The second episode of the XFactor Malta Season 3’s live shows has kicked off, bringing back some retro vibes. Opening with a sparkly and nostalgic rendition of Boney M’s ‘Rasputin’, the judges are in place and singers prepped to give their best performance. Stay tuned to see who will be moving on to the next round and who will be going back home.
#MaltaDaily
Photo Source: XFactor Malta FB
Chelsea have beaten London rivals Tottenham Hotspurs 2-0 in what was a close game. This loss is the third time that Tottenham have lost to Chelsea this month, which will surely be an eye opening stat for serial winner Antonio Conte. The result sees Chelsea in third place with 47 points but Spurs will overtake the Blues if they win their four games in hand.
View this post on Instagram
The first half was the perfect example of each teams’ coach’s respective football ideologies. Chelsea were dominating the possession stats, trying to be fluid in attack with Mason Mount and Hakim Ziyech searching chances for record signing Romelu Lukaku. Tottenham were more cautious defensively, trying to counter attack Chelsea at every opportunity using Kane’s superior technique to release the impressive mix of physicality and pace of players such as Steven Bergwijn. Spurs striker Harry Kane coolly slotted the ball into the net in the latter half of the half only to see the goal disallowed due to his extended arm on Chelsea defender Thiago Silva’s back.
Chelsea were clearly the better team in the second half, they looked more focused and used vital players like Callum Hudson Odoi and Hakim Ziyech better to their strengths. Tottenham looked the same as they were in the first half, looking for a chance to counter attack. The scoresheet was opened by a marvelous Hakim Ziyech curler in the opening minutes of the first half. Spurs’ hopes for an easy come back were quickly shut down as in the 55th minute Thiago Silva scored a brilliant header from a free kick. The game ended with Spurs desperately searching for a goal against Chelsea’s strong defense.
#MaltaDaily
Francis Ngannou has retained his UFC heavyweight championship belt, after beating former sparring partner Cyril Gane on points. The fight was very close with commentators and mma experts stating that out of the five rounds Ngannou won 3 whilst Gane won the first two. Everyone was shocked to see that Ngannou who normally relies on his power and early knockouts, preferred a more patient approach and wrestled Cyril instead of using his boxing skills.
View this post on Instagram
The first two rounds were all Cyril Gane. The Frenchman used his quick feet and surprising agility considering his size to his advantage, tiring the heavyweight champion out with many body shots and takedowns. Francis looked very tired after the first two rounds, something which surprised many considering his excellent record in winning fights by early knockouts.
The third and fourth rounds took everyone by surprise as Francis Ngannou looked in control, outwrestling Gane and using his new and improved grappling skills to his advantage. The fifth and last round of the fight seemed to go against the tide, when Cyril Gane managed to take down Ngannou but due to mistakes by Gane, Francis managed to edge out the win on points.
After his win Ngannou confirmed in a post fight interview that he was slightly injured. He told Joe Rogan “It has been a very tough training camp, very tough.” and finished up by saying “A lot of s*** happened. Three weeks ago I hurt my knee. Tore my medial cruciate ligament completely, hurt my ACL and other stuff.”
#MaltaDaily
Prime Minister Abela revealed that the COVID-19 health restrictions will begin to ease from the first week of February 2022.
Speaking during a political event in Nadur, Gozo on Sunday, Abela backed statements by Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne who also announced that this week, a COVID restriction exit-road map would be unveiled.
‘Science showed we need a high vaccination rate to beat the pandemic. The imposed measures have been successful, and now is the time to move forward’ the PM told party supporters.
He continued to say that it is time for the country to follow suit in discussing whether the pandemic should be treated as an endemic. Abela said that he looks forward to the discussion on whether we should be treating COVID-19 like seasonal influenza and the common cold.
Predicting a good spring and summer in terms of the epidemiological situation, he credited the ‘coordinated and well-planned approach adopted by the government.’
Abela also criticised the opposition’s ‘U-turn on COVID restrictions.’ He expressed how he could not understand how Bernard Grech ‘remained so populist.
‘Restrictions were in line with other countries in Europe. The vaccine rules are there in a lot of countries. First he agreed with the measures, and then made a U-turn’ said the Prime Minister. The roadmap will be unveiled during this upcoming week.
#MaltaDaily
Photo Source: Robert Abela FB
