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Futbol

Arsenal To Pay Big Wages For Williams - Friday's Gossip

Arsenal will have to make Nico Williams one of their top earners, Manchester United chasing striker Lorenzo Lucca, Tottenham ready to fight for Dejan Kulusevski. Arsenal will have to make Spain winger Nico Williams, 22, one of club's top earners to sign him from Athletic Bilbao this summer. (Telegraph - subscription required), external Manchester United have made Udinese and Italy striker Lorenzo Lucca, 24, their top target going into the summer transfer window. (Sun - subscription required), external Tottenham hope to avoid losing Sweden midfielder Dejan Kulusevski, 24, this summer amid interest from AC Milan and Napoli. (GiveMeSport), external Bayer Leverkusen have made contact with representatives of German Stefan Ortega, 32, and could sign the Manchester City goalkeeper for around 8m euros (£6.7m). (Bild - in German, subscription required), external Deportivo La Coruna winger Yeremay Hernandez, 22, is attracting interest from Arsenal and Chelsea. (Teamtalk), external England forward Marcus Rashford, 27, will have to consider taking a wage drop if he is to seal a permanent move to Aston Villa from Manchester United this summer. (Football Insider), external Up to 11 Arsenal players, including Ukraine left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko, 28, and Poland defender Jakub Kiwior, 25, could depart this summer to bolster the club's spending power in the transfer window. (Mirror), external Sheffield Wednesday's German boss Danny Rohl is a possible target for Leicester City next season if Dutch manager Ruud van Nistelrooy leaves the club in the summer. (Mail), external Aston Villa have a clear path to pursue Real Madrid's 20-year-old winger Arda Guler after Liverpool ended their interest in the Turkey international. (Teamtalk), external England midfielder Kobbie Mainoo, 19, remains fully committed to Manchester United, despite interest from Real Madrid and Inter Milan. (GiveMeSport), external

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Futbol

When Could Liverpool Seal Premier League Title?

Liverpool's march to the Premier League title seems inevitable. On Wednesday they defeated Everton 1-0 in the Merseyside derby to restore a 12-point lead at the top of the table with eight games left to play, a day after Arsenal had cut the gap to nine by beating Fulham. BBC Sport looks at when Liverpool could wrap up their second Premier League title - and record-equalling 20th overall. It is fair to say the Anfield club are champions elect now - so it is a matter of when and not if. Statisticians Opta give Liverpool a 99.1% chance of winning the title. Arsenal, who are 12 points behind, have just a 0.9% chance of finishing top. The Reds, who have lost just once in the league this season, need 13 points out of a possible 24 to guarantee the title, with Arsenal only able to obtain a maximum of 85 points. Twelve points could also be enough given Liverpool's goal difference is vastly superior to Arsenal's (currently +43 to +30). In fact, given their goal difference supremacy, Slot's side might only need three wins - as long as one of those is against the Gunners - to secure the title. The earliest date Liverpool could win their 20th league title is 20 April, when they play Leicester away. For that scenario to play out, Arsenal need to lose their next two matches against Everton and Brentford, and third-placed Nottingham Forest need to drop points against either Aston Villa or Everton, with Liverpool beating Fulham and West Ham in that time. That would leave Arsenal 18 points behind Liverpool with 18 points left to play for, and a point against Leicester would be enough for Liverpool to claim the title. 5 April: Fulham (A) 12 April: West Ham (H) 19 April: Leicester (A) 26 April: Tottenham (H) 3 May: Chelsea (A) 11 May: Arsenal (H) 18 May: Brighton (A) 25 May: Crystal Palace (H) Liverpool would need everything to go their way to equal their own record of winning the title with seven games to go in 2019-20. Equalling the five games left of Manchester United (2000-01) and Manchester City (2017-18) is more achievable. United (1999-2000 and 2012-13) and Arsenal (2003-04) did it with four games to spare. The Reds know that if they win it, it will be earlier in the year than their only other Premier League title - which came on 25 June 2020 in the Covid-interupted season. Arne Slot's side would have to extend their lead at the top by eight points to record the biggest margin of victory in a Premier League season. Manchester City finished 19 points clear of Manchester United in 2017-18 when they won the Premier League title with a record 100 points. The Reds can get a maximum of 97 points.

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News_Naija

Eight Banks Spend N4.61tn On Salaries, Operations

The total expenses of eight Nigerian banks soared to N4.61tn in 2024, driven by increases in both personnel and operating costs. The data reveals a 107.8 per cent rise from N2.2tn in 2023, highlighting the growing financial pressure on the banking sector. This was based on the annual results of the financial institutions filed with the Nigerian Exchange Limited for the period ended December 2024. In the period under review, First HoldCo Plc reported a total of N568.3bn in operating expenses, up from N341.5bn in 2023, reflecting a 66.4 per cent increase year-on-year. Personnel expenses for the group stood at N308.5bn, marking a significant surge from N175.9bn in 2023, a growth of 75.3 per cent. Fidelity Bank Plc saw its total operating expenses increase to N242.7bn from N135.3bn in 2023, representing a 79.3 per cent rise. Personnel expenses rose to N73.5bn, compared to N52.6bn in 2023, reflecting a 39.6 per cent increase. For United Bank for Africa Plc, the bank’s operating expenses rose to N682.9bn, an increase from N372.8bn in 2023, reflecting an 83.2 per cent jump. Guaranty Trust Holding Company reported a sharp rise in its operating expenses, which surged to N259.6bn from N166.2bn in 2023, reflecting a 56.2 per cent increase. Personnel expenses for the group hit N85.4bn, more than doubling from N45.1bn in the previous year, a 89.3 per cent increase. Zenith Bank Plc experienced an increase in operating expenses to N586.6bn, up from N291.7bn in 2023, representing an 101.1 per cent rise. Personnel expenses for Zenith Bank stood at N204.2bn, compared to N124.4bn in 2023, an increase of 64.2 per cent. Wema Bank also recorded a significant rise in both operating expenses and personnel expenses, which surged to N77.5bn from N45.9bn in 2023, marking a 68.9 per cent rise. Personnel expenses stood at N45.5bn, a 70.3 per cent increase from the previous year’s N26.8bn. At FCMB Group Plc, operating expenses surged to N48.3bn, an increase from N32.7bn in 2023, reflecting a 47.8 per cent rise. Personnel expenses for FCMB grew to N79.3bn, up from N49.6bn in 2023, a growth of 59.9 per cent. Finally, Access Holdings Plc reported N960.8bn in operating expenses, up from N465.7bn in 2023, a 106.3 per cent increase. Personnel expenses stood at N381.4bn, a sharp rise from N167.9bn the previous year, showing a 127.5 per cent increase. The PUNCH reported that the combined operating expenses of 10 Nigerian banks rose by 42.51 per cent to N3.23tn in 2023 compared to N2.26tn in the previous year.

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Futbol

What Can Happen & When In Final Weeks Of Scottish Season?

Celtic are 13 points clear with seven games left as they close in on a 13th Scottish top-flight title in 14 seasons. Brendan Rodgers' side need – at most - three more wins to secure the trophy. But they could be confirmed as champions as early as next Saturday, should they beat St Johnstone and Kilmarnock, and Rangers lose to Hibernian this weekend. However, if the Ibrox side win, they will be guaranteed the second Champions League place regardless of any another results. Whoever finishes third and fourth will be in Europe, as will the division's fifth-placed side should the Scottish Cup winners be one of the Premiership's top four. The composition of the top and bottom six will be decided by the end of next weekend at the latest – more on that here – but the fight to avoid relegation will continue. Bottom side St Johnstone are currently five adrift of Dundee and six behind Kilmarnock. Ross County are nine clear, with Motherwell and St Mirren a further three points ahead. With the teams all playing each other again post-split, there is still plenty scope for movement between now and 18 May. Falkirk are eight points clear of Ayr United and Livingston with 15 points left to play for. They are close to securing consecutive crowns. So close that Livingston manager Davie Martindale has already conceded the title. Nothing can be decided this weekend but a maximum of eight points from their final five games would do it for John McGlynn's leaders. In fact, they could even win it as early as next Friday should results go their way on Saturday. Ayr and Livingston do have play-off places tied up and look set to be joined by Partick Thistle, who have a six-point cushion over Raith Rovers and an advantage of seven over Morton. The battle at the bottom is far less clear cut. Airdrieonians - rooted in 10th all season - are now within five points of Hamilton Academical, six off Dunfermline Athletic, and nine off freefalling Queen's Park. The bottom side goes down, while the team in ninth will be in a play-off semi-final with the fourth-placed team in League 1. Arbroath are in good shape at the summit - eight clear with 15 to play for. Victory on Saturday would be all but enough should Stenhousemuir and Cove Rangers lose at home, with the former visiting Gayfield next Saturday - live on the BBC. Regardless of other results, another eight points will seal an immediate return to the second tier. Cove and Stenhousemuir seem almost certain to be in the play-offs, with Queen of the South, Alloa Athletic, Montrose and Kelty Hearts all still in the mix to take the final place. Dumbarton have already been relegated - a 15-point deduction for entering administration scuppering their season. Inverness Caledonian Thistle are still battling to avoid the same punishment causing them similar strife. They head Annan Athletic on goal difference in the fight to avoid the relegation play-off place, with struggling Kelty and potentially even Montrose not yet safe. The title is a two-way battle between Peterhead and East Fife, with the former one point clear with five to play. Could it go down to their penultimate-day meeting in the north east at the end of April? Whichever one misses out will be in the play-offs, with Edinburgh City and Elgin City front runners to join them given they both hold a six-point advantage over Spartans and a lead of seven over Stirling Albion. Bonnyrigg Rose are three adrift of Forfar Athletic at the bottom, having been deducted six points after issues with their pitch and, consequently, their licence. Given they play the top two in their next two matches, before visiting Forfar, it will be a big few weeks for Rose if they are to avoid running the risk of dropping back out of the league. Clyde and Stranraer are probably just out of reach in seventh and eighth. Brora Rangers and Brechin are locked on the same points with two games remaining in the Highland League. But Brora's superior goal difference means consecutive wins would secure the crown and a play-off against East Kilbride, who retained their Lowland League title on 2 April.