Italian Serie A and Premier League matches continue this weekend with GOtv bringing all matches live to its customers from 15 to 18 January 2021.

There are two standout matches from this weekend’s Serie A action, starting with a Friday night clash between Lazio and Roma at 8:45pm on SS Football and SS Select 1 (Channel 31 & 33). The ‘Derby della Capitale’ or Rome derby is one of the most fervent rivalries in all of Italian football. It has been almost a full year since their last Serie A meeting (a 1-1 draw on 26 January 2020) and fans of both the Giallorossi and Le Aquile will be itching to watch this battle.

On Saturday, Bologna vs Hellas Verona will air live at 3pm, while Torino vs Spezia will be showing at 6pm and Sampdoria vs Udinese will air by 8:45pm. All matches will air live on SS Football and SS Select 1 (Channel 31 & 33).

The other key clash of the round takes place on Sunday night and sees Internazionale host Juventus at San Siro for a game which could be key in the race for the Scudetto. The Bianconeri are unbeaten in the last seven editions of the ‘Derby d’Italia’, but manager, Andrea Pirlo is taking nothing for granted against the Nerazzurri. This will air live at 8:45pm on SS Football and SS Select 1 (Channel 31 & 33).

The round of games in Italy also features Napoli hosting Fiorentina, airing live on Sunday at 12:30pm on SS Football and SS Select 1 (Channel 31 & 33). Atalanta will be welcoming Genoa to Bergamo at 6pm on SS Football and SS Select 1 (Channel 31 & 33), and a closing clash which sees Milan visit the Sardegna Arena on Monday night at 8:45pm for a battle with Cagliari showing live on SS Football and SS Select 1 (Channel 31 & 33).

For European Premier League, Wolves will face West Bromwich on Saturday at 1:30pm and ManCity will clash with Crystal Palace on Sunday at 8:15pm both on SS Football (channel 31).

Football fans can subscribe to GOtv Max for a discounted price of N2,999! Instead of N3,600 to watch these games and other matches in the LaLiga, Serie A and the Premier League.

Also, visit www.gotvafrica.com and download the MyGOtv app from the iOS and Android store to upgrade, reconnect or select the Auto-Renewal option to stay connected to quality football entertainment without interruptions and for other self-service options.

They will face Messi’s Barcelona, Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad in a competition that features a four-team line-up for the second time.

Following the successful staging of the ‘new-look’ Supercopa de España last season, this year’s competition again features four teams.

Real Madrid and Barcelona – as first and second in the La Liga respectively – as well as the two finalists from last season’s Copa del Rey, Real Sociedad and Athletic Bilbao, qualified for the mini-competition, which will be played this week over three stadiums in Andalusia.

On Wednesday, Real Sociedad will face FC Barcelona at 9pm; while Real Madrid will battle Athletic Club on Thursday at 9pm. The winners will meet on Sunday at 9 pm to decide the new Spanish Super Cup Champion.

Real Madrid are the defending champions, having won the competition in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia last year – the first time the tournament was held with four clubs.

Other exciting football competitions to look forward to on StarTimes this week include the German Bundesliga, Coppa Italia airing from Tuesday, Copa Del Rey from Saturday and CAF CHAN 2020 also starting on Saturday.

Others this January include The Emirates FA Cup which started January 8 and the PS5 Supercoppa Italia on January 20.

For Coppa Italia round of 16, Wednesday’s fixtures will see Fiorentina vs Inter Milan at 3pm, Napoli vs Empoli at 5:45pm and Juventus vs Genoa at 8:45pm.

Matches will be broadcast live and in HD on StarTimes Sports channels.

The year begins with series of topnotch games involving elite European teams across various football competitions to be aired live on GOtv this weekend.

The matches scheduled to hold from 8-10 January will be broadcast live on SuperSport Football to GOtv Jolli and GOtv Max subscribers, and on SuperSport La Liga and SuperSport Select 1, exclusive to GOtv Max subscribers.

In the FA Cup special, a fascinating game awaits viewers when Aston villa faces off with Liverpool at Villa Park for the FA Cup third round tie on Friday at 8:45pm.

The FA special continues Saturday with tough clashes between QPR and Fulham at 5;00pm; Manchester United and Watford at 9:00pm and Chelsea versus Morecambe on Sunday at 2:30pm. All FA Cup matches will be broadcast live on SuperSport Football (GOtv channel 31).

While on the La Liga scene, top-of-the-table, Atletico Madrid will welcome Athletic Bilbao at the Wanda Metropolitano stadium on Saturday. The game will be aired live on SuperSport La Liga at 4:15pm.

Atletico, having the best home record so far this season, will be returning to La Liga looking to maintain their remarkable position while Bilbao will probably have a struggling game as they had the second worst away record in La Liga. Their last five away league games against Atletico have all been lost with their last win in 2011.

Other La Liga matches to look forward to on Saturday are; Granada vs Barcelona at 6:30pmand Osasuna vs Real Madrid at 9:00pm. While on Sunday, Elche will face Getafe at 6:30pm, Valladolid vs Valencia at 9:00pm. All La liga matches will be broadcast live on SuperSport La Liga (GOtv channel 32)

Also, to be broadcast on Saturday is the Serie A encounter between AC Milan and Torino at the San Siro stadium. The game is at 8:45pm and will be shown live on SuperSport Select 1 (GOtv channel 33).
Both teams will be bringing their A-game as current Serie A leaders, Milan will be looking to retain their stay atop the league on Saturday night after suffering a midweek setback against Juventus, losing 3-1 at home while Torino who had a terrible end to last season, will be bringing in their best form.

Same day at 3:00pm, there will be a live broadcast of the match between Benevento and Atalanta live on SuperSport Select 1.
Sunday’s Serie A action will see Inter Milan who has missed a chance to take over top spot with their 2-1 midweek defeat meet Roma on Sunday afternoon in a top three clash. The game begins at 12:30pm and will be live on SuperSport Select 1.

The weekend’s coverage will climax with the game between Juventus and Sassuolo. The game kicks off at 8:45pm on Sunday on SuperSport Select 1.

Minister  of Youth and sports Development Mr Sunday Dare alongside two ex Internationals Daniel Amokachi and Joseph Yobo were listed in  the Hall of Fame Award for the year 2020 for their impacts  in sports Development.

The Minister  was applauded  for initiating  the Sports Industry Thematic Group of the Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG)  and the breakthrough  in creating the Nigerian Sport Industry Policy. This  would completely revolutionize sports in Nigeria both in participation and revenue when fully  operational. The impact would be felt  hopefully in  growing the national economy.

On his part, Amokachi was singled following his appointment  as Special Assistant  to President  Muhamadu Buhari . His appointment  is  expected to  impact positively  on sports Development.

For Yobo, his appointment  as Assistant  National Team coach to Rohr is  expected to restore  confidence of home- based players and instil confidence  in indigenous  coaches.

The award is a result  of the Independent  poll conducted by former Athlete  Enefiok Udo -Obong.

Others who made the list include President  of the  Badminton  Federation of  Nigeria Mr. Francis Orbirh, President  of the Nigerian  Basketball  Federation  Engineer Musa Kida for outstanding performance  as administrators.

For successfully  securing  sponsorship  for major athletics  events in Lagos,  Ijebu Ode, Kaduna and  Remo, Ninlayo  Sports Marketing  Company was adjudged  as the Marketing  Company  of the year. This is in recognition  of its  role in not only organizing major events,  but securing  sponsorship  despite the economic  crunch  due to the outbreak of covid- 19.

For playing an ignoble role and  bringing sports to disrepute,  Former President  of the Atheletics Federation Shehu Gusau was listed in the Hall of Shame, just like   the Nigeria Football Federation for ‘rewarding’ the mediocrity of Gernot Rohr with a new contract which even includes a protection fee of 2 million dollars.

Also,  The League Management Company (LMC) for being unable to organize a proper league and for  failing  to make the  league more competitive on the continent.

Gusau and his rejected AFN stands out like a sore thumb for putting self-interest ahead of the interest of the sport.

While he fights to keep his position in a board that obviously rejects him, his opposition to settlement, undemocratic decisions and his divisional stance have stunted the growth of athletics in the country. While athletes crave for support and competition, his attention has been in the national court suing to try and legitimatize his position. It has been counterproductive for athletes as a whole as there still remains uncertainty in the running of the Sport in Nigeria.

An off-key Liverpool were frustrated for a second successive game by struggling opponents as they were held to a 0-0 Premier League draw at Newcastle United on Wednesday.

Juergen Klopp’s side had the chance to open up a five-point lead at the top of the table, but a combination of wastefulness and Newcastle’s valiant rearguard kept them at bay.

Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino were all guilty of poor finishing for the champions while Newcastle goalkeeper Karl Darlow produced a couple of fine saves.

Liverpool were held to a 1-1 draw by second-bottom West Bromwich Albion on Sunday and drew with struggling Fulham earlier this month.

Klopp’s team lead the table going into the New Year with 33 points from 16 games, three points ahead of second-placed Manchester United who have a match in hand.

Flykite Productions, organisers of GOtv Boxing Night, have announced the indefinite postponement of the 22nd edition of the event, which had been slated to hold on New Year’s Day. The show, billed to hold behind closed doors at the Mobolaji Johnson Indoor Sports Hall of the Rowe Park Sports Centre in Lagos will now hold at a date to be announced later.

The decision to postpone the event was announced in a statement signed by Jenkins Alumona, CEO, Flykite Productions.

According to the statement, the postponement was compelled by a resurgence in the country’s COVID-19 infection figures, which has drawn the Federal Government and Lagos State Government to impose restrictions on events with potential for crowds in excess of 50 persons.

“We consulted widely with various boxing stakeholders as well as our sponsors before reaching the decision to shift the event to a later date. As disappointing as this may be, we are of the view that public safety and well-being are of utmost importance,” said Alumona.

Scott McTominay and Bruno Fernandes scored two each as Manchester United turned on the style, thumping Leeds United 6-2 at Old Trafford on Sunday to move up to third in the Premier League.

United are now on 26 points, above Everton on goal difference and trail leaders Liverpool by five points, having played a game less.

It was the best display this season from United who responded to Leeds’ well known pressing game and relentless running by playing through the press with crisp, swift passing and matching Marcelo Bielsa’s side for work-rate.

McTominay fired United ahead after 67 seconds in emphatic fashion with a thundering low drive from outside the box after he had set up by Bruno Fernandes.

The midfielder then became the first player to score twice in the opening three minutes of a Premier League match when he collected a clever pass from Anthony Martial and beat Illan Meslier with a left-foot finish.

Fernandes made it 3-0 in the 20th minute, drilling home after the ball fell to him at the back post, after a swift United counter-attack.

Victor Lindelof added the fourth in the 37th minute, converting at the back post after Martial had flicked on a Luke Shaw corner.

But Leeds gave themselves a small foothold in the game when defender Liam Cooper headed in a Raphinha corner, four minutes before the break.

That goal gave Marcelo Bielsa’s team some encouragement for the second half and United keeper David De Gea had to be at his sharpest to keep out a Raphina header.

But United put the game beyond Bielsa’s side when the impressive McTominay found Dan James with crisp pass and the Welsh forward beat Meslier at his near post.

Fernandes added United’s sixth — and his second — from the penalty spot in the 70th minute after Martial had been brought down in the box by Pascal Struijk.

Still Leeds continued to push forward in numbers and they were rewarded when Stuart Dallas beat De Gea with a wonderful curling shot from over 20 metres out.

With an animated Bielsa still urging his team forward despite being 6-2 down, Leeds left space for United to exploit and it was only a series of fine saves from Meslier that stopped an even heavier loss.

United had not scored more than five goals in a Premier League game since their 8-2 win over Arsenal in August 2011.

Rising super featherweight boxer and Microbiology graduate, Sikiru “Omo Iya Eleja” Shogbesan, has credited GOtv Boxing Night with opening his eyes to a new career path. Shogbesan, who is due to fight Yusuf Ayinla at GOtv Boxing Night 22 on 1 January, recently completed his national youth service programme after bagging a Higher National Diploma (Upper Credit) in Microbiology from the Yaba College of Technology.

Speaking in an interview in Lagos on Tuesday, Shogbesan, who previously bagged an Ordinary National Diploma (Upper Credit) in Science Laboratory Technology from the Moshood Abiola Polytechnic in Abeokuta, said his involvement in boxing through GOtv Boxing Night has made him to start considering studying human kinetics (a discipline focused on the study of human movement) in the future.

Shogbesan, who was discovered at an edition of GOtv Boxing NextGen Search and is about having his fourth professional fight at GOtv Boxing Night, said the initiative has motivated him to remain in a boxing-related field when he retires from the ring.

“I’m very happy for the opportunity GOtv Boxing has given me and other boxers, who now have more opportunities to fight and have become more famous, locally and internationally, through exposure on television.

“Unlike before, visuals of our fights are readily available to promoters. I’m far more popular now and without GOtv Boxing Night, that would not have happened.

“Importantly, I’m so much in love with boxing now that I intend to study human kinetics at the postgraduate level, so I can remain involved in boxing.

“What I knew before now was Physical and Health Education, which doesn’t really appeal to me. I just became aware of human kinetics and I’m minded to earn a qualification in it,” he said.

Speaking on his next fight, Shogbesan, who famously defeated Ridwan “Scorpion” Oyekola, the national featherweight champion, at GOtv Boxing Night 19, said Ayinla, his next opponent, should nurse no hope of victory.

GOtv Boxing Night 22, which will be held on New Year’s Day, will feature seven fights, including two World Boxing Federation (International) title bouts. One will see Rilwan “Baby Face” Babatunde, West African Boxing Union (WABU) welterweight champion take on Tanzania’s Mkwalekwa Salehe Omari, while Rilwan “Real One” Oladosu, WABU lightweight champion, will go against Ghana’s Emmanuel Quartey.

The event, to be held behind closed doors in line with official COVID-19 safety measures, will be broadcast live on SuperSport to GOtv subscribers on Select 2 (channel 34) and to DStv subscribers on channel 209.

West African Boxing Union (WABU) welterweight champion, Rilwan “Baby Face” Babatunde, has described his coming World Boxing Federation (WBF) International title clash with Ghana’s Emmanuel Quartey as a stepping stone to global stardom. Baby Face is scheduled to fight Quartey in one of the two WBF title bouts at GOtv Boxing Night 22 holding on New Year’s Day.
Speaking in Lagos yesterday, the yet undefeated WABU champion, said he has always dreamt of being known globally for his boxing prowess and believes that winning the WBF International title is the first step towards the realisation of that dream.

“I’ve been national champion and I’m the reigning WABU champion. I’m proud of those two titles, but the WBF title is on a different level. It is like the gateway to global recognition and I will give my all to win it. Quartey or is it quarantine will know what will hit him, but he won’t be able to do anything about it. This is not just a fight between us, but also one between Nigeria and Ghana. Nigeria will win. Mark my words,” he said.

GOtv Boxing Night 22, which will stage five other fights, will take place behind closed doors in line with prescribed COVID-19 safety measures.

The event will be broadcast live on GOtv Select 2 (channel 34) and DStv channel 209.

The other WBF International title bout will see Rilwan “Real One” Oladosu, WABU lightweight champion, taking on Mkwalekwa Salehe Omari of Tanzania. Oladosu has called on Nigerians to pray for his success in his bid to win the prestigious title.

The best boxer at the event will go home with a cash prize of N1million attached to the Mojisola Ogunsanya Memorial Trophy for the best boxer.