9JA-CONCEPT BLOG

Jordi Alba is excited by the appointment of Ernesto Valverde as Barcelona coach, saying he believes the change from Luis Enrique will be good for him. Left-back Alba has been a regular since joining from Valencia in 2012, but found himself omitted from the side for some games last season as Luis Enrique employed a back three. He was also rotated in and out of the team with Lucas Digne and, despite starting seven of the final eight games as Barca missed out on the La Liga title, ended the season disappointed with his game time. “I’m very happy [with Valverde],” Alba said. “I think he’s a brave coach who likes playing with the ball. “He’s had strong players with other qualities, and they have played with the ball. I asked my friends who have had him as their coach and they spoke highly of him. “What’s clear is that [Valverde] will be better for me than Luis Enrique. I didn’t have the minutes I wanted, so I hope that this goes better for me — I’m excited about the new c...

  Former Arsenal captain Tony Adams recommended Eric Dier to his old club only to be told the midfielder was too “one-paced,” he has told The Times. Dier was relatively unknown in English football before joining Tottenham Hotspur from Sporting Lisbon in summer 2014. He has since established himself as an England regular, rotating between centre-half and holding midfield. Ex-England captain Adams, who spent his 22-year playing career at Arsenal, said he had spotted Dier in England’s youth set-up two years before he moved to Spurs. “I recommended Eric Dier to Arsenal,” he said. “I did the England under-19s with Blakey [Noel Blake] in 2012, and phoned [Arsenal scout] Steve Rowley and said: ‘Dier’s head and shoulders above any English player in this camp. Do it now. €5 million.’ I knew the get-out clause at Sporting. “Steve said that Arsenal’s Portuguese scout said he was a bit one-paced. So Arsenal didn’t. They did get Calum Chambers for £17m — no disrespect to Cal...

Mr Abdulrazak Salawu, FCT Coordinator, National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), on Saturday called for more investment in skills training in order to reduce unemployment among youths. Salawu told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja that skills training would also propel the nation towards sustainable growth and development. The coordinator was speaking on the side lines of the opening of the NYSC Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) programme for the 2017 Batch ‘A’ corps members. The programme, which held at the permanent orientation camp, Kubwa, was aimed at introducing new corps members on the SAED. “The Federal Government spends a lot every year to mobilise corps members for the one-year national service and this shows great commitment to invest in the youth and the future of the nation. “There is, however, the need to do more; government should take a step further by doubling its current investment in SAED. “Many developed nations got to whe...