The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Chigozie Agbim

  • Keshi, family, fans helped me

    Keshi, family, fans helped me

    • Obanor’s debut thrills Big Boss

    Goalkeeper and skipper of the Super Eagles at the ongoing CHAN African Nations Championship, Chigozie Agbim, has attributed his quick return to form to the counseling of Head Coach Stephen Keshi, his family members and fans who kept urging him on when others had written him off.

    “After the last match I came under heavy criticism but I had to go into prayers and God heard me, then my family members were calling to say I can do it, some of my fans back home also called to wish me well. But most importantly my coach had the belief in me when most people wrote me off, I have to say thank you to him”, Chigozie said in a pensive voice.

    He also has soothing words for his teammates who were always behind him in times of criticisms. “My mates were there for me all the time and that also helped me to pull through my travails.”

    Meanwhile, Coach Stephen Keshi has hailed the superb debut of Bendel Insurance of Benin wing back, Obanor Erhun, describing him as a beckon of hope for players in the lower rung of the Nigerian league. “We brought 23 players here because we believe any of them can fit in when crisis arises and Obanor demonstrated that on Sunday. Other players in the league, whether amateur, national or Premier league should have the belief that they can make the national team once they are good enough, because Obanor has proved it and there are no biases if a player is good”.

  • Keshi: Eagles still work in progress

    Keshi: Eagles still work in progress

    •Igesund concedes supremacy

    •Team resumes training

    Despite Super Eagles outstanding display against Bafana Bafana in their final group game on Sunday night, Head Coach, Stephen Okechukwu Keshi, says the team is still work in progress but expressed happiness that the players are finally playing to his instructions.

    “The magic was that we simply asked the boys to go out there and play their game without pressure, enjoy your game and be yourself and I think they got that right perfectly against a very difficult opponent”. He also has harsh words for critics of some of his players, declaring that no one is perfect but we have to work on our imperfections to reach our goals. He was referring to the criticisms of first choice goalkeeper and captain, Chigozie Agbim.

    On his part, South African Coach, Gordon Igesund, praised the Super Eagles and attributed the success of the team to thier strenth. “We have no excuses to give here, we simply lost to a better team and we don’t deserve to win today. I must congratulate Stephen Keshi and his team”, he declared on Sunday night.

    He also said he expects the South African Football Association (SAFA), to allow him continue in his post because the team has really grown under him. Reeling out statistics, Igesund says under him the team has played 28 matches and scored 40 goals against some of the best national teams in the world including a defeat of reigning world champions Spain. “I am happy with these results and I hope I am allowed to continue to do my job with SAFA”, he said.

    The Super Eagles will meanwhile take no break as they continue preparations for their quarter final game on Saturday in Cape Town. The team will train at 5pm local time, which is 4pm Nigerian time for now until a fresh training schedule is out.

     

  • Keshi hails Agbim

    Stephen Keshi, the Super Eagles coach, hailed the performance put up by his team’s goalkeeper, Chigozie Agbim insisting that he displayed a man-of-the-match outing.

    “It was a man-of-the-match performance he put in for the team,’’ he said.

    Keshi said the goalkeeper had learnt from his previous mistakes and made amends in the keenly-contested match against the hard-fighting South Africans.

    “We all make mistakes and I believe that Agbim has learnt from his past mistakes, and I want to also commend all the players for putting up a good performance in the match,’’ he said.

    However, the head coach of Bafana Bafana, Gordon Igesund, on Sunday in Cape Town said the Super Eagles deserved their 3-1 win against his team.

    The coach said at the post-match news conference that “the Nigerian side not only brought their physical approach to bear on my team, but did the needful to win the pulsating encounter’’.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the win by the Eagles was in their final Group A match at the ongoing 2014 African Nations Championship (CHAN) in South Africa.

    The win meant hosts South Africa exited the championship with four points from three matches, after Mali topped the group with seven points and Nigeria came second with six points.

     

  • Keshi sticks with Agbim Psychologist work on error prone goalie

    By Onyewuchi Nwachukwu

    Stephen Keshi is set to field Chigozie Agbim for today’s crucial last group game against the Bafana Bafana of South Africa, despite the goalkeeper’s howlers in the team’s last two matches against Mali and Mozambique.

    SportingLife gathered from an authoritative source in South Africa that the Big Boss has made up his mind to back Agbim who also doubles as the captain of the team and therefore would continue to field him in the championship as long as he is not injured.

    In Keshi’s reckoning, according to our source, benching Agbim at a time when he has received a deluge of bashing from Nigerians would probably ruin the career of the Enugu Rangers’ shot stopper.

    “It’s obvious that Agbim has not lived up to expectation in the team’s last two matches but like a true professional, Keshi has opted to stand by him knowing that his captain is not as bad as he is being painted”

    However, what the Eagles’ coaches have not denied is the fact that Agbim’s confidence may have reached it’s lowest state and it is understood that the team’s psychologist, Robinson Okosun, has been working on the goalie in the past two days with the intention of boosting his already battered psyche.

    Agbim has conceded four goals in the team’s two previous games against Mali and Mozambique, one of the goals he let in was a 45 yards free kick.

  • BATTLE OF SOUTH AFRICA (7PM SUNDAY): Agbim faces axe

    BATTLE OF SOUTH AFRICA (7PM SUNDAY): Agbim faces axe

    • Keshi urged to drop fumbling goalkeeper

    Sportinglife can reveal today that Super Eagles chief coach Stephen Keshi has been persuaded to drop goalkeeper Chigozie Agbim from the country’s starting 11 against South Africa on Sunday at 7pm, if he wants Nigeria to qualify for the quarter-finals of the African Nations Championship (CHAN) tournament.

    SportingLife scooped further that eggheads of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) are miffed over Keshi’s refusal to heed the advice given to him before the last game against Mozambique to drop Agbim from the squad.

    Instead, Keshi stuck with Agbim and fielded him against Mozambique, where the fumbling goalkeeper watched in awe as a shot taken by Mozambique’s captain from 39 metres sailed into the net. Soccer pundits are aghast over Keshi’s Agbim choice, citing the fact that the goalie manned the goalpost of his domestic side in only four matches, making his sloppy performance a summation of his dreadful season in the domestic league.

    But, feelers from South Africa on Friday night indicated that a powerful ally of Keshi, who the Big Boss listens to, may have swayed him into taking the decision after spending close to 20 minutes on telephone with the coach on the matter of national importance.

    “I talked with Keshi and he seemed persuaded by the clarion call to drop Agbim. Keshi gave solid points why he is sticking with Agbim. But I told him that the general opinion among Nigerians back home was for him to try another goalkeeper. Like you know, I can only talk to him. It is his decision to field Agbim or not,” the Big Boss’ ally said.

  • Alampasu’s birthday highlights Eagles Xmas Eve

    Alampasu’s birthday highlights Eagles Xmas Eve

    Fledgling Golden Eaglets keeper, Dele Alampasu, is a year older on Xmas eve and the teenage international who was voted the best keeper at the last U-17 World Cup, which Nigeria won, has been grinning from ear to ear at his output so far in the Super Eagles camp.

    Alampasu, who turns 17 today, said he has learnt a lot from his experience with top and senior keepers like Chigozie Agbim and Dan Akpeyi, whom he noted have added the much needed fillip to his game as he seeks ascendancy into the senior cadre.

    There is also a slight change in the Super Eagles programme as preparations heighten for the CHAN African Nations Tourney in South Africa, next year. The practice game scheduled to be played against Nigerian league champions, Kano Pillars, have now been rescheduled for Monday, December 30th. The games was earlier scheduled for Friday, December 27th.

    Team Coordinator, Emmanuel Attah, said the change was necessitated by the game the national team will play on Saturday in the Garden City of Port Harcourt, against a selected side, consisting of players from top sides, Sharks FC, Dolphin FC and other top players within the Garden City Metropolis. Details of the game will be unveiled later.

    Already, all players invited to the national team last weekend have all reported to camp and have been showing signs of the battle for shirts in camp. At the last count about 33 players were in camp battling for 23 shirts for the CHAN tourney. The technical crew is expected to again prune down the list of players by the weekend as momentum heightens for SA 2014 CHAN tourney.

  • Keshi invites 24 local players for W/ Cup qualifier

    Keshi invites 24 local players for W/ Cup qualifier

    Super Eagles coach, Stephen Keshi, has picked 24 players from the domestic league for a 2014 World Cup qualifier against Kenya in Calabar on March 23.

    The full list of foreign-based professionals will be announced on Thursday morning, officials told MTNFootball.com.

    The call-ups from the local league include five of those who made the squad to the recent African Cup of Nations in South Africa- Chigozie Agbim, Sunday Mba, Godfrey Oboabona, Gabriel Reuben and Azubuike Egwuekwe.

    There were also recalls for Papa Idris, Daniel Akpeyi, Chibuzor Okonkwo, Zango Umar and Solomon Kwambe.

    Fresh invitees are Shooting Stars duo of Dele Ajiboye and Taofeek Adepoju, Zubairu Mohammed from Niger Tornadoes and Jiya Mohammed of Bayelsa United.

    The players will open training camp in Abuja from Sunday, from where they will be joined by foreign-based players next week for the trip to Calabar.

     

     

    The full squad:

     

    Goalkeepers: Chigozie Agbim (Enugu Rangers), Daniel Akpeyi (Heartland) Dele Ajiboye (3SC)

    Defenders: Egwueke Azubuike (Warri Wolves), Papa Idris , Zango Umar (Kano Pillars), Godfrey Oboabona, Solomon Kwambe (Sunshine Stars), Chibuzor Okonkwo (Rangers), Ezekiel Bassey (Lobi Stars), Benjamin Francis (Heartland), Zubairu Muhammed (Tornadoes)

    Midfielders and Forwards: Sunday Mba (Nigeria), Gabriel Ruben, Gambo Muhammed, Ubale Mannir (Kano Pillars), Pius Samson (Ranchers Bees) Gomo Onduku (Sharks), Obinna Nwanchukwu (Heartland), Ayo Saka (Enyimba), Jiya Muhammed (Bayelsa FC), Emeka Eze (Rangers), Anthony Okputu (Lobi Stars), Adepoju Taofeek (3SC)

     

  • Asaba Stadium named after Keshi

    Asaba Stadium named after Keshi

    Delta State Governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan, has named the Asaba Stadium after Stephen Keshi, who led Nigeria to win a third African Cup of Nations title last weekend.

    At a reception held at the Asaba International Event Centre, Uduaghan also rewarded Keshi with a sum of 8 million Naira as well as a duplex in the state capital.

    Keshi’s assistants, Daniel Amokachi, Sylavnus Okpalla, and Ike Shorunmu got 4m Naira each, while each player got 2.5m naira.

    Members of the team who were old and present players of Warri Wolves got N5million. They are AFCON final hero Sunday Mba, Chigozie Agbim, Azuibike Egwekwe, and Nosa Igiebor.

    MTNFootball.com reports that more state governments are in line to fete the team.