Dortmund willing to spend $44 million on Fernan Torres

Several European clubs have placed Ferran Torres on their radar and Borussia Dortmund are willing to spend 40 million euros to acquire his services in the next transfer window

His release clause at Valencia is set at 100m euros, yet his contract ends in 2021 and the talented winger has turned down their latest renewal offer.

According to Bild, Dortmund are the first team to have made their interest known to the LaLiga Santander side.

Meanwhile, Manchester UnitedLiverpoolJuventusReal Madrid and Barcelona are all keeping a keen eye on the 20-year-old as well.

If Valencia want to make profit from Torres‘ move, they may need to let him depart in summer to avoid losing him on a free transfer next year.

Tottenham willing to sell Kane to avoid financial crisis

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy will sanction the departure of Harry Kane to Manchester United for a world-record fee of £200million because of financial worries and exasperation with England’s captain for going off-message during the coronavirus crisis.

Levy has made it clear that Spurs would agree to let Kane leave this summer.

Tottenham fear the financial repercussions of the current lockdown more than any other Premier league club because they are still paying for their new £1billion stadium.

It’s significant that Spurs were among the first top-flight clubs to furlough non-playing staff despite the negative publicity it attracted.

They reportedly owe £637m on the stadium loan and £83m on transfer fees. And Levy is understood to have been furious at Kane’s recent comments that the Premier League season should be voided if it wasn’t completed by the end of June.

That would have huge repercussions should television broadcast rights holders demand a refund from the Premier League although It is understood that Sky will not demand that the League repay the £371m they are owed.

Kane, who has been out since January with a hamstring injury, also suggested that it might be time to leave Spurs if they aren’t going to be winning trophies.

Former Spurs striker Dimitar Berbatov, who made the move to Old Trafford in 2008, said: ‘I see a lot of similarities in the situation I went through and what is happening with Kane at the minute.’

Though Levy has been criticised in the past for not spending transfer money, Tottenham have splashed out more than £100m in the past 12 months on Tanguy Ndombele, Steven Bergwijn and Ryan Sessegnon.

It has left manager Joe Mourinho with a bloated squad and selling Kane is now gaining favour with the Spurs chairman as he plots the club’s post-coronavirus future.

The £200m asking price would beat the world record £198m that PSG paid Barcelona for Neymar in 2017.

The mooted amount would be optimistic in the current climate, though. But even if Spurs do not fetch their full asking price, Kane is sure to smash the British transfer record of £89m paid by United for Paul Pogba.

Liverpool give up on Sancho

Liverpool have no intention of getting involved in a bidding war with Man United for Jadon Sancho this summer.

The Borussia Dortmund attacking sensation is set to leave the club in the upcoming transfer window if his £100million-plus asking price is met.

A Liverpool source has revealed that Jurgen Klopp is a huge admirer of Sancho, 20, and would be interested in adding him to his team’s star-studded forward ranks

But Sancho is being priced out of the reach of the Merseysiders and it is not currently considered viable for him to move to Anfield this year.

Man United are in pole position to sign him this summer and have the funds to meet a valuation that is likely to defy football’s changed economics as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic.

Dortmund have let it be known via intermediaries they want an initial £88m for Sancho rising to more than £100m including various performance-related add-ons.

That would secure an astronomical profit for a player the German giants signed from Man City for just £8m three years ago

During that time Sancho has developed into one of the most exciting and feared young forwards in world football.

He is a mainstay of a thrilling Dortmund front line and his 90 matches for the club have already yielded 31 goals and a remarkable 42 assists.

In this season alone, Sancho has scored 17 times from 35 matches and also supplied 19 assists.

PSG in ongoing discussions to sign Mauro Icardi permanently.

 

RMC report that Ligue 1 leaders PSG are in ongoing discussions with Argentinian striker Mauro Icardi and his agent Wanda Nara about moving to the French capital club permanently, with Les Parisiens having a €65m option to buy the player at the end of his season-long loan spell.
Sporting Director Leonardo remains aware that Icardi is seen as one of the best goal-scorers on the European scene and has in recent days been exchanging with Wanda Nara. Icardi’s agent wants clarification on what role her client would have were he to commit to a permanent future with PSG. In recent weeks, Icardi’s relationship with Thomas Tuchel has utterly disintegrated, with the pair having a heated discussion ahead of the Dortmund clash a notable example of this.

The outlet adds that Juventus continue to monitor this situation, but that PSG have first right to acquire Icardi, should they be able to convince him to stay.
Icardi and his camp have not made a definitive decision on his future yet, contrary to a host of Italian reports jumping the gun.

Kobe Bryant inducted into the hall of fame

Kobe Bryant will be posthumously inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

The five-time NBA champion died, aged 41, in a helicopter crash in January alongside his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others.

Los Angeles Lakers great Bryant retired in 2016; he was the NBA Most Valuable Player in 2008, was Finals MVP twice and earned 18 All-Star selections.

He was in the United States team that won Olympic gold in 2008 and 2012.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Bryant’s death was “unspeakable” and the league was keen to “honour” him.

“Kobe Bryant is synonymous with NBA All-Star and embodies the spirit of this global celebration of our game,” Silver said.

“He always relished the opportunity to compete with the best of the best and perform at the highest level for millions of fans around the world.”

Tim Duncan, a five-time NBA champion with the San Antonio Spurs, and Kevin Garnett, who helped the Boston Celtics win the championship in 2008, were also inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Muller renews Contract

Bayern Munich forward Thomas Muller has signed a two-year contract extension to stay at the club until 2023.

The 30-year-old Germany international has made more than 500 appearances and won 16 major honours with Bayern since his debut in 2009.

“This club is not just any old employer for me. It’s my passion,” said Muller, who has scored 116 Bundesliga goals.

“I’m happy that I’ll be here for two extra years, and I’ll give everything on and off the pitch.”

Bayern are four points clear at the top of the Bundesliga, which has been suspended until at least 30 April because of the coronavirus pandemic.

“I’m sure that once we’re playing again, we’ll continue to be very successful. That spurs me on,” Muller said.

Bayern’s players resumed training this week in groups of five.

Popular Musician Davido Reveals that He Never Had Thirty Billion.

Nigerian musician, Davido has confessed that he never had N30 billion which he sang about in his song.

Recall that many had thought Davido was stupendously rich considering the extravagant lifestyle he lives and the kind of wealth he flaunts.

Well, Davido has come out to confess that he has never had that much money. He made this confession on twitter when one of his fans asked him to do giveaway.

The father of three replied saying he does not have money now. When asked if his 30 billion had finished, Davido replied saying he never had it.

Recall that few days ago, the 27 year old complained bitterly about how the lock down situation is affecting his bank account. Davido mentioned that the coronavirus spread and prevention method is really messing up with his bags

Falana Demands Buhari to Withdraw Soldiers From Enforcing Lockdown

According to The PUNCH, a Human Rights Activist, Femi Falana (SAN) has asked the Federal Government to withdraw armed troops from enforcing the lockdown order placed on the Federal Capital Territory; Lagos and Ogun States.

He said deploying armed troops is illegal and unconstitutional based on precedent judgements of the courts of the land.

He said, “In the March 29, 2020, national broadcast of President Muhammadu Buhari and the COVID-19 Quarantine Regulations issued thereafter to curtail the spread of coronavirus pandemic the members of the armed forces were not authorised to enforce the Regulations.

“But out of sheer impunity, the Defence Headquarters announced the plans of the armed forces to implement the presidential order on the restriction of the movement of the Nigerian people.

“In my reaction to the illegal plan of the Defence Headquarters to involve armed troops in the enforcement of the Regulations, I issued a public statement wherein I said that while the nation’s armed forces should be commended for making their medical facilities available to members of the public in the fight against the highly dangerous virus, the plan to dispatch armed soldiers to the streets to enforce the COVID-19 guidelines should be shelved because it is illegal.

“For the umpteenth time, I am compelled to draw the attention of the military authorities to the case of Yussuf v Obasanjo (2005) 18 NWLR (Pt ) where Salami JCA (as he then was) held that ‘It is up to the police to protect our nascent democracy and not the military, otherwise the democracy might be wittingly or unwittingly militarized.’ This is not what the citizenry bargained for in wrestling power from the military in 1999.

“Conscious steps should be taken to civilianise the polity and thereby ensure the survival of and sustenance of democracy.”

Falana said his position was also backed by the judgement in the case of All Progressive Congress v Peoples Democratic Party (2015) LPELR 24349 where Aboki JCA held that the President lacked the power to call on the Armed Forces to restore law and order in any part of the federation without the approval of the National Assembly as provided in sections 217(2) and 218(4) of the Constitution as amended.

He reminded the Federal Government of its legal obligation “to confine the Military to their demanding assignments especially in these trying times of insurgencies and encroachment into the country’s territories…

“However, in utter violation of the aforesaid injunctions of the Court of Appeal, the platoons of armed troops deployed by the military authorities have unleashed mayhem on innocent members of the public for allegedly breaching the COVID-19 Regulations.”

Falana regretted that the involvement of the armed troops in the enforcement had led to torture and brutalisation of innocent citizens as revealed in several video clips trending online.

He accused the military authorities of not conducting a thorough investigation but rather dismissing the video clip.

“Whereas based on a similar video clip which recently exposed a group of policemen who had engaged in the brutalisation of some traders in Lagos under the pretext of enforcing the COVID-19 Regulations the Inspector General of Police, Mr Mohammed Adamu ensured that the culprits were promptly identified and arrested for the purpose of prosecuting them.

“The civilised conduct of the Police Chief has demonstrated the readiness of the current police leadership to put a stop to the involvement of police personnel in the crude infringement of the fundamental right of the Nigerian people to dignity.

“In the light of the foregoing, we respectfully call on President Buhari and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces to restrain members of the armed forces from further enforcing the COVID 19 Regulations.

“Furthermore, we urge the President to order an investigation into the video clips of the brutalisation of members of the public by some overzealous soldiers and direct the appropriate authorities to bring them to justice for contravening the provisions of the Anti Torture Act, 2017,” he said.

Fear Grips the whole of Lagos As a Corona Virus Suspect dies in Omole.

Residents of Omole Estate, Phase II, Lagos are now in perpetual fear following the death of a patient suspected to have died of Coronavirus, PM News reports.

Report said the patient who presents with Coronavirus symptoms was rushed to the Primary Healthcare Centre in the area, and that there was no ambulance from the NCDC and the Lagos State Ambulance Service (LASAMBUS) to evacuate her to the Infectious Disease Centre, Yaba.

She was said to have been returned to her residence in a tricycle where she eventually died.

According to Starconnect, her death spread panic in the estate after the chairman, Omole Phase II, Mr. Bamidele Lanisa reportedly issued a notice urging residents to stay indoor over the case.

The chairman, in the notice wrote: “Dear Residents, this is to inform you that there is a confirmed case of coronavirus in our neighboring community (Olowoira).

“The patient was taken to the Health Centre and when the NCDC/Lagos ambulance was unavailable to evacuate her, she was returned to her residence in a tricycle and eventually died.

“As you can imagine, many people came in contact with the patient and the risk to transmission in the neighborhood is real.

“We advise residents to please stay in their houses and refrain from unnecessarily going about. Please safe. We advise a total stay at home for now.”

Nigerian Grammy Nominee, Burna Boy has revealed his decision to drop an Album this year.

He made this known in a Question & Answer session with fans on social media yesterday.

The Q&A session was controversial though. Some gbas gbos occurred between him and Reekado Banks, a warning to Ceeza Milli and WizKid FC.

Oops!! by the way he praised WizKid though) but most importantly guys, there is a new Burna Boy album coming!

When he was asked how he felt losing the Grammy Awards, Burna Boy said he felt sick for loosing but because Anglique Kidjo already educated him on Grammy Awards, he now feels “Twice As Tall“, exactly the name of his forthcoming album to be released in July.

See Tweet Below:-

What do you think guys 👇

Will Burna Boy’s “Twice As Tall” Be A Better Album Than WizKid’s Long Promised, “Made In Lagos”