Boko Haram gunmen kill 15 in Kambari, Maiduguri

BOKO Haram gunmen killed 15 people including a village leader near Maiduguri, the heartland of the Islamist group blamed for thousands of deaths in its six-year insurgency, security sources and residents said Saturday.

"The terrorists attacked Kambari village which is less than five kilometres to Maiduguri around 5:00 am. They killed 15 people and set the entire hamlet ablaze," the security source who requested anonymity said of the attack on Friday.

"After fruitless efforts to enter Maiduguri through Konduga without success, the terrorists took a different route and attacked Kambari," he said.

A woman from the village who simply gave her name as Kyallu said four of her children were among the dead.

"They killed four of my grown-up children when they attacked our village about the time for the morning prayers," Kyallu, who is now in Maiduguri, told AFP.

"They shot my children dead without any prompting. I had to leave the village with my grandchildren because we have lost our houses," she said.

"The insurgents also killed our village head. In fact, I counted 15 dead bodies," she said.

Maiduguri and its environs have been repeatedly attacked by the extremists who began their deadly insurgency to impose Sharia in the mainly-Muslim north in 2009.

The latest attack came as President Goodluck Jonathan was due to launch his re-election campaign for the February 14 poll in Maiduguri on Saturday. Security in the city has been beefed up ahead of the event.

Jonathan, a southern Christian, faces a tough challenge from former military ruler Mohammadu Buhari, a Muslim, who is believed to have a cult following in northern Nigeria.

Asari-Dokubo vows to retaliate attack on Jonathan’s convoy in Buhari’s home state

Founder of the defunct Niger Delta Peoples Volunteer Force, Mujaheed Asari-Dokubo, has vowed that the Niger Delta militants will avenge the Tuesday’s attack on the convoy of President Goodluck Jonathan in Katsina, Buhari’s home town.

Speaking at a press conference in Abuja, Asari-Dokubo threatened that Buhari and his people should watch out for counter attack.

He said, “There is an established pattern of pre and post-election violence in the north. In the 50s when late Awolowo was campaigning in the north, he went with helicopters and he was mocked,” he said.


“People said he was flying over the houses and peeping at their wives. That has continued and everywhere in the country, people say leave them alone. We don’t want any trouble. But I think the game has changed. The rules of the game have changed.

“For every action, there will be an opposite and equal reaction. I knew that the signing of the accord was useless and that the president subjected himself to sign such an accord… for me, it was out of place for a president and commander in chief of the armed forces of a country. But the president is a humble person. He does things that even marvel some of us and make us sometimes to be very angry.

“To be frank, I was very angry on that day they were signing it. The president has sworn to protect the lives of every Nigerian. So, why would he after taking a constitutional oath subject himself to another oath?

“So, what happened in Katsina is not a surprise. But don’t be surprised. We are putting the world on notice that they have started first. When we reply, let nobody talk because we are going to reply. We did not sign any accord with them. They did not sign. They are talking about election violence now because they know that other people will respond.



“Before, they had the monopoly of violence, so nobody cared who died. Our lives were not valuable and they had all the latitude to wreck havoc and did what they liked. But the game has changed. Be bold enough to tell them that game has changed. If they slice our throat, we are going to slice your throat. They stoned the president, you will hear from us. That’s the answer.

“My concern is what happens after the election because we know they will do what they are known to do every time. But this time, they will cry. So all Igbo people who are there, if you don’t come back home and you want to continue to be there and something happens to you, there is nobody to be blamed. If you have a child who is a youth corper and you allow him to be there, you will not hold anybody responsible.

“There is no way Goodluck will not win the election. We will win them and we know they are preparing for violence in consonance with some foreign powers. When they do that, we will respond disproportionately. We will respond. That’s what we are going to do. If you hit me with a stick, I am going to hit you with iron. I am not speaking in riddles. I am speaking in plain language. My English may not be very good. I am speaking in my own street language. We are going respond disproportionately and we are unapologetic.

“The people who are in Katsina who did not hold their children should also know that I will not hold my children. I assure you, nothing will happen anywhere if they do not initiate violence. Did we ask them to stone the President yesterday? Do you want us to fold our arms so that they will kill him?

“Let them stop the violence. When they do, we will stop. A situation where Shekau will stand and say Niger Delta we are coming for you. Goodluck I am coming for you. You are a man and I am a man. We are going to look at each other eyeball to eyeball. You can shoot and I can shot. You can kill and I can kill. You can destroy and I can destroy.

                                    

Buhari’s certificate is fake – Fani-Kayode

“The question is not for me. It is for Buhari, el-Rufai, Shekau. They are the people you have to direct this question to. Go and ask Buhari why he allowed his people to stone the president and commander-in-chief in Katsina. There must be balance of terror. One person does not have the prerogative to kill, maim and destroy,” he added

Five ways men kill a relationship without realising it

Advice for men

Women may seem like complex emotional beings; Yet they are often just looking for their core needs to be met. These are to feel safe, secure and cherished. Little girls dream of being the princess rescued by her knight in shining armour who whisks her away to his castle. Meet those needs, and you’ll experience the relationship of your dreams.

you kill it:

1. By being indecisive or uncertain.

2. By forgetting to compliment her.

3. By not focusing on her or the relationship.

4. By not making her feel looked after or protected

5. By not making time for her

Five ways women kill a relationship without realising it

Advice for women

Men primarily want to be king of their castle, to be loved unconditionally and to make their woman happy. Relationship ‘killers’ will cause your man to become stressed, frustrated or even aggressive and he will often withdraw. This destroys 

any chance of true intimacy.

You kill it:

1) By criticizing him.

2) By threatening or actually withdrawing love.

3) By not acknowledging or appreciating him.

4) By taking control.

5) By challenging him.

A BROKEN HEART Doesn't always have to mean a BROKEN BOND

It’s painful, it’s exhausting and it’s so incredibly difficult. Going through heartbreak can be absolutely miserable. You hate the person but you still love the person. And then you end up hating yourself for loving them, which eventually leads to you hating them even more for making you still love them. It’s draining, really.

But what happens when the breakup is quiet? What happens when there’s no big, dramatic event that ruins the relationship? What happens when you end things on good terms?

Sometimes there’s no hostility. In these kinds of breakups, no one fights. You don’t fight with each other or fight for each other. There’s no screaming, insulting, or drunken breakdowns in the middle of the night. There are no angry texts, letters, or not-so-cryptic tweeting of song lyrics. This breakup occurs not always mutually but with dignity on both sides. No one loses respect for the other person throughout the experience. 

The heartbroken party is not sobbing on their ex’s door at 3 in the morning begging for them back. Friends don’t get involved. People are usually shocked when they find out about the breakup because they were under the safe assumption that nothing was ever wrong. And that’s the thing; there wasn’t anything that really went wrong.

In this kind of breakup, there are hurt feelings but they are completely overshadowed by the love that you once had for each other. There is pain but it is outweighed by all of the wonderful memories that you have together.

In a good-term breakup, things just end without the unnecessary drama. You respect each other too much to engage in any silly, immature bullshit. Don’t get me wrong: one of you may be devastated about the separation but you try to look past it because you really, really loved each other. They say that when you really love someone, you want the best for them no matter what and that’s exactly what you want for them, whether that includes being heavily involved in each other’s lives or not.

So while this may be the most heartbreaking thing that’s ever happened in your world, you put on a smile for them because you don’t want to see them hurting because you’re hurting. In this kind of breakup, you were both the bigger person and you have no reason to hate each other. This kind of breakup is so tough because the lingering feelings don’t vanish right away and they may not ever go away completely. No one did anything catastrophic for it to end. There was no cheating or cruel words said. It ended not with a bang but with a whisper.

I believe that these kinds of breakups can be the hardest to get over because the door is never closed; everything is still unresolved so there’s no way to really end your chapter forever. You didn’t just stop having feelings for each other and you didn’t stop being in love with each other. Someone just had a lot of doubt and it ended. It hurt but someone felt that it was a choice that had to be made. However, that doesn’t mean that it was easy for either of you.

You still really want each other in your lives, just for whatever reason you don’t want to be romantically involved anymore. It seems simple enough to try and keep a friendship but then there’s the seeing them with other people and watching someone else’s arms around them. Even though you have sworn to this friendship that you will be okay with whatever happens, it is so tough to watch the person you once loved fall in love with somebody else.

Breaking up on good terms is rough because you both really care about each other but you’re not together anymore. There’s this inevitable magnetic pull to each other, which includes still wondering how their family is doing, and still being concerned about their overall well- being. Everybody gets hurt in a breakup whether you’re the one breaking a heart or the person getting heartbroken. And the process of a heart breaking continues long after the breakup. Being involved in each other’s lives as friends can contribute to it.

It’s nearly impossible to look at this person platonically without thinking of all of your extremely intimate moments or secrets that you have only shared with this person. How do you look into their eyes and not see their soul like you used to? It’s like pretending that this beautiful masterpiece just didn’t exist between the two of you and now all you have is this dinky friendship that doesn’t do your connection a shred of justice. You two were so much more than that at one point. How does it go from a work of art to a pile of ash?

There still an undeniable attraction between the two of you and for that matter there’s still an indisputable amount of sexual chemistry there. It’s hard to pretend that it doesn’t exist at all. That’s what this kind of break up consists of: a lot of pretending. So is there such a thing as ending on good terms or is it just dangerous? Everyone says that breaking up in a subtle, friendly way is the best possible scenario because you still get to have that person in your life, but at same time it makes it harder to get over the person being that they are a presence that you keep around.

Right when you think you’ve totally forgotten about them, their name lights up on the screen of your phone. The name that used to make you flutter with joy is now making you feel sick to your stomach and you go back on the merry-go-round of feelings all over again.

When you’re together, talking, reminiscing about the great times that you’ve had together in the past and essentially seeing everything that you loved about them, it doesn’t help the process of moving on. These conversations help remind you of why you fell in love with them in the first place.

I truly believe that even though it’s harder to try and remain friends, it’s entirely worth it. Cutting each other out of your lives may be the easy way out but it is also a complete waste of a really powerful connection. You were in love with this person, which means you enjoyed their personality a lot. They were able to make you laugh and smile. You don’t have to throw that all away.

So while it is extremely difficult to keep each other around, I encourage you to do so. It really is the mature thing to do. You owe it to the time you spent together to salvage a friendship out of the relationship.

****I want your relationship success****

Stress in Relationships: 10 Sources and Their Antidotes

Stressful life circumstances such as not enough money to pay the bills, family members with health problems or figuring out who will do what of the too-much work of running a home clearly can create stress in relationships. At the same time, how a couple talks over these stressful problems either reduces or magnifies the tensions caused by the initial problem.Marriage arguments(link is external) are the last thing you need when you're already trying to deal with a tough situation. Stress in relationships zooms up if the way you talk with each(link is external) other raises any of the following concerns:

1. Will the relationship continue? 

Survival of relationships, like personal survival, is a paramount concern. 

What can help reduce concerns over whether your relationship will survive? Discussions about commitment can help. If the commitment to stay together forever is not there, find out your and your partner's underlying concerns. Put out on the table what would be the deal-breakers. Clarify what thoughts and fears hold either of you back from a full commitment. 

2. Does my partner like me or not?

As the song says so well, just about everyone wants R-E-S-P-E-C-T. The opposite of respect and affection is conveyed by criticism, sarcasm or judgmental voice tones.

If you are getting excessive criticism, or giving it, or if the tone of voice and words you use with each other convey "You're not ok" instead of acceptance, discuss what lies behind these negative messages. Discuss also who in each of your families of origin may have modeled derogatory behavior toward their spouse. Awareness leads to change.

Also, receiving negative messages as if they are normal and ok with you is a big mistake. As soon as you hear unfriendly or disrespectful words or tone of voice, explain that the tone is uncomfortable for you. Without feedback, your partner will keep doing more of the same.

3. Do I have equal power here?

Power balance means that both of you have a voice and that you regard the input of each of you as having equal importance. The opposite would be if one of you experiences the other as controlling.

Learn the win-win waltz for making decisions in a way that gives you equal power. These solutions will be better for both of you.

4. Do I have autonomy?

Paradoxically, people need independence as well as connection. Losing your identity is too high a price to pay for partnership.

Psychologist Andras Agyal articulated this paradox brilliantly in his 1965 book Neurosis and Treatment. Freedom to be an autonomous person is vital simultaneously with a sense of belonging. 

The “Incredible String Band” similarly expresses this paradox in the lyrics of one of their songs: “What is it that I am? And what am I a part of?” If you are feeling stressed because you are feeling too little sense of living your own life as opposed to being a partner in a relationship, figure out what activities you could be doing on your own that would be most appealing and meaningful.

5. Is this a safe place?

Behavior that makes you feel unsafe, emotionally, physically or economically, in a relationship is always out of bounds.

If you are feeling unsafe, consult a program in your area for victims of abuse.

Communication skill-glitches when couples talk together increase stress.

Skills enable basketball players to become a winning team. Insufficient skills increase stress on the team because the players then trip each other up, anger each other by not passing appropriately or shooting effectively, and can't accomplish the job of scoring points and winning, 

Couples with insufficient skills inadvertently antagonize each other by triggering the five concerns listed above. At the same time, they increase stress in their relationship by being less able to come up with good solutions to the problems they face.

6. You-Messages

A writer said: "I refer to sentences that start with the word you as “crossovers.” That’s because when someone starts a sentence with the word you, the sentence crosses over the boundary that defines the other person’s space. The crossing may be to criticize, to tell the other what to do, to guess what the other person is thinking or feeling. In all these cases, invading another person’s personal space feels threatening, and all the more so if the content is negative. 

The antidote to crossovers is I-messages and good questions. The rule is "I can talk about myself (my thoughts and feelings) or ask about my partner's. No speaking for or assuming I can guess my partner's thoughts or feelings. Instead, ask. 

7. Listening to disparage or discard data instead of listening to understand and digest it.

If you listen for what’s wrong in what you hear and immediately point that out, the person who just tried to share information with you is going to feel stressed. If your partner dismisses what you try to convey, you will feel stressed.

Learn good listening skills. Otherwise dialogue is like playing catch with someone who always drops the ball.

8. Getting emotionally worked up, particularly in anger

Getting overly-emotional, either defensive or aggressively, switches the tone from friendly to adversarial. When a relationship turns adversarial, the benefits of affection, support and the like evaporate.

Anger undermines feelings that the relationship is a safe and supportive one. Decide as a couple that if either of you begins to leave the calm zone and become angry, both of you will exit briefly into separate rooms to calm down. For details of how to use mutual exits to prevent fighting, see this post. 

9. Staying silent about concerns lest they provoke a fight.

This seemingly safe route is not so safe. 

Staying mum when something is stressful for you is likely to allow the situation to continue and to cause your stress to fester and flourish. Refraining from speaking up diminishes a sense of personal power in a relationship and invites depression.

Better to learn to raise issues in a gentle way so the two of you can talk them through productively.

10. Dominating to get your way, insisting, convincing and proving you are right. 

If you want one thing and your partner another, you’re at risk for launching a stressful battle to see who will win and who will lose.

The magic trick for reducing rising stress levels around who will get their way is to let go of advocating for your concern. Instead, explain why you want what you have suggested. Find out the concerns that are motivating your partner to want something difference. 

Once you both understand the why’s, the underlying concerns, building a win-win solution can become a fun and creative activity. I call this kind of shared problem-solving the win-win waltz.

Without collaborative decision-making, one of you is likely to wind up winning and the other losing. That’s a recipe for relationship stress.

In sum, what can you do to minimize these sources of relationship stress?

Learn skills. 

Life inevitably from time to time puts stressful challenges on the path of every couple. Can you and your life partner talk quietly together when sensitive issues come up, share your concerns, listen to genuinely understand each other’s perspectives, and create a plan of action that feels positive to you both? 

If not, no need to panic. The game's not over. You just need to learn and practice the skills that enable being in a committed partnership to be a safe and supportive addition to your life.

If your skills for talking together about sensitive issues are sufficient, stresses will become opportunities to enjoy the benefits of true partnership. Working out solutions to challenges between you, that's when being a couple brings ultimate blessings of affection and a joyfully shared life.

ACT NOW!!!

I want your relationship success

3 Breakup Warning Signs

Getting dumped sucks… there's no doubt about it. There aren't many things more heart-wrenching than finding out that the person you love thinks he will be better off without you. But this news can really make your guts fall on the floor when it comes completely out of left field.

If an "out-of-the-blue breakup" has happened to you in the past, I don't have to remind you of how much it hurts. But the good news is that I can show you how to make sure it never happens again. You see, the tell-tale signs of an inevitable breakup will always be there if you know what to look for. 

And while there are many indicators that point to minor relationship problems, we're going to be looking at the big four which indicate that a breakup is very likely to happen in the near future. 

Once you notice these signs, you can make the decision to address your issues before it's too late, or you can turn the tables and end the relationship first, on your terms.

Breakup Sign 1: Your partner starts distancing himself either physically or emotionally

The first red flag is any kind of distancing behavior, either physical or emotional. "Physical distancing" occurs when your partner seems to be making less and less time for you. All of a sudden, he may seem to be avoiding the typical "couple" activities you're used to doing together, such as watching American Idol, walking the dog, etc. 

"Emotional distancing" is a more subtle, but much stronger indicator that things are heading south in your relationship. Have you noticed any changes in the way that your partner communicates with you, such as a lack of eye contact or a different voice tone? Have you noticed that most of your conversations are now boring and trivial? Does he avoid discussing future plans for the two of you? These are all good signs that your partner's emotional investment in the relationship is starting to rapidly deteriorate.

Breakup Warning Sign #2: Your partner makes big changes to his daily routine

One of the most obvious signs of a troubled relationship is when your partner has rearranged his entire schedule in order to spend less time with you. Now, sometimes a promotion at work, for instance, might be to blame but if you find that he's consistently stuck at the office until the wee hours of the morning, there might be something else going on there.

Breakup Warning Sign #3: Your partner spends time with a new group of friends.

If his new crew consists of a bunch of happily married, church-going choir boys who wake up early on Sundays to take their children to little-league, you probably won't have much to worry about. But if they happen to be a bunch of hardcore party-boys who bring your man home drunk and stumbling on a Wednesday morning, you have every reason to be alarmed.

The bottom line is that our friends have more influence over us than we might think, so beware when your man starts hanging out with a bunch of womanizing ex-cons who are prone to nosebleeds and take frequent "business" trips to Macedonia.

Do you agree?

OFFICIAL: Likkle T releases CONFAM (Rasta shoki)

David Adelaja popularly known as Likkle T releases a new single titled "Confam". His hot new single is so going to get you grooving. Trust me, you would not know when your sub-conscious begin to say the lyrics in the song. Confam is really a great song.

Enjoy confam by Likke T.

Click here for download

Your relationship needs to be allowed its growth

It's hardly rocket science people but it's easy to forget. When you plant a seed in the ground, you need to give it access to sunlight, water, and air; you need to give it space to develop.

Your relationship needs room to breathe. Schedule in some 'separate time' and just see it for what it is. The developing flower needing space to grow isn't a sign that it is heading for collapse.

I want your relationship success

WARNING: Mind reading in relationships is not advised

Everyone does this from time to time, but constantly wondering what your partner is thinking is a quick route to anxiety.

If they say one thing don't assume they mean another. If they say nothing don't assume that their silence is significant, either.

'Mind reading' happens when we assume we know what someone is thinking when we don't.

When you stop doing it, you really begin to respect someone's privacy because everyone deserves the right to have space to think their own thoughts.

Constantly asking, 'What are you thinking?' can make someone want to withdraw further.

For your relationship bliss, try as much as possible to avoid mind reading. 

I want your relationship success.

Man United struggling to ship out former £26M signing

Manchester United are eager to offload Brazilian midfielder Anderson, with the DailyMail claiming the club are yet to receive a single offer.


The 26 year-old moved from Porto for just over £26 Million in 2007, and failed to live up to his potential at Old Trafford.

Anderson arrived with Sir Alex Ferguson hoping he could dominate in his midfield for the foreseeable future, but the play maker never managed to earn more than the 16 starts he was given in his debut campaign in England.

The United flop was sent on loan to Fiorentina last January, but only managed to make seven appearances in total.

Wes Brown previously described the former Porto youngster as the least intelligent player he has played alongside in his career, revealing he believes Anderson is still unable to speak fluent English.

Brown said: ‘I’d go Anderson. Just because when I was with him he was there for four years and I honestly still don’t think he can speak English.’

The former United defender also claimed that Ryan Giggs was the best player to have played alongside, and that Nani or Ronaldo was the fastest.

Mason signs five-and-a-half-year Tottenham deal

Ryan Mason has signed a new five-and-a-half-year contact extension at Tottenham, which will see him remain at White Hart Lane until 2020.

The 23-year-old has flourished under new manager Mauricio Pochettino, scoring his first senior goal for the club against Nottingham Forest in September before making his Premier League bow against Arsenal.

Mason joined the club's academy in 2008, coming through the ranks before a series of loan spells at the likes of Swindon, Doncaster and Millwall without making an appearance for Spurs' senior side.

However, under Pochettino, Mason has made 18 appearances this season including starting Wednesday night's League Cup semi-final first-leg win over Sheffield United.

Mason will now be looking for a second consecutive start in cup competitions as Tottenham host Leicester City in the fourth round of the FA Cup on Saturday.

Official: Niang joins Genoa on loan

AC Milan youngster M'Baye Niang has joined Genoa on loan for the remainder of the season, the club have confirmed.

The Frenchman made inroads into the Rossoneri first team two seasons ago but has since struggled to make an impression at San Siro.

A loan spell at Montpellier last term yielded four goals and he will now get some valuable playing time in Serie A at the Luigi Ferraris.

"Genoa announces that it has signed a deal with AC Milan for the temporary acquisition of the player M'Baye Niang for the remainder of the current season," a club statement read.

Niang has made five appearances for Milan in Serie A this season but has not found the net in any of them.

Genoa currently sit seventh in Serie A on 28 points, two ahead of Milan.

'No chance' of Cuadrado joining Chelsea, insists Montella

Fiorentina coach Vincenzo Montella is adamant that there is "no chance" of Juan Cuadrado joining Chelsea.

The Colombia winger has been linked with a move to the Premier League title-chasers in the January transfer window and reports claimed he attended their League Cup draw with Liverpool at Anfield on Tuesday as a guest of the Blues' kit manufacturer.

However, Jose Mourinho professed to know nothing of such a visit from the 26-year-old, who only completed a switch to full ownership by the Tuscan club in 2014.

Cuadrado underlined his value to Fiorentina with a penalty in the 3-1 Coppa Italia victory over Atalanta on Wednesday, sending his side into the quarter-finals in a game which also saw Mario Gomez score twice to break his goal drought and Montella told the press afterwards that the winger is not going anywhere.

"To date, there is no chance that Cuadrado leaves Fiorentina," the Fiorentina coach stated.

"He knows that some things are exaggerated."

Chelsea are keeping a close eye on the Colombian's situation at the Artemio Franchi due to the uncertainty over the future of Andre Schurrle and Mohamed Salah at Stamford Bridge.

The Germany international has been linked with a move to Wolfsburg, while the Egyptian attacker has caught the attention of Roma, who are hopeful of bringing him to Serie A on loan until the end of the season.

Mourinho has so far stressed that he's keen to keep his current squad together, but he could turn to Cuadrado if one of the aforementioned attackers were to leave.

The former Udinese man has a contract with Fiorentina until June 2019, but has a buy-out clause of €35 million in his existing deal.

Chelsea can win the quadruple, boasts Courtois

Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois insists his manager Jose Mourinho is wrong to dismiss his side's chances of landing an unprecedented quadruple this season.

The Belgium international goalkeeper produced a man-of-the-match display at Anfield on Tuesday which helped secure a 1-1 draw against Liverpool in the Capital One Cup semi-final first leg as the Blues remained on course to secure the first domestic silverware of the new season.

Chelsea, who currently have a five-point lead at the top of the Premier League, face lower-league opposition in the fourth round of the FA Cup and have been drawn against Paris Saint-Germain in the last 16 of the Champions League, 

And, in contradiction to his manager's public stance, Courtois feels confident he is part of a squad that is capable of maintaining a fight on four fronts. 

"It will be hard but we have the team that can win everything," he told reporters. "Obviously there are a lot of teams that can win too. It will be hard, but it’s what we’re aiming for.

"If we can play in a final and win it, you get that feeling to win trophies and you want to win more and more.

"That feeling is in the whole group now, especially after what happened last season when they didn’t win anything and were close to some trophies. You want to win everything that’s possible, starting with the League Cup.

"I think the draw at Liverpool is a good result. Now the second leg will be like a final, in front of our fans I think we have to be able to win.

"Our home record gives us confidence. We know we are strong at home. Liverpool have been playing really well these last few weeks and are really dangerous. We know it will be tough, but I think we are able to do more at home - we have to win that game.

"The new players like myself, Diego Costa, Filipe Luis, Cesc Fabregas and the rest of the team want to win trophies for Chelsea. That starts in the League Cup and until the last game in the Champions League.

“We want to win everything, it will be difficult, but I think we have the team to do it.

"We are playing well and we have passed through in all competitions. Now we are in the semi-final of the Capital One Cup, are top of the League, there is an important game in the FA Cup [against Bradford] on Saturday which we have to win and soon we will be playing Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League."

Official: Bielik completes Arsenal move

Arsenal have completed the signing of midfielder Krystian Bielik from Legia Warsaw.

Gunners boss Arsene Wenger had already confirmed that Bielik, a 17-year-old defensive midfielder who can also play at centre-back, would go straight into the first-team squad.

The Londoners despatched transfer negotiator Dick Law to Warsaw last week in an attempt to fight off rival interest from Bundesliga strugglers Hamburg, and Bielik himself later confessed that the German club's precarious position helped make up his mind.

The youngster also insisted, however, that the chance to work with Wenger, "a legend", was the key factor in his decision to move to England.

Speaking before the move was formally announced, Wenger said: "He's a defensive midfielder, 6ft 2in [tall], has a good energy level and technical level.

"It's a gamble but, on what we saw, it's worth to take the gamble."

Bielik only made his senior debut for Legia in August, aged just 16, and made five league appearances in total before sealing his move to the Emirates Stadium.

Official: Real Madrid confirm Odegaard deal

Real Madrid have confirmed the signing of Norwegian sensation Martin Odegaard.

The 16-year-old has been highly coveted in recent months as he toured Europe to look for the ideal club to continue his development.

Madrid, Bayern Munich and Ajax were considered the favourites to sign him with speculation building in the last week that the teenager was close to a move to the Santiago Bernabeu.

And now the European champions have confirmed that they have agreed a fee with Stromsgodset and will present the player to the media on Thursday afternoon.

"Real Madrid C. F. and Stromsgodset Fotball have reached an agreement for the transfer of Martin Odegaard," a statement read.

"After undergoing a medical exam, the player will hold a press conference with the director of Institutional Relations, Emilio Butragueno, on 22 January at 1:30pm CET."

Is Luis Suarez goal-shy? Not justifying his price tag AT ALL!!

It isn't quite happening yet for Luis Suarez. The Uruguay striker missed the best chance of the whole game and endured another frustrating evening in front of goal for Barcelona. And six months on from his expensive summer signing, he is still struggling to live up to his €81 million price tag.

Suarez sat out the early months of this season due to his ban for biting Italy's Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup and only made his Barca bow back in late October as he assisted Neymar for his side's only goal in the 3-1 Clasico defeat at Real Madrid.

Since then, the former Liverpool forward has added eight more assists, but has just five goals so far for his new club in 16 games and only two in 11 appearances in La Liga.

Coach Luis Enrique picked the same side bar goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, keeping faith with the outfield players who had beaten Atleti so convincingly in La Liga (3-1) 10 days ago and then thrashed Deportivo La Coruna last weekend.

Barca bristled with confidence in the opening exchanges and came close on several occasions, but found life more difficult as the game wore on.

"Every minute that passes will be crucial to our chances of getting thrrough the tie," Diego Simeone had said in the lead-up to this match.

And Atleti had Suarez to thank at half-time for a glaring miss when he was teed up by Ivan Rakitic and sent the ball way over the bar with only Jan Oblak to beat nine minutes before the interval.

The Camp Nou crowd immediately got behind their man with chants of "Suarez, Suarez", but the Uruguayan's night did not improve in the second half when he was twice adjudged to have dived by the referee and failed to take up a single scoring position.

In the end, Lionel Messi's missed penalty converted on the rebound proved the difference between the two teams and Suarez was all smiles as he celebrated with the Argentine, but Barca will be expecting much more from their expensive signing.

And so they should. For all his willingness and hard work, Suarez still seems unsure of his role in this team and when he has had chances, they have more often than not been squandered.

"He has the support and the affection of the fans," Barca president Josep Maria Bartomeu told Canal Plus after the game. "He is a great player and we have great expectations for him."

And Luis Enrique added: "We have maximum confidence in Suarez. He wasn't lucky enough to score, but he caused their centre-backs problems and created danger. I'm certain he will score goals."

That is of course the idea and with Barca back to winning ways in recent games, the pressure is now off slightly for the 27-year-old. However, the jury is still out on the Catalans' €81m investment and in order to keep the fans and press on his side, the Uruguayan had better start scoring soon.

Wenger expects Coquelin to sign new Arsenal deal

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has confirmed Francis Coquelin has been offered a new contract and is confident the France midfielder will commit his long-term future to the club.

The 23-year-old, who spent last season on loan at Freiburg, appeared to be heading for the Emirates Stadium exit door when he was sent to Championship side Charlton in November.

Injuries to Jack Wilshere and Mikel Arteta meant Wenger had little option but to recall the combative midfielder, who has since excelled in the defensive midfield role his manager has struggled to fill in recent times.

Coquelin's current deal is set to expire in the summer but he is set to be rewarded with a new offer following a series of excellent displays, most recently in Arsenal's 2-0 win at Premier League champions Manchester City last Sunday.

"I saw that [Coquelin] made huge improvements in training so I sent him on loan for match practice," said Wenger.

"He took that challenge and he's done very well. We will offer him a new deal We are confident it will be done soon."

Coquelin's defensive diligence has allowed the more creative members of Wenger's team to thrive in recent weeks, with Santi Cazorla the chief beneficiary.

The Spain international has been in spellbinding form and was singled out for special praise by his manager ahead of Sunday's FA Cup fourth round tie at Brighton.

Wenger said: "He's very talented. He's added another dimension to his game since he's played centrally.

"In the recent games he's been in the best form of his career. He's a perfect example."

Cazorla may well be granted a rest this weekend with Wenger confirming Mesut Ozil will start his first game since October following a long-term knee injury, while there are also fitness doubts over Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Hector Bellerin.

3 Reasons Why an Introvert and Extrovert Make a Great Couple

Do opposites attract?

Read and learn from a marriage from this mix 

Lately there’s been a stream of posts talking about the advantages of being an introvert, so it’s only natural extroverts have shared their own pride as well.

Instead of bickering back and forth about which one is better, why not step across the line and find a potential soul mate?

I’m an extrovert. My wife is an introvert. You can diagnose yourself as an extrovert if large crowds get you revved up. If big groups drain you, you’re an introvert. Crowds invigorate me, while Tracy prefers quality time alone at home.

Being an introvert or an extrovert has nothing to do with your social skills. I can be extremely awkward. Even though Tracy is an introvert, she’s always on point in front of a crowd.

Articles about dating an introvert make it seem like they are a chore, but effort is important in any relationship. Extroverts and introverts can make the perfect couples. According to Myers Briggs, my wife and I are the perfect fit, but we already knew that.

There are 3 reasons why an introvert and extrovert make a great pair for dating and relationships:

• Balance: An extrovert has no balance at a party. Walking into a huge crowd is like crack. I bounce off the walls (sometimes literally) all night. For Kristen, it’s a cess pool. She’s ready to go a couple of hours in. (Unless of course she’s engaged in a deep, one-on-one conversation). The great thing about being with her is she pulls me back to reality. Instead of staying out until 4 a.m., she gives me the cue, and I snap out of my catnip craze.

• Stretch: I’ve stretched her to go to more events, and she’s stretched me to actually enjoy time alone. Growth happens individually and as a couple when you go outside your comfort zones. Just like yoga, stretching doesn’t feel so great at the time, but dang, you feel good afterwards.

• Addition: Together we are more dynamic as a couple. I stay surface, and she goes deep. When I’ve checked out in one-on-one conversations, she asks insightful questions, and keeps the conversation going.

 Introverts and extroverts go together. Even in extrovert-extrovert relationships, one will always be more extroverted than the other at one point or another. The same rules apply. Opposites can and do attract.

YEAH! That's it. you guys can work. remember compromise is very important in all relationship types.

Having problems with your introvert or extrovert partner?

You can either place a comment or send me an email to make the discussion personal.