Real Madrid clinched a hard-fought 1-0 victory against Real Sociedad in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinal, a match overshadowed by incidents of racist abuse targeting Brazilian forward Vinicius Junior.

The only goal of the match came from fellow Brazilian Endrick who netted in the first half at Reale Arena in San Sebastian. However, the match was marred by controversy just before halftime when the game was briefly halted due to offensive chants aimed at Real Madrid defender Raul Asencio.

Video footage emerged on social media showing a Real Sociedad fan making monkey gestures directed at Vinicius Junior while the match was paused. This follows recent reports of similar chants aimed at Asencio who is currently under investigation by a Spanish court for allegedly sharing a sexually explicit video involving a minor.

Referee intervention was prompted after Vinicius reported the abusive chants leading to a temporary stoppage. Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti stated, “Vinicius spoke to the referee, the referee stopped the game, he applied the protocol that was what had to happen.” Ancelotti substituted Asencio at halftime opting for Lucas Vazquez and explained the decision: “I took him [Vinicius Jr] off because he was affected, and he had a yellow card. I preferred to take him off in case his feelings could affect the game.”

Real Sociedad forward Mikel Oyarzabal condemned the insults, stating, “The insults should be condemned. We don’t think this is the right way to express disagreement.” In response to the racism, the club displayed a message on the stadium’s big screen urging fans to reject racist chants and support their team with respect towards opponents.

Vinicius has been a frequent target of racial abuse in Spanish football with notable incidents recorded in the past year. In June, three fans were sentenced to prison for hate crimes against him marking a significant legal precedent in the fight against racism in football.

Despite the challenges, both teams had their chances, with Vinicius coming close to scoring and Real Madrid’s goalkeeper Andriy Lunin making critical saves to protect the lead. A dramatic end to the match saw Endrick strike the crossbar while Sociedad’s goalkeeper Alex Remiro made impressive saves to keep the scoreline intact.

In the other semifinal first leg, Atletico Madrid managed to draw 4-4 with Barcelona setting up a thrilling contest in the second leg of the competition.

Dr. Owen Menach, the Acting Chief Executive Officer of Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital and Director of Clinical Services and Surgery at the same facility, says Rebecca Cheptegei tragically passed away at 5 a.m. on Thursday due to full organ failure. “It is sad that we lost the patient early this morning after all her organs failed while we were doing our best to save her life,” he stated.

Dr. Tony Sabila, a family member, confirmed her death to Nation Sport, saying, “It is true that we lost our sister this morning, although the doctors tried to save her life, and I was there personally.”

Cheptegei, 33, suffered from 80 percent burns and was on life support due to the severity of the injuries which included being incubated and fully sedated.

The Kenyan government had announced on Tuesday September 4 that preparations were in place to airlift Cheptegei to Nairobi for specialized treatment, but unfortunately, this did not occur. Principal Secretary for Sports, Peter Tum, noted that discussions had taken place with Uganda’s Sports Minister, Peter Ogwang, regarding the airlift.

Athletics Kenya President Jack Tuwei condemned the incident that led to her injuries, emphasizing that no one should have to experience such a tragedy over property disputes, especially involving partners. “The incident that happened to our athlete from Uganda is really unfortunate and it’s sad because you can’t harm someone because of a disagreement. As a federation, we want to condemn this in the strongest possible terms because this is not the way we should live,” Tuwei asserted, also highlighting the importance of respecting life and living in harmony.

Arrangements for her burial are underway while investigations to establish what could have resulted into Cheptegei’s demise.

Manchester City stars Phil Foden and Bunny Shaw have been honored as the men’s and women’s PFA Players of the Year for the previous season at the PFA awards held on Tuesday evening. Foden, 24, played a pivotal role in Manchester City’s achievement of a fourth consecutive Premier League title, scoring 19 goals and providing eight assists, and his efforts have been recognized by his peers.

On the women’s side, Jamaican forward Bunny Shaw was the top scorer in the Women’s Super League, netting 21 goals, although Manchester City narrowly missed out on the title to Chelsea on goal difference.

Khadija Bunny Shaw poses with her PFA award (Photo Courtesy)

Chelsea attacking midfielder Cole Palmer received the men’s PFA Young Player of the Year award, while Manchester United midfielder Grace Clinton was honored with the women’s young player award after her impactful loan spell at Tottenham last season. Palmer finished second in the Premier League scoring charts with 22 goals and also led Chelsea in assists with 11. Clinton shone in a struggling Spurs side, contributing four goals and four assists in 20 WSL appearances.

Chelsea’s Cole Palmer poses with his PFA award (Photo Courtesy)

Fara Williams, the most capped player in England’s history with 172 appearances and 40 goals, received a PFA Merit award for her outstanding contributions to the game. Williams played a key role in helping England achieve third place at the 2015 World Cup and represented Team GB at the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Arsenal players dominated the PFA team of the year with Golden Glove winner David Raya, who had 16 clean sheets was joined by defenders William Saliba and Gabriel highlighting Arsenal’s strong defense. Saliba played every minute in the Premier League, while Gabriel had his best season yet after overcoming early transfer speculation. The PFA’s choice to include three center-backs in a four-man defense reflects current tactical trends.

Declan Rice, the £105 million signing, met Arsenal supporters’ expectations and improved their set-pieces. Martin Ødegaard didn’t match his previous season’s output, but his influence in the latter part of the campaign was significant.

Arsenal players from left David Raya, Gabriel Magalhaes, Martin Odegaard, William Saliba and Declan Rice at the PFA awards ceremony (Photo Courtesy)

Additionally, Lewington, 40, made history by breaking the EFL record for the most appearances with a single club, racking up 771 appearances for MK Dons last December. West Ham’s new signing Crysencio Summerville was named the Championship Player of the Year after scoring 21 goals for Leeds, who fell short of promotion in the play-off final. Alfie May, now with Birmingham, won the League One award with a league-high 23 goals for Charlton, while Notts County’s Jodi Jones claimed the League Two prize after providing a record 24 assists, marking the club’s return to the EFL since the 2018-19 season.

The PFA Teams of the Year featured the following players:

PFA team of the year 2024 ( Photo Courtesy)

Goalkeeper: David Raya (Arsenal)
Defenders: Kyle Walker (Man City), Gabriel (Arsenal), William Saliba (Arsenal), Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Midfielders: Declan Rice (Arsenal), Rodri (Man City), Martin Ødegaard (Arsenal)
Forwards: Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa), Erling Haaland (Man City), Phil Foden (Man City)

Arsenal Manager, Mikel Arteta hopes to welcome more new faces to Arsenal this summer with intentions of bolstering the club’s squad ahead of the 2024/2025 Premier League season.

The club have so far made permanent David Raya’s last season’s loan deal from Brentford and this leaves Arteta with a lot of work to do before team flies out to United States for a preseason tour in which they will play three friendly games.

The games will be against Bournemouth, Manchester United and Liverpool before hosting Bayer Leverkusen at home on August 7. The above not withstanding, www.kazofm.com has the latest Arsenal news and transfer gossip.

Arsenal have interest in Donyell Malen ,the Borussia Dortmund attacker who is considering a change of scenery after three years at the club. Malen who formerly played in England as a youth dreams of returning to play in the Premier League and he called this “a beautiful dream” .

Malen trained with Arsenal when he 17,18 years .Arsenal who are thought to be in the market for a player to rival Bukayo Saka would benefit from the services of their former academy player . Arsenal’s rumored interest in the 25-year-old may come as a surprise but if signed, the club will be familiar with his potential.

Kyetume FC has been sanctioned for violation of Article 31 of the FUFA Competitions Rules and Regulations following acts of hooliganism in their FUFA Big League match against Kitara FC on 20th April 2023 at Nakisunga Saza Ground.

The FUFA Competitions Disciplinary Panel (FCDP) has sanctioned Kyetume FC as follows;

1. Kyetume FC loses the match mentioned herein above by forfeiture.

2. A suspended deduction of two points and two goals should Kyetume FC be responsible for acts of hooliganism again.

3. A Cash fine of UGX 1M and should be paid by 2nd May 2023

5. A four match suspension for each for two Kyetume FC players Oplot Solomon and Patrick Mubiru.

6. Should the club and the players fail to heed to the sanction above, the CDP shall be constrained to take stringent disciplinary measures against them.

Three-time Commonwealth champion, Moses Kipsiro, 35, has revealed that he has never received his gift from the president. Kipsiro disclosed the car was picked from Victoria Motors by individuals from State House but seven years later he has not had any breakthrough in tracing the individuals who picked the car.

Kipsiro was rewarded with a car by President Museveni for making the country proud when he struck gold for Uganda in the 10,000-metre race during the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland.

Kipsiro explained that in 2014, upon his return to Dublin for treatment on his knee injury, he received a call from Victoria Motors informing him that the car promised to him from State House had been released. Kipsiro had decided to give up on the car as he struggled with injuries and oother personal set backs which frustrated him further.

Former state minister for sports Charles Bakkabulindi has expressed committment to assist Kipsiro get a Toyota Pajero car, which President Museveni gifted the athlete after his gold medal triumph.

Bakkabulindi noted that several sportsmen and women have benefited from President Museveni’s prerogative to reward success over the last 10 years.

In fact, recently Joshua Cheptegei, Peruth Chemutai, Stephen Kiprotich and Jacob Kiplimo, who won medals at the 2020 were rewarded for their international success received their brand new double-cabin pickups.

So, who took Kipsiro’s car?

Story compiled by Zaid Nanyonyi