According to a press release by CAF on Monday, Video Assistant Referee (VAR) will be used in the semifinals and final of the inaugural TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Champions League in Cairo, Egypt.
The VAR will help referees in making decisions on clear and obvious errors, after a debatable goal-line incident in the game between Rivers Angels of Nigeria and Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies of South Africa on Matchday two in the group stage.
This is yet another milestone by CAF and a clear demonstration of the organization’s commitment not only to promote women’s football in Africa but to advance professionalism.
Since the opening game of this competition on 5 November 2021, CAF has been overwhelmed by the response from the global community. Matches have been watched in over 30 countries including Africa, South America, Oceania, Europe and South America.
The semi-finals will be contested at the Al-Salam Stadium, Cairo, by Hasaacas Ladies of Ghana, Malabo Kings of Equatorial Guinea, Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies of South Africa and FAR Rabat (ASFAR) of Morocco, on Monday, 15 November 2021.
The final will be played on Friday, 19 November 2021 at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo.
PSG will certainly ruminate for a long time on the non-postponement of the desired match as demanded from FFF on Friday. But, can the particularly difficult week experienced by the Parisians fully explain the debacle suffered this Sunday at the hands of archrival Lyon?
Catarina Macario was mowed down in the penalty area by Ilestedt. The American stepped forward to take the penalty herself as she calmly converted to opened the scoring in the 15th minute. Three minutes later, Bacha struck and crossed for Van De Donk, who beat Dudek to doubled the lead.
Completely absent physically and mentally, the reigning French champions lost Ashley Lawrence to a straight red card for a foul on Melvine Malard in the 26th minute.
Malard’s header in the 53rd minute extended the hosts’ lead to 3-0 before Spaniard Damarris Egurrola headed home the fourth from a cross in the 60th minute.
In the 75th minute, PSG scored a consolation goal through Ilestedt who headed from Christiane Endler’s assist. The moment which gave Lyon the opportunity to make a significant substitution as Van De Donk makes way for Ada Hegerberg who returned after 20 months of absence due to two injuries to the right knee and left tibia.
Four minutes after coming off the bench, the Norwegian scored her double in the 79th and 82nd minute. She had not scored since December 8, 2019, during a Lyon-Metz (6-0) where she then scored a hat-trick
Lyon thus won the first duel of the championship against PSG and took a big option for the title before the return match at the end of May 2022.
Les Rhodaniennes are three points ahead of the French champions who had ended Lyon’s fourteen (14) consecutive title reign, last spring with the added bonus of a better goal difference (+37 against +18).
Chelsea took advantage of Arsenal dropped points to edged close to the top of the league table
League leaders, Arsenal FC dropped two points on Saturday after a 1-1 draw with Tottenham.
Tottenham looked on course for a first-ever WSL victory in the fixture after Rachel Williams’ 65th opener which saw the Gunners fall behind for the first time in the league this season.
The hosts were denied a huge win in stoppage time as Vivianne Miedema saves Arsenal by heading home from a late corner.
The defending Champions, Chelsea women closed the gap at the top of the league table to a point after a 0-4 away win over Manchester City at the Academy Stadium on Sunday.
The Emma Hayes’ Blues took advantage of a defense error as Jessie Fleming goes around the goalkeeper for Chelsea’s first goal just two minutes into the game. Another mistake in the additional minutes right on the stroke of half-time and Sam Kerr picked up the knock-down to doubled Chelsea’s lead.
In the 52nd minute, Fran Kirby curls a third into the far corner before Magdalena Eriksson completed the rout three minutes later with a beautiful header.
Fifth-placed Manchester United were forced to a 1-1 draw by Everton FC. Ella Toone completed a breath-taking counter attack to give the Reds the lead after 10 minutes, but a second-half equaliser from Simone Magill saw the spoils shared.
Arsenal still maintains the top position on the league table with 19 points from seven games, a point ahead of Chelsea FC.
Inma’s double and Payne’s header led to victory for Sevilla in a five-goal thriller match.
Nigerian international, Toni Oyedupe Payne scored her second league goal of the 2021/2022 Spanish Primera Iberdrola season as her side, Sevilla defeaated league newcomers, Villareal 2-3 on Sunday.
Inma Gabarro netted brace in the space of two minutes (22, 24) to give Sevilla FC a two-goal lead at halftime before Javiera Toro’s own goal in the 49th minute reduced Villareal’s deficit.
Rosa Otermín’s boots came a measured center from the left so that Toni Payne headed in the 70th minute to add another goal for the visitors. But, in the final stretch of the meeting, Belén Martinez would further reduce the differences for the hosts, but the goal did not have a greater impact and the three points travel to the capital of Seville.
Sevilla FC Femenino occupies the seventh position on the league table as it continues to establish itself in the upper-middle zone of the table with 15 points to its credit and waiting to host Oshoala’s FC Barcelona next week at the Jesús Navas Stadium in what will be the last match before of the November break.
On Friday, PSG’s request for Sunday’s league game away to Lyon to be postponed was turned down by the French Football Federation (FFF)
Leonardo Araújo, Paris Saint Germain sporting director had requested for the game to be postponed, citing the Hamraoui-Diallo incident and its consequences on the Parisian squad.
“We are surprised and disappointed that the Federation has twice rejected our request for postponement,” explains the Brazilian. We had all the reasons to obtain the postponement, given what happened. It’s a lack of sensitivity. We don’t understand.” Leonardo said.
This is the first time Lyon and PSG are meeting in a competitive game this season with Lyon currently top the Division One (D1) Arkema table on goal difference and PSG directly behind them.
PSG’s coach Ollé-Nicolle is confident that his team will do everything necessary to make life difficult for Lyon, in Sunday’s highly-anticipated D1 Arkema League game.
“We are not going to park the bus in Lyon, the whole team will have to continue its recovery and play collectively. We will do everything possible to thwart Lyon’s plan, we know that that are a very good team and continue in our will. Our plan is to recover the ball well, to defend well, and to establish our game. We are going to go to Lyon with the same considerations.” – Ollé-Nicolle after the Champions League win against Real Madrid.
PSG won the League last season to end Lyonnais 14 year reign, and also knocked out Lyonnais in the quarterfinals of last season’s Champions League.
Wolfsburg dethroned their archrival as the leader of the FLYERALARM Women’s Bundesliga and move top of the table for the first time this season.
The She-Wolfs upset 2020/2021 German Bundesliga Women’s Champions, Bayern Munich 0-1 at the FC Bayern Campus in front of 1,931 spectators in the Bavarian capital on Saturday to move a point ahead of its adversaries at the top of the table.
Despite the back and forth of scoring chances, there was nothing to separate the two sides at halftime.
After a cross from Huth, Waßmuth rises to the header and hits the crossbar, the rebounds serves as a template for Kathrin-Julia Hendrich as the former Bayern player has no trouble decapitating the leather over the line to finally broke the deadlock for the visitors and 2019/2020 league winners in the 69th minute.
The defeat made it a back-to-back loss for Bayern Munich in all competitions after going down 2-1 to Lyon in the UEFA Women’s Champions League earlier this week.
The She-Wolfs moved to the top of the league table with 19 points from eight games ahead of Bayern Munich and Eintracht Frankfurt with 18 points apiece.
“That was the best home game for me that we have played so far. Wolfsburg probably doesn’t know how they won the game yet. Of course I’m disappointed, but not with my team, but with the result. I think we had 12-2 shots on goal. Even if Almuth Schult has kept outstanding, there just has to be a goal. We played a great game, but football is cruel sometimes. Now let’s get up and look ahead.” – annoyed head coach Jens Scheuer after the bitter 1-0 defeat
“This victory is a snapshot, as it has been in the past few weeks. We are still on the path of development and we believe in our path, I felt that today.” – Tommy Stroot on the victory.
There is a new twist to the case of Kheira Hamraoui’s attack
According to Romain Molina, the Police investigating the attack on PSG’s Kheira Hamraoui are keeping a close eye on links to former Barcelona director Eric Abidal and those around him, notably due to a phone chip.
Hamraoui was attacked on her way back from a club event, accompanied by two teammates. She had been near her home and sitting in a car with teammate, Aminata Diallo at the wheel, when two masked individuals appeared, one of whom dragged her out of the car. The attacker then struck her with an iron bar multiple times on the legs for several minutes, before escaping.
The former Barcelona player, who returned to PSG this summer, was rumored to be in a complicated relationship with former Barcelona director, Eric Abidal, and has been receiving some weird calls lately before the incident.
Her teammate Aminata Diallo was earlier arrested on Thursday with an alleged connection to the incident but has been released with no charges has investigation continues.
Super Eagles of Nigeria defeated Liberia 0-2 in its fifth group game of Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers on Saturday.
Odion Ighalo who was invited for the game for the first time since 2019 didn’t make the matchday squad as coach Gernot Rohr started the game with Maduka Okoye, Chidozie Awaziem, Jamilu Collins, William Troost Ekong, Leon Balogun, Wilfred Ndidi, Jo Aribo, Alex Iwobi, Moses Simon, Kelechi Iheanacho, and Victor Osimhen.
Liberia on the other side started the game with Boison Wynney De Souza, Mark Parbai, Prince Balde, Sampson Dweh Murphy Dorley, Jamal Arago, Seth Hellberg, Marcus Marcauley, Abrahim Soumaoro, Peter Wilson, and Abu Kamara.
Kelechi Iheanacho in the 13th minute was hacked down by the Liberian goalkeeper, Boison Wynney De Souza as the referee awarded a penalty kick for the Super Eagles.
Victor Osimhen converted the resulting penalty in the 14th minute.
Victor Osimhen in the additional minutes of second half was fouled inside the box by Liberia goalkeeper as Ahmed Musa converted the resulting penalty to double Nigeria’s lead.
Nigeria will have to wait till its final group game against Cape Verde at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos on November 16, to determine the team that will proceed to the third round (knock out stage) of the qualifiers after Cape Verde’s 2-1 win over the Central Africa Republic.
Isaac Ngoma had given the Central Africa Republic (CAR) the lead in the 11th minute.
Julio Tavares in the 51st minute equalised for Cape Verde before Stopira’s goal in the 76th minute.
Nigeria occupies the first position in Group C with 12 points from five games ahead of Cape Verde, Central Africa Republic and Liberia.
Paris Saint Germain (PSG) midfielder, Aminata Diallo has broken her silence as she denied any form of involvement in the attack on her teammate –Kheira Hamraoui– after her release from the police custody.
The 26-year-old was arrested for allegedly orchestrating an attack on her teammate Hamraoui on Thursday, November 4th, but was later released with no charges.
In a statement released by her lawyer, Diallo said the investigation will show her “complete and total innocence”as she denounced a ‘totally artificial suggestion of a rivalry’ between her and Mrs. Kheira Hamraoui that would explain why she would target her team-mate.
The statement also criticised the media speculation which has already condemned her, without justification, and stated that ‘she will not hesitate to launch legal action if necessary against any defamation.’
“Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your incredible support…And for the rest, thanks for your hate make me even stronger. You will never shut me.”
It said Diallo’s detention overnight at a police station outside Paris was “unnecessary”, adding that “she could have made a statement without being subjected to constraint”.
Concerning her release, Versailles prosecutor, Maryvonne Caillibotte told CNN in an emailed statement that; “The material in the investigators’ possession justified her being put in custody.”
Callibotte added that: “Her release signifies that at this stage the charges are not sufficient to put her before an investigating judge and to put her under formal investigation.
“However, the investigation is ongoing to identify the attackers and their potential accomplices. If new elements become available and concern Ms. Diallo, she may need to be brought back into proceedings.”
An unnamed 34-year-old man who had been arrested in connection with the attack was also released by the police, pending thorough investigation.
The Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has harshly sanctioned three Spanish Primera Iberdrola teams; Levante, Villarreal, and Real Sociedad while Rayo Vallecano, Real Betis and Valencia were warned.
The Single Judge of the RFEF has sanctioned these three teams with a fine and a reduction of three points for “non-compliance, conscious and repeated, of orders, instructions, agreements, and regulatory obligations -uniformity- (Art.88). It also fines three other teams: Rayo, Betis, and Valencia.
The exact reason is that these teams do not wear the RFEF competition logo on their sleeve. A breach that has been warned and fined in previous resolutions.
Failure to wear the patch on the first kits is an offence. Away from home, Rayo Vallecano, Real Betis and Valencia all failed to comply by not having the logo printed. By not being withdrawn, they were only penalized with a fine.
With these fines, Villarreal is more bottom in the table. In the absence of a possible appeal, the yellow team is last and Rayo takes three points in the standings.
MOLATsportgist 