The Super Eagles are set to kick off their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualification campaign at home, facing Madagascar on Wednesday, September 23, at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo. Eric Chelle’s squad will aim to secure a strong start in their opening Group fixture before traveling to Morocco four days later for a challenging away match against Guinea-Bissau on Sunday, September 27. Tanzania completes this four-team group, and with three AFCON titles and a third-place finish in the last tournament hosted by Morocco, Nigeria enters the qualifiers as firm favorites to top the group. The team’s last competitive outing was an international friendly against Portugal back in June.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

In other national team news, Nigeria’s Falconets have wrapped up their warm-up schedule for the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup, playing to a 1-1 draw against Korea Republic on Tuesday. Mary Mamudu continued her goal-scoring streak, finding the net in the 29th minute to give Nigeria the lead, following up on her goal against Poland in their previous friendly. However, Korea Republic leveled the score with a penalty kick 12 minutes before the final whistle, ending the match in a stalemate. Head coach Moses Aduku’s team will now shift focus to the World Cup, opening their Group F campaign against Spain on Monday, September 7, at the Arena Sosnowiec. They will face China at the same venue three days later on Thursday, September 10, before concluding the group stage against New Caledonia on Sunday, September 13, at the Stadion Miejski ŁKS Łódź.

Manchester City have secured a joint-British record £125 million agreement on transfer deadline day to sign Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez, following intense negotiations finalized on September 1, 2026. The Argentina star, who had been pushing for an exit since March after initial interest from Real Madrid fell through, is set for a medical ahead of finalizing a long-term contract at the Etihad Stadium.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

The blockbuster fee matches the record £125m Liverpool spent on Alexander Isak last summer and comes three years after Chelsea initially acquired Fernandez from Benfica for a then-British record £107m. City manager Enzo Maresca—who previously worked with Fernandez at Stamford Bridge—heavily pushed for the transfer to reinforce his midfield following a summer exodus that saw Rodri join Barcelona for £65m, Tijjani Reijnders move to Al-Qadsiah for £52m, Nico Gonzalez sign for Newcastle for £52m, and Bernardo Silva depart for Real Madrid on a free transfer. Fernandez, who was omitted from Chelsea’s recent matchday squads against Luton and Brighton amid reports of his transfer request, becomes City’s second major club-record arrival of the window following Elliot Anderson’s £116m signing.

For Chelsea, Fernandez’s exit—paired with Nicolas Jackson’s £65m transfer to Aston Villa and Liam Delap’s £50m move to Nottingham Forest—pushes the club’s summer sales past £400m. This shatters their previous record of approximately £300m set last season as the Blues aggressively trim their squad in the wake of a 10th-place Premier League finish.

Super Eagles and Brentford defender Benjamin Fredrick has finally made his competitive return to the pitch after enduring a grueling 287-day layoff due to a knee injury sustained in November 2025 while on loan at Belgian side FCV Dender EH. The 21-year-old center-back logged 45 minutes for Brentford U-21 in a dominant 5-1 Premier League 2 victory over Sunderland U-21 at Wheatsheaf Park before being substituted for Ollie Shield at halftime—a match highlighted by a hat-trick from Kaye Furo, son of former Nigeria international Iyenemi Furo.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶