Sport
Maresca Calls Palmer a Top Player and Urges Him to Keep Giving His Best
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has openly praised Cole Palmer, calling him the best player in the team. However, he wants the young star to show more drive right from the start of games. Palmer had earlier admitted he was “bored” during the UEFA Europa Conference League final against Real Betis, saying he was tired of passing the ball backwards and sideways.
Despite Chelsea conceding early in that game, Palmer stepped up with two key assists, helping the Blues to a 4-1 win. In their recent Club World Cup opener against LAFC, Palmer played seven passes into the final third and created a chance, though he didn’t get on the scoresheet.
Speaking after that match, Maresca said, “This is the version of Cole we love to see. After the Conference League final, he said he got bored and decided to change the game—and he did. “I told him the next day, ‘Why wait so long? Why not start like that from the first minute? Against LAFC, he did just that. He played the way we’ve been asking. Cole is a top player, and when he performs like this, we’re very happy. Hopefully he keeps it up.”
Super Eagles defender Calvin Bassey has opened up about a difficult period in his career, revealing that he almost stepped away from football.
Speaking during a recent interview, Bassey shared that he once made a personal promise to himself to quit pursuing football professionally if he failed to secure a spot at a professional club.
“I remember being 15 and going into my final year, and I told myself that if I didn’t get into a professional club, I would quit football. It was that simple,” he said.
“I would just stop pursuing it seriously and only play for fun. Thank God I eventually got a club, because I honestly don’t know where I would be otherwise.”
It has been reported that the Confederation of African Football (CAF) fined Egypt $5,000 following their clash with Zimbabwe for failing to manage post-match media obligations.
It was noted that after the match, the Egyptian players ignored the media. This action was said to be a violation of CAF’s media regulations, which led to the fine being imposed.
Head of the Super Eagles, Eric Chelle, shared that the big-name players on the team are not happy about being benched.
He recalled when he took out Samuel Chukwueze during the match against Tanzania.
“Yes, of course, we’ve in this team a lot of big names. They are competitors; they aren’t happy when they go to the bench,” Chelle said at his post-match interview.”
“My job is to make choices, and we’re playing a 4-4-2 diamond, and at this moment I feel we have to protect the wing.”
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Super Eagles Star Calvin Bassey Opens Up on Nearly Walking Away from Football
