The Nation Newspaper

Category: Sports

  • 2012 FEDERATION CUP VICTORY: Heartland want govt’s recognition

    2012 FEDERATION CUP VICTORY: Heartland want govt’s recognition

    2012 Federation Cup winners, Heartland of Owerri have beckoned on the Imo State governor, Rochas Okorocha to give the team a befitting reception after doing the state proud in the competition for the second consecutive season.

    The Naze Millionaires won the coveted cup for Imo State for the first first time in almost three decades in 2011 when they defeated Enyimba of Aba 1-0 and made it a double in August this year after a nail-biting 2-1 victory over Lobi Stars in Lagos.

    About three months after their heroics at the Teslim Balogun Stadium a source very close to the team told SportingLife that there is disquiet among the players on why it has taken the Imo government such a long time to properly reward them for doing the state proud.

    The source informed that though the players were grateful to the Imo government for offsetting most of the arrears of their last season’s signing-on fees, judging by what the players passed through during the campaign for the 2012 Federation Cup which they braved the odds to win, the Okorocha-led government should have done something to make them happy.

    Though Heartland’s form deepened so badly in the Nigeria Premier League (NPL) last season owing to dispute over signing-on fees arrears which culminated in an industrial action for more than two occasions, the club will still stage a comeback to Africa after the feat in the Federation Cup which returned the club to the 2013 CAF Confederations Cup competition again.

    The Owerri-based side ended the NPL season in the 8th position but are well poised to better that performance this term having retained the core of the players with the club last season and also with some statement-making signings too already.

  • Eagles win test game 3-1

    Eagles win test game 3-1

    The Super Eagles defeated non-league side Water FC of Abuja 3-1 in a test game on Saturday.

    Both teams first clashed on October 5 in the run-up to a 2013 Nations Cup qualifier against Liberia and the game ended in a 1-1 draw.

    Eagles forward Sunday Mba served notice of what was to happen on Saturday when he blasted wide after being set up by Ejike Uzoenyi after just the second minute.

    In the sixth minute, Azubuike Egwuekwe strayed forward to head home an Uzoenyi corner but a Water FC player blocked it with his hands.

    The referee rightly pointed to the spot and Mba stepped forward to send the keeper the wrong way.

    The Eagles would have been two more goals up but Gambo Mohammed blasted wide in the 10 minute, before hitting the cross-bar with a textbook header in the 20th minute.

    Gambo finally registered his name on the score board when he out-jumped the Water FC defence to nod home a Solomon Kwambe cross.

    The amateur side thereafter woke up and subjected the Eagles’ defence to sporadic raids. Agbim saved in the 42nd minute by palming the ball for a corner kick. The resultant corner kick was rammed home in the 43rd minute by Okey Aboyin, who was also on target when both sides met in October.

    The second half was barely five minutes when onrushing Mba was felled in the vital area and referee Aniete promptly pointed to the spot and Mba stepped forward to dispatch his second goal of the day.

    The game which was watched by NFF technical director Emmanuel Ikpeme went on a ding dong affair till a dramatic moment in the 85th minute when a Water FC attacker was felled in the Eagles vital area.

    A penalty was awarded but blasted wide by Ifeanyi Adibe to ensure a respectable scoreline for the national side who will arrive in the USA today for a friendly against Venezuela on Wednesday.

    Meanwhile, nine players from the NPL have made the final cut for the Venezuela game.

    The list was announced lunch time Saturday by assistant coach Daniel Amokachi.

    Leading the pack is home-based skipper, Chigozie Agbim, who recently moved from Warri Wolves to Rangers. Others are Sunshine Stars skipper Godfrey Oboabona, left back Benjamin Francis, who has been in impressive form at the national team’s camp.

    Also picked are Warri Wolves centre back Azubuike Egwuekwe, Solomon Kwambe, Umar Zango Umar, Henry Uche, Sunday Mba of Warri Wolves and Ejike Uzoenyi.

    The team will depart for Miami through the Murtala Mohammed International Airport Lagos by 10pm via Delta Airlines and accommodation has already been reserved for the team at the Intercontinental Doral in Miami.

  • Dzeko late show sends City second

    Dzeko late show sends City second

    Edin Dzeko ensured that Manchester City kept pace with Manchester United at the top of the Premier League with a late winner in a 2-1 home win over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.

    As was the case with United’s win at Aston Villa the day before, City had to come from behind to secure a late win and stay within two points of the leaders after Sergio Aguero cancelled out Steven Caulker’s opener for Tottenham.

    The result extended City’s remarkable unbeaten home record in the Premier League to 35 games — a sequence dating back nearly two years. It also offered respite for manager Roberto Mancini, who had taken the bold decision to leave controversial forward Mario Balotelli out of his squad for the game.

    Aguero struck on 65 minutes with a polished example of finishing, latching onto a loose ball and committing two defenders before rolling the ball into the Spurs goal from six yards.

    And with just two minutes remaining, all three points went to City as David Silva played a beautifully judged pass to substitute Dezko, who found the back of the Tottenham net with a superb shot on the turn.

    Spurs had taken a first-half lead on 21 minutes through Caulker, although it owed as much to poor defending and a rare slip from England goalkeeper Joe Hart as impressive finishing. Aguero was ruled to have fouled Aaron Lennon and Tom Huddlestone’s free-kick from the right flank was met by centre-back Caulker, the ball hitting Hart firmly in the chest and then squirming agonisingly over the line.

    It was a piece of defending in keeping with City’s recent form, particularly in Europe, but Mancini had cause to go in at the half-time interval feeling aggrieved at referee Michael Oliver, who turned down two strong penalty appeals.

  • SOUTH AFRICA 2013 AFCON : Sidney Sam out — NFF

    SOUTH AFRICA 2013 AFCON : Sidney Sam out — NFF

    SportingLife has exclusively gathered from the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF)’s Secretariat in Abuja Sunday afternoon that the Federation may find it difficult to effect the release of Bayer Leverkusen offensive midfielder cum attacker, Sidney Sam for the Super Eagles’ campaign in the finals of next year’s Africa Cup of Nations between now and the commencement of the competition.

    Eagles handler, Stephen Keshi had raised hope last week that the player born of a Nigerian father and German mother had signified his intention of playing for his fatherland which was widely celebrated in the media.

    “Sidney Sam and I spoke [on Monday] and he was really very keen to come and play for Nigeria now. This is cheering news any way. I actually told him that Nigeria is his fatherland and we would like to see him don the Nigerian jersey for his fatherland. He then told me that he would be glad to join the team,” said Keshi.

    “So, we would see him during the training sessions and towards the [Africa] Cup of Nations. When he comes around we will see how it goes”, Keshi had disclosed.

    But the NFF General Secretary told SportingLife bluntly, “I don’t know, I don’t know for now. The player is presently injured and he is going to be out (of football) for four weeks. So I doubt if he would be ready for the Nations Cup in South Africa”, the Kaduna-born NFF scribe disclosed.

    Also when Keshi was asked by SportingLife on the inclusion of dfender Nedum Onuoha in the final preparations for the 2013 AFCON in Portugal, the Coach popularly called the Big Boss simply replied, “I have no clue about Nedum Onuoha.”

    Football pundits believe that the inclusion of these players could have boosted the team and solidified it for the task ahead in South Africa. But, as it appears now, the Eagles will have to do without them at least for the AFCON 2013, although they may return for the 2014 World Cup qualifiers.

  • Onduku: I’ll explode against Venezuela

    Onduku: I’ll explode against Venezuela

    Sharks of Port Harcourt’s Gomo Onduku, who was handed a late inclusion in the Miami,USA-bound Super Eagles, is sure he will surprise the senior national team’s technical crew if he is given playing time in the international friendly with Venezuela on November 15.

    Onduku joined the already known nine home based players after a closed door meeting the Eagles coaches had on Saturday evening to increase the number of domestic players aboard the plane to the United States to 10.

    In a chat with SportingLife, Onduku said he was happy to eventually make the squad to America and would convince coach Stephen Keshi and company that they didn’t make a mistake by selecting him if he features against the emerging South American nation.

    “I am happy I made the team. It was God’s doing and I can’t question him. I had been told I would travel with the team. I am the 10th player.

    “I am going to the United States to show what I can do if given an opportunity during the match. I will not disappoint anybody,” Onduku disclosed.

    The Blue Angels striker scored 9 goals in the NPL and 5 in the 2012 Federation Cup last season.

     

  • Ahmed Musa TO KESHI: I can lead Eagles’ attack

    Ahmed Musa TO KESHI: I can lead Eagles’ attack

    Red-hot Ahmed Musa has told Eagles coach Stephen Keshi he can lead the Eagles’ attack at next year’s AFCON in South Africa.

    Jet-heeled Musa has been moved from a winger to a centre forward by his Russian club CSKA Moscow and the results have been remarkable as he has now scored seven goals in the league as well as a goal in the cup.

    The first of his brace against Kuban Krasnoder on Saturday was a typical striker’s goal as he used his blistering pace to reach a long through ball before slotting past a helpless goalkeeper.

    “I am enjoying my new role as top striker for CSKA. It has given me a chance to score more goals. I will lead Eagles’ attack well if I’m asked to do so too,” Ahmed Musa told MTNFootball.com

    He said his goals in Russia could also be attributed to the fact that he has fully settled down at the army team after his big-money switch from modest Dutch club VVV Venlo.

    “I am also scoring goals because I have adjusted to the league in Russia and now know what is expected of me,” he disclosed.

    Last month against Liberia in Calabar, the former Kano Pillars star was played mainly as a left winger and scored a goal.

    He scored a total of two goals in the qualifiers for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, a goal behind the team’s top scorer Ikechukwu Uche.

    Three seasons ago, Musa showed he knows his way to goal when he scored a record-breaking 18 goals for Kano Pillars playing mostly as a right winger.

    Meanwhile, former CSKA Moscow star Dmitry Kuznetsov has shared his thoughts and impressions on Ahmed Musa’s brace against Kuban Krasnodar to the Russian Press.

    The Nigeria international’s rich vein of form continued as he was on target in the 35th and 51st minute of the away encounter.

    ”He is a player who does everything right in attack, frees himself and creates chances. Today, he proved that he’s a goalscorer. At the moment, Musa is a major player in the attack. I like him, like how he has adapted as a centre – forward, ”Kuznetsov, a former Russia international, was quoted as saying by Ria Novosti.

    With his brace on Saturday, Musa is only two goals shy of top scorer in the Russian Premier League Alexander Kerzhakov, who has scored nine times.

  • Ameobi: I want England not Nigeria

    Ameobi: I want England not Nigeria

    Newcastle forward Sammy Ameobi has set his sights on being a star for club and country, but that country is not Nigeria.

    Ameobi, the younger brother of Toon striker Shola, insists that if he had a choice he would not follow in his elder brother’s footsteps and choose the Super Eagles of Nigeria over the Three Lions of England.

    Ameobi has been called up by Stuart Pearce for the England Under 21 squad and is hoping to outshine his brother Shola, who was recently named in the Nigeria squad.

    “It is a competition between us and I’d like to surpass him in whatever way I can. I can do that by getting into the England team,” he added.

    “Shola’s decided to play for Nigeria but England would be my first choice. I was born and brought up here and have only really played English football.”

    He made an impressive impact against Bruges in midweek and has been earmarked for the top by Magpies boss Alan Pardew. And while the 20-year-old is some way off becoming Newcastle’s next great No 9, the lanky left-footer has big ambitions.

    “I would love to get to that stage. It’s still at the beginning for me but hopefully one day,” Ameobi told The Sun on Sunday.

    “Everyone dreams of playing for their local club. I’ve had that opportunity to do so and I’m really grateful. Obviously Andy (Carroll) has moved on now. It’s something we’ve had to deal with and we got Papiss (Cisse) who’s a great player.

    “But I am only in a position where I have just started to play for the first-team. I am not getting ahead of myself. I am just on the verge but I feel that I’m beyond that point where I am the new kid on the block.

    “I am here to start making a difference in games now and showing I want to get to the top.”

  • Saraki pays ABS’ outstanding fees

    Saraki pays ABS’ outstanding fees

    The proprietor of ABS FC, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki has commended the players, staff and management of the team for their perseverance, even as he promised to support the team fully in their campaign in the 2012/2013 NPL season.

    He promised to continue to make the welfare of the team, which according to him will encourage performance, a top priority.

    Saraki, who spoke through the General Manager, Alloy Chukwuemeka ordered full payment of the 45% balance of last season’s sign on fees and other entitlements owed the team on Friday.

    According to Chukwuemeka ‘Saraki believes strongly that the welfare of players remain a topmost priority to achieve excellence and to get the best performances’.

    Explaining the delay in payment, Chukwuemeka said lack of sponsorship in the Nìgeria Premier League affected the club’s budget last season when clubs were forced to pay for match officials’ indemnities, accommodation, feeding and transportation. This led to the club’s inability to pay as at when due.

    While thanking Saraki for his commitment and sacrifice to the development of football in the country, the general manager charged the NPL to rise up to their responsibilities by securing sponsors for the league alongside other challenges facing the league system before the start of the new season.

    Meanwhile ABS FC is planning a two-week closed camping in Lokoja, Kogi State ahead of the new season.

  • Keshi warns: I’ll kick out undisciplined stars

    Keshi warns: I’ll kick out undisciplined stars

    Super Eagles handler, Stephen Keshi has declared that the form, fitness and discipline of players will be the criteria for selection of the players that will eventually form the Super Eagles squad to represent Nigeria at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) holding in South Africa between January 19th and February 10th, 2013.

    The former Chief Coach of Togo and Mali offered that if Nigeria is to make any meaningful impact in AFCON 2013, the form and fitness level of the players as well as team discipline must be taken very seriously during the final phase of the team’s preparations and the competition proper.

    “Firstly, I am very concerned about the health of my players in respect of being free of injuries and in good form; they must also be well disciplined. These are the important factors for a team to make an appreciable impact in any important tournament of this magnitude.

    “So, I am really working on this to ensure we present a good team that would be a pride to Nigeria”, Keshi told SportingLife.

    He also disclosed further that “There is no player that is bigger than the team. If a player is not giving us (coaches) what we think is right for the team, he might not even see a jersey to play.

    “The group we have here is not about favouritism or sentiment. If you are good, you are good. If you are not good we will say thanks and goodbye to you. So, next time when we see that you have improved and gotten better, we will recall you.

    “It is not that the door is shut for any player in this team, the thing is that we want the best for Nigeria. We want Nigeria to be happy and that is the only commitment that we have. That is what we are going to do. So, if any player comes around and he doesn’t know how to play, we will send him back”, Keshi warned.

  • Uchebo seeks turnaround at Brugge

    Uchebo seeks turnaround at Brugge

    Michael Okechukwu Uchebo has hailed the recent resurgence of Circle Brugge under new manager Foeke Booy and the contributions of former Chelsea star, Eidur Gudjohnsen to the Belgian top division side.

    Uchebo’s club came back from 0-2 down at home to Gent to gain a precious draw and barely lost by the odd goal (3-2) away to Mons two weeks ago. This came after the club defeated Beerschot AC 3-1 in the first game of the new boss.

    Speaking on the string of results of Circle Brugge since the sack of coach Bob Peeters on the 29th October after their insipid 1-2 loss away to Standard Liege three days earlier, Uchebo told SportingLife that the acquisition of Booy would soon turn the team’s fortunes around in the coming matches.

    “I am not happy with our present form at all. We have lost too many matches this season and at a time I thought we were jinxed until we had our first win of the season and then our second under new coach (Foeke Booy).

    “Circle Brugge got another deserved point yesterday (Saturday) after we fought back from 0-2 down. We will get better and leave our bottom of the table current position,” beanpole Uchebo, a target of Stoke City and Glasgow Rangers, told SportingLife Sunday afternoon.

    The dreadlock-wearing Nigerian also reserved praise for former Chelsea star, Gudjohnsen who moved to the club at the beginning of the season from Greek side, AEK Athens expressing his happiness at the significant impact and influence the Iceland international has been having on the young players in the team.

    Circle Brugge are still at the bottom of the Belgian first division table with 8 points from 15 matches.