The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Eaglets

  • Africa Under-17 qualifier: Ikhana offers Eaglets winning tips

    Africa Under-17 qualifier: Ikhana offers Eaglets winning tips

    Foremost football coach, Kadiri Ikhana, has commended the Golden Eaglets coaching crew in the task of building a strong team and has given tacit support to the team’s quest for a ticket for the 2015 African Under-17 Championship in Niger.

    The Golden Eaglets take a 1-0 lead into this weekend’s decider against Les Leopards of Congo Democratic Republic in Abeokuta and Ikhana is backing them to go all the way. The 62-year-old -coach who broke the jinx by winning Nigeria’s CAF Champions League trophy with Enyimba in 2003, said he was impressed  with the choice of players selected by Coach  Emmanuel Amuneke-led crew since it would on the long run help the growth of the national in the future.

    “I want to really commend you (coaching crew) for the kind of players you have picked because they are very young,” said Ikhana, a 1980 African Cup of Nations winner with the Green Eagles.

    “It is important we get things right from this stage because this is the foundation for other national teams and be assured of my support because I’ve seen that you are doing the right thing.”

    The vastly experienced manager was able to see the national Under-17 team at close quarters since his team, Enyimba, who were in Abeokuta for their Federation Cup match against Giwa FC, lodged in the same hotel with the Golden Eaglets. He advised officials to continue to instill discipline on the players both on and off the field.

    “I’m really impressed with the conduct of your team,” he further remarked after watching their training session on Wednesday at the MKO Abiola Stadium. “The coaches are imparting real knowledge into the players and I strongly believe, they have what it takes to play against any team.”

    The former Super Falcons’ coach said he has passed useful information to the coaching crew as they gear up preparations towards their second round-second leg fixture against their counterparts from the Central African region.

  • 2nd leg African Under-17 qualifier: NFF sends Eaglets to Abeokuta

    2nd leg African Under-17 qualifier: NFF sends Eaglets to Abeokuta

    The Nigeria Football Federation(NFF) picked Abeokuta for the second leg of the African U-17 qualifier against Congo, due to the on-going renovation work at the U. J Esuene Stadium in Calabar.

    The team was whisked to the rock city in a seamless transition from Lagos upon their arrival from Kinshasa on Monday.

    After two sessions at the Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola Stadium, the Golden Eaglets have settled down in Abeokuta ahead of their Under-17 African Championship qualifier against Congo DR on Saturday.

    The Eaglets, who are staying at the Intercontinental Suites, had a brief session on Monday evening to shake off jet lag after about a 12-hour flight from Kinshasa via Nairobi to Lagos and resumed their routine training on Tuesday.

  • Ambassador Ehiobuche fetes Golden Eaglets

    Ambassador Ehiobuche fetes Golden Eaglets

    His Excellency, Dr. Grant Ehiobuche, Nigeria’s Ambassador to the Congo Democratic Republic, hosted the Golden Eaglets to a dinner reception on Saturday after the national Under-17 team beat Les Leopards 1-0 in Kinshasa.

    The dinner had in attendance the Association of Nigerians in the Diaspora in Congo Democratic Republic as well as officials of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) including leader of delegation, Rafiu Yusuf, Emmanuel Adesanya and Kut Kut Fon.

    Ehiobuche, a career diplomat spanning over two decades, said he was happy that the Coach Emmanuel Amuneke-led side was able to wipe away the shame of Nigerians leaving in the central African country following the 3-1 thrashing of Kano Pillars and their subsequent elimination from the CAF Champions League in February.

    He praised the resilience of the team yet counselling the players to be prayerful in order to become the next generation of African superstars.

    “Personally, I’m happy for so many reasons apart from the fact that you beat Congo DR today,” stated the debonair diplomat who had previously served in Mexico, Japan, Sierra Leone amongst others.

    “I actually prayed and fasted that this match should not be played in Lubumbashi because it is a more difficult terrain and I wouldn’t be able to host you well.

    “My other prayer point was for you to come and beat Congo DR and God answered all my prayers regarding this match; and I’m so happy for the team and Nigerians as a whole.”

    He warned the players to refrain from anything that could impede them from becoming great players, adding that it is about time that a Nigerian is crowned the African Footballer of the Year to follow on the legend of the late Rashid Yekini (1993); Amuneke (1994); Nwankwo Kanu (1996 & 1999) and Victor Ikpeba (1997).

    “I want you to become truly great and I would be ready to even allow any one of you who becomes a real superstar to marry any of my daughters because I still have two that would in the future be within your marriage age,” he said amidst roaring laughter.

    “What I’m saying in effect is that with prayers and hard work, you can become somebody very great in the future.”

    Meanwhile, the victorious Golden Eaglets are due back in Nigeria today aboard Kenya Airways to continue their preparation for the second leg match against Congo Democratic Republic at most in a forthnight.

  • NIGER 2015 QUALIFIER: Eaglets in Congo to win, says Amuneke

    NIGER 2015 QUALIFIER: Eaglets in Congo to win, says Amuneke

    Nigeria’s Under-17 national team, the Golden Eaglets, will be going for nothing but victory when they face the Junior Leopards of Congo Democratic Republic in an African U-17 Championship (Niger 2015) qualifier on Saturday in Kinshasa.

    This much was said by the team’s Head Coach, Emmanuel Amuneke (MON) after the Eaglets’ final training  session yesterday, ahead  of the match fixed for 3:30pm local time (3:30pm Nigerian time) at  the Tata Raphael Stadium today.

    ” We are here to win and it is as simple as that but we know  that the game will not be as simple as that,”  said Amuneke who scored match-winning goals when Nigeria won the 1994 African Cup of Nations and  Atlanta’96 Olympic Soccer Gold medal. “We have constantly told the boys that all what we had done in the past are now in the past and the moment of serious business is here for us.”

    Keen followers of the Eaglets can readily predict the team’s line up after remarkably going 21 matches undefeated in regulation time (bar the penalty shoot-out loss to Benin at the WAFU B Tournament in Togo) fuelling suspicion that the 1994 African Footballer of the Year might stick to his reliables against Congo DR.

    “The only difference between Saturday’s (today’s) match and the ones we played in the past is just the circumstance because this is one of the qualifiers for Niger,” he explained. “So it is important for us to win irrespective of what Congo will throw at us because we know Kinshasa is a difficult place to win matches.”

    Typically, Amuneke refrained from picking any particular player as the  joker for the match saying that all the 18 players on the trip are physically and psychologically ready for what is regarded within the rank of the team as ‘The Battle of Kinshasa.’

    “Joker? I don’t have any joker for the match,” he bluntly said. “What we have is a team with a winning mentality and we have brought players we believe will do the job for us.”

  • Congo DR drag Eaglets to Tata Raphael

    • CAF picks Cameroonian officials

    With work still ongoing at their main stadium, the artificial surface of Tata Raphael Stadium in Kinshasa will host the Golden Eaglets and Congo Democratic Republic’s much anticipated Niger 2015 Under-17 African Championship qualifier today.

    The match was earlier scheduled for the TP Mazembe Stadium in Lubumbashi but the Federation of Congolese Football Association (FECOFA) informed the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) of the change in venue a few days before the Golden Eaglets’ departure.

    The Tata Raphael Stadium is the same venue local side AS Vita Club humbled Kano Pillars 3-1 in an African Champions League fixture in February.

    Meanwhile, continental soccer ruling body, CAF, has picked officials from Cameroon to handle the second round first leg fixture expected to be watched by a capacity crowd.

    The centre referee will be 31-year-old Antoine Max Depadoux Effa Essouma, who became an international referee in 2013, with his compatriots, 40-year-old Thierry Bruno Tocke and 36-year-old Hamadou Sadou serving as first and second assistants respectively.

    The fourth official is 36-year-old Mandeng Bakalay Cosmas Jerome while Michel Gasingwa from Rwanda will serve as Match Commissioner.

    Dignitaries expected  to watch the match include Nigeria’s Ambassador to the Congo DR, Dr. Grant Ehiobuche, Governor of Kinshasa City, Mayor of Kalamu Community, DR Congo’s Minister of Youth Matters and Sports as well as executive members of FECOFA.

    Ambassador Ehiobuche has equivocally told the Golden Eaglets to go for victory against the home team: “I will be there with you and that means, President Goodluck Jonathan (GCFR) is also with you in spirit,” he said during the team’s lunch on Friday.

    “Please, grant us victory against Congo DR because I was so ashamed when our team, Kano Pillars were beaten here the last time.You are our future hope and I want you to prove that by beaten Congo DR,” Ehiobuche added.

  • Amuneke: Eaglets in Congo to win

    Amuneke: Eaglets in Congo to win

    Nigeria’s Under 17 national team, the Golden Eaglets, will be going for victory when they face the Junior Leopards of Congo Democratic Republic in an African U-17 Championship (Niger 2015) qualifier today in Kinshasa.

    This much was said by the team’s Head Coach, Emmanuel Amuneke (MON) after the Eaglets’ final training  session yesterday, ahead  of the match fixed for 3:30pm local time (3:30pm Nigerian time) at  the Tata Raphael Stadium today.

    “We are here to win and it is as simple as that but we know  that the game will not be that simple,” said Amuneke who scored match-winning goals when Nigeria won the 1994 African Cup of Nations and Atlanta’96 Olympic Soccer Gold medal. “We have constantly told the boys that all what we did in the past are now in the past and the moment of serious business is here for us.”

    Keen followers of the Eaglets can readily predict the team’s line up after remarkably going 21 matches undefeated in regulation time (bar the penalty shoot-out loss to Benin at the WAFU B Tournament in Togo), fuelling suspicion that the 1994 African Footballer of the Year might stick to his reliables against Congo DR.

    “The only difference between Saturday’s (today’s) match and the ones we played in the past is just the circumstance because this is one of the qualifiers for Niger,” he explained. “So it is important for us to win irrespective of what Congo will throw at us because we know Kinshasa is a difficult place to win matches.”

    Typically, Amuneke refrained from picking any particular player as the joker for the match saying that all the 18 players on the trip are physically and psychologically ready for what is regarded within the rank of the team as ‘The Battle of Kinshasa.’

    “Joker? I don’t have any joker for the match,” he bluntly said. “What we have is a team with a winning mentality and we have brought players we believe will do the job for us.

  • Eaglets land in Kinshasa after 10-hour flight

    After clocking almost 10 hours on a flight, Nigeria’s Under 17 team, Golden Eaglets landed safely in Kinshasa, capital of Congo Democratic Republic, on Thursday, brimming with confidence ahead of their 2015 Second Round -First leg match slated to hold on Saturday in Kinshasa.

    The team  which departed it’s Calabar base for Lagos on Wednesday, flew out of the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA) the same night aboard Kenya Airways and made a stop-over in  Cotonou, before embarking on a five-hour nonstop journey arriving at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport at 8:30 am local time (6:30am Nigerian time). They immediately boarded another two-and-a-half hour Kenya Airways flight for DR Congo and finally touched down at the N’djili Aeroport International in Kinshasa at exactly 10:10am local time-exactly the same time in Nigeria.

    After completing immigration formalities, the Golden Eaglets alongside Messer Rafiu Yusuf (NFF’s Head of technical department) Emmanuel Adesanya (NFF’s Head of Inter-clubs department) and Kut Kut Fon of the NFF’s accounts department) were received by Mr. Masiala Gaspard of the Protocol department of Federation Congolaise de Football Association (FECOFA).

    The contingent was later driven to Kampo Hotel on Avenue de la Commune and is already settling down even as officials from the Nigerian Embassy in Congo have promised to assist them for a successful outing.

    “We were here earlier with the Ambassador (His Excellency, Dr. Grant Ehiobuche) earlier  in order to welcome you but, unfortunately, you were not around then,” informed Mr. Ibrahim Miringa, Head of Chancery at the Embassy during lunch.

    “But there is nothing to worry about as we will do everything possible so that your outing would be successful here.”

    In a related development,  two stars of the 2013  Golden Eaglets’ World Cup team, goalkeeper  Dele Alampasu and midfielder  Chidiebere Nwakali, were on hand at the MMA  on Wednesday night  to wish the team  a successful outing.

  • Go for victory, Imoke charges Eaglets

    Go for victory, Imoke charges Eaglets

    • As team travels to Kinshasa aboard Kenya Airways

    Senator Liyel Imoke (CON), Governor of Cross River State, has enjoined the team to go all out and claim victory in this weekend’s 2015 African Under-17  Championship away to Congo Democratic Republic on Saturday.

    “We want to send our best wishes as you travel for your first match against Congo Democratic Republic this weekend,”  Governor Imoke was quoted as saying by the state’s Commissioner for Sport & Youth Development, Patrick Ugbe.

    “Be assured of our prayers and support. We want  you to emulate the last set of the Golden Eaglets by winning all your qualifying matches starting with this weekend’s match .”

    A squad of 18 players along with officials led by Amuneke flew into

    Lagos yesterday evening from the team’s base in Calabar for Kinshasa via Nairobi aboard Kenyan Airlines. Also on the trip are Messer Rafiu Yusuf and Emmanuel Adesanya who respectively heads the technical and Inter-clubs department at Nigeria Football Federation (NFF).

  • Nwakali, Iheanacho charge Eaglets

    Nwakali, Iheanacho charge Eaglets

    Chidiebere Nwakali and Kelechi Iheanacho, the two protagonists in the 2013 FIFA World Cup-winning Golden Eaglets, have made an appeal to the present set to keep the flag flying and ensure qualification for the 2015 African Under-17 Championship to be hosted in Niger.

    The duo that moved to Manchester City after the World conquest in the United Arab Emirates made the clarion call in a telephone conversation with an official of the team on Sunday.

    “How are the boys doing sir? began Nwakali whose junior brother, Kelechi is the captain of the present set.

    “I hope they are pushing hard in training, please let them know that they have to fight their way and qualify for the African tournament.

    “Is Kelechi doing well too? Please, give my best wishes to the entire team” he added before allowing his roommate and compatriot,Iheanacho to speak.

    “Long time sir and how is the team doing?” Iheanacho, the 2013 U-17 Golden Ball winner asked rhetorically. “I believe all is well with everyone, please greet the players and officials; and we are wishing your team all the best.”

  • Nigeria’s Eaglets get CAF reprieve

    Nigeria’s Eaglets get CAF reprieve

    Nigeria got some  much-needed  reprieve after the Confederation of African Football (CAF) moved the Golden Eaglets African Junior Championship qualifier in DR Congo this weekend by a week.

    CAF yesterday moved the 2015 African U17 Championship qualifying match between Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo, set for Lubumbashi,from Sunday,July 20 to Sunday, July 27.

    CAF’s decision comes as a welcome relief to the Nigeria Football Federation,whose officials patiently await positive communication from FIFA on the suspension clamped on the country on July 9, due to a court order barring the Aminu Maigari–led executive committee from functioning.

    On Wednesday evening, in Jos, the case was withdrawn by the plaintiff, yesterday, the NFF communicated same to FIFA, praying the suspension be lifted since the principal reason for the clampdown had been met.

    In its letter to the NFF, the Federation Congolaise de Football Association (FECOFA), FECAFOOT and the match officials, CAF declared that it was granting the grace of seven days with high hopes that the suspension on Nigeria would be lifted in a couple of days.

    “Following the suspension of Nigeria Football Federation by FIFA few days ago, please be informed that CAF is hopeful that an end to this crisis will be found soon,” the CAF statement read in part.

    “However, in view of the upcoming match scheduled between DR Congo and Nigeria U-17 national teams on July 20th, 2014 in Lubumbashi,we wish to ensure that the African youth players maintain their chance of playing competitive football for their respective countries.

    “As such, please be informed that CAF decided to postpone the above mentioned match from July 20th to July 27th, 2014.”

    The match is the first leg of a 2015 African U17 Championship qualifying fixture, and is Nigeria’s first step towards defending the world title they won in the United Arab Emirates last year. Venue of the match remains TP Mazembe Stadium, Lubumbashi, and kick-off is 3.30pm Congo time (2.30pm Nigeria time) on the new date.