Abou Diaby, Arsenal’s center midfielder from Cote d’Ivoire,  was a shining star in this weekend’s game against Portsmouth in the United Arab Emirates.  Diaby led the charge, fielding two goals in the first half to put Arsenal in the lead. Portsmouth rallied to score a goal in the first half to keep things lively and keep them in the running.

Abou Diaby

In other sports news, Chiuzor Okonkwo was named Nigerian Premier League’s ‘Best Player’.  A very versatile player, he can play both defence and midfield positions. Other winners included Monday Odigie (Best Coach), and Bassey Akpan (Best Goalkeeper). Orok Akarandut walked away with the Goal King award after equaling Ishaya Jatau’s record by scoring 17 goals.

Emmanuel Adebayor helped Manchester City hold its own against the Wolverhampton Wanderers in what turned out to  be a tenuous victory.  The Wolves gave them a serious run for their money and I am sure that City will be sure to respect the talent in the Wolves team the next time they play against them.

Morrocan striker, Marouane Chamakh, has decided  to stay with Bordeux and will not be moving to West Ham United, as had been previously rumored.  He would like to eventually play for the Premier League though, and has not ruled out the possibility of moving over to them.

Nigerian strikers, Yakubu Aiyegbeni (Everton)  and Obafemi Martins (Wolfsburg), will not be representing Nigeria in the qualifying game against Tunisia next month.  Citing uncertainty of their game-readiness, coach Shuaibu Amodu noted that while he wasn’t sure if they could recover in time, he was happy to have Chinedu Obasi (Hoffenheim) on the team after his recovery from his injury.