Joe Aribo is confident Rangers can beat semi-final opponent RB Leipzig and secure a place in the final of the Europa League.
The Scottish Premiership champions will face Leipzig in the first leg on Thursday at the Red Bull Arena.
The Gers eliminated another German club Borussia Dortmund in the Round of 32.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s men have also eliminated tough oppositions Red Star Belgrade and Sporting Braga in the competition.
“The boys were buzzing when we played Dortmund because it’s such a big club. When we won that, it was like: “OK, we can keep going here; the favourites have been knocked out, so we can keep pushing,” Aribo told uefa.com.
”And that’s what we’ve done. We can win playing against anyone. If we stick to our task then we can get the win. Dortmund and Leipzig being in the same league, it shows that we can do this.”
Manchester United defender Victor Lindelof admits they’ve been poor this season.
The Swede concedes consistency has escaped them during the campaign.
Lindelof said, “I think we need to find more stability in our game and we need to win more matches.
“This season we have won a match, then we have lost and subsequently played a draw and maybe won. We need to become more consistent in our performance.
“It should be our main focus because sometimes I feel that it is too easy for the opponents to play through us and get chances.
“We want to be higher up in the table and we want to fight for the titles, but it requires more continuity and we have to stick together as a group and believe in ourselves.”
Super Eagles midfielder, Alex Iwobi says Everton will do everything within their willpower to avoid being relegated from the Premier League.
The Nigerian international made this known in an interview with Everton TV, where he said that the team will be aiming for victory against Chelsea on Sunday.
Iwobi, however, remains optimistic that Everton will pull together and avoid the drop. The Super Eagles midfielder points at the team’s spirit, togetherness, and support from fans as the ingredients that will inspire the Toffees to get the wins they need for survival.
“It’s not going to be easy but we’re ready for it,” Iwobi told Everton TV.
“We are not going to dwell on this [derby defeat]. Especially with the captain, Seamus, he is always helping us to keep our heads up and go again.
“We need everyone. It’s a team thing and everyone is ready to fight.
“We know where we are. We are going to focus on ourselves, prepare for Chelsea and try to get a result.
“We have great chemistry and great spirit in the team. I’m sure we can get out of this situation.”
Chief Whip of the Senate, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu has said he is still in the race for Presidency of Nigeria ahead of the 2023 general elections.
According to the former Abia governor, contrary to news reports, he did not drop his aspiration to lead the country but insists that his party, the APC and the opposition PDP should zone their tickets to South East in the spirit of fairness, equity and justice.
Speaking in his Igbere Bende local government area country home in Abia State on Tuesday, he said aspirants from South South and South West seeking for office of the President in 2023 are not being fair to the South East that has not produced the country’s President.
“I did not drop, I will never drop. My advise was for our brothers from South South and South West to support South East. They came out in large numbers to contest for President which is not right.
“If there must be equity, the equity is South East. So I don’t want to see people from South South and South West talking about equity.
“Former President Goodluck Jonathan was vice president for five years and president for six years.
“Chief Olusegun Obasanjo was president for eight years and now Osinbajo is going to be vice president for six years.
“So if there is any name at all called equity and justice, the name is South East. Unless that equity is done to us, every other person can run for President including people from Buhari’s village in Daura“.
He called on aspirants from South South and South West to support South East in producing the next president of the country otherwise the race be thrown open for any interested candidate from anywhere in the country.
Staff of ABN TV, a leading online medium in Nigeria have congratulated Mrs. Oluchi Ifeanyi Okali, wife of Director of the company Ifeanyi Okali on her birthday, describing her as kind, humble and accommodating.
In a birthday message on behalf of the staff on Wednesday, Head of Programmes, Miss Grace Onyekachi said Mrs. Okali is a rare breed of woman who like her husband is an epitome of humility and kindness.
She said Mrs. Okali radiates godly virtues with her gentility and love for all irrespective of their status, stating that though she does not interfere in any way with the operations of the organisation, every staff enjoys her presence any time she comes around.
Miss Grace prayed God to continue to strengthen her, her union with her husband and entire family with more grace, peace, love and understanding.
She prayed for good health and ceaseless divine prosperity upon her on behalf of staff of ABN TV staff.
A view of giant tubes part of one of the physical exit points and compressor gas station of the Yamal–Europe gas pipeline.
A view of giant tubes part of one of the physical exit points and compressor gas station of the Yamal–Europe gas pipeline.
Gazprom halted gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria on Wednesday after both countries refused to pay the Russian energy giant in rubles, the company said in a statement.
“At the close of business on April 26, Gazprom Export did not receive payments for the supply of gas in April from Bulgaria and Poland in rubles…Gazprom has notified Bulgaria and Poland about suspending the supply of gas starting from April 27 until payments are made according to the order established by the decree,” the company said.
The “decree” refers to legislation introduced by Russian President Vladimir Putin in March, which orders gas exports to be paid for with Russia’s currency.
Poland was notified of the suspension Tuesday when its national energy company PGNiG was told by Gazprom that all supplies along the Yamal pipeline would be “entirely suspended.”
In late March, Russia announced that “unfriendly” foreign nations would need to pay for their gas in rubles starting April 1, or risk being cut off. Since then, gas shipments to the bloc have largely continued until now.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen rings the bell at the start of the European Commission weekly College Meeting at the EU headquarters in Brussels.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen accused Russia of trying to “blackmail” the bloc with gas, after Russian energy giant Gazprom halted supplies to Poland and Bulgaria on Wednesday.
“Gazprom’s announcement is another attempt by Russia to blackmail us with gas. We are prepared for this scenario. We are mapping out our coordinated EU response,” von der Leyen wrote on Twitter. “Europeans can trust that we stand united and in solidarity with the Member States impacted.”
In a separate statement, von der Leyen said a meeting between the EU’s gas coordination group was underway to map out a response.
Some context: Gazprom halted gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria after both countries refused to pay in rubles. Russia had warned “unfriendly” countries last month that they would need to pay for gas in the Russian currency starting April 1, or risk being cut off.
The payment spat threatens gas supplies that have continued to flow, even as Russian troops shelled major cities in Ukraine and the West imposed crippling sanctions on Russia’s economy.
The EU is planning to slash the consumption of Russian natural gas this year as it prepares for a complete break with its single biggest energy supplier. But Europe would struggle to survive for long without Russian gas, and finding alternative sources presents a huge logistical challenge.
A governorship aspirant in Abia State on the platform of the All Progressives Congress APC, Hon. Emeka Atuma has said the state is in a precarious situation in the hand of the PDP, noting that he is in the 2023 governorship race to win and rescue the state.
While noting that Abians are ready for change, the former member that represented Ikwauano Umuahia federal constituency, Hon. Atuma from Ikwuano LGA and the governorship hopeful stated that he is the one to drive the process.
Speaking with newsmen in Igbere when he visited the senate chief whip, Orji Uzor Kalu at his camp Neya to inform him of his intention to run for Abia governorship seat come 2023 on Tuesday, Hon. Atuma said Abia has remained backward in the comity of South East and Nigeria in general.
“If I don’t take steps in addressing such issues of deplorable state of affairs in our developmental index in my generation, it will not be fair to my person.
“Like I said earlier, I am supremely qualified and very prepared to contest and win, not to grandstand.
“The contest actually is a contest that is to win. Abia is in a worse state at the moment in the hands of the PDP and the government that has been in existence in the last four years.
“So I’m very prepared, I’m very confident. Abians are ready for change at this time.
“Moreso, with the enactment of the 2022 Electoral Act, winning election will be as a result of your popularity and preparation. Abians will have to choose what they desire.
“We will ensure that there won’t be any promotion of voter apathy. We will ensure that the votes of Abians count this time.
“I am standing for this election to redeem and reform Abia. A new Abia is possible,” he said.
Suspected Terrorists have allegedly released pictures of some kidnap victims who were abducted during the kaduna train attack incident last month.
In the first photograph, which seems to have been taken with an Infinix Ai Camera, atleast 17 men could be identified.
In the second photo, at least 18 women could be seen together with five children.
This is the third time in four weeks, the terrorists will release pictures or videos of their captives.
The kidnap victims have now spent at least 29 days in an unknown location with their captors despite repeated calls on the government and security agencies to secure their freedom.
The latest pictures come barely a month after the government confirmed that at least eight people died, 26 other sustained injuries while an unspecified number of persons were abducted during the deadly attack.
The political ambition of Senator Andy Uba was, on Tuesday, thrown into more confusion as the Supreme Court voided his participation in the 2021 governorship election in Anambra State as the candidate of the All Progressives Congress.
A five-member panel of the court held in a judgment, on Tuesday, that the APC breached its own guidelines for the conduct of primaries and thus, failed to conduct valid primary from which Uba emerged as the party’s candidate in the Anambra governorship election.
The apex court affirmed the February 23, 2022 judgment of the Court of Appeal, which upheld the December 20, 2021 judgment by Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
The Supreme Court proceeded to dismiss the appeals filed by Andy Uba and the APC – marked: SC/CV/240/2022 and SC/CV/241/2022.
In the December 20, 2021 judgment, Justice Ekwo held ,among others, that Uba was never a candidate in the election held on November 6, 2021, having emerged from an illegally conducted primary election held by the APC.
Justice Ekwo held that the plaintiff, in the case marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/648/201, Chief George Moghalu (an APC governorship aspirant for the election) succeeded in proving that the APC did not conduct a valid primary election from which Uba claimed to have emerged as the party’s candidate.
The judge declared that all votes recorded in favour of the APC and its purported candidate by the Independent National Electoral Commission were a waste and should be expunged from the record of the commission on account of being unlawful votes.
The court further held that the names of the APC and Andy Uba be also expunged from INEC’s record on the ground that their purported participation is not known to the country’s electoral laws.
Besides, Justice Ekwo ordered that the sum of N25m collected from the plaintiff in the suit (George Moghalu) be returned to him by the APC due to failure to conduct primary election for all qualified governorship aspirants who paid the mandatory amount but denied fair treatment.
![Entire South-South, South-West Should Support South-East Presidency, That's Only Fairness I Know — Orji Kalu [VIDEO]](https://abntv.com.ng/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/FB_IMG_1651069326323.jpg "Entire South-South, South-West Should Support South-East Presidency, That's Only Fairness I Know — Orji Kalu [VIDEO]")
