Sports
BREAKING: Ballon d’Or 2022: 20-man Nominees Confirmed [Full List]

A 20-man shortlist for this year’s Ballon d’Or award has been announced today, Friday, 12 August 2022.
This was confirmed by France Football, who are organizers of the award, via their website today.
Recall that Lionel Messi, who currently plays for Paris Saint-Germain, won the Ballon d’Or last year after beating the likes of Robert Lewandowski, Jorginho and Karim Benzema.
Below are the nominees for this year’s Ballon d’Or:
READ ALSO: Ballon d’Or 2022: What I’ll Do If I Don’t Win Award – Salah
Thibaut Courtois (BEL, Real Madrid), Rafael Leao (POR, AC Milan), Mohamed Salah (EGY, Liverpool), Joshua Kimmich (GER, Bayern Munich), Christopher Nkunku (FRA, RB Leipzig), Trent Alexander-Arnold (ANG, Liverpool), Robert Lewandowski (POL, Bayern Munich then FC Barcelona), Bernardo Silva (POR, Manchester City),Vinicius Junior (BRE, Real Madrid), Luis Diaz (COL, FC Porto then Liverpool), Karim Benzema (FRA, Real Madrid), Fabinho (BRE, Liverpool), Riyad Mahrez (ALG, Manchester City), Heung-min Son (CDS, Tottenham), Casemiro (BRE, Real Madrid), Phil Foden (ENG, Manchester City), Harry Kane (ENG, Tottenham), Sadio Mané (SEN, Liverpool then Bayern Munich), Darwin Nunez (URU, Benfica then Liverpool), Mike Maignan (FRA, AC Milan), Kevin De Bruyne (BEL, Manchester City), Sébastien Haller (CIV, Ajax then Borussia Dortmund), Luka Modric (CRO, Real Madrid), Cristiano Ronaldo (POR, Manchester United), Antonio Rüdiger (GER, Chelsea then Real Madrid), Joao Cancelo (POR, Manchester City), Erling Haaland (NOR, Borussia Dortmund then Manchester City), Kylian Mbappé (FRA, PSG), Virgil Van Dijk (HOL, Liverpool) and Dusan Vlahovic (SER, Fiorentina then Juventus).
Sports
JUST IN: Full Draw For 2026 World Cup Group Stages Confirmed

The draw for the group stage of the 2026 World Cup has been conducted.
It took place at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., with US President Donald Trump and FIFA President Gianni Infantino in charge.
There will be 48 teams at next year’s tournament, to be played across the United States, Mexico and Canada.
All the participating countries were grouped into 12 groups of four.
Here is the full draw:
READ ALSO:Trump Unveils Fast-track Visas For World Cup Ticket Holders
Group A: Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, Winner Play-off D
Group B: Canada, Winner Play-off A, Qatar, Switzerland
Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Haiti, Scotland
Group D: United States, Paraguay, Australia, Winner Play-off C
Group E: Germany, Curaçao, Ivory Coast, Ecuador
Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Winner Play-off B, Tunisia
Group G: Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New Zealand
Group H: Spain, Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay
Group I: France, Senegal, Winner Play-off 2, Norway
Group J: Argentina, Algeria, Austria, Jordan
Group K: Portugal, Winner Play-off 1, Colombia, Uzbekistan
Group L: England, Croatia, Panama, Ghana
Sports
EPL: Mikel Obi Reveals Why Chelsea Failed To Beat Arsenal in 1-1 Draw

Former Super Eagles midfielder, John Mikel Obi, has claimed Chelsea failed to defeat Arsenal in the Premier League on Sunday, because of an early red card to Moises Caicedo.
The two London rivals played out a pulsating 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge.
Caicedo was sent off in the 38th minute following a VAR check.
READ ALSO:EPL: Why Arsenal Could Win The Title This Season – Guardiola
But it was Chelsea who took the lead after the break, thanks to Trevor Chalobah’s header.
But the Gunners equalized through Mikel Merino.
So far this season, Chelsea have received seven red cards in 20 games across all competitions this season.
READ ALSO:EPL: Alan Smith Names Only Two Clubs To Compete For Title
“That’s four red cards this season; it’s not good enough. I’ve spoken about it; the manager needs to talk with the players, because it’s costing us games as well,” Mikel Obi said on his podcast.
“If you look at that game, if we finished with eleven men, I think we could’ve won. Maybe not easily, but comfortably, we could’ve secured a win.”
Sports
EPL: Slot Reveals When Salah Will Leave For AFCON

Liverpool manager, Arne Slot, has revealed that Mohamed Salah was “not happy” to be dropped for their 2-0 win at West Ham on Sunday.
Salah was named on the bench at the London Stadium for the Premier League fixture.
Slot took the bold decision, as he looked to arrest a poor run of form, that saw the Reds lose nine of 12 matches.
READ ALSO:EPL: Berbatov Names Team That Can ‘Surprise’ Arsenal In Title Race
Salah was not summoned from the bench for the entire 90 minutes, as goals from Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo sealed victory.
“It was a normal reaction for a player who is good enough to play for us,” Slot said.
“I say that mildly as he’s been so outstanding for this club and will be in the future. He wasn’t happy he wasn’t starting but he wasn’t the only one.”
READ ALSO:EPL: Man Utd Suffer Fresh Injury Blow Ahead Of Everton Clash
Salah could yet return to the starting line-up as Liverpool host Sunderland in the Premier League on Wednesday night.
The 33-year-old will remain available for the next four matches, before he leaves to join Egypt’s squad for the African Cup of Nations.
“It’s 15 December,” Slot confirmed.
“But always in these situations there is the player and the national team involved and there are always talks about what is best for all three of us.”
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