FIFA vice-president Michel Platini could be facing a life ban from football, according to his lawyer. The suspended UEFA chief is serving a 90-day suspension on corruption charges alongside outgoing FIFA president Sepp Blatter, while FIFA’s adjudicatory committee considers its verdict. Platini’s lawyer Thibaud d’Ales said the ethics investigators’ “excessive” recommendations are a “scandal”. The adjudicatory committee intends to announce its verdict next month. The Frenchman is facing sanctions over a “disloyal payment” that saw Platini, 60, receive £1.35m from Blatter, 79, in 2011 for consultation work done nine years earlier. The pair, who are serving 90-day provisional bans, have denied any wrongdoing, but admitted there was no written contract. The adjudicatory committee, led by German judge Hans Joachim Eckert, opened proceedings on Monday, after receiving the ethics committee’s recommendations. Platini is currently barred from taking part in the campaign to replace Blatter as FIFA president in February, but is taking his case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Swiss Blatter, who has had recent health problems and claimed on Monday that he had been “close to dying”, is also likely to appeal to CAS.

Victor Osimhen, top scorer at the Under-17 World Cup, has been included in Nigeria’s squad for the Under-23 Africa Cup of Nations in Senegal. After scoring 10 goals to help Nigeria win the trophy last month he had been on standby for the tournament which is also a qualifier for the Rio Olympics. Osimhen was drafted in to replace Isaac Success, who has not been released by his Spanish club side Granada. The finals take place from 28 November to 12 December. Matches will be played in Dakar and M’bour, and the top three teams will also earn a spot at next year’s Olympics.

Chelsea FC’s problems transcend the pitch. They made a loss of £23.1m as they won the Premier League last season. According to their annual financial results, the deficit kept them within Financial Fair Play (FFP) limits. Getty Images. “It was a primary aim in the past financial year to be one of the clubs with a continuous record of meeting the regulations,” said chairman Bruce Buck. The Blues, who made a record £18.4m profit last year, announced revenues of £314.3m, down on the 2013-14 high of £319.8m.

Paris St-Germain players will wear special shirts for their next two games as a tribute to those who died in this month’s attacks in the French capital. The shirts will carry the message “Je suis Paris” (“I am Paris”). The French champions said they were acting “in unison with the vibrant solidarity expressed by the French and international football community”. PSG visit Swedish side Malmo in the Champions League on Wednesday before hosting Troyes in Ligue 1 on Saturday.

Boxers Fury (right) and Klitschko (left) pictured feeling good. Strange to think they’ll be knocking each other come Saturday evening.

Tyson Fury faces champion Wladimir Klitschko on Saturday (November 28) night in Dusseldorf, Germany. The fight was originally scheduled for October 24, but Klitschko pulled out with a calf injury. Klitschko, 39, has not lost in 11 years, since his knock-out loss by Lamont Brewster in April 2004. The challenger Fury, 27, remains unbeaten from his 24 fights.

Real Madrid boss Rafael Benitez has been told he retains the club’s full backing following the 4-0 home defeat by Barcelona. Benitez, 55, was only appointed in the summer, but fans chanted for him to be sacked after Saturday’s match. Following a board meeting on Monday, club president Florentino Perez said: “He has all our support and confidence. “Rafa has only just started his job here. Let him keep working and he will achieve his objectives.” Perez added he could “only talk about this moment”. He said: “I cannot say what will happen in the future. No-one can say what will happen in six months.” The 68-year-old rejected suggestions striker Cristiano Ronaldo, the Spanish club’s record goalscorer, had told him he is unhappy playing under Benitez. “Ronaldo has never said anything to me about Benitez,” he said. Perez – who returned to the club in 2009 having resigned as president in 2006 – was also a target for angry fans on Saturday. He said he understood their disappointment but asked them to display “more than ever” their “support to the team and to the players”. Real’s next game is at Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League on Wednesday, followed by an away game against Eibar in La Liga on Sunday.

Dream Team VI Chief Coach, Samson Siasia on Monday named a final 21-man squad for the 2015 U-23 Champion- ship commencing Saturday in Dakar, Senegal. Nigeria will begin their campaign on Sunday against Mali in Mbour. They will also battle Egypt on December 2 in Mbour and three days later play their final group B match against Algeria in Dakar. The top three teams will qualify automatically for next year’s Olympics in Rio d Janeiro, Brazil.

Continue reading →