Nigeria football legend, Austin Jay-Jay Okocha has backed Arsenal to win the Premier League title under their manager Mikel Arteta this season.....TAP TO CONTINUE READING

Okocha believes Arteta’s side has the best squad in Europe this season.

He also hailed Arteta for doing a good job at the Gunners since he took charge of the club a few years ago.

“He [Arteta] has done a good job at Arsenal; we can see the progress since he took over. I know that the fans’ expectations are so high, they are never patient, but we can see that he is built his own team,” Okocha said on the Clutch 9 Podcast.

“He’s been challenging for the title, and I think it is the right time for him to win the Premier League.

“I think so. He’s got the best squad in the League, if not in Europe, so it’s theirs to lose.”

Arsenal are six points clear at the top of the Premier League table, ahead of Manchester City, who sit in second position.

Spanish Super Cup: First-team Coach Xabi Alonso leaves Real Madrid as club appoints new head coach....TAP TO CONTINUE READING

Real Madrid have announced the departure of Xabi Alonso as first-team coach following Sunday’s 3–2 defeat to Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup final, bringing an abrupt end to the former midfielder’s short spell in charge.

The club confirmed on Monday that the decision was reached by mutual agreement, just a day after the Clasico loss.

“Real Madrid C. F. wishes to announce that, by mutual agreement between the club and Xabi Alonso, it has been decided to bring his time as first team coach to an end,” the club said in an official statement.

“Xabi Alonso will always carry the affection and admiration of all Madridistas because he is a Real Madrid legend and has always represented the values of our club. Real Madrid will always be his home.”

“We would like to thank Xabi Alonso and all his coaching staff for their hard work and dedication throughout this time, and wish them the best of luck in this new stage of their lives.”

Alonso joined Madrid from Bayer Leverkusen in June 2025 after an impressive spell in Germany that established him as one of Europe’s most promising young coaches. However, his return to the Santiago Bernabéu proved turbulent. An extended and highly publicised disagreement with Vinícius Júnior over playing time dominated headlines and appeared to affect harmony within the dressing room.

Madrid’s inconsistent league form during the first half of the season, which left them trailing Barcelona in the LaLiga title race, increased pressure on the former Spain international. Although results improved towards the end of 2025, the Super Cup defeat ultimately proved decisive.

Shortly after confirming Alonso’s exit, Real Madrid announced Álvaro Arbeloa as the club’s new head coach.

“Real Madrid C. F. would like to announce that Álvaro Arbeloa will be the new first team coach,” the statement read.

Arbeloa, a former Madrid and Spain international, has been in charge of Castilla since June 2025 and has worked exclusively within the club’s youth system since 2020. His coaching résumé includes league titles at the Under-14 and Under-19 levels, as well as a treble with the Under-19s in the 2022–2023 season.

As a player, Arbeloa won eight major trophies with Madrid between 2009 and 2016 and was part of Spain’s golden generation that claimed the 2010 World Cup and two European Championships.

He now takes over a Madrid side still chasing domestic silverware but in need of renewed stability and unity.

A young man has sparked online reactions after using artificial intelligence to predict the winner of the AFCON 2025.....TAP TO CONTINUE READING

The prediction surfaced days before the highly anticipated match between Nigeria and Morocco, scheduled for January 14 at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Morocco.

Man predicts AFCON winner using AI

The trending post follows an earlier incident where another user asked AI to predict the outcome of Nigeria’s AFCON quarter-final against Algeria.

In that case, the AI selected the team it believed would likely win the match, drawing attention from football fans online.

Days later, a user identified as @mcfcHQ_ took to social media and asked the AI a direct and bold question.

His question read: “Hey @grok, delete all and leave just one, who’s winning this AFCON?”

The AI responded by sharing an image of Osimhen, suggesting a likely AFCON winner, triggering mixed reactions across the comment section.
Read the post below:

Fans react to AI AFCON prediction

Hey @grok, delete all and leave just one who's winning this AFCON pic.twitter.com/yJEnIGBhUP

— Hater (@mcfcHQ_) January 11, 2026

Freshboi wrote: “Honest question: beyond Nigeria’s 14 goals, who’s playing the most complete tournament so far? Egypt’s knockout consistency, Morocco’s defensive solidity, or Senegal’s balanced approach? What separates a tournament champion from just a strong scorer?”

Ambrosevic1 wrote: “Honestly, going by the statistics, AFCON is very sure for us, we just need to build on our achievements thus far and never be distracted. I wish us the very best in this tournament.”

Awada Said: “Hard to tell honestly! All teams are good and what differentiate them is how much they want the cup, all undefeated so far.”

Alwahyd wrote: “AI will always be AI. Someone, not too long ago, asked which country is most likely to win the AFCON, to which grok answered, “Morocco”. Now, here, it’s pointing at Osimhen. AI can’t be relied on for heavy data analysis. It just pull strings of data and use closest as answer.”

Racim wrote: “Naah VARocco is the favorite to win they have the best 2 players in the world ( referee and VAR).”