Adam Wharton says he has been able to quickly move on from his England World Cup squad omission. 

The talented midfielder was one of the surprise names left out of Thomas Tuchel’s squad this summer. And he underlined his quality with a player-of-the-match performance in Crystal Palace’s Conference League final win over Rayo Vallecano.

Wharton said: “It’s just part of football. It was never a guarantee I was going to go, I knew that.

“When he called me, he told me I wasn’t there. He said it was close. But that’s football. I’m not going to sit here and cry about it. I still had two games for Palace to go – tonight being a massive one.

“I don’t really dwell on those things too much. It’s not the end of the world. I’m still young. Hopefully there are other tournaments and World Cups I can go to in the future.

“I was just focused on Palace and coming here and getting the win.”

Tuchel caused a stir with his 26-strong squad last week, with no room for Harry Maguire, Phil Foden, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Cole Palmer and Morgan Gibbs-White.

But former goal keeper, Joe Hart pointed out that will all become irrelevant when England start their campaign, even if Hart is enthusiastic about Tuchel’s managerial CV, which includes winning the Champions League with Chelsea.

“It’s one of those roles where whatever he’s done (up to now) doesn’t really matter,” Hart told the Press Association.

“He’s clear what he wants and how he wants people to behave in his squads. He’s an experienced coach, he looks like he’s enjoying his role and the players are buying into what he’s asking them to do.

“But will it be all right on the night? That’s how he will be judged. But of course he knows that – he’s an experienced man, he’s a winner and hopefully he can do it again.”

Meanwhile, England have confirmed Arsenal forward Ethan Nwaneri will join up with Thomas Tuchel’s squad for a preparation camp ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

Nwaneri, who is currently on loan at Marseille, will join Bournemouth playmaker Alex Scott, Fulham’s Josh King and Liverpool’s 17-year-old prospect Rio Ngumoha as training players.

Brighton goalkeeper Jason Steele will remain with the squad as a training goalkeeper throughout the tournament.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, NCDC, has placed the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and nine other states on heightened Ebola surveillance following the outbreak of the deadly Bundibugyo strain of the virus in parts of East and Central Africa.

In a public health advisory issued to state Commissioners for Health, the agency warned that Nigeria remains at high risk of importing the virus due to increased regional transmission, cross-border movement, international travel, and porous borders.

The advisory, dated May 27, 2026, identified Lagos, the FCT, Rivers, Kano, Enugu, Borno, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Taraba, and Adamawa as high-risk areas because of their international airports, seaports, border corridors, and heavy human traffic.

According to the NCDC, the current outbreak involving the Bundibugyo strain presents a major concern because there is presently no approved vaccine or targeted treatment for the variant.

“The immediate objective of our national preparedness and readiness efforts is to ensure that every state and the FCT can reasonably detect, contain, and respond swiftly to any suspected case while protecting health workers and sustaining essential health services,” the agency stated.

Although Nigeria has not recorded any confirmed Ebola case, the NCDC disclosed that a recent risk assessment conducted after the outbreak was declared a public health emergency of international concern indicated that the threat of importation into the country remains significant.

The agency revealed that Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo had already recorded over 1,000 suspected cases and hundreds of deaths linked to the outbreak, with a fatality rate estimated at 24.6 per cent.

The outbreak has also raised global concern, with reports of suspected cases emerging in India, while Canada reportedly imposed temporary restrictions on certain travel applications involving residents from Uganda, the DRC, and South Sudan.

Uganda has equally introduced border control measures aimed at curbing the spread of the disease.

Health authorities stressed that the Bundibugyo strain differs from the more common Zaire Ebola strain, which existing vaccines and antibody therapies primarily target.

“The current Bundibugyo virus outbreak has no licensed vaccines or approved targeted therapeutics,” the advisory warned.

The NCDC further cautioned healthcare workers against relying solely on visible bleeding as a sign of Ebola, noting that symptoms may initially resemble malaria, Lassa fever, or other common illnesses.

“Health workers must not wait for bleeding before suspecting Ebola in any patient with compatible symptoms and relevant travel or exposure history,” the agency advised.

As part of its emergency response strategy, the NCDC said the National Emergency Operations Centre had already been activated in alert mode to coordinate nationwide preparedness efforts.

State governments were directed to activate emergency preparedness structures, strengthen surveillance at entry points, identify isolation centres, equip frontline health workers with personal protective equipment, and intensify public awareness campaigns to prevent panic and misinformation.

Air dominating Lagos radio station, Traffic radio, will begin a 24 hour service soon, even as the broadcast station marks it’s 14th anniversary.

The station was commissioned on May 29, 2012.
The milestone was celebrated on-air and across the station’s official digital platforms, with listeners and city officials engaging with the hashtag #LTRAt14.

The station’s astronomical progress in recent years has been attributed to the ingenuity of it’s General Manager, Mr Tayo Akanle, whom many have described as a thorough professional and a leader with listening ears.

Improving on it’s past records, the station now provides updates across multiple transit modes, including roads, train schedules, ferry movements, and flight times, ensuring seamless mobility across Lagos.

Attracting more commendation from listeners is the station’s ongoing modernization, particularly the integration of Live Camera Updates (LCU), which enables On-Air Personalities (OAPs) to share CCTV footage of major highways during gridlock.

Reviews and official perception surveys underscore the station’s high approval rating, with over 54% of Lagos road users tuning in daily during their morning and evening commutes.

As the station celebrates it’s 14th anniversary, sources close to it have revealed that there are underground activities, geared towards the station commencing a 24 hour service.

According to one of the sources, the management is keeping the plan close to it’s chest and will only mention it when everything needed to be done to ensure the delivery are concluded.

” I can confirm that the station is planning a 24 hour service, but the logistics are still being worked out. As things stand, the plan may materials before or by the end of this year” a source privy to the station’s activities disclosed to The Column News.