Real Madrid offer world-record €155m deal to keep Cristiano Ronaldo

The Portuguese superstar is in advanced negotiations over a five-year contract that will be the most lucrative in the history of football ever. Cristiano Ronaldo is close to agreeing a new contract with Real Madrid which will make him the world's highest-earning footballer,

Madrid are in advanced talks with Ronaldo's representatives over a deal totalling around €155 million over five years, with the Portuguese forward set to earn €15m annually after tax in what will be the most lucrative contract in the history of the game.

Ronaldo, who has scored 201 goals in just 199 games in his four seasons at the Santiago Bernabeu, raised alarm bells on Thursday when he posted a cryptic message on Twitter which read simply: "All the news about my renewal with Real Madrid are false." Days earlier, however, he revealed his intention to remain at the Spanish side beyond his current contract, which expires in 2015.

After Portugal's 1-0 win over Russia in a World Cup qualifier last week, Ronaldo said: "I haven't spoken to anyone yet, [but] I know we will reach an agreement on a new contract. The most important thing now is the national team." And he also claimed his future has nothing to do with the departure of coach Jose Mourinho. "I am not worried by what Mourinho does; I am concerned with Real Madrid and my future," he said in May. The pair's relationship, once excellent, deteriorated in recent months following an angry dispute over a tactical correction made by Mourinho in a game against Valencia in January.

Nigeria must take chances in this Confederation Cup

Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi has pleaded with his players to be more ruthless in front of goal in the Confederations Cup after a string of missed chances in their 6-1 win over Tahiti.

Despite the heavy margin of victory on Monday night, the Super Eagles wasted a number of opportunities when one-on-one with the South Pacific islanders' goalkeeper Xavier Simin.

The five-goal triumph leaves the African champions top of Group B, however, and Keshi insists that he is pleased with the team's performance ahead of their game with Uruguay.

"We had some chances, they needed to bury the goals," he told reporters after the match. "When you play a game like this you tend to give the opposition team the confidence to come back.

"They scored their goal and reacted a little bit. I'm happy with how we did and we'll see how we get on against Uruguay."

Support in Belo Horizonte was largely in favour of their Oceanic opposition and Nigerian goals were not celebrated with much fervour, but Keshi dismissed this as having an effect on his players at the Mineirao.

"Most of the supporters are Tahitians or came out to boost their morale which is normal," he added. "As a professional player you don't need to worry about that."

Following their clash with Uruguay on Thursday, Nigeria will face a final group game against Spain on Sunday.

The Super Eagles coach was unconcerned that the crowd favored Tahiti during their Confederations Cup clash and insists he is happy with his team's performance, but all the same Nigerian term went home with many goal

Arsenal braced for Koscielny bids from Barcelona and Bayern Munich

Barcelona and Bayern Munich have both made enquiries for the France international and are prepared to offer him a bumper pay rise to move to the continent while the Gunners have slapped a €23.5 million price tag on the 27-year-old in an attempt to ward off interest from the two big hitters.

, with a growing acceptance among the Emirates Stadium hierarchy that they are vulnerable if the centre-back pushes for a move.

"Laurent is part of a shortlist of two clubs," said Courbis. "Bayern or Barca have not contacted the player to discuss a possible transfer but I know that [he] is part of a shortlist of three or four players from both clubs."

Arsenal fear that Koscielny could be tempted by a big offer from either team. The 27-year-old has four years remaining on the £75,000-a-week contract that he signed last summer but the two continental giants could both offer him a salary worth more than £100,000 a week as well as a chance to play for two of Europe's elite clubs.

Koscielny caught the eye of Guardiola and Barcelona's top brass when Arsenal beat the recently crowned Spanish champions 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium in a first-leg Champions League tie in February 2011. He was also outstanding in the Gunners' 2-0 victory over Bayern Munich in the Allianz Arena in the first knockout stage of this season's tournament.

The Gunners face a battle to hang on to their in-demand defender this summer following enquiries from the two European giants for the €23.5 million-rated Frenchman

Nigerian Eagles guarantees their progression from their World Cup Qualifying Group

 Nigeria limped towards a place at Brazil next summer with an underwhelming draw away against Namibia.
After the Brave Warriors had surprisingly taken the lead at the Sam Nujoma Stadium through Deon Kavendji, the Super Eagles responded through the unlikely hero of Godfrey Oboabona to secure a point with just seven minutes remaining.
In the opening stages of the contest, Koln forward Anthony Ujah - preferred to both Ideye Brown and Joseph Akpala from the start - burst through on goal, only to be bundled to the ground by a Namibian defender, but the referee was unmoved in appeals for a straight red card.
As the first half wore on, Keshi’s men sought the goal that would hand them near-complete control in the contest. Ujah was the most likely to break the deadlock, but lost his nerve with every chance that came his way, sending a whole flurry of shots skywards or into the arms of Virgil Vries in the home goal.
Ahmed Musa, with his raw pace and direct running, was a threat, but behind him, John Obi Mikel and Ogenyi Onazi were predominantly shackled by their opposite numbers as the visitors continued to struggle.
As Nigeria’s profligacy continued, their hosts began to grow in confidence, and instigated several more forays forward when the opportunities arose. It was from one of these that the opening goal sprang, with Kavandji on hand to sumptuously volley the ball past the stranded Vincent Enyeama, into the bottom-left corner.
Nigeria, with their World Cup qualification thrown into doubt, needed to show some of the mettle that saw them lift the Africa Cup of Nations, and with seven minutes remaining they did just that.
Centre-back Godfrey Oboabona stepped up to take a freekick from the edge of the box and fired a delightful finish into the back of the net to send the visiting fans into jubilation, but although they pressed forward for the closing stages they were unable to find a second goal. 
"but  ambit all Stephen Keshi's team fought back to secure a point away against Namibia, but it is not a result that guarantees their progression from their World Cup Qualifying Group"www.topspotafrica.com/afcon
With Malawi and Kenya having shared the points earlier in the day, a win for Nigeria would have guaranteed their progression from Group F, and ensured their safe passage into the CAF play-off round.
Instead, they were unable to beat the side ranked 125th in the world, and will now need to avoid defeat against Malawi in Calabar in order to advance.

Stephen Keshi: We are in Namibia to win...

Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi has said that his team will confront Namibia in Wednesday’s World Cup qualifier with the aim of winning their second consecutive game on the road. The Nigerian trainer said he was impressed with the Namibian team after their first round World Cup qualifier in Calabar last year. The Brave Warriors managed to keep the Super Eagles at bay for most of the match, before Ikechukwu Uche scored the lone goal 10 minutes from time.

“Namibia has some very good players, and it is a good team,” Keshi said.

Regarding the sudden resignation of Namibian coach Roger Palmgren, Keshi said it should not have a big influence on the game.

“I’m not in a position to know how it will affect the Namibian players, but I want to imagine if my coach leaves before a crucial game, the morale of the team might be down a bit. But the good thing is that he hasn’t been long with the players I think it was about a month or so and it’s not as if he has been around for six months or a year - so that might not be too heavy for the players,” he said.

Keshi said their preparations were on track although he was not impressed with the cold conditions.

“We tried to prepare ourselves but the weather is very cold. I would think this is winter time in Namibia, but we’ll get used to it when the game comes on Wednesday. Most of the boys are used to it so it’s not a big thing,” he said.

In the day's other game, Malawi host Kenya in Blantyre as they seek to better their fortunes after drawing against Namibia last week. Malawi are second on the table with six points while bottom-placed Kenya have two points.

Iroha tasks Eagles on improvement - News - Kick Off

Ben Iroha, who played alongside Keshi in the Super Eagles in the 1990's, told Vanguard newspaper that the team still miss Emenike and Moses as they need to improve in attack following the series of missed chances against Kenya. "Our victory over Kenya was a big boost for us, but it is not over yet until we get the ticket to Brazil; we are almost one leg in Brazil. "Namibia is a good side and playing them in their home is not going to be a mean task. Eagles have improved going by their away record, I don’t think they have lost any match. "I just hope they put the same energy they applied against Kenya in this match against Namibia so that we can get something out of it. "We still miss Emmanuel Emenike in the attack, we need his strength to jack up the team like in the days of Daniel Amokachi. We also missed the striking skill and speed of the Chelsea star, Victor Moses. I hope he recovers quick that will help us a lot," he adds. A victory for Nigeria in today's game will seal qualification for the next round of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers, making the remaining game against Malawi a mere formality.

The Nigeria team that will be facing Namibia today

Vincent Enyeama Goalkeeper 13 Fegor Ogude Midfielder 16 Austin Ejide Goalkeeper 15 Michael Babatunde Midfielder 23 Chigozie Agbim Goalkeeper 17 Ogenyi Onazi Midfielder 2 Godfrey Oboabona Defender 18 Emeka Eze Midfielder 3 Uwa Elderson Echiejile Defender 19 Sunday Mba Midfielder 5 E. Ambrose Defender 20 Nnamdi Oduamadi Midfielder 6 Azubuike Egwueke Defender 7 Ahmed Musa Striker 12 Solomon Kwambe Defender 8 B. Ideye Striker 21 Francis Benjamin Defender 9 Joseph Akpala Striker 22 Kenneth Omeruo Defender 11 Mohammed Gambo Striker 4 John Ogochukwu Ogu Midfielder 14 Anthony Ujah Striker 10 John Obi Mikel Midfielder - Stephen Okechukwu Keshi

Isco slams Uefa treatment of Malaga

Malaga starlet Isco has slammed Uefa's "embarrassing and shabby" decision to uphold the club's ban from European competition. On Tuesday, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld the initial sanction imposed by European football's governing body which suspends los Boquerones from competing in the Champions League or Europa League after they failed to adhere to Financial Fair Play regulations. Isco, who is currently on Spain Under-21 duty in the European championship in Israel, has accused Uefa of being more severe with Malaga than they would with other clubs who commited the same offences. He wrote on Twitter: "It is embarrassing and shabby. It is completely unfair that they have treated Malaga different than many other teams with many more irregularities and debts. "They have taken away what we have earned on the field. Neither the players nor fans deserve this. I have no more to say." The Andalusians, whose sixth-placed finish in the Liga standings last season would have seen them gain entry to the Europa League, will now be stripped of their place in favour of either Sevilla or Rayo Vallecano. this means that favoritism is every where or what do you think about this scenario?

Perez warns Juventus: €30m for Higuain is a waste of time

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has advised Juventus to offer in excess of €30 million for Gonzalo Higuain or "don't bother showing up." The Argentina international is said to be itching for a move away from the Bernabeu this summer, with the Bianconeri and Arsenal both understood to be keen on adding the 25-year-old to their ranks this summer. The Italian champions are believed to be leading the hunt for the want-away striker, with club officials reportedly preparing to table a €22m bid, but Perez has warned that such an offer would not even be given time of day in the Spanish capital. He told Mediaset: "If Juventus are thinking about offering €30m for him then it would be better if they don’t even turn up because that will not be enough. "But we have not yet received any offers for Gonzalo and that is including Juventus."