SPORTS TIT BITS

What do you know about sports?Ghanaman is here to tell you a thing or two...°!!!

BASKETBALL

Nigeria’s two representatives Kano Pillars and Gombe Bulls have crashed out of the 2017 FIBA Africa Champions Cup in Tunisia after losing to City Oilers and ASB Mazembe respectively.

Pillars fell 95-86 points to the Ugandans while Gombe Bulls lost by 67-47 to ASB Mazembe of DR Congo.

One win each in 5 matches for both teams.

Q: What would you attribute both club’s poor performance to?



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TENNIS

Aljaz Bedene’s ill-fated switch to play for Great Britain has come to an end after he reverted to his old official nationality of Slovenian.


In a highly unusual reversal, the 28-year-old world No 49 –a dual citizen since March 2015 – has announced that he would now be abandoning the Union Jack after more than two years for the land of his birth.


Kyle Edmund now moves up to British No 2 after Bedene formally applied to switch back in an attempt to make himself eligible for the 2020 Olympics.

Q: What do you make of Bedene’s u-turn?




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BOXING

Conor McGregor is putting a potential boxing match with Manny Pacquiao on the backburner, saying he wants a "true fight" in mixed martial arts to be his next bout.

Asked by TMZ whether he will box again after being schooled by Floyd Mayweather in August, McGregor responded: ¡°We¡¯ll see what happens. ... I think a true fight is what I want to do next.


Pressed about what he meant by a true fight, McGregor confirmed he was referring to MMA.


Q: Connor returns to MMA…good move?




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FOOTBALL


WOMEN U-17


Nigeria’s U17 girls, the Flamingoes scraped through to the final round of the African qualification series for the 6th FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup following a barren draw on Saturday at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City.


The Nigerian girls progressed on the away goal rule after drawing 1-1 with Ethiopia on aggregate in Addis Ababa a fortnight ago.


The Flamingoes will next face Cameroon who dispatched Algeria 11-0 on aggregate.


The Cameroonians won 4-0 in Algeria, before they completed the 7-0 thrashing in Yaounde also on Saturday.

Nigeria will host the first leg of the final playoff on February 2 with the return leg in Cameroon a fortnight later.

Q: Can the Flamingoes overcome their Cameroonian counterparts?





NPFL


Champions Plateau United will begin their title defence at next-door neighbours Nasarawa United, while El-Kanemi Warriors will be guests of Rivers United on the opening game of the NPFL season on January 14, following yesterday’s fixtures draw in Kano.



In other opening day fixtures, Akwa United host Enugu Rangers and Lobi Stars square up against Enyimba in Makurdi.



Week 1 Fixtures



Katsina United vs Kano Pillars

Rivers United vs El Kanemi Warriors

Kwara United vs Niger Tornadoes

Akwa United vs Enugu Rangers

FC Ifeanyiubah vs Yobe Desert Stars

Lobi Stars vs Enyimba

Nasarawa United vs Plateau United

Heartland vs Sunshine Stars

Abia Warriors vs MFM FC

Wikki Tourists vs Go Round FC


Q: Which match(es) will you be keeping eyes on?




CLUB WORLD CUP

Cristiano Ronaldo led the way as Real Madrid beat Gremio 1-0 to successfully retain the Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi on Saturday, securing them a fifth trophy of 2017.


Ronaldo dazzled Jailson with some quick stepovers and lured him into a foul, before shooting through the wall from the resultant 25-yard free-kick and finding the bottom-left corner.

With this, Madrid have now matched Barcelona (three) as the side with the most Club World Cup wins.


Earlier on, Pachuca hammered Al Jazira 4-1 in the Club World Cup third-place play-off, with Franco Jara and Angelo Sagal both getting a goal and an assist in Abu Dhabi.

Q: Is Real Madrid the best club in the world now?




RICARDO KAKA


Former AC Milan and Brazil star Kaka has announced his retirement from professional football.

Kaka revealed his intention to leave Orlando City when his contract expired this month, and the 35-year-old has opted against continuing his career elsewhere.

His decision comes 10 years to the day since he won the Ballon d'Or, having helped Milan to Champions League, UEFA Super Cup and Club World Cup glory in 2007.


Kaka began his career at Sao Paulo in 2001 and was part of Brazil's World Cup-winning squad under Luiz Felipe Scolari a year later in Japan and South Korea.


Q: What fond memories do you have about Kaka?