Category: International Sports

By Ken Andrew
kenakikenyi@gmail.com

Thumbnail Photo Courtesy of uefa.com

The Euros are football tournaments that attract large audiences throughout the world because of the number of elite teams in the competition. The television audiences at times even rival those of the World Cup which is an incredible feat. This year’s tournament is set to be one of the toughest in recent years as the qualified national teams have an array of talent at their disposal. Before we look at the favorites, underdogs, and dark horses, let us get to understand this year’s tournament format.

Due to the severity of the pandemic last year, the tournament had to be postponed and is set to take place a year after its original date; it will run between June 11 and July 11, 2021. Even though the year of competition has changed, the tournament retains the name Euro 2020. Twenty-four European national football teams have secured qualifications for the tournament which, for the first time, will not have designated host countries. Games will be hosted in eleven venues in different cities across Europe. The host cities are Amsterdam, Baku, Bucharest, Budapest, Copenhagen, Glasgow, London, Munich, Rome, St Petersburg, and Seville. Out of the eleven venues, nine are set to have a certain percentage of spectators allowed but everything is subject to change when necessary due to the pandemic still being a nuisance to sports and live events.

The teams will be divided into six groups of four. The top two teams in each group and the four best third-placed teams will go through to the round of 16. The teams will have a rest day on June 25. The first game is set to take place on Friday 11th June at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy with a resurgent Italy team- which failed to qualify for the past world cup- facing the high-flying Turkey national team. The Azzurri (The Italy national football team) had flawless run-through qualifications and look to be serious contenders this year boasting a very hardworking squad. The current champions, Portugal, will still be the favorites of many with talisman Cristiano Ronaldo looking to lead his team to a third consecutive European Trophy after past successes at Euro 2016 and The UEFA Nations League in 2019. They have their work cut out for them as they are set to face France and Germany in Group F, which is said to be the group of death. The French are boosted by the return of Karim Benzema- who is coming off three spectacular club seasons with Real Madrid- to the national setup. England, who have always been favorites at the Euros, boasts a squad full of exciting youth prospects with the inclusion of Marcus Rashford, Trent Alexander Arnold, Bukayo Saka, Jude Bellingham, and Phil Foden who are well on their way to being the best talents in the world. English manager Gareth Southgate is under lots of pressure to deliver and has also been criticized for the inclusion of four right-backs in the squad.

The Dutch national team has also been on a rise after missing out on the 2018 World Cup with most of their stars having great club seasons and look to be hungry for some international glory. Spain on the other hand look to be troubled with many of their regulars missing out due to injuries. Real Madrid stars Sergio Ramos and Dani Carvajal have had troubled seasons with injuries disrupting their form and game time and eventually costing them places at the Euros. How will Spain fair without the presence and leadership of Sergio Ramos? Furthermore, the decision on who should be the Spanish first-choice goalkeeper seems a tough one to make with inexperienced but talented starters for their teams; Roberto Sanchez and Unai Simon are tussling for the number one spot with Man United’s David De Gea who had a strong end to the season.

Scotland, who have qualified for their first major finals in twenty years will look to prove a point against Europe’s elite with their key players being Andrew Robertson, Scott McTominay, Kieran Tierney, and John McGinn all of whom have been integral in their clubs in the past season. The Turkish squad also looks like one to shine with Hakan Calhanoglu and Burat Yilmaz the standout names in the squad. World Cup finalists Croatia will look to have another stellar tournament with thirty-five-year-old Luka Modric still going strong.

So, will it be France’s flair or England’s youth, Cristiano’s charisma, or Lewandowski’s finesse? The Dutch resurgence or the Italian resurgence? Will Scotland or Turkey challenge despite their statuses as underdogs? Whatever happens, we are set to experience one of the best international football tournaments in recent years. Bring on the Euros!

By Saboke Masaki

(sabokemasaki@gmail.com)

Thumbnail Photo Courtesy of Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE Via Getty Images

On Monday, Brooklyn’s all-star shooting guard, Kyrie Irving became the ninth player in the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) history to average at least 50% from the field, 40% from 3-point range and 90% from the free-throw line. He finished the season with 50.6%, 40.2% and 92.2% splits.

Kyrie Irving has long been one of the league’s most dynamic and versatile scorers; this latest achievement further cements his impact on the game. To put this in context, the only other players to accomplish this feat are Larry Bird, Reggie Miller, Mark Price, Dirk Nowitzki, Steve Nash, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and Malcolm Brogdon. To join this exclusive company, Irving had to be near perfect from three-point range in Monday’s game against his old team, the Cavaliers.

He was, in fact, perfect making all three of his attempts from behind the arc. He also led the league in mid-range field goal percentage shooting a ridiculous 54.5%. “His work ethic, how he cares about his teammates, how he approaches the game every single day is the reason why he can go out there and do something so remarkable as 50-40-90,” superstar teammate Kevin Durant (and fellow 50/40/90 club member) said.

“We almost expect that from Kyrie, and that shows how great he is. Welcome to the club.” “Remarkable player, remarkable accomplishment and really proud that I could see it in person”, said Nets head coach Steve Nash after the game. This is a potentially much needed impetus for the Brooklyn Nets who go into this year’s postseason with championship aspirations. Brooklyn’s big three- Durant, Irving and James Harden- have all missed time but are now healthy just in time for the playoffs.

The Nets will face the winner of the play-in matchup between the Celtics and Wizards. After this, they will clash with the winner of the Bucks-Heat series in round two before getting to the conference finals. That is, of course, if the team is able to overcome its defensive deficiencies.

By Saboke Masaki

(sabokemasaki@gmail.com)

A 122-97 blowout win over the Orlando Magic Saturday morning clinched the Philadelphia 76ers the top seed in the Eastern Conference, guaranteeing them home-court advantage through to at least, the East’s finals.

This is only the third time in 44 seasons that the Sixers have clinched the top spot. The victory is also their first in 20 years, something Joel Embiid describes as motivational for the team.

“Home-court advantage helps a lot,” said the Cameroonian center.  “We’ve been dominant at home; we barely lose here. It means a lot to have the No. 1 seed.”

Embiid’s words are not hyperbolic; the Sixers being 28-7 at home this season, which is best in the East and second to only the Jazz this season. Apart from a relatively easier path to the NBA finals, this is one of the reasons the team aggressively pursued the top seed.

“I think for this team, being as young as we are, to have home-court is really important and so we should be proud of it,” sixers’ coach Doc Rivers said after the win.

For the first round, the Sixers will face the winner of the East’s final playoff position in this year’s play-in tournament which will feature the Boston Celtics, Charlotte Hornets, Indiana Pacers and Washington Wizards. Their path to the NBA finals will most likely involve the Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks or Brooklyn Nets with the last two guaranteed to be a nail-biting series.

The Sixers coined the phrase “Trust the process” (which later became popular in sports and culture) and it is now time to collect. Everyone from Coach Rivers to the duo of Embiid and Simmons are under immense pressure this season, anything short of an NBA championship this year will be a failure for the franchise seeking their fourth banner.

By Daniel Nyaga

danielnyaga.dn@gmail.com

Former Arsenal striker Thierry Henry announced that he shall be quitting all social media until there is more done to tackle racism and harassment online.

In a statement shared with his combined 14.8 million followers on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, the French striker said he would quit the platforms until a solution is found to the on-going harassment.

“Hi Guys, from Saturday morning I will be removing myself from social media until the people in power are able to regulate their platforms with the same vigour and ferocity that they currently do when you infringe copyright.” read his message.

According to the former world cup winner, the sheer volume of racism, bullying and resulting mental torture is too toxic to ignore. He further called for greater “accountability” online.

“It is far too easy to create an account, use it to bully and harass without consequence and still remain anonymous,” he added. “Until this changes, I will be disabling my accounts across all social platforms. I’m hoping this happens soon.”

Recently, Twitter has been under increasing pressure for allowance of abusive language and harassment on its platform. Users have been victims of bullying and harassment on the platform mostly from anonymous accounts.

Henry, France’s all time top goal scorer has been vocal on racism in football as well as citing his struggles against racism as a high profile black footballer. Thierry Henry is the latest celebrity to quit social media citing abuse as the reason.

Twitter released a statement last week highlighting, “there is no room for racist abuse” on its platform and that it was working to ensure that users who are guilty of the above should face dire consequences.