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OFFICIAL: Orlando Wellington joins Asante Kotoko technical team

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Ghana Premier League giants Asante Kotoko have augmented their technical team with the appointment of Orlando Wellington.

The experienced gaffer has joined the Porcupine Warriors as assistant coach of the first team.
 

The former Betekum Chelsea trainer will assist Burkinabe trainer Seydou Zerbo for the rest of the 2022–23 season. 

The club’s official statement read, “We are delighted to welcome on board Coach Orlando Wellington as first team assistant coach.”

Wellington led Berekum Chelsea to a historic feat in 2010, winning the Premier League. 

He was an assistant to Sellas Tetteh when the Black Satellites won the 2009 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations in Egypt.

Wellington last coached Division One League side Wa Suntaa FC.

Kotoko resumed training on Monday after a short break ahead of the resumption of the league. 

Ghana star Mohammed Kudus keen on Premier League move despite Barcelona, Real Madrid links

Ghana’s Mohammed Kudus was one of the stars of the World Cup and the Ajax man’s performances have seen him linked with a transfer away from the Dutch club in January.

Due to his versatility, he can play in midfield or attack, he has even drawn Barcelona’s attention, although sporting director Jordi Cruyff said he is not a priority for the Catalan club.

In Italy, Juventus and Milan have also been linked, but according to The Sun, Kudus is considering a move to the Premier League, although it would have to be a club in the Champions League.

Ajax could take advantage of his World Cup performances and listen to offers, although they would want at least €40 million for the Ghana international, according to the same report.

It’s a figure Barça would not pay at this stage given their financial problems and the fact Kudus does not feature high up their list of targets and needs for now.

“I was never approached by the Ghana FA to play for Ghana” – Danny Welbeck

England and Brighton & Hove Albion forward, Danny Welbeck has revealed that he was never approached by the Ghana FA to play for the Ghana national team, the Black Stars.

Danny Welbeck, who was born in Manchester, England to Ghanaian parents was eligible to play for both Ghana and England.

However, the 32-year old who had represented England at multiple youth levels ended up playing for the England national team, a decision he claims was easy to make.

“There wasn’t like an official approach from Ghana to come and play for them or anything like that, so it wasn’t as hard as a decision like people would have thought,” he told the YouTube channel, Michael Dapaah as quoted by MyJoyOnline.

Fútbol - Inglaterra contra Ghana International Friendly - Wembley Stadium -  29/3/11 Danny Welbeck de Inglaterra tiene

“It was natural for me because I’ve been playing for England since I was 14 so it’s like a natural progression to try and reach that next step.

“You know you want to get to the next stage group, 19, 21, and the senior team.” 

Ironically, Welbeck’s debut for the England came against Ghana in a friendly game which ended 1-1 in March 2011, a game he forever has on his memory.

“I remember this game because I made my debut against Ghana,” Welbeck added.
Danny Welbeck coming on for his debut against Ghana

“It was like my family, not in the England section, and they are like boo; they were booing along as well, so it was a mad moment, but one that is definitely a highlight.”

Danny Welbeck made 42 appearances for the England national team and scored 16 goals.

WATCH LIVE: Japan vs Croatia – 2022 World Cup

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Click on any of the links below to watch the game.

Kickoff is 15:00 GMT [3pm]

Stream Link

Lineups:

?? Japan XI: Gonda; Taniguchi, Tomiyasu, Yoshida, Nagatomo; Morita, Endo; Ito, Kamada, Doan; Maeda

?? Croatia XI: Livakovic; Juranovic, Gvardiol, Lovren, Barisic; Kovacic, Brozovic, Modric; Kramaric, Petkovic, Perisic

Reports: Cristiano Ronaldo to sign for Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr on January 1

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Cristiano Ronaldo will sign a contract for Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr on January 1st, according to reports in Spain.

The Portuguese superstar looks to have finally found himself a new club following his dramatic exit from Manchester United just two days before the start of the World Cup.

The deal is understood to be one of the most lucrative in sports history and could see the five-time Ballon d’Or winner net close to €200million (£172m) per season. 

Al-Nassr are one of the most successful clubs in Saudi, having won the Saudi league nine times

According to MARCA, Ronaldo is set to sign a deal with Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr at the start of next month. 

The outlet claim that the initial deal will be worth close to 100m (£86m) but will be incentivised by further agreements such as advertisement and sponsorship deals. 

The 37-year-old became a free agent at the end of last month after his fractured relationship with club chiefs worsened when he made a number of controversial statements in a TV interview with Piers Morgan.

In the extraordinary interview, Ronaldo admitted rumours of a €350m offer for two seasons were true – which he had previously declined. 

The forward had made no comments over his future during the World Cup campaign – where his Portugal side find themselves in the round of 16 – but it seems he’s been working behind the scenes to get a deal done.

Al-Nassr are one of the most successful clubs in Saudi Arabia, having being crowned winners of the country’s top flight nine times, with their most recent triumph coming in 2019.

Vincent Aboubakar is among the big name stars that currently play for Al-Nassr

In both 2020 and 2021, Al-Nassr may not have won the league, but they did manage to win the Saudi Super Cup.

The club, however, have struggled to make a splash on the global scene, but they did compete in the Club World Cup in the 1999-2000 season.

That year they played against Real Madrid in their group, losing 3-1, with Nicolas Anelka and Raul among the scorers for the Spanish giants.

The Saudi giants also currently have a few big-name stars of the past in the form of former Arsenal goalkeeper David Ospina, Brazilian midfielder Luiz Gustavo and Cameroon striker Vincent Aboubakar – who scored a contender for goal of the tournament at the World Cup last week. 

Former Arsenal and Napoli goalkeeper David Ospina is among the other big names

They play at Mrsool Park, which has a capacity of 25,000, a huge reduction on playing in front of 74,310 at Old Trafford.

-Dailymail

“It’s crazy” – England legend Wayne Rooney reacts to Ghanaian politician discussing Harry Maguire in parliament

Manchester United legend, Wayne Rooney, has branded the joke aimed at captain Harry Maguire by a Ghanaian politician as ‘crazy’.

Maguire, 29, has often been on the receiving end of mockery and punitive criticism in recent months.

The England defender became a talking point in Ghana’s parliament as MP Issac Adongo labelled the country’s vice president, Mahamudu Bawumia, an ‘economic Maguire’.

Adongo compared Bawumia’s performance to Maguire’s recent struggles at Man United.

https://twitter.com/TrollFootball/status/1598290114559426560

However, Rooney has now addressed the incident.

The former England striker said in his column for The Times, “On social media this week, I saw someone in the Ghanaian parliament making fun of Harry Maguire. It was crazy because Harry has been outstanding at this World Cup.

“I predicted he would do well – because he always does well for England and never lets Gareth Southgate down. He is simply a very good defender with a strong mentality.”

2022 World Cup: Brazil vs South Korea preview: team news, kick-off time, probable lineups, tactics & key stats

Brazil will take on South Korea in the knockout rounds of the FIFA World Cup 2022 on Monday night and they will look to book their place in the Quarterfinals of the competition.

The South American giants are one of the favourites to win the World Cup this year and they will look to send out a strong statement to their rivals with a win.

Brazil were beaten by Cameroon in their final group game but it was a heavily rotated side and they will be determined to bounce back strongly against Korea.

Meanwhile, South Korea picked up a stunning 2-1 win over Portugal to book their place in the round of 16 and they will be looking to pull off another upset here.

Paulo Bento’s side have shown that they cannot be taken lightly and they will pose a challenge for Brazil.

The likes of Son Heung-Min will be full of confidence and momentum heading into this game but they need to play out of their skin in order to grind out a memorable result here.

Team News and Tactics

Brazil

The South American giants rotated their key players for the final group game against Cameroon and they should be able to field their first-choice lineup here.

Apart from Alex Telles and Gabriel Jesus, Tite will have a fully fit squad to choose from. Neymar trained on Friday and he is expected to be available for this game.

Tite is likely to deploy a 4-3-3 setup with Alisson Becker in goal. The back four will comprise of Danilo, Marquinhos, Thiago Silva and Alex Sandro. Casemiro will sit deep as the defensive midfielder and he will look to break up the Korean play.

In the central midfield, Lucas Paqueta should partner Fred.

Vinicius Junior and Raphinha are likely to be deployed in the wide roles and Neymar will lead the line for the South American giants.

Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Alisson; Danilo, Marquinhos, Silva, Sandro; Fred, Casemiro, Paqueta; Raphinha, Neymar, Vinicius

South Korea

The Asian giants have no notable injury concerns heading into this game.

Bento is likely to stick with his 4-2-3-1 with Kim Seung-Gyu in goal.

Kim Moon-Hwan and Kim Jin-Su will start as the full-backs and they will be integral to Korea’s counter-attacking play. They will be expected to cover the centre-backs against Brazil’s wingers as well.

In the centre, Kim Min-Jae will partner Kim Young-Gwon

Jung Woo-Young and Hwang In-Beom will sit back as the deepest midfielders and they will look to break up the play and recycle possession. They will be expected to initiate counters with their long passing.

In the wide areas, Hwang Hee-Chan and Son Heung-Min will look to add pace and goals to the side.

Jeong Woo-Yeong will be the number ten here and he will look to drop deep and add numbers to the midfield and link up with the striker as well.

Cho Gue-Sung has been in impressive form and he will lead the line for Korea.

Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Seung-Gyu; Moon-Hwan, Min-Jae, Young-Gwon, Jin-Su; Woo-Young, In-Beom; Hee-Chan, Woo-Yeong, Son; Cho

Key Stats

Brazil have won their last 4 matches against South Korea in all competitions.

Brazil have been winning at both half-time and full-time in their last 3 matches against South Korea in all competitions.

Brazil have scored at least 2 goals in their last 4 matches against South Korea in all competitions.

Neymar scored a brace in his last outing against South Korea.

Taegeuk Warriors have never defeated a South American opponent in their previous six attempts at the World Cup.

2022 World Cup: England beat Senegal to set up quarter-final clash with France

England will meet France in the World Cup quarter-finals on Saturday after an impressive demolition of Senegal at Al Bayt Stadium.

Gareth Southgate’s side survived a nervy opening in which goalkeeper Jordan Pickford made an outstanding save from Boulaye Dia to run out convincing winners with a powerful display of attacking strength.

Jude Bellingham was England’s star man, setting up the first goal for Jordan Henderson with a perfect cross after 38 minutes then having a hand in the second on the stroke of half-time, combining with Phil Foden as captain Harry Kane powered home his first of the tournament.

It left Kane just one behind Wayne Rooney’s all-time record of 53 England goals and he now has the perfect stage here in Qatar to write a fresh page in the history books.

Foden was the creator once more as England wrapped the game up in the 57th minute, crossing for Bukayo Saka to show great awareness and touch to flick a delicate finish past Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.

It capped the perfect night for manager Southgate, who opted to restore Saka and keep faith with Foden, leaving out Marcus Rashford despite his two goals in the win over Wales. Raheem Sterling was not considered as he dealt with a family matter.

Sports Ministry releases statement to review Black Stars 2022 World Cup campaign

Black Stars World Cup campaign in Qatar will be reviewed by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the governmental body has said.

The Ministry of Youth and Sports has released a statement following Ghana’s group stage exit at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

The Black Stars failed to advance to the round of 16 after a 2-0 defeat to Uruguay in the final Group H game last Friday.

The Ministry, under the leadership of Honourable Mustapha Ussif, have thanked all stakeholders for the support handed the team before, during and after Ghana’s elimination.

According to the Ministry, there will be a thorough review of the team’s performance to find the way forward for the Black Stars.

Below is the statement from the Sports Ministry:

After our spirited performances in our first two group matches of the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup, Ghana’s campaign, has unfortunately ended, following the Black Stars’ defeat to Uruguay in our final group match.

Our target, going into the World Cup, was to progress from our group to the next round, and then continue our charge in the knockout stage, to better our impressive record in the World Cup.

Having put in all efforts, including financial, logistical and technical support towards our preparations, we were all confident our young team would be able to realise our national aspiration of going very far in the competition.

Indeed, the Black Stars won the hearts of many Ghanaians, as well as fans across the globe, with their spirited fight-back against Portugal, and hard-fought victory over South Korea. Even though we fell short at the most crucial stage and bowed out of the competition in disappointment, we take solace in the lessons learnt, and the positives, especially the promising delivery of our young team.

We are also impressed by the united and patriotic manner Ghanaians came together to offer the Black Stars their unflinching support. Football, the World Cup and the Black Stars, brought the nation together beautifully as one people.

In the midst of global economic challenges, which had limitations to our finances, corporate Ghana responded remarkably to the Ministry of Youth and Sports’ fund-raising initiative to support the team, as well as President Akufo-Addo’s personal appeal for financial support. We are grateful to all corporate institutions for their kind and timely support, which contributed immensely not only towards the team’s qualification and preparations, but also made it possible to send a few Ghanaians to cheer on the team.

As a Government, we will not relent in our efforts towards sustainable sports development, to ensure that all our respective national teams, including the Black Stars, reach the height we desire.

For the Black Stars in particular, the Ministry of Youth and Sports will continue its partnership with all stakeholders, including the GFA, for a thorough review of the Black Stars’ World Cup campaign in Qatar, and the way forward.

Once again, we are grateful to all, for your diverse contributions towards the Black Stars’ 2022 World Cup campaign; from the qualifying series, to our last match on Friday, December 2, 2022.

WATCH LIVE: England vs Senegal – 2022 World Cup

Click on any of the links below to watch the game.

Kickoff is 19:00 GMT [7pm]

Stream Link

Lineups:

England XI: Pickford; Walker, Stones, Maguire, Shaw; Henderson, Rice, Bellingham; Foden, Kane, Saka

Senegal XI: E.Mendy; Sabaly, Koulibaly, Diallo, Jakobs; Ciss, N.Mendy; Ndiaye, Diatta, Sarr, Dia