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Real Madrid Beat Pachuca To Clinch FIFA Intercontinental Cup

Despite Real Madrid’s struggles in recent times, this was a result that was never in doubt. The Spanish giants brushed past Mexican side Pachuca to clinch the Intercontinental Cup title at Lusail Stadium last night.

Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jr scored a goal each, with Rodrygo adding another after a spectacular solo effort, as Real capped off an exceptional year with yet another title. Against underdogs Pachuca, Real faced an opponent well below their level. Still, as coach Carlo Ancelotti had warned on the eve of the match: “Every game is a trap, particularly the Cup ones.”

Madrid started off slow, but once they warmed up on a cold night, the La Liga and Champions League holders ran away with the title — their ninth global trophy, including three in the original Intercontinental Cup format and five FIFA Club World Cups. Ancelotti, who has been under pressure for his team’s underwhelming performances this season, became the most decorated coach in Real Madrid’s history with his 15th title, surpassing the 14 trophies won by Miguel Munoz, who managed the Spanish powerhouse in the 1960s and ’70s.

“I am very happy, it is natural,” the 65-year-old Ancelotti said. “We did the things we prepared, and this made the difference. Everyone played a good match. I am very happy. It was a match that, in the middle of the season, could have caused problems, and instead, we deservedly won it. We didn’t get off to a good start but finished well, showing great attitude.”

The Italian coach will hope that last night’s victory helps regroup his side, which has struggled defensively this season – not least due to the absence of defenders Dani Carvajal and Eder Militao, both sidelined long-term with ACL tears.

Currently sitting third in La Liga with 37 points from 17 games, Real trail leaders Barcelona by just one point, although Barca have played an additional game. Their Champions League campaign, however, remains precarious, with automatic progression to the Round of 16 far from guaranteed.

Ancelotti will also be pleased with the performances of Mbappe and Vinícius, who combined for the opening goal. The French star, who missed Madrid’s 3-3 draw with Rayo Vallecano on Saturday due to a thigh problem, played 62 minutes without any visible discomfort. Meanwhile, Vinícius played the full match, having returned from injury during Tuesday’s Champions League win in Bergamo.

Exactly two years to the day after his iconic hat-trick in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 final at the same venue — which France lost to Argentina on penalties — Mbappe opened the scoring with a clinical finish. Jude Bellingham’s perfectly timed pass set up Vinícius, who mesmerised with dazzling footwork to evade Pachuca goalkeeper Carlos Moreno. The Brazilian then squared the ball to Mbappe, who calmly slotted it into an empty net.

Pachuca had started the game with promise, as Luis Rodríguez tested Thibaut Courtois early on with a powerful drive, but the Belgian goalkeeper was equal to the task. Madrid gradually took control, and Mbappe nearly doubled the lead with a fierce 20-yard shot that narrowly missed the target.

The European champions doubled their advantage early in the second half when Rodrygo unleashed a sublime curling effort from the edge of the box in the 52nd minute. A brief VAR review followed to determine whether Bellingham, standing in an offside position, interfered with the play. The referee deemed otherwise, allowing the goal to stand.

Pachuca, to their credit, refused to fold under pressure. Captain Salomon Rondon came close to reducing the deficit twice — first with a perfectly struck free-kick saved by Courtois and then with a header that skimmed just over the bar.

Real Madrid, however, ensured victory was beyond doubt in the closing stages. Vinícius, fresh off being named The Best FIFA Men’s Player after missing out on the Ballon d’Or, converted an 84th-minute penalty after Oussama Idrissi fouled Lucas Vazquez in the box.

Rodrygo had special praise for Vinícius, calling his countryman “an example of resilience.” He said: “I’ve been following Vini since he started in Brazil. We never played against each other in the professional league, only with youth teams,” said the forward. “We’ve always talked about all the difficulties he had in the beginning. He is an example of resilience, for everything he went through, and now he has become the best player in the world. I’m always happy for my friend’s achievements, especially after seeing his work every day.”

Pachuca, winners of the Concacaf Champions Cup, defeated CAF Champions League holders Al Ahly of Egypt to reach the final. Real, however, did not take part in the earlier rounds. Pachuca coach Guillermo Almada admitted his side failed to capitalise on their opportunities and paid the price. “We had our chances, but their efficiency was decisive. We had opportunities and couldn’t capitalize on them. Many young players gained their first international experience throughout the tournament. It was an amazing experience. Of course, we wanted to win the final, but the effort was outstanding,” Almada said.

This is the first edition of the FIFA-backed Intercontinental Cup, which broadly maintains the format of the previous Club World Cup. The latter is being expanded to include 32 teams in 2025 and will now be played every four years. A past version of the Intercontinental Cup ran from 1960 to 2004, involving the champions of Europe and South America.

Madrid are set to play Pachuca again at next year’s Club World Cup in the United States, alongside an Al Hilal team featuring Neymar and Red Bull Salzburg. Carlo Ancelotti’s side will host Sevilla in La Liga on Sunday in their final game of the year. They are scheduled to return to the Middle East in early January for the four-team Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia.

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NDDC committed to developing athletes discovered at Niger Delta Sports Festival

A new approach to grassroots sports development will see athletes discovered at the ongoing Niger Delta Sports Festival (NDSF) undergo periodical camping where scientific methods of training would be applied.

Sir Itiako Ikpokpo, the Co-Chairman of the Main Organising Committee (MOC) of the festival, dropped the hint at a media parley with journalists covering the games and said over 60 athletes have already been spotted as at Day 4.

“This festival is not about who came first or who won gold. Our scouts are looking out for hints of potential, quality that can be groomed for future success,” Ikpokpo responded to a question about objectives of the festival.

He said the scouts made up of coaches, former athletes and scouts have so far submitted 64 names and most of them were not those that came first or second.

“We seek to set up camps for the identified athletes with a view to putting them through scientific research-based training supervised by certified coaches,” added Ikpokpo who is the lead consultant for the project.

“The real work is not this festival, it is to design and implement the plan to nurture the talents discovered here to go on and replace those who have been representing Nigeria,” he added.

Sponsored by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) as part of its mandate to improve living conditions of people of the nine mandate states, the NDSF had about 3,000 athletes and 500 officials competing in 17 sports.

It began on April 1 and will end on April 8 in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

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Niger Delta Sports Festival holds Golf Kitty as Cultural Expo fever spreads in Uyo

Managing Consultant of the Niger Delta Sports Festival, Sir Itiako Ikpokpo, teed off the Golf Kitty organised in commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

This is even as the organisers rev up preparations for the Cultural Expo with the stage being rigged and rehearsals commenced.

Held at the Ibom Golf and Country Club on Saturday (April 5) morning, on the sidelines of the sports competitions, the event is part of the community engagement activities of the festival to foster social networking.

Over 130 golfers were in the kitty with members of the Main and Local Organising Committees of the Niger Delta Sports Festival in attendance.

“The NDSF project sponsored by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) was designed to achieve multipurpose objectives of discovering and nurturing athletes, foster regional integration and engaging our host community.

“We have also provided opportunity for games demonstration towards bringing them in when the next edition holds. Cricket and Rugby are such games and we will keep redesigning the festival concept to accommodate more sports”, Ikpokpo told journalists at the event.

The festival also incorporated a Cultural Expo that will hold on April 7 and a number of upcoming entertainers from the nine mandate states will be on parade for comedy, music and masters of ceremony.

Edi Lawani, the country’s leading entertainment impresario said the Cultural Expo is a community engagement platform to provide the people of Akwa Ibom State, the festival community and tourists a time to wind down.

“Over 40 artistes will be on parade as we provide music, comedy, dance and food court for everyone in Uyo to feel the sports festival atmosphere outside the competition venues and make new social and business friends”, the thickly Lawani said donning his trademark shorts and backpack.

“Just as the NDSF is poised to discover new talents in sports, the cultural expo of the NDSF is equally designed to give a boost to and uplift young upcoming talents in the creative industry”, Lawani further stated.

Established talents like Comedian Destalker and singer Humblesmith are billed to perform to give inspiration and mentorship to the assembled young talents.

He said emphasis has also been placed on gender inclusiveness as there are female artistes, female Disc Jockeys and a female red-carpet host who are set take their place of pride at the event.

The Expo night which holds at the popular Unity Park also known as the Christmas Village, will enjoy the full complement of exotic show lighting display and large screen format projection.

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Govt Should Give Annual Grants To Nigerian Clubsides – Sanmi Doherty

Stakeholders of Nigerian football opined that governments at all levels should completely hands off sponsorship or ownership of football clubs in Nigeria.

According to some aficionados, the state-owned clubs have not thrived or perform better than privately owned clubs in recent times.

And yet, another strong voice in the fortunes of Nigerian football has joined the fray, albeit from a fresher angle.

Speaking in a recent interview, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Ikorodu City Football club, Sanmi Doherty, admonished the federal government to establish a football trust fund that would empower the clubs to operate in line with the global best practices in world football. He added that Nigerian clubs would be able to compete favourably with their counterparts on the continent.

“I think government should only provide the facilities the enabling environment for the clubs. I think we can also have a trust fund fir Nigerian clubs. Tell me, why can’t the federal government earmark certain amounts of money as annual grants to help the clubs playing in the league?

“You know we’re not only promoting football, we’re also empowering the youths and using football to curb restiveness amongst the youths.

” Football is big business and capital intensive. For instance, if I know that I’m going to receive maybe N3billion from the government as my annual allocation, I can conveniently go for the best players, pay them very well, and ensure they get the conducive environment to ply their trades professionally and of course, the desired results will come,” the youthful club owner enthused confidently.