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Paul Pogba’s brothers to be tried in kidnap case

Six Face Trial In Paris For Blackmailing Paul Pogba

French judges on Tuesday ordered six men to stand trial in a kidnap and extortion case involving French footballer Paul Pogba, with the star’s brother Mathias one of the accused, sources close to the case said.

The trial follows a two-year investigation into the alleged extortion and kidnapping of the former Manchester United midfielder in a high-profile case that emerged in 2022.

Five people close to the World Cup winner are suspected of having “meticulously prepared” a meeting in the Paris suburbs on March 19, 2022, which ended with Pogba being kidnapped and held by two unidentified men who demanded he give them 13 million euros ($14 million), according to Paris prosecutors.

Pogba’s brother Mathias — a former striker himself — was not present for that meeting, but is suspected of having put pressure on his younger brother afterwards “with the same determination to get (Paul Pogba) to hand over the money”, according to prosecutors.

All have denied their guilt in the affair, claiming they were “victims” of armed robbers and that they were assaulted after Paul Pogba refused to pay.

But prosecutors called for the three childhood friends and two former acquaintances from the town where Pogba grew up in eastern Paris who were present on the night to be tried for extortion, illegal restraint and criminal conspiracy.

Pogba — who plays for Juventus and the French national team but is currently serving a four-year ban for doping — filed a complaint with Italian prosecutors saying he was the target of a multi-million-euro blackmail plot.

‘Curse on Mbappe’
The 31-year-old told investigators that his blackmailers threatened to discredit him by claiming he asked a “marabout”, or witch doctor, to cast a spell on fellow France star Kylian Mbappe, which Pogba denies.

French prosecutors launched an investigation in September 2022 which was handled jointly by the French police’s anti-gang and central crime units.

During the investigation, Paul Pogba stated that he had “voluntarily” helped members of the group, but then refused to hand seven million euros over to three of them in September 2021. He subsequently kept his distance from the group, he said.

In late September 2022, his brother Mathias — who was born in Guinea — posted a series of videos on social media incriminating Pogba and accusing him of having “abandoned” his family.

The videos came a month after Mathias Pogba had put another video online in French, Italian, English and Spanish promising “great revelations” about his brother.

During the investigation, Mathias said he had been afraid for his safety and that of his family, saying he had been manipulated by the other suspects, and that he hoped he would soon be reconciled with his younger brother.

AFP

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King Ademola Lookman Brings Out His Love

Like his father opened up, Ademola Lookman is essentially a private person, who prefers to do his stuff without all the media blitz.

But on one of his biggest days, when he was crowned Africa’s best player, he could not but make the first public appearance with the woman in his life – Jayda Love.

‘Adebobo’ would even steal a moment on his big night to kiss his American beau.

The 27-year-old Super Eagles star is still single.

Rumours of this romance first surfaced in the summer when the couple appeared to have spent the holidays together.

This was after ‘Mola’ scored his unforgettable hat-trick for Atalanta to win the UEFA Europa League in super style.

Jayda, an Information Technology specialist is based in Dallas, Texas, graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 2021 with a degree in public relations.

She follows Ademola Lookman and his foundation on social media.

She is also known to have visited him at his Italian base.

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FIFA Rankings: Nigeria’s Super Eagles End 2024 Ahead Of Ghana, South Africa, Cameroon

Nigeria’s Super Eagles have ended 2024 ranked as Africa’s fifth-best team in FIFA’s latest global standings, released Thursday morning, Soccernet.ng reports.

Despite a challenging end to the year that saw the team drop eight places to 44th globally, the Super Eagles still managed to hold their own against eternal continental rivals like South Africa, Cameroon, and Ghana.

This year’s ranking represents a mixed bag for Nigeria. While the team retained its fifth spot in Africa, their decline in global rankings was driven by underwhelming performances in key fixtures.

Most notably, the Super Eagles struggled during the final rounds of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers, securing just a solitary point in lackluster outings against the Benin Republic and Rwanda.

Nigeria were forced to a scored draw by the Cheetahs in Abidjan only for Samuel Chukwueze’s excellent strike to end up as consolation in a 2-1 home defeat to the Wasps.

Looking at year-to-year standings, at this time in 2023, Nigeria’s Super Eagles were ranked 42nd in the world but sixth on the continent.

Elsewhere, South Africa’s Bafana Bafana showed marked improvement, climbing th

Cameroon and Ghana, however, endured disappointing campaigns. Ghana’s Black Stars finished the year ranked 77th, a stark reminder of the ongoing struggles within the Black Stars setup.

At the continental summit, Morocco retained their status as the continent’s best, finishing as Africa’s top-ranked team in 14th place globally.

Senegal (17th), Egypt (33rd), and Algeria (37th) rounded out the top four, with Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Mali, Tunisia, and South Africa completing the top 10.

Globally, Argentina retained their position as FIFA’s top-ranked team, followed by France, Spain, England, and Brazil.

With 1,181 international matches played across the calendar year, the rankings reflected consistent dominance from the world’s elite teams.

As Nigeria enter 2025, all eyes will be on the Super Eagles to reignite their competitive spark, with the World Cup qualifiers returning in the first quarter of the year.

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Mbappé: Would Have Been ‘Fun’ To Play With Cristiano Ronaldo

Kylian Mbappé has said he wishes he could have played with Real Madrid legend Cristiano Ronaldo, the club’s all-time leading scorer.

The France international has been a teammate of other football icons but would have relished playing alongside Ronaldo, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner and Portugal captain.

“I’ve played with great players: Lionel Messi, Neymar, [Antoine] Griezmann, [Paul] Pogba, [Karim] Benzema…” Mbappé told BeINsports.

“It would have been fun to play with Cristiano Ronaldo — it’s going to be very difficult now — but I was lucky enough to play against him, a legend of the sport.”

Ronaldo, 39, left the Spanish giants in 2018 now plays for Saudi Pro-League side Al Nassr.

Mbappé helped Madrid win the Intercontinental Cup on Wednesday, his second title since joining the Spanish giants in the summer after his contract with Paris Saint-Germain expired.

Speaking to young people with disabilities as part of the BeUNITED program, Mbappe, 25, said he would have never left Paris Saint-Germain had it not been to join Madrid.

“I went to the biggest club in the world,” the 2018 World Cup winner said.

“I have always said that it was the only club I would have left PSG for. If I hadn’t been able to go to Madrid, I would have stayed at PSG all my life.”

Although Mbappé has been prolific for Madrid so far, he has faced criticism for his all-round performances with the team having suffered some high-profile defeats earlier in the season.

“Since I was 14, everyone told me I was going to be great,” Mbappé said.

“But when you’re big, sometimes you feel small…At first I was too hungry and it played tricks on me because I was impatient. But I have passion and this competitive side.

“My dream now is to win trophies with my team, not individual awards. What great title is left for me? The Champions League, but I’m in the best club in the world for that.”