SportsNews

Apologies – Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola apologises to Kalvin Phillips for publicly calling him out for being overweight

Published

2 years ago

February 20, 2024

Manchester City coach, Pep Guardiola has apologised to Kalvin Phillips for publicly revealing the midfielder was overweight last season.

Phillips was told to stay away from Manchester City over Christmas on failing to hit target weight after returning from a post-World Cup holiday to New York.

The 28-year-old, who is now on loan at West Ham United, recently admitted that he felt hurt by how Guardiola announced the issue in the public.

His mother, Lindsay, stopped attending City matches. Phillips has said that he didn’t disagree with Guardiola’s assessment but that there are ‘different ways to go about’ things. The pair have never since discussed the issue.

‘Yeah, I’m sorry,’ Guardiola said. ‘[Apologising] once in eight years is not bad. But I’m so sorry. I apologise to him. I do apologise. I’m so sorry.

In an interview with Mail Sport last summer, Phillips claimed that he was unaware of Guardiola’s comments until he had already returned to training.

‘Oh no I spoke about that,’ the City boss added. Asked when they spoke, he replied: ‘Before. I spoke to him. I never before said something here [before I] speak with the players in that case.’

The England international has maintained that he ‘laughed’ at the public furore around his weight last year, adding to Mail Sport that: ‘It doesn’t faze me. I’m the footballer and living my dream, doing the thing I love.

‘I’d gone to New York for three or four days after Qatar. I’d flown all day.. I’d had breakfast, lunch, dinner and landed. Slept during the flight as well. And straight into football.

‘I’d had a full day of eating. There is water retention and stuff on a flight. It was a misunderstanding really.’

Guardiola, who bristled at questions around pressure on City after their 1-1 draw against Chelsea, can take his side back to second with victory over Brentford on Tuesday night.

SportsNews

Chelsea mathematically out of title race after 3-0 defeat to Everton

Published

1 day ago

March 21, 2026

Ekwutos Blog

Chelsea are now mathematically out of the Premier League title race.

This follows their 3-0 drubbing in the hands of Everton at the Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday night.

Liam Rosenior’s men came into the match with 48 points, looking to keep pace with the teams in front of them.

However, Beto opened the scoring for the hosts in the first half, before adding a second after the break.

Chelsea barely threatened Everton and looked flat for most of the game, before Iliman Ndiaye added a third.

The result means the Blues cannot match the 70 points that league leaders Arsenal currently have with seven matches left.

Champions Liverpool are also on the verge of being mathematically ruled out, as they have 49 points.

SportsNews

Super Eagles player bounced me from Iheanacho’s room — Osimhen

Published

2 days ago

March 21, 2026

Ekwutos Blog

Galatasaray striker, Victor Osimhen, has claimed that a senior member of the Super Eagles squad in 2017 sent him away from a hotel room during his first call-up to the national team.

According to the 27-year-old, it was Kelechi Iheanacho who intervened and welcomed him inside.

Osimhen revealed this while appearing on a Twitch livestream with comedian, Carter Efe in the early hours of Saturday.

He said: “When I came, I met Iheanacho. And I told him, ‘ah, see me, I’m gonna carry your boots.’ So he said I should come to his room so, he gave me his room number.

“So, as I got to his room — I don’t just want to mention the name — he had a roommate. So, as I knocked on the door, the roommate opened the door. So, he like bounced me out of the room.”

Osimhen refused to reveal the identity of the player who sent him away.

SportsNews

AFCON 2025; Drama as Senegal Reportedly Relocates Trophy To Military Base After CAF Decision (Video)

Published

3 days ago

March 20, 2026

Ekwutos Blog

Drama as Senegal reportedly relocates AFCON trophy to military base after Confederation of African Football (CAF) viral decision.

‎It would be recalled that CAF stripped Senegal of their Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) title, awarding it to Morocco instead.

This decision came after Morocco appealed the result of the January 18 final, where Senegal won 1-0 in extra time.

‎ According to the CAF Appeal Board, Senegal had forfeited the match due to their players walking off the pitch in protest of a penalty awarded to Morocco, citing Articles 82 and 84 of the AFCON regulations.

The controversy surrounds the AFCON final, where Senegal’s players walked off the pitch in protest of a late penalty awarded to Morocco.

In a clip circulating on the microblogging platform, X (formerly Twitter), a young man with glasses is seen holding the AFCON trophy surrounded by military personnel.

The clip captures the military personnel’s excitement as they support the trophy, with an officer recording the moment.

In a recent development, Senegal has announced plans to appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), with some officials and players expressing outrage and disappointment.