Sports

Arsenal beat Spurs to go four points clear at top of table

Published

2 years ago

April 28, 2024

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Arsenal overcame the hurdle of a north London derby and an anxious finale to maintain momentum in the Premier League title pursuit with a vital victory at Tottenham.

The Gunners’ meeting with their bitter rivals was seen as arguably the most treacherous of their remaining fixtures, but they took ruthless advantage of Spurs’ defensive flaws to establish a three-goal lead by half-time.

Arsenal were then thrown off course when a dreadful clearance by goalkeeper David Raya presented Cristian Romero with a goal after 64 minutes, the nerves really jangling when Heung-Min Son scored from the spot three minutes from the end of normal time after Declan Rice fouled Ben Davies.

It was all so different when Arsenal went ahead after 15 minutes as the recalled Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg glanced Bukayo Saka’s corner into his own net, the England forward crowning a sweeping counter-attack with a smooth finish for the second after 27 minutes.

Spurs, who saw Micky van de Ven’s goal ruled out for a marginal offside with the score 1-0, were infuriated as they claimed Leandro Trossard had fouled Dejan Kulusevski before Saka scored, and were even more frustrated when the unmarked Kai Havertz headed in Arsenal’s third from another corner seven minutes before the break.

Arsenal were then content to see out the victory, only for Raya to give Spurs hope by sending a clearance straight to Romero.

An unlikely Spurs comeback seemed on when Son scored from the spot but Mikel Arteta’s side were able to close out the game.

Arsenal survive late Spurs surge to stay on course

Arsenal have won consecutive top-flight away games against Spurs for the first time since September 1988 (a run of three under manager George Graham)

Arsenal went from cruising comfortably to hanging on in a thrilling north London derby, a stroll to victory made hazardous by their own mistakes.

The Gunners were never actually near their best but when the season reaches this point it is about winning and the job was eventually done, but not without a nail-biting finish.

Arsenal were sitting pretty at half-time and had negotiated the first 20 minutes of the second half without incident until Raya appeared to be caught in a moment of indecision as he went to clear, passing the ball straight to a grateful Romero.

And when Son scored from the spot Arteta’s side must have feared becoming the victim of a smash-and-grab as Spurs, a threat going forward throughout, sensed they may get a draw.

In Raya’s defence, he did well after his error as he commanded his area with safe handling to ensure the cushion provided by that first-half advantage proved enough.

Arsenal had another stellar performer in Rice, his mistimed tackle on Davies that resulted in a penalty a rare blemish on an otherwise top-class performance.

Arteta’s side have put together three wins in eight days to ensure they are right in this title fight with three games left, maintaining pressure on Manchester City as Liverpool’s challenge falls away.

Sensational Saka
Having scored just once in his previous seven Premier League appearances coming into the north London derby, Saka has come under criticism for his recent form. But the Arsenal forward responded and got back on to the scoresheet during their thumping victory against Tottenham.

In the 27th minute, Saka latched on to a long pass before driving into the box. He then kept his composure, drifted on to his favoured left foot and coolly side-footed the ball past Guglielmo Vicario. It was a fine finish from the England international, who now has 15 league goals this season.

Set pieces strike again
Arsenal have profited regularly from set pieces this season. In fact, before the trip to Tottenham, the Gunners had scored a mammoth 14 from corners – the most in the Premier League. And Arteta’s men extended their lead at the top of that statistic with two more against their arch rivals.

First, Saka whipped in a delightful in-swinging corner into the box which, after pressure from several Arsenal attackers, was headed into his own net by the unfortunate Hojbjerg.

Sports

Nine African teams in World Cup last-32 round

Published

2 weeks ago

June 28, 2026

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Following the conclusion of the group stage, nine African countries have confirmed their places in round 32 of the 2026 World Cup.

Algeria and DR Congo are the latest teams from the continent to seal their last-32 ticket at the ongoing competition.

They join Morocco, South Africa, Cote d’Ivoire, Egypt, Cape Verde, Ghana and Senegal in the business end of the competition, breaking the previous record of just two African teams at a World Cup knockout round.

Tunisia is the only country on the continent to qualify for the World Cup, but failed to progress beyond the group stage.

DR Congo qualified after earning their first-ever World Cup victory, 3-1 over Uzbekistan, in their last group stage match on Saturday in Atlanta. Yoane Wissa’s brace and Fislon Mayele’s strike helped the Leopard turn around a game that started disastrously for them.

The victory takes DR Congo to the top of the eight best third-placed teams, and they will face England next on Wednesday.

Algeria also managed to squeeze into the last 32 through the best losers’ route. A 3-3 draw against Austria in their final group game ensured they displaced Iran for the final slot.

Ghana also clung to the third-placed ladder to advance despite their 2-1 loss to Croatia in their last Group game. The Black Stars will face Colombia in the next round on July 3.

ROUND OF 32 FIXTURES (All Nigerian time)

South Africa vs Canada — June 28 — 8 pm — Los Angeles Stadium

Brazil vs Japan — June 29 — 6 pm — Houston Stadium

Germany vs Paraguay — June 29 — 9:30 pm — Boston Stadium

Netherlands vs Morocco — June 30 — 2 am — Estadio Monterrey

Ivory Coast vs Norway — June 30 — 6 pm — Dallas Stadium

France vs Sweden — June 30 — 10 pm — New York New Jersey Stadium

Mexico vs Ecuador — July 1 — 2 am — Mexico City Stadium

England vs DR Congo — July 1 — 5 am — Atlanta Stadium

Belgium vs Senegal — July 1 — 9 pm — Seattle Stadium

United States vs Bosnia and Herzegovina — July 2 — 1 am — San Francisco Bay Area Stadium

Spain vs Austria — July 2 — 6 pm — Los Angeles Stadium

Portugal vs Croatia — July 3 — 12 am — Toronto Stadium

Switzerland vs Algeria — July 3 — 4 am — BC Place, Vancouver

Australia vs Egypt — July 3 — 7 pm — Dallas Stadium

Argentina vs Cape Verde — July 3 — 11 pm — Miami Stadium

Colombia vs Ghana — July 4 — 2:30 am — Kansas City Stadium

Sports

Athletics Open: Amusan wins gold, sets new record in Taiwan

Published

1 month ago

June 6, 2026

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Nigerian and world women’s 100m hurdles world record holder, Tobi Amusan,on Saturday won the women’s 100m hurdles gold at the New Taipei Athletics Open in Taiwan.

Amusan struck gold ahead of Taiwanese duo Bo Ya Zhang, who settled for second place in 13.17s, and Yi Po-an took third place in 13.37s.

The 29-year-old’s winning time of 12.72s is also a new meeting record, chalking off 0.08s off the previous mark of 12.80s held by Nia Ali, US Olympic silver medalist and former world champion.

Amusan was dominant in the qualifiers for the final, blowing away the field in Heat 2, and continued the form in the final to deliver a swashbuckling race that thrilled the crowd.

She took the lead outright after the fourth hurdle, leaving Zhang behind.

The three-time Senior Africa Athletics Championship winner crossed the finish line before the last competing athlete cleared the final hurdle, to the amazement of screaming spectators.

It is the second consecutive race Amusan will break a meeting record this athletics season, she also broke her meeting record in the women’s 100m hurdles event at the Rabat Diamond League.

She has won three of five races this season, and has not failed to claim a podium finish.

Sports

Arsenal win EPL title after 22 years

Published

2 months ago

May 19, 2026

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Arsenal are English Premier League (EPL) champions after Manchester City failed to win at Bournemouth.

Pep Guardiola’s Man City drew 1-1 with Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium to hand Arsenal an unassailable four-point lead with just one match remaining to the end of the season.

The Gunners win the EPL title for the first time in 22 years, since the legendary Invincible side won it in the 2003/04 season.

In the club’s 100th season without relegation from the EPL, the club will celebrate its centenary participation with a league title won on the back of a record 28 EPL wins that surpassed the 26 wins recorded by the Invincibles. The defence prevented opponents from registering a shot on target in six matches, equaling a 23-year league record, and also scored a record 17 goals from corner kicks.

Mikel Arteta’s tough side has led the table for most of the season before a late mini-collapse, and Man City’s late surge in form nearly threatened their title ambition for a second season in a row.

City’s late resurgence, however, was initially stunned by Everton in early May and completely collapsed against Bournemouth.

Guardiola’s side visited the Vitality Stadium aware that any result other than a victory would seal Arsenal’s title. But they lacked the execution for the mission after falling to a wonderful strike from Junior Kroupi in the first half.

City were only kept in the game by Bournemouth’s profligacy in front of goal. When Erling Haaland’s equaliser was squeezed home in the eleventh hour of the game, even the most faithful City supporter knew it was too little, too late.

Arsenal and Arteta secured the league earlier than they would have predicted, giving City a prodigious title run-in.

The league triumph is Arteta’s second major title with the North London club since joining in December 2019, adding to the English FA Cup trophy won within six months of his tenure in May 2020.

The 44-year-old Spaniard wins his fourth title overall and can win his fifth — and third major trophy — with victory over Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League final next weekend.