Nigeria's Mikel Obi Out Of Mozambique Clash

Chelsea midfielder Mikel John Obi is expected to join up with the rest of the Nigeria squad later today in South Africa, but will not feature in Sunday's World Cup tie against Mozambique. "He has been ordered to join the team and I am right now at the airport waiting to pick [up] both he and [Joseph] Yobo," said team official Idah Peterside, on the phone from Johannesburg. "He will be part of the squad to Maputo but he will not play." Everton defender Yobo is also ruled out of this match with a hamstring injury but has opted to fly down to South Africa and cheer the team. Mikel earlier this week informed Nigeria coach Shuaibu Amodu that he is unwell and may therefore not be available for the Mozambique match. Chelsea formally informed the Nigeria Football Fedration (NFF) that Mikel is suffering from a throat infection. Hmm! With or without Mikel, do we really have a team that we can beat our chest to boast about a resounding victory come sunday. My greatest worry is that we are playing a country like Muzambique and even the coach can't be categorical about his team winning, this only points to the fact that we are far away from having a team we thought Amodu was building for the country. 2010, is just around the corner ooh!

TRANSFER GOSSIP

Manchester City are setting their sights high, with Bayern Munich midfielder Franck Ribery, Barcelona striker Thierry Henry, Chelsea skipper John Terry and Blackburn striker Roque Santa Cruz all transfer targets. (The Times) Liverpool may make a £9m bid for Valencia centre-back Raul Albiol if Daniel Agger refuses to sign a new deal to keep him at Anfield. (Various) Real Madrid's Dutch midfielder Rafael van der Vaart says he would like to join Chelsea, if his compatriot Guus Hiddink stays on as manager. (The Sun) Hiddink, meanwhile, has urged Chelsea to bid for Tottenham striker Roman Pavlyuchenko. (Various) AC Milan are lining up a £15m summer bid for Arsenal left-back Gael Clichy. (Various) Everton defender Joseph Yobo will be offered a new £6m contract in the hope of fending off interest from Arsenal and Chelsea. (Daily Mirror) Wigan are interested in signing Newcastle midfielder Joey Barton and will move for him at the end of the season. (The Sun) Tottenham midfielder Tom Huddlestone has alerted Aston Villa, Newcastle and Everton by admitting he has concerns about his future at White Hart Lane. (Daily Mail) Jeremie Aliadiere will quit Middlesbrough if they are relegated and the striker could make a shock return to Arsenal. (Daily Mirror) Boro defender Emanuel Pogatetz also says he will leave the club if they are relegated. (The Sun) Blackburn defender Andre Ooijer has confirmed he will return to PSV Eindhoven next season. (Various) Birmingham striker Kevin Phillips is wanted by Australian side Perth Glory. (Daily Star) Arsenal's highly-rated young midfielder Mark Randall is wanted on loan by Blackpool. (Daily Mirror) Ipswich and Watford are keeping tabs on Barnet striker John O'Flynn. (Daily Star) Bristol City striker Dele Adebola is a target for Sheffield United. (Daily Mirror) Celtic are weighing up a £2m summer swoop for highly-rated 23-year-old Espanyol midfielder Jordi Gomez who is currently on loan at Swansea City. (Various)

Adebayor will start for Togo despite long-term absence at Arsenal

Emmanuel Adebayor will play for Togo in their World Cup qualifier against Cameroon on Saturday despite not appearing for Arsenal since the start of February due to a hamstring injury picked up in the goalless draw at Tottenham. The 25-year-old has travelled to Accra and Togo's coach Jean Thissen has confirming the forward will feature. "Ade did not come here for nothing, he is here to play against Cameroon," Thissen said. "He is the main man for the national team. He is my captain, the nation can count on him. He has always given his best for the country so he will be a boost to the squad. He is a wonderful player." The selection of Adebayor is unlikely to go down well with the Arsenal manager, Arsène Wenger, who will not want the player to aggravate the injury at such a crucial stage in the season. Sure this will really not go down well not just with Arsène Wenger alone but with the fans especially if he gets back from the international game jaded...

Arsenal Midfielder Nasri Negates Zidane Comparisons

It is easy to compare France's World Cup winning No. 10 Zinedine Zidane to Arsenal's burgeoning starlet Samir Nasri. Both share an Algerian heritage, have identical nationalities, are sons of south coast city Marseille, they play similar roles and are technically skilled. However, Nasri refuses to entertain the analogies, claiming he is "flattered" that such comparisons are made, but he believes it is a "mistake" to be likened to the legend. "To be honest, this comparison is a load of nonsense," Nasri explained to L’Equipe. "It is flattering, but it is a mistake." The attack-minded midfielder then went on to praise Yoann Gourcuff, Bordeaux's young star on loan from Serie A giants Milan. "He had a hard time during his stay with Milan," Nasri said. "Many people wrote him off too quickly. But, as far as I am concerned, I was always aware of his potential." Nasri has enjoyed a fine rookie season in the Premier League under the tutelage of Alsatian manager Arsene Wenger. He famously downed Manchester United at the Emirates by scoring a well-taken deuce. We would all agree that Nasri is a load of talent and has shown a lot of promise this season playing for the gunners... all gunners i believe can now raise their heads with the way the team is presently playing 16 games unbeaten , hopefully we could create an upset nobody is given us a chance to

LOST CITIES OF THE WORLD ... TROY

Myth, folklore, mystery, and intrigue surround the ancient city of Troy like no other ruin on Earth. Once thought to be purely imaginary, a prop in Homer's epic poem The Iliad, excavations in northwestern Turkey in 1871 eventually proved that the city indeed existed.

In 1871, German adventurer Heinrich Schliemann began digging at Hisarlik, Turkey, (shown here) in search of the fabled city. His roughshod excavation wrought havoc on the site, but revealed nine ancient cities, each built on top of the next and dating back some 5,000 years. At the time, most archaeologists were skeptical that Troy was among the ruins, but evidence since the discovery suggests the Trojan capital indeed lies within the site.

LOST CITIES OF THE WORLD

The earliest Maya began to settle the dense rain forests of southwestern Mexico and Guatemala some 3,000 years ago. For nearly 1,400 years, settlements arose throughout the region, with some, like Tikal and Palenque (shown here), expanding into large, vibrant city-states. Although the archaeological discovery of Machu Picchu came nearly a hundred years ago, historians are still unsure of the function of this ancient Inca citadel.

The Inca had no system of writing and left no written records, and archaeologists have been left to piece together bits of evidence as to why Machu Picchu was built, what purpose it served, and why it was so quickly vacated.

LOST CITIES OF THE WORLD

The breathtaking city of Petra was a vibrant trading hub that vanished from most maps in the seventh century A.D. It lay beneath a thousand years of dust and debris when, in 1812, a Swiss scholar disguised as a Bedouin trader identified the ruins as the ancient Nabataean capital. Spread throughout a series of remote desert canyons in southern Jordan, Petra arose more than 2,000 years ago at the crossroads of key caravan trade routes between Arabia, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt. The Nabataeans carved most of the sprawling city's buildings, including temples, tombs, and theaters, directly into the region's towering red sandstone cliffs. Here, a Bedouin walks his camel past Petra's most famous building, Al Khazneh, or the Treasury

SIMPLY STEEL! A CLASS ACT

Steel is a youthful, Urban RnB/Afro-Hip-hop musican.He hails from Delta state. Born Abbey Chile Abuede, on 24th dec.As a child he toyed with many hubbies that could have brought him into limelight or made him the man with “nerves of steel” that he is. Football was his first love (even though he still nurses the dream of playing for the “youthful” F.C of Arsenal) before dazzling into music that brought him fame and fortune and also made him the darling of the young and old alike.

At age 15, he showed his dexterity by winning the keenly contested first edition of African/Latin American barbing awards and being the first winner of the prestigious award.He was in a group called Hy-Profile where he was the lead vocalist and also doubled as the leader of the group. Before the release of his debut solo career single on the stable of his new record label (YES RECORDS)”Omoge” he was already a fashion and style icon having made the Nigerian fashion industry his turf with his nationally acclaimed “Niddles n Stitches”.

Sexy Steel as he is popularly called by his female fans and admirers has made cameo appearance in couple of musical videos with Olu Maintain (Yahooze), 9ice to mention but a few. This multi-talented artiste studied Fine-Art in college where he was one of the finest in his Set. Innovative, humorous, nurturing, creative, visionary, stylish, respectful, versatile are the few adjectives that best describes this 8th wonder.

SIMPLY WOW!

Oculus is the first “design launch” of Schöpfer Yachts LLC. This 250-foot vessel was designed by E. Kevin Schöpfer, founder and owner of his namesake company. Designed to accommodate 12 guests in extraordinary comfort and style, Oculus is a long distance cruising yacht capable of speeds upwards of 25 knots. The exterior styling is representative of the jaw and eye socket bone structure of large oceanic fish and mammals. Featuring a dramatic reverse bow configuration, the yacht’s armature balances an elegant expression of symmetry and structure. well, you guys who are dreamers like me waiting to own their own yacth someday, this is an enticing toy at the back yard...

WORLDS MOST EXPENSIVE IPHONE

If you’re a fan of luxury phones, you’re going to like this. The iPhone has currently been luxed up by Australian jeweler Peter Aloisson. The result is the iPhone Princess Plus - the world’s most expensive iPhone. 138 of the total amount of diamonds are “princess cut” stones, which is where the name iPhone Princess Plus comes from. The other 180 diamonds used the brilliant cut. These diamonds total 17.75 carats and are inlaid on 18k white gold. The price of this sparkling baby is $176,400. Of course, an alternative version containing only the brilliant-cut diamonds is available for “only” $66,150. wow! this is definitely a collector's item... for lagos holdup no try pick or make dat call ooh !

JUST HUMOUR!

Hey guys just thought it good to share this wit ya all... A popular motivational speaker was entertaining his audience. He Said: "The best years of my life were spent in the arms of a woman who wasn't my wife!" The audience was in silence and shock. The speaker added: "And that woman was my mother!" Laughter and applause. A week later, a top manager trained by the motivational speaker tried to crack this very effective joke at home. He was a bit foggy after a drink. He said loudly to his wife who was preparing dinner, "The greatest years of my life were spent in the arms of a woman who was not my wife!" The wife went; "ah!" with shock and rage. Standing there for 20 seconds trying to recall the second half of the joke, the manager finally blurted out "...and I can't remember who she was!" By the time the manager regained his consciousness, he was on a hospital bed nursing burns from boiling water. Moral of the story: Don't copy if you can't paste!

GXPLOITS SET FOR EXPLOITS!

At a time when the 'good' music lovers in Nigeria were about to give-up on tack team effort music in Nigeria, emerge these charming, multi-talented and elegant lads called GXPLOITS.A new generation of talent is poised on the cusp of the come-up. The nation is about to witness a group of musicians whose musical prowess, high energy and artistic ability epitomize the phrase “Work Ethics”. Born into the 80's, all male R'n'B/Dance Pop triad, Lagos thorough-bred, and based in Lagos. These sublime singers and performers came into existence in 2002 as a Gospel/A-Capella group going to different churches in Lagos performing and trying to establish a name. They released a single “Your Man” in 2007 and the song gained massive air play and rocked that age. Even though, they came from different backgrounds and different states origin, these young lads defines unity even in their irresistible vocal harmonies and their complex performance routine that will surely groove you.Olufemi Amusan a.k.a.Phemmy,Okey Uzoeshi a.k.a.Okey,Seun Oyedokun a.k.a. Shay comprise the ensemble known as Gxploits and they came into prominence with unique flair, coupled with the discipline and tenacity that breeds chart-topping songs like"Bolu Molu Merente and Tear Rubber” which was produced by A-list producers I.D Cabasa and Zeeno Foster. I knew these guys before now and as raw as their talents were then they sure were class to listen to and watche on stage... thumbs up guys!