Football
12 Unthinkable development in global football as we cross over to next season
By Ediale Kingsley
1. Eden Hazard is a Real Madrid player already. The Chelsea fans can only cry blood. It has happened and I bet the Belgian has made it a “RealMadrid or die” situation. A couple of months ago, it was unthinkable that Chelsea could live without their playmaker.
2. Arsenal won’t make top four on the EPL table at the end of the season. Famed for making top four a birth right slash trophy equivalent, Arsene Wenger, seams to be having everything go wrong for him this season. And they want him out. I bet a lot of bets are already dashed, those who staked that Arsenal with make top 4 this season. Impossible as it sounds, it has happened.
3. Issah Hayatou has been dethroned. Ahmad Ahmad from Madagascar is the new kid in block. Not exactly a kid as in kid, but not as Ancient as the former CAF boss from Cameroon. Who would have imagined CAF without Hayatou, 1980s kids like me were already of the thought that CAF was Hayatou’s inheritance.
4. Since 2008, we have only come to know two football artistes with genuine claims to the Ballon D’or trophy. Messi and Ronaldo. Neymar is the kid in the block. Ronaldo, blame the age, is now a slack. A bit sloppy slack. Messi yet can still do some magic. But he is a shadow of what the original Leo use to be.
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5. Manchester United won’t be in Champions League, back to back, next season. That’s JN 12 predictions, yes. They won’t win the Europa Cup and also can’t make top four. That’s the deal.
6. It was unthinkable that Barca would come from four goals deficit in a first leg to winning the second leg and qualifying to the quarter finals in a very special way. Now if they win the UCL eventually, they would have done the unthinkable, in a season they were condemned to struggle.
7. And who would have thought that Enugu Rangers would be in such a dilemma. They won the NPFL league last season and are now crippled.
8. Chelsea won’t win the EPL this season. Even now it’s a tabooish talk. Yes, just throw the stones. Why didn’t I make this the first item on this list? Take it or leave it, the unthinkable will happen. They have started the journey to dropping points already and the chase is on. Sorry, it’s not Antonio Conte’s year after all.
9. Leicester City would get to the Semi Final of the UCL. That sounds like a taboo too. Especially, when they had to go through Sevilla and Atletico Madrid. Unthinkable!
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10. Rohr, the German tactician, managing the Super Eagles of Nigeria would go unbeaten this year. The same set of footies who couldn’t qualify for AFCON are going to qualify for Russia 2018 World Cup. The German would be doing this unthinkable with the same poor assistants from NFF. He’s owed salaries, but he’s bent on accomplishing the unthinkable.
11. Wilfred Ndidi and Victor Moses are going to be on CAF’s best player shortlist at the next CAF awards. Unthinkable that Ndidi would make that list of 3.
12. Real Madrid went unbeaten in 40 matches only to have a trophy-less season. Yes, Madrid won’t win any trophy this season. It’s unthinkable but it’s gonna happen.
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