Football

Chelsea may be having an indifferent season but star player Eden Hazard has been adjudged the Best Belgian player in a Foreign League for 2017, edging Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne and Napoli forward Dries Mertens.

Hazard pipped De Bruyne, who held the title, to the gong by 11 votes with 326, while Mertens was 56 votes behind and Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku finished fourth.

De Bruyne had won the award the past two years and the City playmaker topped the second round of voting, after Mertens won the first round.

Super Eagles forward Henry Onyekuru has been named the Most Promising Player of the Year at the 2017 Soulier d’Or awards in Belgium.

The Soulier d’Or or Belgian Golden Shoe is an award given in Belgium at the beginning of each year to the best footballer of the Belgian First Division for the past year. The trophy is sponsored by the Belgian newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws.

The much awaited presidential reception for players and officials of the home-based Super Eagles will now hold next Wednesday in Abuja.

The Home Eagles came second at the African Nations Championship in Morocco after going down to a 4-0 defeat against the hosts in the final fixture in Casablanca on Sunday.

Contrary to reports that Chelsea are set to replace Antonio Conte with former Barcelona coach, the club look set to stick with their manager despite latest heavy defeat at the hands of Watford on Monday night. According to Sky Sports, whilst Conte's future at Stamford Bridge beyond the summer looks bleak, Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is against employing a short-term fix ahead of a busy few weeks with matches against both Manchester clubs and two against Barcelona.

Former Nigeria international, Mutiu Adepoju, has expressed his disappointment following the home-based Super Eagles’ 4-0 thrashing against hosts Morocco in the final of the 2018 Africa Nations Championship (CHAN) on Sunday in Casablanca.

Morocco claimed their first senior title since winning the Africa Cup of Nations way back in 1976 with the comprehensive win against Nigeria.

A brace from Zakaria Hadraf, Walid El Karti and Ayoub El Kaabi, gave the Moroccans the deserved the win.

Morocco romped to an emphatic 4-0 victory over Nigeria in the final of the 2018 African Nations Championship (CHAN) at Stade Mohamed V in Casablanca on Sunday.

The Atlas Lions become the fourth different winners of the CHAN, joining DR Congo, Tunisia and Libya on the honours board after they overpowered the Super Eagles, who played most of the second half with just 10 men.

Morocco gave an early warning of their attacking potency when striker Ayoub El Kaabi headed home from Ismail Haddad’s corner kick in the seventh minute.