#POWER9TWELVE #SPORTSUPDATE Reigning Africa Cup of Nations champions Nigeria will not defend their title in Equatorial Guinea after failing to qualify from Group A. In Wednesdays final round of matches, Nigeria were held 2-2 by South Africa in Uyo, meaning they finished outside of their groups top two automatic qualification spots with eight points - a total that also put them out of the running to be the best third-placed team. South Africa had already assured their place at the tournament, which will be played from 17 January to 8 February, and only one spot is still outstanding. Congo Brazzaville, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Mali and DR Congo all claimed their tickets to the continents showpiece event with their results on Wednesday. ------------ English players are getting more minutes in the Premier League this season but make up just over a third of time spent on the pitch, a BBC Sport study has found. The rise, from 32.36% of total playing time in 2013-14 to 36.08% until 1 October, can be solely attributed to newly promoted Burnley, who used just one non-UK player. ake away the Clarets and the second annual State of the Game study found restricted opportunities for English players at the top clubs. State of the Game comes six months after Football Association chairman Greg Dyke announced his plan to get more English players playing in the Premier League with the ultimate aim of winning the 2022 World Cup. ----------- Liverpool and England striker Daniel Sturridge could be sidelined for six more weeks with a new thigh injury. Sturridge injured his thigh in training on Tuesday and scans show a different problem to his previous complaints. The 25-year-old, who scored 25 times last season, has played just three Premier League games this term and only returned to full training last week. He suffered a thigh strain while with England in September before picking up a calf strain in training in October. Liverpool have won only four times in 14 matches without the former Chelsea and Manchester City forward and are in 11th place. Brendan Rodgerss side have scored just 14 league goals this season, with strikers Mario Balotelli, Fabio Borini and Rickie Lambert failing to find the net. ------------ Charlotte Hornets forward Jeffery Taylor has been suspended for 24 games without pay after pleading guilty to domestic assault. Taylor was seen shoving his girlfriend into a wall, and hitting her on the arm, according to a police report. The 25-year-old has already missed 11 games from the start of the season but been paid, so will continue to have his salary stopped when his ban is over. NBA commissioner Adam Silver said such conduct caused damage to the NBA. ------------ Rafael Nadal says it is his goal to be fully fit for the Australian Open and competitive enough to challenge for a 15th Grand Slam title. Nadal missed the ATP World Tour Finals in London after undergoing surgery to remove his appendix. The 28-year-old has also battled knee, wrist and back problems, with doctors confirming his rehabilitation included stem cell treatment. I have a month before Australia to get to my best level, said Nadal. I hope to be healthy enough to work as much as I need and want, and if that happens I really feel confident I can come back strong. Nadal, who won the the French Open title in June for the ninth time in 10 years, will begin his comeback in an exhibition event in Abu Dhabi on 1 January. ------------- According to a detailed study by British publication, the Daily Mail, South African footballers earn an average wage around R580,000 per year. Nick Harris, an British football journalist, underwent the arduous process of detailing average wages from around the world, a process that resulted in him ranking the world’s top 34 leagues and the amount of money their players earn. According to Harris’ study, South African players earn, on average, around R11,000 per week, a figure that is utterly dwarfed by the average of the highest paying division, the English Premier League, whose average wage is over R740,000 a week. South Africa is the second highest paying league in Africa, behind Algeria, whose players earn around R23,000. That’s over R1,000,000 a year.
Posted on: Thu, 20 Nov 2014 09:45:44 +0000
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