The Nation Newspaper

Category: Ade Ojeikere

  • See Ogbemudia Stadium and die

    See Ogbemudia Stadium and die

    Ade Ojeikere

     

    Government has no business running sports. It shouldn’t be involved in funding sports, except the amateur cadres at big tournaments, such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, African Games and qualifiers, where the country’s flag and anthem are sung. Government should just provide the enabling environment for sports to thrive. The templates should be backed by laws from the National Assembly or/and State Assemblies, such that no new government jettisons laudable projects.

    Indeed, Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki’s resolve to make sports a new economy underscores the revolutionary things that have trailed his four-year stay in governance. The governor’s dream is in tandem with what operates in saner and civilised climes. Obaseki’s new economy for Edo State isn’t just a dream, but one that has several examples in developed economies. Let me illustrate with just football in Spain, which is a developing economy like ours.

    According to analysis from the professional services company, Sports Business Group, Spanish clubs spent £1.24 billion breaking the 1 billion-Euros mark for the first time, and more than doubling their expenditure from just two years ago. But there were also summer spending records set in Italy (£1.06 billion), Germany (£670 million) and France (£605 million).

    Premier League clubs still led the way, though, with £1.41billion, although the net spent was only £575 million, the lowest since 2015. That net-spent figure also fell by £50 million since the league shut its transfer window on August 8, more than three weeks earlier than many of its European peers. Guess what, the English teams, having learned from their folly, are moving to revert to the old order in the transfer market by November, having seen what they lost as revenue to the early closure of the transfer market on August 8.

    The biggest fillip that the national sports festival would have in its over 20 years history is that the 20th edition would be held in a seemingly new stadium with state-of-the-art facilities. Ogbemudia Stadium’s renovation signposts the rebirth of dead sporting activities in the country, such as the Ogbe Hard Court, which laid the foundation for the emergence of great tennis patriots, such as Nduka Odizor, Veronica Oyibokia, Nosa Imafidon, Nosa Amadin et al. Ogbe Hard Court opened a new vista in sports marketing in the country as the competition was bankrolled by companies, not wholly government. The tournament was rated in the tennis circuit and attracted such eminent stars as Loyo Moyo. Companies such as Bendel Lottery, Guinness and others, provided financial support, with the tournament having a beauty pageant, where a bevy of Nigerian girls from across the country participated. Nigerians used the Ogbe Hard Court platform to showcase our arts and culture, which drew the awe of foreigners, who splashed cash on some of these products, especially tie and dye clothing and artefacts.

    It is government’s primary concern to build facilities for citizens to recreate. Sports is another way by which government can make its citizens healthy. Sports creates a massive platform for employment. The youth, who form the majority of the populace, can, with the right sporting facilities, dissipate energies in sports, instead of being involved in societal vices.

    Therefore, when a visionary government seizes the opportunity to develop sports by rebuilding existing structures which were abandoned to rot, there is the urgent need to remind such a government not to allow the billions of naira sunk into such laudable facilities rot again. This writer was pleased to hear that Edo State government would legislate marketing windows available at the renovated Samuel Osaigbovo Ogbemudia Stadium for posterity’s sake. It was also cheery news to hear that the government wouldn’t immediately takeover ownership of the facilities. Rather, it would allow the stadium’s builders to teach knowledgeable Nigerians the basics of each facility and its maintenance brochures.

    The beauty about effecting changes is that it is infectious. The renovation works at the Ogbemudia stadium has forced those who live around the place to renovate their building – many have painted the buildings to be in sync with what it happening. Those who have business concerns relevant to needs of athletes have upgraded, knowing the volume of business ahead of them.

    Hitherto, the entrance into the stadium witnessed the conversion of the car park into practice grounds for basketball players and handball players, depending on the much busier team. That setting has been replaced with a befitting ring road construction. A second entrance has been introduced with a police post hidden just as you drive into the stadium. The original gate is there, except that the underneath of the stadium, which housed association offices, would now serve as merchandising platforms to leverage on wares emboldened by items relevant to Bendel Insurance and Edo Queens, both football teams owned by the government. Interestingly, the government plans to institute management boards for both clubs which would run as a business, whose budget would come from the House of Assembly after a budget defence. The essence is to nip in the bud sharp practices and make the management board accountable and prudent.

    The main gate is ajar, but construction works going on suggest it would be more inviting when it is fully completed. It is, however, a departure from the past. Sports-loving fans are confronted with a beautiful building which served as the gymnasium hall but is being modernised to host a lot more sporting events.

    But what arrests anyone who is conversant with the premises are the four lawn tennis courts, which reminded one of the golden era of Ogbe Hard Courts. The biggest innovation for lawn tennis is the presence of a centre court, essentially to host the men and women finals of the Ogbe Hard Courts, reminiscent of what we see at Wimbledon in England and other top Grand Slam events.. The centre court has its own fans’ setting which would be shared by gymnastics and weightlifting enthusiasts. Not forgetting the construction of another entrance, which would ease movement out of the premises in record time.

    The road which separates the lawn tennis courts and the main-bowl of the stadium has been modernised with entrances meant for distinguished invitees. The three squash courts are a rarity here. Three matches can be played at the same time. Two of them can hold in one fibre glass hall. The stadium can host any international squash competition. This partially addresses the issue of what becomes of the facility after the Edo 2020 National Sports Festival.

    Ogbemudia Stadium’s renovation didn’t affect its old structure, a great credit to the government. Rather, it expanded, with the complex now all covered. Fans would watch games without being beaten by rain.

    My fear, however, are the lovely glass fittings which could be shattered in one volatile game, raising the poser of how culprits would be caught. My fears were doused with the presence of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) device fitted in the stadium, with a CCTV network that is five kilometre radius. From the CCTV, we could watch what was going on at the Benin City airport, including how planes landed. Picking irate fans from anywhere in the stadium was as easy as sucking oranges. The standby generators of high voltage are stationed to power everything in the stadium. Those who would be at the opening ceremony on March 22 would be awed at the lighting systems in the premises.

    Since the 20th National Sports Festival heralds the new Ogbemudia Stadium, this writer is excited that the government thought it appropriate to build another warm-up swimming pool which would aid learners. It would also take the pressure off the Olympic size pool, just as it would serve as a basis of training Nigerians in swimming and diving. Indeed, any country which wants to win any multi-sports competition such as the Olympics, Commonwealth Games, Africa Games etc, must have very good swimmers, meaning she must have a healthy swimming tradition back home.

    Two world class swimming pools at Ogbemudia Stadium takes the pressure off privately-owned swimming pools and eliminates the talk that swimming isn’t meant for the hewers of wood in the society. The government could quickly construct diving pools in the place. The North Africans and the South Africans have dominated the Africa Games because of the rich swimming tradition. And one of the ways of keeping the sporting facilities busy is to organise programmes to discover, train and expose budding talents to swimming. It is only when we have the swimmers, for instance, that we can participate in competitions.

    Edo State Deputy Governor insisted that: “What we have done in Edo State with the total refurbishment of the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium and other sports facilities is to create the enabling environment that will allow private partnership in sports business. Sports business is huge.

    “There will be all sorts of merchandising businesses around these facilities. Sportswear shops, restaurants and other businesses will be opened.”

    For those who keep saying ‘’See Paris and die,’’ this writer’s response would also be ‘’ See Samuel Ogebmudia Stadium, Benin City, and die.’’

    What a befitting way to remember the late Samuel Osaigbovo Ogbemudia.

     

  • Wanted! Medical lifeline at stadia

    Wanted! Medical lifeline at stadia

    By Ade Ojeikere

    Barclays English Premier League matches have thrown up interesting signposts for growth in the game. It would take the eyes of diligent observers to pinpoint them. One of such highlights is how the league owners have ensured mechanisms to address emergencies arising from players’, coaches’, officials’, referees’ and other ancillary staff’s medical needs in the course of competitions. Not forgetting the insurance policies on related matters. These basics help the game grow tremendously since the actors know that their future and those of their family members are secured.

    Nothing is left to chance when any of the actors is distressed. The medical mechanisms are such that every detail is considered, from the hosts, to the organisers, and the club whose member is affected. The monitoring process, as swift as it is, ensures that what one party may have considered as little is reviewed to avoid needless deaths.

    It is important for us to compare what obtains in saner climes with what we have here, so it won’t come to us as a surprise if any unfortunate incident occurs at league venues (God forbid). The rusty cylinder through which oxygen was given to Felix Anyansi-Agwu at the Federal Medical Centre in Umuahia, Abia State, leaves much to be desired. In other climes, Ayansi-Agwu should have been taken to the hospital fitted with oxygen right on the scene of occurrence.

    It showed the absence of a medical system in the league. It showed also that Anyansi-Agwu didn’t receive any proper care on the pitch. Thank God it wasn’t an emergency. Those playing games in Umuahia are doing it at a great risk; they are on the path to death, except the domestic league organisers address this anomaly. Where was the league body’s medical team? Or is the body leaving such daunting tasks to the clubs, which don’t pay the staff? Can such an arrangement save lives?  Let’s read how it is done elsewhere.

    On March 17, 2012, Bolton Wanderers midfielder Fabrice Muamba suffered a cardiac arrest during the FA Cup tie against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane. The midfielder’s heart stopped beating for 78 minutes as the stadium fell silent and medical staff huddled around him, the match was abandoned.

    Medics spent six minutes trying to resuscitate him on the field after he fell, with no other players around him. He was rushed to the hospital and his life was saved but he had to pay the biggest price of retiring from the game he loved so much at 23.

    The story would’ve been different for the Kinshasa-born lad if prompt medical action wasn’t carried out on the pitch. Former Chelsea goalkeeper, Petr Cech, who suffered a fractured skull playing against Reading, said: “The medical issues and the structure has changed for the better. Fabrice still has a chance to survive because of all the equipment around the pitch. It’s a great change because sometimes it takes only a few seconds to change a whole life and a whole career.”

    It was miraculous that Muamba survived after collapsing for 78 minutes, but it was due to some fantastic response from the medical team.

    Leicester City are third on the table with plenty of ambition, having won the league diadem in the past. A fixture against second-placed Manchester City was a show stopper, one in which the Foxes could reduce the difference between both teams. Victory for the Foxes would have made the runners-up chase a fight to the finish exercise. This setting usually sets coaches thinking because victory meant different things to Rodgers and Pep Guardiola. Guardiola tacitly accepts that Liverpool may have won the league title, but he still works on the arithmetical chance of the Citizens retaining their title, if the unexpected happens. Liverpool losing the remaining 12 games. Farfetched. Football is a crazy game. Not many have forgotten early how Liverpool struggled to beat West Ham 3-2 at Anfield on Monday night.

    The top-of-the-table clash lived up to its reputation. For Nigeria international, Kelechi Iheanacho, it was a chance to hit back at Guardiola to show him what he has been missing. Rodgers’ decision to start Iheanacho was in sync with the Nigerian’s quest to be the match winner. It showed in the way Iheanacho went for every ball. The Citizens were scared, knowing the Nigerian could hurt them. But, like all things human, a freak goalmouth clash with Citizens’ goalkeeper meant the Nigerian had to be substituted on medical advice.

    Iheanacho went down inside the penalty area after a heavy collision with Manchester City goalkeeper, Ederson. Although he finished the first half of the match, he was substituted at half-time based on the advice of the medical team despite the player wanting to continue.

    The match was important for Leicester City but Manager Brendan Rodgers couldn’t jettison medical advice, knowing the implications of such defiance. But do we have these measures in place in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL)? If for nothing, at least to save the lives of our players, most of whom are breadwinners for their families.

    Serious attention is given to medical care in sports. In fact, Sunday morning’s boxing game between two heavyweights, Wilder and Tyson Fury had potential medical issues which required immediate reaction. the first being the decision to throw in the towel, much to the consternation of Wilder, who wanted to continue the bout in spite of blood dripping from his ear, mouth and nostril.

    We are told that Wilder wants to sack the manager who threw the towel in. Who cares? The man took the best decision irrespective of how it suited Wilder. If he didn’t the ring referee would have done so at a later stage.

    In fact, Referee Kenny Bayless told ringside media men in a post interview that he was close to stopping Deontay Wilder’s fight against Tyson Fury due to the

    battering the American was receiving. What Bayless’ confirmation translates to is that wilder’s corner was right to have thrown in the towel. to hell with the boxer’s views. He can keep his wages. the corner has a career path to guide religiously.

    ‘’It was a good stoppage in my opinion because in the minute’s rest between rounds before the stoppage I went over to Deontay,’’ Bayless told SiriusXM Fight Nation.

    ‘’I looked him in the face and I gave him the line that we referees give the fighters to let them know, ‘Hey, you’ve gotta show me something.’’

    ‘’They know that if you go back out there and you don’t show me something, then I might have to do my job and stop it. Deontay is a warrior, when I saw the towel come in out of the corner of my eyes and stopped it, Deontay’s first response was, “Why did I stop it?”

    ‘’Then I let him know it was his corner that stopped it, but I was very close to stopping it.’

    Towards the middle of the fight, Wilder was bleeding heavily from his left ear though a ringside doctor did check and give him the all-clear to continue. It was later confirmed that his eardrum wasn’t actually bleeding, but his earlobe due to rings he wears in his ear.

    “I thought that the blood was coming from the inside of the ear,’ Bayless added. “At the end of the round when I went over to check, the doctor was already in the ring while I was picking up the scorecard.

    “The doctor looked at me and said, “He’s all right.” So at that point I left it alone.’

    Wilder does have a rematch option which would result in a trilogy fight, but many are calling for Fury to fight Anthony Joshua in a blockbuster all-English heavyweight unification bout.

    The boxing authorities didn’t allow Wilder walk home from the where he fought. He was taken straight to the hospital. besides, he has been told not to spare until May 2020. He also won’t box until after May. Precautionary measures meant to save lives not the sport. Food for thought for Nigerian sports administrators.

     

     

     

     

     

  • Anyansi-Agwu’s broken head

    Ade Ojeikere

     

    YOU cannot give what you don’t have. This doctrine rings so true of the operations in the domestic game with our so called gurus toying with people’s lives on the altar of sticking to rules which suit their whims and caprices. These all-knowing administrators have turned league venues to theatres of violence, leaving the spectators at God’s mercy as they run through the dense air from canisters of teargas shot indiscriminately by security operatives.

    Whereas other climes’ domestic league administrators seize every opportunity in the league to leverage on sponsorship deals, ours watch as existing businesses in the league collapse. It is running into three seasons when league matches were last shown on television. This is an invitation to anarchy? Why won’t roughnecks run riot, knowing cameras are not there to capture their misdeeds?

    The irony of what is happening weekly at league venues is that the organisers spend quality time hobnobbing with foreign technocrats, yet they are unable to replicate what they learned in the domestic game. If they did, they ought to have known that globally, local derby matches are high-risk ties, requiring extra vigilance and the best officials who can handle the twists and turns of the game without hitches. It is the referees’ decisions which are most times misrepresented that lead to fracas as seen in Umuahia on Sunday, when Abia Warriors hosted city rivals Enyimba FC of Aba.

    What happened in Aba isn’t different from the unholy incidents during the Katsina United versus Kano Pillars game. This tie had a long history of chaos in Katsina and Kano yearly. But our siddon look league buffs allowed a recurrence of previous years’ mishaps, preferring to act after the havoc has been committed. The pain in this shameful setting is that it happened in two consecutive opening seasons.

    Referees and match commissioners were the target of the irate fans; but now urchins have extended their assault on club chairmen, choosing the most popular of them as their first victim.  Felix Anyansi Agwu isn’t a new comer in the league. For any fan to strike Anyansi Agwu on the head, causing a serious injury, tells a lot about the poor security arrangements at match venues. Where was the chairman of Abia Warriors on that day? What has he done to fish out the culprits? Who are they? When would they be prosecuted?

    Typical of the league organisers, they rushed into a meeting to read the riot act in the aftermath of this bloody game. They came out with a laughable suggestion that league venues should have at least 100 policemen. They also resolved to get boys and girls of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and officials of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) to provide adequate security in the stadium. Perhaps, the organisers don’t know that 100 policemen can’t be found in many units in the states. Where they are, it would be more chaotic moving to match venues from 2pm to 7pm. The criminals would unleash hell on the citizenry, knowing that those who protect the lives and property of the people are at match venues.

    The meeting was silent about those who perpetuated the dastardly act. No one knows who paid for treatment for the injured. This writer’s heart sank watching Anyansi-Agwu sit on a bench with his singlet soaked in his blood. More depressing was the fact that Anyansi-Agwu sat before a cylinder fitted with a hose which was also clipped to his arm? In this 21st Century? What a shame, given what we see other climes do with such medical cases. I pity the players who ply their soccer business here because they are risking their lives with the obsolete medical systems at match venues.

    Even at that, most of the security operatives in such areas are fans of the home side and share the sentiments of grieving fans over referees’ decisions or inaction. The original 50 operatives never arrested one person, including the one in which Anyansi-Agwu is presently carrying stitches on his head. Anyansi-Agwu is not a noise maker. He is also not a violent person. He knows the rules of the game. He wouldn’t have constituted himself into a nuisance to necessitate the injury on his head. The pain about this attack on Anyansi-Agwu is that the beast would not be caught, or prosecuted, making what he did look like a legitimate act.

    Hooligans and urchins handle sensitive areas hence, no mechanism is in place to checkmate their activities. And the club chairmen are happy with it because the criminals take percentages from gates where their activities are not supervised. Is anyone surprised that with this setting, it is easy to pummel the referees – the exit gates are manned by hoodlums who won’t open the gates until the assignment is completed. Isn’t it laughable that the organisers are talking about getting 100 policemen at venues?

    Even if the organisers succeed in getting 100 policemen at match venues, acts of violence would persist except we have the league live on television and all stadia installed with CCTV cameras, not known to the fans. The idea of getting youth corps members to secure match venues should start with the organisers’ children and relations.

    Besides, any stadium that is slated to host games must build special exit gates that will make it absolutely impossible to access the referees before, during and after matches. Any harm inflicted on match referees will translate to 10 points deduction from the offender’s total. Such a defaulting club should not be allowed to play in that venue for one year.

    With a live coverage of the domestic league, it will be easier to identify where a problem began. Those running the league met an existing television right sponsor and a title owner of the league. What happened to these two bodies which funded the operations of the organising body?

    The domestic league is an apology, beginning with the sharp practices around the grounds before, during and after matches. Nothing to stimulate the interests of the spectators to sit patiently at the stands. The essence of organising league matches isn’t for both teams to benefit from the gates takings, but to allow Nigerians watch the country’s future representatives at CAF inter-club competitions. The matches ensure that the owners of the clubs (mostly state governments) get the facilities ready for the players to battle for honours. But with visionless organisers, anything goes, even if it means playing games with empty terraces.

    To avert deaths, the Inspector General of Police (IGP) should immediately prioritise manning of match venues before, during and after matches, through special squads. The IGP can place temporary police stations inside the stadium with Black Marias stationed to house hooligans when they are caught. Any other shoddy arrangement by the league organisers should be rejected.

    Perhaps, this is the time to ask the Inspector General of Police whose duty it is to ensure adequate security in any gathering. How come the police are disinterested in securing our match venues, knowing that football is an emotional game over which some criminals can take the laws into their hands?

    Dear Inspector General of Police, thugs, roughnecks and urchins storm the stadium with raised chests, warning that they are around and not scared to repeat the mayhem. This impunity won’t occur if security operatives whisk them away for punishment. Others will behave properly. The IGP should, as matter of urgency, ask his units in the states where matches are played to immediately storm these venues before a referee is killed simply because some fans are unhappy with a match rule. Teams which suffer from such unruly behaviour return home to await their hosts in the second leg game.

    I’m not surprised that roughnecks have seized match venues, largely because most of the match commissioners are weak. They don’t have the character to assert their authority before, during and after matches. These match commissioners are too friendly with club officials. They close their eyes to certain laxities in the security arrangement. Otherwise, how have these mayhems gone without the hoodlums being caught inside the stadia?

  • Armada of stars again

    By Ade Ojeikere

    The domestic league is lying prostrate in the sun waiting for its funeral. Doctors are reluctant in declaring it clinically dead because they feel some form of miracle is possible to change the evidently unpleasant sight of the decapitated industry. Sadly, those who took the league through this unenviable path have refused to throw in the towel, preferring to make promises which are dead on arrival.

    One of such morbid proposals is the better forgotten tale of Nigerians following the local game on their mobile handsets. Laughable because it would be easier for the Carmel to pass through the eye of the needle than for Nigerians to benefit from this white elephant project. It didn’t come as a surprise when those who celebrated this hopeless proposal with pomp and ceremony sat before the cameras to explain why a failed project should be allowed to die. Pity. We don’t resign here. So, such clowns will continue to insult our sensibilities.

    The biggest fillip the domestic league needs to grow is for those running its affairs to quit today. Most of them have been hovering around the local leagues since over two decades. If the project has moved forward, they ought to be removed since they have compromised the system which in other climes would have passed a vote of no confidence on the organisers. Should we sit aloof and watch them kill our joy of using the domestic league as the pivot to throw up new stars to the world? Something must give and it should start now.

    Interestingly, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Chairman of the Bauchi State Football Association, Patrick Pascal decried the poor standard of the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL).

    “For me the structure and set up of our league needs to change. The private sector and companies need to come in and run the clubs more professionally and make a profit. “ Today most clubs owned by state governments are being run like a charity organisation, we cannot continue like this,” he said.

    “We need to make sure our best players in the league are not travelling abroad after every season due to poor remuneration.” I can tell you some of our players are suffering abroad, some are even scouting because of bad contracts, so instead of going out in a hurry, make sure you play well here before making any move.”

    Good talk Pascal, a former Nigeria international, a star performer in the domestic league of yore. But the organisers keep deluding themselves with sponsored media reports that the game here has improved.

    The truth is that Nigeria cannot parade a team of 25 players playing in the domestic league to confront Sierra Leone, with due respect to the sovereign nation, which ranked over 200 steps behind Nigeria in FIFA ranking.  What this disturbing news translates to is that our league is worse than what operates in Sierra Leone. We are due to confront the visitors in a two-legged tie spanning a period of 10 days, with our armada of foreign-based players. And nobody sees anything wrong with this setting. Rather, they would quickly tell you that we don’t want to toy with our qualification chances to  the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations. Against Sierra Leone? No, gentlemen ruining (oh sorry running) our football, No!

    We should easily assemble a home-grown Eagles to beat Sierra Leone anywhere in the country. inviting 25 players from Europe for such a game is wasteful and underlines the level of rot in the domestic game. I won’t join the motley crowd to blame NFF.  The separation of the league from the federation was to ensure that they had the liberty to do things to improve the game. No surprise that the league can’t produce good players with the poor state of the pitches. How can the domestic players perform when the clubs cannot be bothered if they have been paid their monthly wages. No player can give his best on empty stomachs. Little wonder the few who have the opportunity to play for the country depart in droves to all manner of leagues in Europe, America and the Diaspora.

    What our league organisers don’t understand is that Nigerians love our sports ambassadors, they would do anything to watch them live. They are prepared to risk their lives to meander through the crowd to take pictures with our stars. Need I recall how the late Rashidi Yekini ignited the league venues with his presence after retiring from European football and playing for Nigeria? Yekini played for defunct Julius Berger FC of Lagos and Gateway FC of Abeokuta. Daniel Amokachi, who played for Nasarawa United FC replicated the Yekini crowd upsurge when he returned to the domestic game. Clubs benefitted immensely in those fixtures Yekini and Amokachi featured.

    With the evident failure of leadership at the league level, the country is forced to rely absolutely on foreign-based players who we pay $5,000 each. If you multiply $5,000 each for 25 players over two matches, then you would appreciate why those who run the game here should cover their eyes in shame. Simple arithmetic tells us that we would pay our players $500,000 for winning bonuses. The pain is that we would fly our players into the country twice, no matter how close the fixtures are. What it means is that we would pay flight return tickets for 25 foreign-based players twice – first for the home game in Asaba inside the Stephen Keshi Stadium and the away game in Freetown.

    This writer has not computed what we would spend on hotels in Asaba and Freetown. I have also not factored daily allowances for the players, coaches, assistants and backroom staff. Let’s also not try to add what the chief coach gets, his three assistants, backroom staff and other ancillary staff. Little wonder NFF is always broke. How won’t they when we spend close to N600 million to prosecute a home game against Sierra Leone in this instance.

    Did I hear say N600 million for a game? Yes. All payments with foreign-based stars are done in hard currencies. Let’s forget that the team would fly aboard charter flight from Asaba, where the first leg would be played to Freetown. Since Asaba isn’t an international airport, the players would be refunded their cash for flying from Lagos to Asaba and back on their way out of the country.

    Sadly, Gernot Rohr isn’t ready for any gamble on home-based players. He understands that a coach is as good as his last game. for Rohr, only the best is good for Nigeria. for Rohr, Nigeria’s best players are in Europe. He will remain in France and monitor our best. It is so bad that Rohr is thinking of luring Odion Ighalo out of retirement. What a country.

    Read Rohr: “Yes on Odion Ighalo I have been in constant touch with him. Everybody is happy about his new challenge to play for Manchester United. Let him play.  Let him find this good spirit with the Manchester United team and his presence there then we will see.

    “But it will be too early for him to play for us (Super Eagles) or to invite him for the Sierra Leone game in March even if he wants to play for us. We want to watch first what he is doing (for Manchester United)”, Rohr told SPORTINGLIFE from his base in France on Friday.

    Rohr also hinted at the possibility of inviting two or three new players to join the Eagles when he eventually release his team list for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations’ qualifying matches against Sierra Leone early days of next month.

    The Franco-German football tactician who was coy in revealing the names of the new players couldn’t reject outrightly the possibility of the new t players making the team list for the Sierra Leone match.

    “To invite new players depend on some conditions.  I will travel to see  some of them in their clubs in Europe this month and speak with them to see if they are truly and really in the right spirit to join us.

    “We cannot force them to come.  If they are willing and very serious to play for the Eagles then we will warmly welcome them. The good thing is that some of them are playing for good teams in Europe and they are in very good shape.

    “I hope that  perhaps one or two new players will eventually come and join us. We have quality players already but the ones coming newly must be better than the ones we have already have here with us”, Rohr told SPORTINGLIFE in an exclusive chat.

  • Glory, glory Odion Ighalo

    By Ade Ojeikere

     

    I’m a very proud Nigerian. I celebrate positive things about Nigeria. You can then imagine how I felt when the deadline day transfer news last Friday was all about a Nigerian – Odion Ighalo – joining Manchester United on a six-month loan. The Red Devils have made their best catch for cheap. I don’t care what others before Ighalo did. Ighalo will compensate Red Devils for missing out on John Mikel Obi years ago. Forget the cheap talk of Remi Moses being the first Nigerian to play for Manchester United. Moses was more English than Nigerian. Ighalo na home boy, like they say in pidgin English.

    Ighalo’s choice came as a surprise, given the fact that he was no longer a Nigeria international – a major prerogative for most big European sides. Aptly described as a child of destiny, good news have come to Ighalo like second nature. What shocks many is how he handles the blitz with such feats and equanimity. Not one of those big Nigeria international who are full of airs and couldn’t be bothered about the next person.

    Not one of those stars loitering discotheques and spraying cash as if it has lost its value or blaring the volume of the musical sets in their cars under the guise of being one of the happening guys, Ighalo spends such times returning to the place where he was raised and improve on what he used to attain stardom. Ighalo enjoys training on the dusty Ajegunle ground, reminiscent of his days of yore. Not done, he supports academies with his cash for the good of the game. Indeed, Ighalo owns an academy.

    One was surprised reading a signboard along Epe in Lagos, signifying Ighalo Soccer Academy located on a virgin land but would definitely produce soccer greats, knowing Ighalo’s penchant for excellence. He is not all about football as he also owns an orphanage that caters for the need of homeless kids – this shows his humanitarian side.

    Ighalo is the seventh African to wear the colours of Manchester United. The world watched with a smile as he blushed all through his first interview for the club. Detailing his move from China to the promise land almost brought his fans to happy tears because we could all see the genuineness of his heart.

    Ighalo is a fleet-footed striker who knows the diameter of the goalpost to bury the ball inside the net. He has been unlucky to play for small clubs in Europe, a fact which has stunted his rise to stardom. Ighalo’s performances with other clubs have only succeeded in giving him better, rather than mirroring along with other sensational scorers in Africa and Europe.

    It is easy to dismiss Ighalo’s goal record playing for Watford in the Barclays English Premier League. Had he scored those goals for clubs such as Liverpool, Chelsea, Barcelona, Real Madrid, etc, his movement to Manchester United would have come with bigger transfer figures, not this demeaning loan agreement over six months.

    Ighalo excelled at Watford in the Championship, scoring 17 goals to help the Hornets gain promotion. Many doubted his ability to reproduce same form at a huge stage like the Premier League, but the Ajegunle streetwise kid showed why he was ‘a small boy with a big God’ as he scored 15 goals in his debut season. One of his best games was against Chelsea where he scored twice in a 3-0 victory during the 2015/16 season and that proved his mentality for the big stage.

    Interestingly, Ighalo never scored against Manchester United before he left England and fate must surely know that he was on his way back to Old Trafford to embrace his destiny as a Red Devils. Will Ighalo be a novice at Old Trafford? Never. Not with his being a Red devil from birth.

    ‘’These players are great players. You need someone in the middle that can keep the ball, hold the ball, because I’ve watched so many United games. So they need a physicality there up front to keep the ball, to give and to make some movement, which I believe, if everything goes well, I can add to the team,’’ Ighalo said.

    ‘’It was very dramatic,’’ the forward insisted. ‘’My agent called me the day before and said Man United. I would love to go. A few other clubs had shown interest, I said

    please, just pick United, if it’s going to be possible.

    ‘’At 11pm in Shanghai, my agent called me to say United want to do the deal, so I woke up that night and started looking for a translator to go to the directors’ room and hit his door and all that. I didn’t sleep throughout that night, because it was going to end at 7am Shanghai time and the transfer window is going to close there. So from 11pm, there was paperwork, negotiating and all that, for the loan deal and all that, so we are talking and other teams are calling them, wanting me, but I told my agent this is what I want. He said you’re going to get a pay-cut to go to United. I said I don’t care. Make this deal happen. I want to go to United. I don’t care how much is the pay-cut, I know that, make it happen.’’

    Ighalo has a date with destiny on his debut. He is condemned to do well, possibly score a goal or two. A hat-trick would just be the best way to start his Manchester United career, lest he is nailed on the cross by his critics, especially former players of the club, who have found it impossible to explain why the gaffer chose to recruit a striker from the Chinese league. What is in a name, some have asked? Ighalo played in England before heading for China. He scored goals with aplomb for Watford. Ighalo won the Barclays English Premier League player of the month’s diadem, ahead of many bigger players, while playing for Watford.

    Ighalo’s talent cannot be wished away on the altar of coming from a less fancied league. Ighalo cannot be bullied off the ball by any defender. He also uses his brain, not brawn, whenever he is in scoring position. I look forward to watching Ighalo race to the corner post to celebrate with his traditional style of kneeling with raised hands, thanking God.

    After the paperwork was finalised, an excited Ighalo called his mother to tell her the good news. ‘’She was happy, crying and all that,’’ Ighalo explained. ‘’This is your dream and all that and I’m happy for you. It was dramatic, I didn’t sleep through, I was very happy that finally we got the deal done.’’

    Good to know that Ighalo cherishes his mother. He told mum first before accepting the offer. The story of Ighalo and his mother is a moving one. He toiled with his mother who sold wares on the streets, although he found time to play soccer, which has brought him fame and wealth, deservedly so.

    News of Ighalo’s shock move to Old Trafford sparked parties on the streets of Nigeria, with many of his friends and family celebrating the transfer. ‘’It was crazy because, all over the news for the last few days, is about my deal to Man United.  Even the street I grew up on, they are doing parties, celebrating Ighalo signing for United.

    ‘’They sent me the video, I was just laughing and happy, because many of them are supporting  Man United and some of them are supporting some other teams in the Premier League. But they said, because of me, they are moving to United, because they have a very big fan-base in Nigeria. So I am happy about all this and they are rooting for United from now on, ‘’ Ighalo told Daily Mail.

     

    And this…

    The myth surrounding match results are funny, especially with Nigeria’s senior soccer sides. Whereas Golden Eaglets players have worn white jerseys to lift the U-17 World Cup, Super Eagles players are already defeated before games are played in which they wear all white jerseys laced with green.

    A few times Eagles have worn white shirts and won. On such occasions, the narrative changes if the opposition is minnow. What started a sideline joke at match venues appear to have taken a ridiculous dimension with the news that Nigeria’s away shirt is now grey. please don’t wake me up from this terrible dream.

    Where did they see grey? Many have said it can be found in our coat of arms. I thought colours chosen for such an exercise are the predominant ones. What won’t we see in Nigeria when it comes to football? I won’t be surprised if the players chose this colour.

  • Edo 2020, Shaibu & Dudu-Orumen

    By Ade Ojeikere

    Thoughts of finding myself in Benin City enroute my village in Owan East Local Government Area raises my adrenalin, having spent close to 40 years in the ancient city, either schooling or spending the holidays in the old Government Reservation Area (GRA). Such visits provide the opportunity to see my friends and pay surprise strolls around the neighbourhoods I walked through in my 40-year stay there.

    I cherish such surprises except that they remind me of being older, with many people greying. Many of my friends wonder how I’m not growing grey. They reach out for any object when I remind them of the efforts they made to carry Afro and all manner of haircuts of yore. Indeed, when I want to laugh, I flip through my photo albums of Government College Ughelli (GCU) and enjoy what I see. I have stopped looking at them because many of them have left this sinful world. They were very close to me. Rest in peace Paul Otobrise, Franklin Owho, Lucky Okpodu, Moyo Achora, Morgan Ovuede et al.

    Coming home for societal activities gives room for one to savour the sweetness of the village setting, aside eating fresh meals – bush meat, snails, pounded yam and other delicacies which make you belch. Not forgetting the fruits which are got from the bush. Everything in the village is pure and fresh. The candle lights at night reminds one of scenes read in novels as a young boy.

    Going to Benin City comes with the task of seeing the renovated Samuel Osaigbovo Ogbemudia Stadium, especially the adjoining competition venues, ahead of the 20th National Sports Festival. The Edo State governor Godwin Obaseki saddled the task of hosting the most successful festival to his deputy Phillip Shaibu, although the state has a sports commission headed by Godwin Dudu-Orumen. Dudu Orumen wants to work with Shaibu, knowing that a successful games will give the state the fillip of growth and return it to the sports city which the late Ogbemudia thought of, when he made the defunct Bendel State the sports hub in Nigeria.

    The Ogbemudia era in sports in the region is gone. But Delta State, cut out of the old Bendel State has continued the tradition, with Edo spoiling to unseat their neighbours. Daunting task for Edo but Shaibu and Orumen don’t think so, insisting that the bricks laid for a new dawn in sports in the state have factored all the tricks Delta have built on in the past. Will the 2020 National Sports Festival be a straight fight between Edo and Delta? It won’t be as simple as it is being presented. States such as Lagos and Rivers, which have done well in the competition, are keeping sealed lips, preferring to do the talking on competition venues. How far can Shaibu and Dudu-Orumen go?

    Today, his main preoccupation is delivering on the promise of the Edo State government to host the best sports festival in the annals of the Games in Nigeria. Recently, when Phillip Shaibu, Edo State Deputy Governor who heads the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the festival, set up an eight-man committee to ensure successful hosting of the 3rd Edo State Sports Festival from which the state will pick its contingent for the main Games, he made Dudu-Orumen head of that committee.

    “This is no light assignment. On the contrary, the hosting of the third edition of the Edo State Sports Festival will have ramifications for the hosting of the larger festival for two principal reasons. In the first place, as we have said time and again, we are hosting this festival to win and when we say win, I mean win fairly unlike what has been happening recently where host states do everything lawful and unlawful to win. With Edo 2020 it will be different. We want to show that it is still very possible to win Games of the magnitude of the Sports Festival by sticking to the rules.

    “That is one. Another reason the hosting of the state sports festival is important is that it provides us with a perfect opportunity to test-run facilities and simulate logistics ahead of the main festival. As you know, the Edo State government has spared no expense and effort in either constructing new facilities for the Sports Festival from the scratched or refurbishing existing ones. We need to see how they work out ahead of the Games so that we can make the necessary adjustments in time for the festival,” Dudu-Orumen said.

    He spends more time outside of his office as he shuttles between visits to proposed facilities for the games and meetings with critical stakeholders for the successful hosting of the games. One such critical stakeholder is Deputy Governor Shuaib with whom the Edo State Sports Commission boss has been holding series of meetings to review the progress being made with regard to the successful hosting of the Games. Aside, the Deputy Governor, Dudu-Orumen has also been meeting with athletes and coaches whose inputs to the success of the Games are pivotal.

    “You can’t host and win on the strength of having excellent facilities alone. The human element is critical. Our coaches and athletes are the ones who will make this happen and we are sparing no expense to ensure that they are in prime condition when the Games begins.

    This is important because for us the hosting to win concept is not a hollow mantra driven by a surreptitious desire to win at all cost. We will only do what is fit and proper to win and there is no better way to do this than by providing our coaches and athletes with all they require to excel including motivating them to go the extra mile,” the ESSC boss stated.

    In addition to his preoccupation with excellent facilities and athletes’ performance, Dudu-Orumen has also been paying attention to the business side of the Sports Festival. He is looking beyond the important but intangible psychological benefits hosting the Games would confer on Edo State and its people to the more tangible and permanent economic benefits it would bring to the state. He believes that with the number of athletes and officials as well as other sports loving Nigerians and corporate organisations that will pour into the state for the two weeks the festival will last, the economy of the state will receive a major boost. He believes that small businesses too will thrive beyond the duration of the festival.

    As a critical component of this economic agenda, he has embarked on a vigorous marketing of Team Edo, a step he believes will not only free the state government from the burden of sole financing of the contingent for the 2020 Sports Festival but will ensure that going forward that the team would have strategic partners that would ensure quality and timely preparation of the contingent for future games.

    “We are working seriously on Team Edo marketing because it holds the key to future dominance of the state in sports in the country. We are currently holding discussions with a number of corporate organisations and are hopeful that we will make some headway, Dudu-Orumen said.

    Dudu-Orumen is optimistic everything will work out well in the end. He says so much time and effort and more important, commitment has been put into making the sports festival a success to make it fail.

    “Governor Obaseki and the Edo State government have thrown in a lot to ensure that we pull this hosting off and we do not intend to fail them”, he said.

  • #Bring back Anthony Joshua

    Ade Ojeikere

     

    The biggest Public Relations (PR) tool any nation can use to sharpen the world’s perception of what obtains there beyond the biases of fifth columnists is sports – it is free of prejudice. It is an emotive thing. Responses on sporting arenas are spontaneous and they stick for life. Sports is a massive movement of enthusiasts who stick to their convictions, even in troubled times. Sadly, the Nigerian leadership has been unable to visualise the connection of governance with sports. The latest of such missed opportunity was Saturday’s reception with world boxing champion Anthony Joshua in London.

    When Joshua beat Andy Ruiz, the sports minister Sunday Dare, in the euphoria of the comeback victory by the Nigeria-born, wanted the world champion to visit President Muhammadu Buhari in Aso Rock, to help sustain his dream of being a true Nigerian, not the British-born toga when things are rosy or the derogatory Nigeria-born when caught in acts of misconduct. Sunday Dare wanted to use the hot-iron theory by ensuring that Nigeria hosted the champion before his British counterparts. It didn’t happen, but the process of getting Joshua to be in Nigeria with his belts began, raising the adrenalin of renowned Nigerian marketers and big firms desirous to link the goods and services of their clients with a global brand called Anthony Joshua.

    Joshua apologised for stalling on the arrangement with Sunday Dare, which emboldened the resolve of those marketers to sustain their plans, especially when he promised to be back in the country middle of January or was it February. The date was tentative because Joshua cancelled the Sunday Dare arrangement to meet with his hitherto planned meetings (before the fight plans) with his sponsors and business partners. Wise supporters who  put their cash and services where the mouths were wanted to savour the sweetness of a brand they had invested in, but suffered a momentary blip with the first loss to Ruiz last year.

    A thank you visit by the world champion to President Buhari in Nigeria, not London, in an Olympic year, would have helped raised the image of our sports globally. In fact, the windows for bilateral relations for such a visit are huge. This writer was, therefore, shocked when pictures emerged last Saturday, with Joshua prostrating (good home training) before President Buhari inside a small room compared to his global reputation. I looked around the hall or is it room and saw government functionaries. No reputable television stations to capture the visit of a world champion to the President of Africa’s most populous country. What we relied on back home were pictures dropped in the social media by the president’s official photographer and an amateur video recording done by some of those present in the room. My heart sank.

    Again, I flipped through the pictures I didn’t see the sports minister. I knew immediately where we got it wrong. Those who factored the commendable meet the President stunts with Joshua ought to have included the sports minister in the trip. For all that the exercise was worth, we couldn’t get any form of commitment from the world champion towards the development of the fistic trade here. Naming the boxing hall inside the Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola Stadium in Abuja after Joshua would have given the game the breath of fresh air it requires now. We also lost the best chance to officially invite Joshua to come to Nigeria where he would be celebrated by Nigerians, including taking a trip round each of the 36 states and Abuja, flaunting his belts.

    We have a window to redeem ourselves, which includes getting Joshua to make his next title defence happen in Nigeria. The pre-fight hypes and marketing blitz associated with such important boxing encounters would keep Nigeria in the focal view before, during and after the epoch event. This kind of fight could ignite interest in the fistic trade that has diminished since the late Dick Tiger era.

    An international title defence involving Joshua would open a new vista for sports marketers and event managers to understudy the innovations such an event comes with. Of course, the foreign firms that have such relationships with Brand Joshua would be willing to open new outlets here for as long as Joshua keeps winning titles.

    Joshua’s visit to the president was a welcome development but it delayed the process of Buhari bestowing on the boxer with a befitting national award, typical of what the British government gave him last year. There can’t be a better way to ‘reclaim’ Joshua than with such a high honour that would make the headlines in the media. Of course, in accepting the award, the boxer would make commitments that would raise the bar for boxing in terms of equipment, facilities and sponsorship. Need I state the fact that our firms would eagerly want to do business with their foreign counterparts?

    Visualise Joshua holding the National Sports Festival’s torch and trotting towards the Games’ bowl to light up the torch and the attendant crowd around him on his way up, then you would appreciate why the sports minister and the Edo State government, headed by Governor Godwin Obaseki, should be supported to get the world champion in Benin City to actualise this novel dream.

    The talk that Joshua didn’t participate in the National Sports Festival is bunkum if we must raise the profile of the Games. I had the unique privilege to carry the London 2012 Olympic Games torch around Birmingham, London, with several world beaters such as the late Muhammed Ali et al. I wasn’t an Olympian before I did that. So what stops Joshua from lighting the Edo 2020 National Sports Festival’s torch inside the Samuel Osaigbovo Ogbemudia stadium in Benin City in March, with pomp and ceremony?

    Sports and its ancillary parts would grow in geometric projections if our administrators think outside the box. And this includes copying the way things are done in other climes.

     

    And this…

    Femi Fani-Kayode is at it again. The former Minister of Aviation took to his twitter page to lambast Anthony Joshua for prostrating before President Buhari.  Femi’s tweet read: “I find this behaviour utterly repulsive and disgusting. Prostrating for his slave-master, a blood-thirsty dictator and tyrant who is viciously prosecuting and humiliating his people. What a crying shame. This speaks volume. He has lost me.”

    I think Femi has gone beyond redemption with this derogatory remarks about President Buhari and Joshua. This is sports, and it does not mix with politics. Anthony Joshua has only proven to be a true African with proper home training. He recognises the blessings inherent in giving honour to whom it is due. I think Femi should be humble enough to learn from the young man and also learn to control his vituperations. You can’t claim to be civilised and enlightened and use terrible adjectives on a fellow human. Oh I forgot, Femi, perhaps suffers from mouth diarrhoea since his mouth was not mopped with hot cloth (won ko fi aso mo enu Femi ni kekere) at birth.

     

    Clap for Ndidi

    Please don’t wake me up from this dream. I’ve been pinching myself daily to find out if what I have read in the newspapers are not fairytales. Each time I visit the internet, I read Leicester City’s players’, coaches’, fans’ and officials’ comments acknowledging a Nigerian’s awesome contributions to the team’s fortunes this European season. The proud Nigerian is Wilfred Ndidi, a young kid from one of the backstreets in Nigeria, showing the world that several things are good in this polity.

    “He’s so valuable to us,” Brendan Rodgers revealed. “That type of player, especially at this time of the season, is vital for you. He’s improved. If you look at how he plays, it’s not just his aggression and his defensive side – he’s always available for the ball.

    “He’s constantly on it and gets us playing forward and defending forward. There are not too many better than him who do that job. He’s a phenomenal player. So to have him back, and early, is a huge boost. It’s great, great news for us.”

    It sounds like fiction to read and hear commentaries which recognise Ndidi as the pivot of Leicester, not Jamie Vardy, foxes’ top scorer with 17 goals in the current Barclays English Premier League. Happily, Ndidi returned to the pitch and played for 60 minutes, with Leicester winning handsomely by 4-1 against strugglers West Ham, thus confirming what a gem Ndidi is to the Foxes.

    Following the clash, Rodgers praised Ndidi’s remarkable return, while he was also satisfied with his performance. “It’s remarkable, really,” the Leicester City boss said after the game, according to quotes from Goal.

    “We were thinking he could only play 25-30 minutes. Obviously, he was fine to come on and play a full hour. He is genetically blessed, and he recovered very, very well. And he was excellent, Rodgers added.

    Welcome from your injury spell. Thank you for making Nigerians proud in Europe.

  • Cheap talk and league venues’ beasts

    By Ade Ojeikere

    I deliberately refused to comment on what transpired at the awards ceremony in Egypt last week where Nigeria international and captain of the country’s female senior side, Asisat Oshoala, was voted Africa’s best player in the women’s category. Oshoala’s eventual choice as the Africa Women Footballer of the Year, for a record fourth time, was devoid of votes from her countrymen and women designated to vote for the shortlisted players, teams and countries across all categories.

    For this writer, Oshoala’s choice without Nigeria’s input underscored qualities that have seen the former Arsenal star change clubs in recent times in Europe. Not many foreigners can match Oshoala’s seeming nomadic movement occasioned by her performance. Oshoala joined Liverpool, got recruited to play for Arsenal and was transferred to Dalian Quanjian F.C, only for Barcelona to offer her better terms, which she couldn’t resist. Need I remind readers that only last week, she scored four goals in a  game which Barca’s female side won by 6-0?

    Since the voting pattern was made public, the brickbats against the voters was expected and their reasons for not making her first choice in their scorecards are understandable. What I don’t like is the crossfire between Oshoala and one of the voters. If I was in Oshoala’s shoes, I will strive to win the diadem for the fifth time and for as many more times as God will allow me remain in the game.

    Oshoala shouldn’t be engaged in such cheap talk as joining issues with the Nigerians who didn’t vote for her, since they did so professionally, like they have told us. My only question to the voters is how were they chosen to vote for the country? Was it on merit, based on their credentials as former footballers, or what? If they are sincere with themselves, they should have known that they were handpicked at the behest of an individual’s perception of what they represent, not that there was a selection exercise open to Nigerians.

    I was not shocked at the diabolical decisions, given the way they were chosen to represent us at the voting exercise. I hope those who professionally didn’t vote for Oshoala as the best female player in Africa for 2019 won’t in the future ask us to vote for them, their friends, relations or their interests? We are waiting.

    What happened to Oshoala isn’t new in CAF’s affairs. Till date, no Nigerian who has held any office at CAF, or even FIFA, got government’s or NFF’s backing; they got the positions through their own personal connections. Could this then be the reason why they have always represented their own selfish interests and not the good of the game in Nigeria? So the cheap talk of voting according to their consciences is bunkum. Are they saying they have not been following Oshoala’s career? Did they not know that at some point last year Oshoala was nursing an injury which affected her game for the country?  Oshoala’s move from Arsenal to Barcelona was based on what, if I may ask these professional voters?

    How about this joke on one of the voters  who placed Oshoala in fifth position thinking it had the highest points. One wonders why this voter didn’t look at the points allotted to positions 1, 2, 3, and 4. If she did, she would’ve seen the descending order in which the points were allotted. Possibly, this voter needs eye glasses to see properly.

    Nigeria’s representatives to CAF inter-club matches wobbled at home, with Enyimba’s 4-1 victory against Paradou AC of Algeria in Aba last weekend being the talking points, though the threats from the People’s Elephants’ supporters were seemingly cheap. The fans wanted the club’s chairman Felix Anyansi-Agwu to quit, insisting that they needed a new dawn in the team’s management.

    Such is life Anyansi-Agwu. Where were these fans when the journey started some 20 years ago? Can’t they evaluate your achievements with Enyimba culminating in the 28 trophies the side won under your watch? Are matches not about winning, losing and drawing games? Even Liverpool FC of England that is unbeaten till date, lost a game against Napoli in the group stages of the UEFA Champions League. Liverpool’s fans didn’t pull the roof of Anfield Stadium down because the team has not won the Barclays English Premier league’s diadem in the last 29 years. Growing clubs to stardom requires patience and good planning. These indices come with time, dear Enyimba fans.

    Perhaps, Heartland FC of Owerri’s 2-0 away victory over Enyimba in Aba midweek would teach the home fans a lesson of appreciating whatever you get from a game. They shouted to the roof top about Anyansi-Agwu’s continuous stay at Enyimba despite watching the squad beat Paradou AC of Algeria in Aba.

    Poor Anyansi-Agwu. Not to take any prisoner, he fired back to the fans in a post-match interview thus: “Everything that happens, they focus on Anyansi-Agwu and blame me, thinking it is all about me, probably because I have stayed up to 20 years, people are tired of me, maybe they now want me out, I am considering to go. I would not want to leave Enyimba and expect it to go down, so there is no way I can wish that; that is why we are taking time. It is not wrong to criticise us because no man is an island, we are open to learning every day,’’ Good talk Anyansi-Agwu.

    When you criticise a system here, those who should effect the changes resort to cheap talk of the writer doing the bidding of his paymaster. But like a sore thumb, the problems keep hitting our all-knowing officials on the face. The sports administrators’ saving grace so far is that nobody has been killed at league venues by those beasts who take the laws into their hands to cause mayhem and maim people. The saddening part of these urchins’ bestial acts is that nobody gets punished, no one gets caught and the teams get a slap on the wrists.

    But must our league administrators wait until Nigerians lose their lives at league venues to do what is right? Repeatedly, I have highlighted the flaw of having only 50 security operatives carrying batons to quell riots at a venue of over 5,000 irate fans. they would be overwhelmed, except to fire live bullets to scare the fans. These beasts know how to run

    through teargas with handkerchief soaked in kerosene. These buffoons with handkerchief tied around the nostrils, take delight in picking the teargas’ canisters and haul them back at the security operatives. Such is the devilish scenes you find at venues where the fans have gone gaga.

    On Wednesday night, I spent a long time trying to confirm if truly fans were killed in the home game between Katsina United and Kano Pillars. I saw scary pictures of blood-soaked men on WhatsApp being treated by doctors in hospitals. The quest for more information to avoid being an alarmist brought forth pictures of irate fans wielding all manner of weapons, raising the poser of where they got the dangerous objects from.

    The swiftness in which the mayhem boiled overshadowed which of the two supporters was responsible for the show of shame. It explains further why the league organisers are dragging their feet over the issue of live coverage of matches on television in Nigeria, like we find in other climes. is it not also true that matches involving both teams have been volatile? So, what is new with what happened in Katsina on Wednesday? Inept league organisers, no doubt.

    A proactive organisation would have increased the level of surveillance of the stadium, considering the closeness of the two teams, which accounted for the huge crowd at the venue. I still cannot understand why the league organisers cannot establish a relationship with the Nigeria Police Commissioners in states where game are played for maximum security before, during and after matches.

    A league where fans run through tear gas fired by security operatives to prevent mayhem isn’t one to attract positive comments from the globe. A league where 50 wiry security operatives with batons are trying to stop 3000 rampaging fans from beating up a referee, shows who the organisers are – jesters.

    Nothing seems to be new because these same characters run the competition yearly. Those who run the domestic game have the penchant for signing MOUs. They enjoy listening to themselves. Those with dissenting views don’t know what it takes to run the game. But this writer won’t give up until the right personnel are put in place.

    The first thing that stadia where games are played need urgently is CCTVs which can’t be destroyed to cover up malpractices. Besides, any stadium that is slated to host games must build special exit gates that will make it absolutely impossible to access the referees before, during and after matches. Any harm inflicted on match referees will translate to 10 points deduction from the offender’s total. Such a defaulting club should not be allowed to play in that venue for one year.

    With a live coverage of the domestic league, it will be easier to identify where a problem began. Those running the league met an existing television right sponsor and a title owner of the league. What happened to these two bodies which funded the operations of the organising body?

    Liverpool has a game against Manchester United at Anfield, I’m sure that the level of surveillance would be stronger than what it used to be for less popular clubs. The security chiefs would have considered the rivalry between both teams and drawn a plan that would start from where the two teams reside.

  • Tears for Nigerian stars

    Ade Ojeikere 

     

    The Senegalese held court in Egypt on Tuesday night when Liverpool FC of England’s gem Sadio Mane was deservedly decorated as the Africa Footballer of the Year inside the Albatros Citadel Sahl Hasheesh, Hurghada, Egypt.

    Mane finished as finalist in the previous three editions of the CAF Player of the Year (in 2017 and 2018 and taking third place in 2016), but never won the coveted piece of silverware. He is only the second Senegalese to win the award after El Hadji Diouf, who was the winner in 2001 and 2002.

    It is important to state here that Mane has been the most consistent African in the last four years, losing trice, yet remained focused in his job of scoring goals for club and country. Those disturbing the media with paralysed analyses about the absence of Nigerian male players in the awards should tell them to be consistent in their performances with Super Eagles and their clubs.

    Besides, our players must grow up and strive to play for the bigger cubs in Europe, which win trophies and play at the big stages such as UEFA Champions League finals, Super Cup finals and World Club Champions finals. These three trophies and their winners’ medals are with Mane, making him the obvious choice for the CAF Africa Player of the Year.

    Mane’s acceptance speech typifies who he is – simple, urbane, respectful and abhors self glorification. The Senegalese lives for his people, fights for them, provides basic amenities for his people, not minding if that’s the responsibility of government. Need I waste space to list all that Mane has done for Senegal, her people and the community, dear reader?

    According to Mane on Tuesday night: “To be honest I would prefer to be playing football than speaking in front of so many important people. My job, I love it. I’m really happy and really proud at the same time. I would like to thank my family, especially my uncle who is here today – and as well my coach. [I’d also like to thank] my national teammates and the staff, Liverpool football club and my teammates.

    “It is a big day for me and I would love to thank all the Senegalese people who have been voting for me. I’m from a very small village called Bambali and I’m sure they are all watching me tonight. Again, I’m really happy and very proud to win this.”

    Pundits won’t be surprised if Mane wins the 2020 edition, given the way he is playing for Liverpool, especially if the Reds win Barclays English Premier League title and retain all their trophies. Did I hear you say tall dreams for Mane and Liverpool? With the way Liverpool is playing this season, not many European clubs can beat them.

    Of course, Liverpool’s attacking onslaughts rest in the hands of Mane, Mohammed Salah and Firmino, so who or what will stop Mane from winning the diadem again? Perhaps his teammate at Anfield Mo’Salah but definitely not a Nigerian player. Sorry, I’m not sentimental because this is serious business and our players need to realise that or remain as second fiddle where it matters the most.

    It must be noted here that the award winner is judged based on players’ contributions to their country and club. For this year, Senegal are Africa’s best playing soccer nation adjudged by FIFA, aside playing in the finals of 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, losing in the finals to Algeria, with Mane spearheading the Senegalese’s team.

    The CAF Player of the Year award was first won by Ghana’s greatest player Abedi Ayew Pele in 1992 with the first Nigeria winner being Rashidi Yekini in 1993, two players who made goal-scoring look so easy.

    Guess what, Nigerians dominated this award until 1999 because it was the country’s golden era of producing immensely talented footballers, losing the spot twice during this period in 1995, to easily the best African footballer, President George Opong Weah, who also voted the best European player and World Footballer of that year and in 1998 to pony-tail Mustapha Hadji.

    Austin Jay Jay Okocha was so good for country and his hitherto Barclays English Premier League side Bolton FC of England that he was twice named BBC’s best African player in 2003 and 2004. In both years, Cameroonian Eto O’ Fils was without a doubt Africa’s best player, winning the award consecutively from 2003 to 2005, although Eto again won it in 2010. The Cameroonian won it four times.

    Did you say Eto’s feat was awesome? What would you say of Ivorien Yaya Toure, who won it four consecutive times from 2011 to 2014? Those who have won the award were exceptional players who led their teams by example throughout matches. Eto and Toure were class acts in the game despite playing in different positions.

    However, Toure did more than just scoring goals for the Elephants of Cote d’ Ivoire. He held the team’s midfield together and provided the buffer defenders needed to ward off opponents’ attacking forays.

    Eto and Toure’s reigns raised the bar for Africans playing in Europe. They switched teams for high fees and justified what they were given. It explains why Africans have dominated the World team of the year, with Mohammed Salah, reigning Africa Footballer of the Year Mane and Mahrez, Aubameyang as outstanding players. The trio scored 22 goals each for their Barclays English Premier League last season, sharing the award of the highest goal scorer of the 2018/2019 season. It was the first time three players would tie on 22 goals in one season.

    No prize for guessing right the trio Aubmenyang (13 goals), Salah (10 goals) and Mane (11 goals) are among the leading scorers in the EPL this season with Vardy (17 goals) topping the chart after 21 matches. Sadly, Harry Kane is out for three months due to a hamstring surgery which would take until April to heal. This leaves the stage open for a fight to the finish race for this year’s top scorer. Would there be a tie like last season? Don’t bet against it. I digress

    In fact, a Nigerian Emmanuel Amuneke won the 1994 edition courtesy of his mercurial showing at the finals of the Africa Cup of Nations, which Nigeria clinched in Tunisia, despite playing only in the final game against a Zambian team that rose from the ashes of an unfortunate plane crash, which claimed the lives of all 30 passengers and crew, including 18 players. Amuneke scored the two goals which sank Chipolopolo with the Zambians opening scoring. Many people sentimentally tipping them to lift the trophy, but Amuneke spoilt their predictions because Nigeria won 2-1.

    Chipolopolo’s captain, Kalusha Bwalya—later national team coach and President of the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ)—was not aboard the flight as he was in the Netherlands playing for PSV at that time and had made separate arrangements to make his way to Senegal to take part in the match.

    Charles Musonda, at the time playing in Belgium for Anderlecht, was previously injured and thus was not on the flight. Bennett Mulwanda Simfukwe, who had been seconded to the FAZ by his employers (ZCCM) for five years and was supposed to be on this flight, wasn’t on the flight because his employers demanded that he should immediately be removed from the list of those officially scheduled to travel to Senegal.

    Nwankwo Kanu won the award twice, first in 1996 for his showboating  displays at the Atlanta ’96 Olympic Games. Victor Ikpeba, a member of the goal winning Olympic side won the award last for Nigeria in 1999. Ikpeba was an ‘enfante terrible’ like the French would say but his talent and commitment to Monaco’s games and Nigeria’s earned him the award.

    Nigerians were ‘molested’ for pictures and autographs by the nationals in Monaco and other French cities they visited by the French fans who held Ikpeba in awe at the France ’98 World Cup. Ikpeba was truly the prince of Monaco.

    The pertinent question would be if any Nigerian would win the award in this new decade? It isn’t looking good. Our players don’t play for big clubs, just as they seem contented with earning big money in Europe, irrespective of putting markers in their careers, which is what winning the Africa Footballer of the Year award represents. I recall a feud between Ikpeba and Osaze Odemwingie. Ikpeba urged Odemwingie to win the Africa Footballer of the Year first, then he would be qualified to do any comparison with him. Upper cut, like they say in boxing. The feud ceased.

    Five players have been listed as likely to win the award – Victor Osimhen, Joe Aribo, Ndidi, Samuel Chukwu and Iheanacho. My response is if Nigeria would qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, given the way our players prosecute our matches. Of these names pencilled for the award, which club in Europe would Osimhen command a regular shirt like he does at Lille FC in France? Chukwueze isn’t an exceptional player. He also doesn’t look like the player for the big stages, aside the fact that his style of play is predictable.

    If Osimhen must win the award next year, he must either remain in Lille or join Paris Saint Germain (PSG) in the French Ligue, since it appears the style there suits his game. Aribo, Ndidi and Iheanacho are far-fetched options for the award, except Nigeria qualifies for the 2022 World Cup with a top tactician not what we have now.

    Will any Nigerian win the Africa Footballer of the Year in this new decade? Please, show me a new player we have not seen.

     

     

  • Sack club chairmen

    By Ade Ojeikere

    This is the period of resolutions. The football family wants a change from the horrible past which predates this NFF board. We have seen enough of the charade around our football. We feel strongly that we need to sack the club chairmen and start a true rejuvenation of the beautiful game here. We are tired of follow follow ( thanks to a line in one of  Fela Anikulapo-Kuti’s albums) club chairmen, who watch in awe while the system cripples the game. The chairmen’s submission that their hands are tied is laughable, given what operates in their clubs.  Paying players, coaches and officials their wages and entitlements appears to be forbidden. These key actors of the game can’t revolt because it would affect their source of revenue, if they get sacked.

    Club chairmen have made the league operators look like their masters rather than partners. There can’t be league organisers without the clubs. Not so here. For instance, players of Ifeanyi Ubah were attacked by armed robbers en route a Match-Day 6 fixture against Jigawa Golden Stars. They were lucky to escape death. Till date, we don’t have clear details on the health situation of those players and officials.

    Today, nobody can tell if the boys benefited from any form of insurance. If the league organisation has insurance firm worthy of its reputation in the business, they would have used this unfortunate incident to explain what they have in store for the teams in the league in terms of welfare package. In other climes, we would’ve seen photos of the insurance firm(s) bosses going to visit the players in the hospital. They would’ve told Nigerians what the players are entitled to.

    The league organisers and the insurance firm would’ve used a press conference to tell everyone what players stood to gain from the various platforms in the insurance packages. Besides, journalists would’ve asked them critical questions, whose answers would’ve emboldened other players to give their best during matches, knowing that their lives and careers have been guaranteed by the insurance policies.

    The driver of this particular bus could have lost his life. Yet, no one has told us what the league organisers did for him – insurance wise, nor has the club said anything about the driver and the injured players. Is anyone surprised that our players are doing poorly in the CAF inter club competitions? Would anyone blame the domestic league players who jump at foreign offers?

    In March 2012, Fabrice Muamba suffered a cardiac arrest during a televised FA Cup match between Bolton and Tottenham Hotspurs and despite the fact that his heart stopped for 78 minutes, he was miraculously revived, thanks to expert medical attention on the pitch before he was whisked away to the hospital. Nobody brought sachet water near the player. Nor did those rushing Muamba to the hospital have to push the ambulance before it could start. These people on an emergency service also didn’t have to wait endlessly for them to fish out the ambulance driver, who may have strayed away to eat, as most drivers do here. The driver didn’t have to pant while driving or run a long distance from where he was drinking like we see in our leagues.

    Another example of effective management of medical emergencies on the field of play, is the case of former Arsenal player Santi Carzola who suffered a career threatening injury which kept him away for 636 days. Carzola cracked a bone in an ankle, suffered a knee ligament injury in November 2015 and played in increasing pain…. His skin had deteriorated and split open and infection attacked but he was patched up by a solid medical team. He returned to football and signed for Villarreal FC of Spain, where he is enjoying the beautiful game again alongside Nigerian star, Samuel Chukwueze.

    Dear reader, please don’t ask what obtains in the Nigerian league on this medical emergency matters. Let me annoy you a bit. You may find an ambulance belonging to the state government, where the governor is sports-loving. Otherwise, you would find one ill-equipped jalopy which would require a push to start. Besides the pitch, you may find an ancient carrier to take the injured player off. Otherwise, two hefty men would run onto the pitch.

    The point to be made here is that we have eminently trained medical personnel. But they may have pulled out of doing business with the league due the reasons known to us. Need I list them? Nobody does business for charity. Other climes have official hospital which would work with the club’s medical crew and those in the stadium for such intricate exercises.

    The domestic league is an apology, beginning with the sharp practices around the grounds before, during and after matches. Nothing to stimulate the interests of the spectators to sit patiently at the stands. The essence of organising league matches isn’t for both teams to benefit from the gates takings, but to allow Nigerians watch the country’s future representatives at CAF inter-club competitions. The matches ensure that the owners of the clubs (mostly state governments) get the facilities ready for the players to battle for honours. But with visionless organisers, anything goes, even if it means playing games with empty terraces.

    Nigeria is the only country where league organisers bask in organising Super Four tournaments after the gruelling 38-week matches have been played. Equally, unacceptable is the idea of not demoting teams that did badly in the season, simply because the organisers want more entrants into the league. How do you promote failures? are you surprised from a failed body? Birds of the same feather fly together. Is this not a clear indictment of the 38-week format, known to everyone? How do you organise league matches for the season, yet the winner would still be subjected to another round of matches to decide the eventual winner – what a country. Nobody wants to stop this misnomer because those who benefit from it blaming the late commencement of the competition for the aberration called Super Four.

    It is simply unimaginable for the English league Board to contemplate a Super Four series after the breath-taking 380 matches played in 38-weeks across the year by 20 teams. What would the EPL board members be telling Liverpool etc that there is still a Super Four to be played in the Barclays English Premier League? Who is it in Germany that would be talking about Super Four after the Bundesliga? How dare anyone suggest Super Four instead of the La Liga Santander? Not even the Italians would opt for it, ahead of the Serie A? Is it that Nigeria’s league board members don’t know about these other leagues and how they are played?

    When such abnormalities occur, it is the clubs that should protest? They won’t because they know the implications of such revolts. Don’t remind anyone about what befell Kwara United FC of yore, simply because a referee was beaten groggy during a match venue? The club chairmen can’t be bothered about the format, since playing less matches in groups to accommodate the Super Four. The chairmen would rather run to their sponsors for more cash to prosecute the Super Four, without rendering proper accounts of how they spent the first tranche.

    Fans, who should pay money to watch the teams, avoid the venues for fear of their lives. It takes a little disagreement for chaos to engulf the premises, with only 50 security operatives carrying canisters of tear-gas. Venues have their stadium gates thrown open, yet no dice. Who wants to watch our local leagues when club touts man the gates and direct the affairs of the place at the club chairmen’s behest.

    The organisers are feigning ignorance about the deplorable conditions in the clubs, preferring to get the players on the pitch, even if they are doing that on empty stomachs. Players, coaches and ancillary groups who make the games possible do so for the love of the game, which isn’t run professionally.

    Only recently, the Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare berated the League Management Company (LMC) for its poor organization of the domestic football league.

    He said: “The bad image at all levels of our football including the organisers of the domestic league cannot attract sponsorship which is the biggest hub of business.

    “No country’s football can grow without a predictable and credible Football calendar that is binding on everyone. The essence of having a football calendar is to ensure that the corporate world can plan with it.

    “No blue-chip firm operates based on hunches. Everything is planned with dates and milestones. No company will wait for the NFF to wake up from its slumber to include them in their plans.”

    Happy New Year, dear reader.