and that was when they “held her with force.”

Mbua claimed the subsequent outrage from the media community was because he had refused to let journalists to play a football match at the stadium on Mary 3, World Press Freedom Day. “This is where the problems began,” said Mbua. 

Contacted by messaging app for comment, Ernest Obama, communication director of the Cameroonian Football Federation, Cameroon football’s national controlling body known by its French acronym Fecafoot, said he would respond but did not reply to a follow-up text message. 

Reached for comment via messaging app, Alex Siewe, the communications director for the Confederation of African Football (CAF), the controlling body representing national football associations on the continent, said the group needed more details about the attack before it could comment. A phone call to the Buea central police station was picked up but nobody on the line spoke. National police spokeswoman Joyce Ndjem did not respond to CPJ’s request for comment via messaging app.

Culled from Committee to protect journalists

Indomitable Lions: Nicolas Nkoulou released by Watford

28, May 2022

Indomitable Lions: Nicolas Nkoulou released by Watford 0

Championship side Watford have confirmed the departure of former Cameroon international Nicolas Nkoulou.

The centre defender was asked to leave following the Vicarage Road giants’ demotion to the English second-tier.

In the just-concluded season, the Hornets finished in the 19th position having garnered 23 points from 38 league outings.

Nkoulou featured in just three league appearances and he is now expected to look elsewhere to continue his professional career alongside Andre Gray, Juraj Kucka, and goalkeeper Ben Foster.

“Following the conclusion of the 2021/22 Premier League season, Watford FC can confirm that five first-team players have left the club,” a statement from the club website read.

“Defender Nicolas Nkoulou – who made three league appearances after signing in October 2021 – and forward Andre Gray – who spent the last campaign on loan at Queens Park Rangers – have also departed upon the expiration of their deals.

“We thank the departing players for their contributions and wish them the best of luck for the next steps in their careers.”

The African defender moved to England to become Claudio Ranieri’s first signing after leaving Serie A side Torino.

Prior to his spell in the Italian top-flight, Nkoulou played for AS Monaco, Olympique Marseille and Olympique Lyon.

On the international scene, Nkoulou was part of Cameroon’s squad for the 2008 Olympic Games. There, he helped the squad reach the knockout phase before they were shown the exit door by Brazil.

He made his senior team debut on November 19, 2008, in a 3-2 friendly defeat against South Africa.

Coach Paul Le Guen picked him in his squad for the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations and then the 2010 Fifa World Cup hosted by South Africa.

Following the suspension of Samuel Eto’o and Eyong Enoh from the Indomitable Lions squad for five and two matches respectively by the Cameroon Football Federation for boycotting a friendly match against Algeria, the defender was appointed as captain of Cameroon on a temporary basis and captained his first national match, in a 1–0 win over Guinea-Bissau.

Nkoulou announced his retirement from the national team after helping the country win the 2017 Afcon.

Source: Goal.com

AGOVC-Cho Ayaba gang: BBC Journalist Abducted In Bamenda

28, May 2022

AGOVC-Cho Ayaba gang: BBC Journalist Abducted In Bamenda 0

Frederick Takang, a correspondent of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) was early Thursday, May 26,  abducted by an unidentified armed gang in Bamenda, chief town of the restive Anglophone Northwest province of Cameroon.

The kidnappers, who took the journalist to an unknown destination, have not yet indicated the reasons for the abduction nor have they given any specific conditions for his release.

Bamenda is the epicentre of the security crises in the two English-speaking regions of Northwest and Southwest where separatists have been clashing with security forces for the past five years.

The separatists, who say they are fighting for the creation of an independent state of Ambazonia, have of recent reduced their fight to mostly kidnappings for ransom and targeting soft civilian targets.

On Saturday, April 30, 2022, the separatists abducted Senator Regina Mundi, a ruling party, Cameroon Peoples Democratic Movement (CPDM) upper house member.

The Senator was travelling from Yaounde to Bamenda to attend a wedding when she was abducted.

The separatists demanded for the release of their colleagues held in various prisons in the country in exchange for her release and promised to kill her before the national day celebration on May 20, 2022 if their demands are not met.

May 20 has come and gone and nothing yet has been heard from the separatists nor from the abducted senator.

Source: Humanglemedia

Biya Succession Palaver: French ambassador at Unity Palace

27, May 2022

Biya Succession Palaver: French ambassador at Unity Palace 0

The French Ambassador Christophe Guilhou was at the Unity Palace today to push for a succession plan program.

Pro Yaoundé media houses reported that the top French diplomat and Biya discussed the current situation in Ukraine and its consequences on the world economy.

However, Cameroon Intelligence Report sources confirmed after the meeting that Paris is very worried about Biya’s deteriorating bill of health and the need for new blood that will protect French interest.

The French are scared that if Biya disappears suddenly, there could be chaos and they will lose Cameroon, especially as Russians are spreading their presence on the continent.

Ever since the Biya regime purchased arms from Moscow, Paris has been very concerned and it is working hard to build confidence even though it no longer trust Biya who is crumbling and losing his mind.

Speaking to reporters after the almost one hour thirty minutes meeting, Christophe Guilhou said

“Cameroon is still a friend of France and France is still a friend of Cameroon. We have a very substantial cooperation. The idea is to foster even more the cooperation and the friendship between Cameroon and France.”

By Rita Akana in Yaoundé

Yaoundé: Archbishop Nkea officially takes over as President of the National Episcopal Conference

27, May 2022

Yaoundé: Archbishop Nkea officially takes over as President of the National Episcopal Conference 0

Elected by the bishops of Cameroon during their April 2022 Plenary Assembly as President of NECC, Archbishop Andrew Fuanya NKEA of Bamenda took over officially from Bishop Abraham KOME on Friday 27 May 2022. The ceremony took place at the Conference Centre at Mvolye Yaounde. The day began with a Holy Mass in the chapel at 11am.

The ceremony took place under the direction of Bishop Christophe ZOA Bishop of Sangmelima and President of Juridical Affairs.

In his handing over speech Bishop Kome thanked all and congratulated the new President and his assistant, Bishop Philippe Allain Mbarga, Bishop of Ebolowa. Bishop Kome then gave a rundown of what happened during his tenure of office.

In his inaugural speech Archbishop NKEA said his duty was to do the will of the bishops of Cameroon. He was grateful to Bishop Kome for his achievement and promise to follow along similar lines even if from an Nkea perspective.

His Grace Archbishop Nkea said he has two main preoccupations – peace in Cameroon and the dignity given to Marienberg. The Catholic Church in Cameroon he furthered must take up her prophetic role and all Christians must work in the spirit of fraternity and solidarity, devoted and love the Church.

Football: Ibrahimovic intends to continue playing

27, May 2022

Football: Ibrahimovic intends to continue playing 0

Zlatan Ibrahimovic intends to continue playing despite the end of his contract with AC Milan and a lengthy layoff in store following knee surgery, club director Paolo Maldini said Friday.

“From what I understand, his intention is to continue,” Maldini told Gazzetta dello Sport, two days after the striker, who turns 41 in October, underwent surgery that is expected to sideline him for eight months.

“We have made an appointment in a fortnight. I don’t see any problem in reaching an agreement. He is certainly not at ease playing so little. We will see what happens in the next two weeks,” Maldini said.

Ibrahimovic, who returned to AC Milan in January 2020 eight years after leaving and has just helped the club win their first Serie A title since 2011, has had the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee reconstructed.

The former Inter Milan, Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester United forward said this week he endured six months of sleepless nights due to the pain in his knee because he was determined to fulfil his promise to AC Milan of delivering their first Serie A crown in 11 years.

Meanwhile, Maldini confirmed that the club are in the process of signing Belgian striker Divock Origi from Liverpool to support Olivier Giroud, Rafael Leao and Ante Rebic in attack.

Milan does not currently have “the financial means” to make large transfers, said former ‘Rossoneri’ icon Maldini, with negotiations currently underway for the sale of the club which has won 19 Serie A titles.

Discussions between Bahrain-based Investcorp and AC Milan’s current owners, American investment fund Elliott Management, ended on Thursday without a deal.

Another American investment fund, RedBird Capital Partners, are now thought to be in the driving seat to secure a takeover.

Source:  AFP

Ambazonians achieved grand victory in 20th May boycott

27, May 2022

Ambazonians achieved grand victory in 20th May boycott 0

The Vice President of the Ambazonia Interim Government says the 20th May 2022 French Cameroun celebration in the Ambazonia homeland was a battle against the Interim Government (IG), and the IG achieved great victory in the boycott.

In his remarks in Cambodia recently, Comrade Dabney Yerima said the massive boycott conveyed a message of Southern Cameroons adherence and commitment to the struggle.

Yerima stated that the huge support for President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe and the Ambazonia Interim Government as indicated by the boycott showed Ground Zero’s commitment to the path of resistance.

Vice President Dabney Yerima opined that after five years of aggressive military and media campaign targeting the people of Southern Cameroons and their Interim Government, spearheaded by the 90-year-old Biya and his French Cameroun political elites, support for the Ambazonia Interim Government and its jailed leaders has increased.

Yerima said there is a big advantage in having all restoration groups looking at the same direction.  He further said the nature of the Southern Cameroons liberation war  does not allow one single Ambazonia county or group to solve the crisis single-handedly  even if they have the majority following within their respective county, which calls for cooperation between all different groups.

Dabney Yerima also debunked lies promoted by some pro Yaoundé CPDM Southern Cameroonians that the Ambazonian resistance bloc is divided.

By Enowtaku Ebanghatabi Christelle in the USA

Secret Meetings Continue at Etoudi

27, May 2022

Secret Meetings Continue at Etoudi 0

More secret meetings are still being held at the Unity Palace to find Dion Ngute’s replacement.

Dion Ngute, who became Prime Minister some three years ago, is viewed by the French and Cameroonian authorities as having fallen short of their expectations because he has not been able to douse the fire in the Southwest region.

He was brought in as Head of Government to help disconnect the Southwest Region from the separatist movement that is still tearing the country apart, as a strategy to roll back the revolution.

“Dion Ngute has failed as a Prime Minister. He is a nice person. He is mild mannered and very friendly, unfortunately he has not been able to establish  communication lines with Ambazonian fighters so that some of them could be convinced to down their weapons and return to a state of law,” a source at the presidency told Cameroon Intelligence Report.

“Many people are thinking that Dion Ngute could be replaced by Elung Paul Che, but many others wonder if he has any leverage over the Ambazonia Interim Government and its majority Amba fighters, many of whom pay allegiance to the Southern Cameroonian Diaspora,” he stressed.

“We need peace in Cameroon and many Cameroonians hold that if the post of vice president is created, it should be given to someone who can talk to the Diaspora and has much leverage over the separatists,” he underscored.

“We are hearing that the president and his men are seriously looking abroad for someone with vast knowledge and experience who can help  change things on the ground. The intelligence community has it that many Southern Cameroonians working in international organizations have much leverage as they help to finance the fighters. Bringing one of such persons into government might cut the fighters off some of their finances, making it possible for them to come to the negotiating table,” the source, who is a senior government official, said.

“The focus is now on Southwesterners in international organizations. The hawks in government hold that someone who is moderate and not tainted by the corruption in Yaoundé could be a welcome relief. The search for a real Southwesterner is even extended to some who are on retirement and the key factor here is they must be capable of talking with both the separatists and federalists,” he said.

“The hawks in government know that the mismanagement in Cameroon has put the government at odds with major global development finance institutions. They think that bringing someone from the world of finance and development will help the government to clean up its image,” the source added.

“There are a few Northwesterners who could be considered for this position, but it is feared they will not be supported by pro CPDM Southwesterners in Yaounde and that they lack the cloud that can help to bring the separatists back to the fold,” he pointed out.

“The African Development Bank, the African Union and the UN have some good Southwesterners. They are knowledgeable, they have been in the civil service and have been connected to the struggle in different ways, but their handicap is that they are loose cannons and electrons which cause doubts in the minds of the government hawks,” he stressed.

“I have been reliably informed that government delegations are currently in Abidjan and Addis Ababa to gather more intelligence on some people whose names are on the list. Things are moving very fast and change is really in the offing,” our source pointed out.

“Change is coming to Yaounde and it is bringing with it a lot of confusion and fear. We only hope we will get the right people. We need people who are trust-worthy. People who can silence the guns in the two English-speaking regions of Cameroon,” he said.

“While the French keep on pushing for the return of Abouem à Tchoyi, Cameroonians clearly think that Anglophones deserve the position of vice president and the next president should come from the English-speaking minority,” he furthered.

“We don’t need to ruin our country. We just need someone who will unite the country and bring about development in the country,” he concluded.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

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