The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Plateau Utd

  • Plateau Utd unveil 15 new players

    Plateau Utd unveil 15 new players

    • Return to Jos from Abeokuta

    Plateau United Team Manager Abel LLiyah has revealed to SportingLife that the club has recruited 15 new players ahead of new Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) season.
    LLiyah said that the club signed three goalkeepers which include Dele Ajiboye, John Gaadi, Shuaibu John from Warri Wolves, six defenders – Okene Elijah, Ozor Chinedu, Okoro Obasi from Sunshine Stars, Kabiru Ayinda from Abia Warriors, Papa Idris from Gombe United and Sinbat Adam from GBS Academy.
    The two midfielders recruited are Chima Ndukwa (Abia Warriors) and Sadiq Yusuf (Kano Pillars) while former Sunshine Stars forward Ukeyi Akombo leads the strikers which include Musa Adamu from Nasarawa United, Emmanuel James (Abia Warriors) and Peter Moses from GBS Academy.
    SportingLife reports that the Jos-based outfit rounded off their two weeks closed camping in Abeokuta, Ogun State on Tuesday.
    The club’s technical adviser, Kennedy Boboye expressed satisfaction with what he saw in the players during the exercise, noting that the future looks bright for the team.
    Boboye, who replaced coach Zakary Baraje, expressed optimism of a successful outing for the team in the forthcoming season.

  • Plateau Utd’s Nkem cheats death in Abeokuta

    Plateau Utd’s Nkem cheats death in Abeokuta

    Plateau United averted death by the whiskers early this week after one of their players, Victor Nkem was rushed to the hospital when he started vomiting blood during one of their training sessions.

    Nkem, a former player of Adamawa United, is a left full back but he last played competitive matches six years ago and he is striving to relaunch himself back to the game after he was recommended by a highly influential politician in the state.

    The player has stopped vomiting blood and is in stable condition but directives from the management of Plateau United hinted that Nkem should not join the team’s training session for now despite being in stable condition.

    SportingLife gathered from those that should know that Nkem was almost sent back home from the team’s pre-season activities in Abeokuta before there was a last minute change of heart and the fate of the defender has not been decided as at the time of filing this report.

    Even though, media reported that only 35 players made the list to Abeokuta, SportingLife authoritatively scooped that three players: Victor Nkem, Mumini Haruna and Myeb Bulus were added to make it 38 players and other accompanying officials that left for the ancient city last Wednesday for a two week training tour.

    Meanwhile, Plateau United have won their second pre season friendly tie in Abeokuta after another scintillating 3-0 win over Rivers City with John Kim, Jerome Dung and Musa Adamu on the scorer’s chart.

  • Plateau Utd players, officials to be good ambassadors

    Plateau Utd players, officials to be good ambassadors

    Plateau United players and officials have been admonished to be of good behaviour during their stay in Abeokuta as ambassadors of the state and not take part in any act that would disparage it.

    The Jos side’s contingent arrived Abeokuta on Thursday after a brief stop over in Lokoja and the players commenced training yesterday morning under the supervision of head coach, Kennedy Boboye.

    The General Manager of Plateau United, Pius Henwan told SportingLife that Boboye who was the head of delegation to Abeokuta was given the powers to keep everyone  in check and also ensure that all players keep to camp rules and ethics.

    Henwan disclosed that Plateau United would strive to finish higher than they did last season when they ended the campaign in eighth position with 51 points from 36 matches.

  • Plateau Utd, Pillars jostle for MFM star,Ifeanyi Ifeanyi

    Plateau Utd, Pillars jostle for MFM star,Ifeanyi Ifeanyi

    MFM FC midfielder Ifeanyi Ifeanyi is now attracting interest from two NPFL sides, Kano Pillars and Plateau United.

    It was gathered that the two clubs are now doing everything to lure the MFM midfield star.

    Kano Pillars suffered a serious setback after their versatile midfielder Ifeanyi Matthew signed for Norwegian club side Lillestrom in the middle of the past season.

    Management of Kano Pillars has now seen Ifeanyi Ifeanyi as a suitable replacement for Ifeanyi Matthew.

    Meanwhile, Plateau United have also registered their interest in securing the signature of MFM FC star man who single handedly took the Lagos club out of the relegation zone with his five-star performances all through the season.

    However, the two teams are yet to officially approach MFM FC for the possible transfer of the former U-20  player.

  • Danladi Isah set to quit Plateau Utd

    Danladi Isah set to quit Plateau Utd

    Whispers from the camp of Plateau United have disclosed that the club’s first choice goalkeeper last season, Danladi Isah will not resume with the Jos side for the next  season.

    Isah joined Plateau United during the mid season transfer and was among the reasons the Jos side put up a commendable display during the second stanza but the former Heartland and Lobi Stars goaltender is in search of another club after his attempt to get a pay rise couldn’t materialise with the management of Plateau United.

    “I doubt if Danladi will resume with Plateau United. He had issues with the management regarding his salary and despite being one of the highest paid players in the team, he has requested for more money and this didn’t go down well with the club’s management. The club has decided to look for another goalkeeper,” the source told Goal.

    Danladi was fantastic last season and with him, Plateau United finished in eighth position  with 51 points from 36 matches.

  • Hemwan: Plateau Utd will be competitive next season

    Hemwan: Plateau Utd will be competitive next season

    Plateau United general manager, Pius Hemwan has asserted that the Jos side are planning to wrap up their recruitment exercise ahead of the new Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) season to replace over 10 players dropped at the end of the just concluded season.

    Hemwan told Goal: “We have told 14 players to look for another club while we are planning to get new ones to replace them in the next few days.

    “We won’t make a repeat of the past season because we have concluded plans to weed out non performing players who only received salaries and we will replace them with young, vibrant and energetic players. We want to be very competitive next season and we have explored all our last season’s mistakes with a view to correcting them before the start of hostilities.

    “We would have competed for the league shield had we started the season with the players we ended it with.”

  • Aneke: Plateau Utd lost continental ticket because of poor NPFL start

    Aneke: Plateau Utd lost continental ticket because of poor NPFL start

    Former NPFL highest scorer, Jude Aneke has disclosed to SportingLife that Plateau United would have picked a continental ticket with ease had the same players in the team’s stable now started the season with them.

    Plateau United management headed by Pius Hemwan made drastic changes to the playing staff during the mid season transfer with the acquisition of Kelechi John, Aneke, Joshua Obaje and other  promising players and the result was the club’s current 11th position on the log with 48 points from 34 matches.

    Aneke revealed that the Jos side would be the team to beat next season if the club management manages to keep the current crop of players intact with the addition of few others to shore up deficient areas.

    The 2011/2012 NPFL hotshot informed SportingLife that he was thrilled with the way he was received in Jos and that he hopes to repay the support with few goals before the end of the season.

    He, however, concluded that their weekend NPFL Match Day 37 tie with El Kanemi Warriors in Maiduguri would be tough but they are targetting at least a point just like the Borno Army had when they visited Jos in a NPFL Match Day 17 tie.

  • Plateau Utd’s Danladi urges teammates to remain focused

    Plateau Utd’s Danladi urges teammates to remain focused

    Plateau United goalkeeper, Isa Danladi has disclosed that the Jos outfit will remain focused till the end of the season, otherwise risk falling down the table.

    Danladi, who has been an important part of Plateau United’s amazing form, said that the players have continued to motivate themselves.

    Currently placed 11th on the NPFL  log, Plateau United have recorded three successive wins, an achievement that  has not been seen in over a decade.

    “The competition in the Nigerian league is very tough. To survive you just have to remain focused all through the season else you may be found wanting at the base of the table,” Danladi told Goal.

    “We have consistently motivated ourselves as no player loves to play in a team that will go down to the lower division. We have had a super performance in recent times but the challenge now is to maintain that flow which i do admit is very tough.

    “God has been the reason why you saw that movement. We won three matches in a row which hasn’t happened in years at this club. It’s not easy but we just have to maintain this form till the end of the season.

    “We can’t afford to in any way lose concentration or get carried away because of what we have achieved lately.”

  • Plateau Utd thrash Enyimba 2-0

    Plateau Utd thrash Enyimba 2-0

    Champions Enyimba on Sunday suffered yet another setback in their quest to retain the Nigeria league crown after they fell 2-0 at relegation-threatened Plateau United.

    This was their ninth loss of the season and they remain in fifth place on the table with 40 points from 25 matches, seven points behind leaders, Wikki Tourists.

    Plateau United moved out of the drop zone with 33 points from 27 matches.

    Plateau opened scoring in the 37th minute through Joshua Obaje with an assist by Kabiru Umar.

    The home team then doubled their lead on 70 minutes through Sunday Ingbede.

    In Sunday’s other game, bottom club Ikorodu United were held to a 2-2 draw by visiting Nasarawa United.

    Ikorodu scored through Paul Duke and Oluwole Balogun Johnson, while Nasarawa’s goals were by Abdularahman Bashir and Samson Gbadebo.

  • Plateau Utd get first away win

    Plateau Utd get first away win

    • Sunshine secure away draws
    • Heartland, Warri Wolves crumble

    Plateau United made a bold step towards securing another season in the topflight yesterday in Umuahia after the Jos side defeated Abia Warriors 1-0 in a NPFL Match Day 25 tie.

    Substitute Ibeh Johnson benefitted from a nice pullout from Bitrus Silas which he converted with aplomb in the 82nd minute for the only goal of the match for Plateau United.

    The victory took Plateau United’s point tally to 29 from 24 matches.

    They are now 16th on the log with Heartland’s loss in Makurdi to Lobi Stars and 3SC on holiday.

    In other matches, Sunshine Stars extended FC IfeanyiUbah’s home draw to three after a battling goalless draw in Nnewi yesterday while Lobi Stars were two goals better than Heartland in Makurdi.

    In Lokoja, the presence of the Dutchman, Ard Sluid as coach of Warri Wolves couldn’t salvage a point after they were beaten 2-0 by Niger Tornadoes.