AC Milan winger Samuel Chukwueze has emphasised the positive atmosphere at the club, declaring that everyone is happy and working hard despite ongoing speculation about his future at the San Siro. The Nigeria international made these comments following Milan’s impressive 9-0 victory over Perth Glory on Thursday, which wrapped up their pre-season tour in Australia. Chukwueze scored one of the nine goals alongside strikes from Filippo Terracciano, Christian Comotto, Samuele Ricci, Yunus Musah, and two each from Noah Okafor and Rafael Leao. Speaking to MilanTV after the match, Chukwueze praised new coach Massimiliano Allegri whilst highlighting the squad’s unity. “Coach Allegri is a great coach—everyone knows that. He has won a lot throughout his career, and now that he’s here, he’ll aim to win trophies with Milan as well,” Chukwueze said. “He’s excellent at working with players; he understands what they want and what he needs from them, both in terms of defence and attack.” The Super Eagles winger painted a picture of harmony within the Milan dressing room, revealing the lighter side of professional football. “Everyone is happy and working hard, and there’s a fantastic atmosphere in the dressing room. Some teammates even dance, and I’m one of them,” he said with a laugh. “Having fun makes everything easier.” The 26-year-old reflected positively on the comprehensive victory against Perth Glory, viewing it as crucial preparation for the upcoming Serie A campaign. “We’re pleased to have won two matches. It was a good game. Every match during pre-season is important to prepare us for the start of Serie A,” he said. “The win reminds us that we need to keep working hard and stay focused on the upcoming challenges. It doesn’t matter if we’re facing a small or big team; we must strive to win every game to achieve our season goals.” Chukwueze emphasised the importance of maintaining a positive mindset both on and off the pitch, offering insight into his philosophical approach to football. “You always need to smile and take joy in what we do. Football can be stressful at times, leading you to dwell too much on what you can’t accomplish, but it’s vital to smile and remain happy,” he explained. “When you’re happy, everything falls into place, allowing you to play with the right mindset, which impacts football and every other aspect of life. When things go well, smile; when they don’t, smile nonetheless. The most important thing is to focus on yourself.” He added, “There’s a time to joke and a time to concentrate. Now that our work is done, we can indulge in some fun.” Chukwueze’s positive comments come amid ongoing speculation about his future at Milan, with Fulham reportedly opening discussions about a potential move for the Nigeria international. According to journalist Nicolo Schira, the London club have begun negotiations with Milan for the winger, who has been deemed surplus to requirements at the Italian giants.

Tottenham captain Son Heung-min said on Saturday that he will leave the club this summer after a decade in north London. The 33-year-old attacker joined the Premier League side from Bayer Leverkusen in 2015 and went on to play more than 450 times for Spurs. In May he lifted the Europa League trophy but he had a poor season overall by his high standards and struggled with a series of leg injuries. “Before we start the press conference I wanted to say I have decided to leave the club this summer,” the South Korean told reporters in Seoul, where Tottenham are on a pre-season tour. “Respectfully the club is helping me with this decision.” Son, who has scored 173 goals for Spurs, did not say where he intends to go next and cut an emotional figure. He has been linked with a move to the MLS in the United States. “It was the most difficult decision I have made in my career. Such amazing memories. It was so hard to make the decision,” Son said, flanked by new Tottenham boss Thomas Frank. “I need a new environment to push myself. I need a little bit of change — 10 years is a long time. I came to north London as a kid, 23 years old, such a young age. “I leave this club as a grown man, a very proud man.” Speaking in Korean, Son said that winning a European trophy — Tottenham’s first European crown in 41 years — played “a big part” in his thinking. “Winning a title in Europe felt like I had achieved everything I possibly could,” he said. “I spent a lot of time reflecting on whether I wanted to experience football in a different environment, and I had those conversations with myself over and over again.” Frank, who joined Spurs from Brentford in June, paid tribute to the South Korean skipper. “For me, personally, I would have loved to have worked with this fantastic person and player,” said the Dane, who took over from the sacked Ange Postecoglou. “He is a true Spurs legend in every aspect, one of the greatest players to play in the Premier League.” Spurs will face Newcastle United on Sunday in Seoul, and Son is guaranteed a rapturous reception in front of his home fans. Spurs have had a fairly quiet summer in the transfer market so far, with attacking midfielder Mohammed Kudus from West Ham their only major acquisition. Morgan Gibbs-White had looked set to follow from Nottingham Forest but a £60 million move broke down. AFP

Rave of the moment in the men’s 100m, Kanyisola Ajayi, women’s 100m rising star Prestina Ochonogor and hammer-throw specialist Sade Olatoye were the standout athletes on day one of the 2025 Athletics Federation of Nigeria National Trials, currently taking place at the Yaba College of Technology in Lagos, PUNCH Sports Extra reports. The trials, which had earlier been scheduled to hold in Abeokuta, Ogun state, prior to the late change in venue, will serve as a qualification event for the World Athletics Championships set to take place in Tokyo, Japan, in September. The opening day of competition at Yabatech saw elite athletes take to the track and field in their respective disciplines, with Ajayi winning heat one in the men’s 10 event in a time of 10.05s, while Israel Okon powered to a new Personal Best time of 10.03s to win heat two. Fakorede Nicholas also clocked a new Personal Best mark of 10.06s to win heat three. Meanwhile, Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games finalist Enoch Adegoke put in a commendable 10.14s to win heat four, Alaba Akintola clocked 10.08s to win heat five, Olaolu Olatunde improved on his lifetime best by running a time of 10.13s to win heat six, Seye Ogunlewe took heat seven in a time of 10.18s, while Temitope Bello and John Caleb both won heats eight and nine, respectively. In the women’s 100m category, Ochonogor continued her preparations for the forthcoming World Championships with victory in a time of 11.48s to win heat one, ahead of Precious Nzeakor and Faith Osamuyi, who ended up in second and third place respectively. The women’s Discus event was evenly matched, but Chioma Onyekwere successfully defended her national title ahead of close friend Obiageri Amaechi, who could only manage a throw of 59.39m. The win saw Onyekwere win her third national title out of the five championships she has participated in. The competition continues on Saturday (today), with more athletes bidding to reach the qualification standard times, which will be sufficient to seal a spot at the World Championships.

A former presidential aspirant of the All Progressives Congress, Nicolas Felix, has dismissed the newly formed opposition coalition under the African Democratic Congress as no threat to President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid. Speaking in Suleja on Thursday during the distribution of thousands of litres of fuel to Nigerians, Felix expressed confidence that Tinubu would win the 2027 presidential election with no less than 15 million votes. On July 1st, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate Peter Obi, APC’s 2023 presidential aspirant Rotimi Amaechi, and other opposition figures launched the ADC as a unified opposition platform to challenge President Tinubu in the 2027 election. Reacting, Felix maintained that while there’s nothing wrong with opposition leaders forming a coalition, he believes they will eventually fall apart just as easily as they came together. He said, “In a democracy, you must have opposition. We are not threatened. They are out there campaigning. So far, we have not heard anything they want to do anyway. “So for us as a party, I don’t see any threat here. There is no threat in this coalition. We want them to coalesce. Like I said the other day, they will gather, but they will scatter because they have nothing to offer. Their intention is not pure. Their motive is not pure. “As far as we are concerned and the APC, come 2027, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is going to have nothing less than 15 million votes. We know that is going to happen. So there is no threat from the ADC or whatever coalition. Let them come. When the time comes for campaigns, we are going to roll out the scorecard of Mr President. “Didn’t you watch on TV this morning students on campuses singing, celebrating with joy, who just received the NELFund grant, over N100 billion, with no interest, by the way. I lived in America for 21 years; I had never heard that happen. Over N100 billion given to 600,000 students. So these 600,000 students, they will vote. Their families will vote because they know what it takes to go to school. So we are excited, and we know come 2027, it is going to be a walkover for us.” He stated that his decision to regularly distribute free fuel to Nigerians is his way of supporting the president’s Renewed Hope Agenda. The ex-presidential aspirant stated, “We are giving out free fuel to the community. As you know, this is our Renewed Hope season. We are just doing this to put smiles on the faces of the people. “There is no other motivation, but we just want to give back to the community. We did this in 2023 in Edo State, and we did it here also, and we decided to come back here to make the people happy. As you can see, they are all smiling. We are giving them hope. “This outreach is for everybody, but we know those who need it more. So, I am even more excited seeing the Okada riders because we believe, you know, I would be surprised if I see a G-Waggon here coming to take free fuel. This is more for the Okada and Keke riders. So anybody that comes, we will be able to, you know, just put smiles on their face. We are just giving back. That is what it is all about.” Also speaking, APC Deputy National Women Leader Zainab Ibrahim stated that the party is pushing for sthe wift passage of the Special Seats Bill currently before the National Assembly, calling it a potential game changer for women in Nigeria. She noted that, for the first time, the Ministry of Women Affairs has received over ₦100 billion in budgetary allocation to pursue its key goals and assured that Nigerian women will stand firmly behind the president in 2027.