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Tag: Ogunbote

  • Ogunbote hails Shooting Stars’ resilience

    Ogunbote hails Shooting Stars’ resilience

    Gbenga Ogunbote was very happy after his side shocked MFM FC 1-0 on match day 23 of the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) at the Agege Stadium on Sunday.

    Ebitimi Agogu sealed the win for the Ibadan based outfit in the keenly contested encounter in the 83rd minute when he poked in the ball past Abayomi Folarin from close range.

    “The era of dropping points is gone as we have resumed winning. We’re back to the era of winning and we have to take full advantage of our home matches henceforth. We are thankful for the victory because our opponents played well,” Ogunbote told Goal.

    “I must commend my players for their resilience as things went wrong, particularly when we lost our goalkeeper early in the game. It affected our game plan, but they were able to handle the situation. It is not as if we have been under pressure, but there are bound to be reactions when results are not coming. That is why we’ve been working hard to do better.

  • We anticipated win against Enyimba – Ogunbote

    We anticipated win against Enyimba – Ogunbote

    3SC defeated Enyimba 1-0 in the league at the weekend in Ibadan but apparently, it did not come as a surprise to the boss of Adamasingba, Gbenga Ogunbote.  He told footballlive.ng they anticipated the victory.

    Ibrahim Ajani connected a training ground routine free kick, diving in to head the ball past Moses Ocheje in goal for the league champions.

    Ogunbote was full of praise for his team and the work put into the win.

    Despite the win, Shooting Stars are still deep in the relegation battle with 23 points from 21 matches played so far in the league.

  • Ogunbote returns 3SC to winning ways

    Ogunbote returns 3SC to winning ways

    Coach Gbenga Ogunbote returned to Shooting Stars in fine style when he led the team to only their sixth win of the season as they dumped Akwa United 3-0 on Sunday.

    A brace from Adetunji Sunday and a goal from Ajani Ibrahim were enough to see Ogunbote start his second spell in Ibadan with an emphatic win.

    The Oluyole Warriors showed their intent as early as the 12th minute, when left-back Yinka Adedeji let fly a thunderous effort from range, which could have given them the lead, but forced a fantastic save from United goalkeeper, Akpan Bassey.

    But it didn’t take long however, for Shooting to go in front, as Ajani Ibrahim’s sublime cross was met by Adetunji Ibrahim, who powered home a beautiful header past the stranded Bassey for their opening goal.

    United were not without chances of their own, but nothing came of them, as Shooting Stars remained resolute in their determination to stem their slide on the table.

    And shortly before the break, Ajani Ibrahim turned from provider to goal-scorer as he finished off a delightful move from the home side to send their fans to wild eruption, and also maintain their advantage as they went into the break.

    United must have hoped to start the second half with a goal to half the deficit, but they got a yellow card instead when goalkeeper Bassey was cautioned for what he said to the referee.

    And on the hour mark, the Oluyole Warriors  scored again – Adetunji Sunday nicely controlled a pass, went past some United defenders before toe-poking into the goal for his brace and Shooting’s third goal.

  • Ogunbote in pole position to return as 3SC coach

    Ogunbote in pole position to return as 3SC coach

    Coach Gbenga Ogunbote is believed to now be in pole position to replace Kadiri Ikhana, who has quit his post at troubled Shooting Stars.

    Last season, Ogunbote joined ‘The Oluyole Warriors’ mid-season and helped rescue them from relegation.

    He has a lot of backing from the influential Shooting Stars fans, who hope he will come back to salvage the embattled club who languish in 18th place on the table with 17 points.

    Some of the fans hope Ogunbote could join their darling team as early as this week, when his current club Giwa FC are most likely to be expelled from the league should they fail to honour a third game of the season.

    “Ogunbote is best favoured to return to Shooting Stars. Majority of the fans back his return, they believe he can turn the fortunes of the club around, like he did last season,” an insider informed AfricanFootball.com

    Ikhana is widely believed to have thrown in the towel because of a raging cold war with general manager Rasheed Balogun.

  • Prayer ritual important to success in football, says Giwa’s Ogunbote

    Prayer ritual important to success in football, says Giwa’s Ogunbote

    Giwa FC tactician Gbenga Ogunbote believes pre-match ritual can be vital towards determining league success.

    According to him, the place of prayer is very important amongst football clubs in Nigeria and must not be ignored.

    Teams pray in their dressing rooms and do the same before the match gets under, during half time break and at the end of a match.

    “Prayer does work, by my faith you can’t contend with the place of prayer,” Ogunbote told Goal.

    “I believe in prayers and it’s as important as life as it were. It’s important to work hard to achieve a goal but we must understand that God’s grace upon one’s life is very important.

    “We do pray because we want God to bless the work of our hands, to help us achieve our heart desires and football is nothing different from that. We go into a match with the intent to win so after we may have done our homework it’s important to put it in prayers.”

  • Ogunbote: My boys yet to recover from Ifeanyi Ubah’s home loss

    Ogunbote: My boys yet to recover from Ifeanyi Ubah’s home loss

    Giwa FC head coach, Gbenga Ogunbote has told SportingLife the reason for the inability of the Jos Elephant to get their bearing in the NPFL after five matches.

    Ogunbote revealed that the team’s first loss of the season at home against FC IfeanyiUbah was the reason for their slightly above average display because his players are yet to recover from the shock of the loss.

    The former 3SC and Sunshine Stars’ coach told SportingLife that he is doing his best to ensure that his players come to terms with reality and that shortly the real Giwa FC will surface in the league.

    Ogunbote told SportingLife that his players are prepared and eager to face their weekend foes, Ikorodu United in Lagos and that they are praying for a good result.

    The ex-Gateway United coach also told SportingLife that he is hoping to add some of the club’s players who have not yet been cleared to feature in the NPFL by other clubs because of the unwillingness of the Jos side to release them.

    Giwa FC are 12th on the log with seven points from five games after their lucky 1-0 home win over Sunshine Stars at the Rwang Pam Stadium, Jos last weekend.

  • Ogunbote thankful for Ibadan fans’ warm reception

    Ogunbote thankful for Ibadan fans’ warm reception

    Gbenga Ogunbote made a return to the Lekan Salami  Stadium, where he had previously managed Shooting Stars in the NPFL, on Sunday, and he appreciated how the fans received him.

    Now with Giwa FC, Ogunbote came to Ibadan on a rescue mission last season and he helped 3SC out of the relegation zone to keep their Premier League status active.

    The coach, who led Sunshine Stars to their debut appearance on the continent,  spent two seasons at Sharks FC where he did the unbelievable by rescuing the Blue Angels.

    “I was astonished at that massive show of love from the fans, it was beautiful to see fans appreciate one’s work. The Ibadan fans have shown over time that they are good people, a good host and also have a kind heart,” Ogunbote told Goal.

    “I thought we had a good game but the main goal was to leave here with the maximum points which we couldn’t achieve but that simply means that we’ve got to correct our mistakes.”

    Meanwhile, 3SC coach, Kadiri Ikhana whose team defeated Giwa FC 2-1 on Sunday, has continued to enjoy the bragging rights over Gbenga Ogunbote.

    Both coaches met last season when Ikhana was in charge at Enyimba while Ogunbote was at 3SC. The People’s Elephant picked up four points from the available six over two legs.

  • Rotimi, Ogunbote differ on controversial goal

    Rotimi, Ogunbote differ on controversial goal

    Rivers United goalkeeper, Sunday Rotimi insists Giwa FC’s second goal against Rivers United in Wednesday’s match day four Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) contest at the Rwang Pam Stadium, Jos should have been disallowed.

    David Sunday (the goal scorer) appeared to kick the ball out of Rotimi’s hands and into the net in the 71st minute but referee, Henry Ogunyamodi insisted that the effort was legal and would stand much to the chagrin of the veteran goalkeeper.

    “I was injured after the action because the ball was kicked out of my hands with great force. When I heard the referee’s whistle, I thought it was for a foul on the Giwa player but I was shocked that the referee awarded the goal. It is unfortunate but what can you do? We just have to move on,” he told the Rivers United Media.

    Giwa FC trainer, Gbenga Ogunbote however shared a different view of the incident. He accepted that Rotimi was in possession of the ball just before the goal was scored but added that the Rivers United goal keeper tried to “circumvent the rules of the game”.

    “There is somebody (the referee) that controls the game. If he had said it was a goal, then it is a goal. If he had also said it wasn’t a goal, nobody would have questioned him. But I know too well that the rules say your two hands (as a goalkeeper) must be with the ball.

    “I think (Rotimi) was trying to prank the referee because he had just one hand on the ball. He was trying to circumvent the rules of the game. The referee was so close…he was just about four, five metres away from the scene and must have seen the right thing. I want to respect the judgement of the referee,” he said.

    Wednesday’s win lifted Giwa FC to 14th on the league standings with four points from four games while United dropped four places and are now in seventh place with six points from their opening four games.

  • Ogunbote: We need our fans’ support always

    Ogunbote: We need our fans’ support always

    Giwa FC head coach, Gbenga Ogunbote has appealed to the Jos Elephants supporters to continue to show their support to the team at all times in the league this season even when results are not favourable.

    Ogunbote whose wards returned to Jos on Friday from Ijebu Ode where they had intensive pre season training ahead of the start of the 2015/2016 season which begins today across Nigeria.

    Giwa FC will face FC IfeanyiUbah in their opening fixture at the Rwang Pam Stadium, Jos on Sunday and Ogunbote has beckoned on the team’s fans and supporters to continue getting behind the team throughout the season and not relent at any period.

    The Jos side missed the continental ticket by the whiskers last season but Ogunbote told SportingLife that Giwa FC are hoping to start the season well so that they would have achieved their set goals before the end of the season.

    He praised the owner of the club, Chris Giwa for his support on the team while also appealing to him to keep up the good work till the end of the season and beyond.

  • Ogunbote wants Helong, Gyan, Madaki back at Giwa FC

    Ogunbote wants Helong, Gyan, Madaki back at Giwa FC

    SportingLife can reveal that Giwa FC Technical Adviser, Gbenga Ogunbote is trying to use his influence to convince the trio of Charles Henlong, Amos Gyang and Chris Madaki to play for the club in the coming season which kicks off this weekend.

    It is understood that the club’s captain Henlong, Gyang and Madaki at the end of last season made up their minds to leave the club and seek greener pasture elsewhere.

    Part of the reasons for leaving the Jos Elephants, according to information available to SportingLife, is that the players want an increment in their wages. They also want to play for a big club where they can win laurels.

    The players were the engine room of Giwa FC in the past two seasons since gaining promotion to the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL).

    SportingLife can also confirm that the three players have agreed terms with former league champions, Kano Pillars which they think could afford their wages demand. And they have been partaking in the club’s training since Sai Masu Gida started their pre-season campaign.

    Helong and Gyang were part of Kano Pillars pre-season tours of Kaduna and Ijebu-Ode while Madaki joined them after returning from African Nations Championship (CHAN) in Rwanda.

    Ogunbote, who joined the team last month, has identified the trio as part of the players that can give the club a bite during this season campaign.

    It is understood that the former 3SC handler has held talks with players and tried to persuade them to have a change of mind by coming back into the team.

    Ogunbote also promised them to talk on their behalf to the club’s owner Ambassador Chris Giwa on their wage demands which he thinks could be resolved without any problem.

    But one of the concerned players told SportingLife in Ijebu-Ode that they are not ready to return to Giwa FC this season.

    “We understand that coach Ogunbote wants us back at Giwa FC but the club is not making any effort about our demands. We respect the coach and he should understand our plight too. As you can see that we are already training with Kano Pillars, an indication to show you that we have already made up our minds to join Kano Pillars,” one of the players told SportingLife.

    “We are enjoying everything here and we are in Kano Pillars to win trophy and make names for ourselves.”