Hot property: Parma and Kenya international midfielder McDonald Mariga

Parma have accepted a €10 million offer (about Sh722 million) from Manchester City for Kenyan international McDonald Mariga, according to reports from Italy and England.

Mariga had been linked with Italian champions Inter but Parma sporting director, Pietro Leonardi, apparently met with City on Thursday.

He was able to convince the English club over 22-year-old Mariga’s €10m fee during a series of talks which untangled the move.

Once the transfer is compelete, Mariga will become Kenya’s richest sportsman and the first ever to play in the English Premier League.

City turned to Mariga after seeing negotiations stall with Real Madrid in their attempts to sign Fernando Gago. City were ready to bid £6million for Mariga, according to reports in Italy, and could offer Valeri Bojinov as part of the deal.

Bulgaria striker Bojinov, 23, has scored four goals in 15 appearances since joining Parma on loan at the start of the season and he is keen to stay in Italy.

Harry Redknapp tried to sign Mariga for Portsmouth from Swedish side Helsingborgs three years ago, but work permit issues scuppered the deal.

But the 6ft 2in marauding midfielder has cemented himself as a regular at Parma, winning many admirers after joining the club in 2007.

Signed four-year deal

Mariga would be an alternative to Gago, who was keen to sign City only for Madrid to block his exit.

Mariga started his playing career at Pipeline FC. He was a member of the Kamukunji High School ‘Golden Boys’, which also included Dennis Oliech (Auxerre), that won two consecutive national championships in 2002 and 2003.

The central midfielder went to Sweden in 2005 to play for third Division side Enköpings SK. After only one season at ESK, he signed for Helsingborgs IF before the 2006 season. His success at Olympia was immediate.

Following initial interest from Redknapp, Mariga looked set to sign for the Premier League team, but work permit issues held up the deal which was supposed to have cost around €2.7 million.

He moved to the Serie A club Parma on loan in August 2007. Mariga agreed to a four year deal to keep him at Parma for four years until the end of June 2012, after the club paid a transfer fee for €1.94 million. The deal was brokered by former Swede great Martin Dahlin.

Mariga played 35 times for Parma in the Serie B during the 2008-2009 season scoring three time to help them back to Serie A for the 2009-2010 season.

Elsewhere, Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has hailed Wayne Rooney as a “world class” player ahead of his side’s crucial title showdown with Arsenal.

The 23–year–old England striker netted his 21st goal of the season against Manchester City on Wednesday night to book United’s place in the Carling Cup final, just days after his four–goal salvo against Hull.

And ahead of the showdown with old foes Arsenal, Ferguson was left to drool over Rooney’s latest heroics. “It was much better than Saturday,” Ferguson said of Rooney, ho played up front on his own.

“I know he scored four goals but his control leading the line and his link-up play was fantastic. Overall it was a wonderful performance. World class.”

Arsenal, who currently sit in third place in the league ladder, will vault over United with a win, but their overall title ambitions suffered a setback against Aston Villa on Wednesday night.

The Gunners were held to a 0–0 draw by Martin O’Neill’s Champions League hopefuls, and they lost Eduardo and Thomas Vermaelen to injury.

Wenger, though, was pleased to see his side come through a physical encounter at Villa Park, something they have not always been able to do.

“We didn’t always find our passing game (against Villa),” he said. “They play a very efficient English game with long balls and very physical.

“Although Villa were physical, it was not a dirty game. It was a committed game. It was a fair game but not dirty at all. For me, it was physical in a positive way.”

Source: Daily Nation. Photo from Daily Mail-UK

Philip Boit of Kenya skies during the qualification for the men's cross country 10km classical race at the Nordic World Championships in Liberec February 18, 2009.

By Jack Oyoo

NAIROBI (Reuters) – Kenya’s sole competitor at next month’s winter Olympics, cross country skier Philip Boit, has improved his times since his last three Games and wants to show that his snow-starved country can produce respectable results.

Boit, who in 1998 became the first Kenyan to compete at a winter Games and finished last in his race, will ski in the 15km cross country event at the February 12-28 Vancouver Games.

“I want to finish my race in a respectable position before considering retirement. My past finishes have not been quite good but I am determined to change this in Vancouver,” Boit, 38, told Reuters before flying out to Canada on Tuesday.

“I trained well in Finland last year and even took part in the world championships and I hope for a better finish this time.”

Over the years, he has improved his personal bests for 10km to 25 minutes 10 seconds from 30:31 and 39:15 for the 15km, down from 47:26.

The only snow in Kenya is at the peak of Mount Kenya so Boit has had to adapt his training to his surroundings, running morning and evening rather than skiing when he is at home.

Originally a middle-distance runner, Boit switched to skiing in 1996 after American sports apparel manufacturer Nike started a programme with the National Olympic Committee of Kenya to develop winter sports.

On his Olympic debut at the 1998 Games in Nagano, Boit finished last in the 10km cross country.

“I was not disappointed because although I was last, I finished the race. (Norwegian eight-times Olympic gold medallist) Bjorn Daehlie commended my effort,” he said.

This encouraged him so much that he named one of his sons after the Norwegian cross country skier.

The Nike sponsorship, which enabled him to train in Finland, soon dried up and he had to fund his own training. He was back at Salt Lake City in 2002 and Turin in 2006, improving on his previous result but still finishing near the back of the field.

-Reuters