The Nation Newspaper

Tag: world cup

  • Russia 2018: ‘Octopus’ CIES tips Spain to win title

     

    *zero chance for Nigeria

    Super Eagles of Nigeria have zero chance of winning the world cup in Russia and should the team do so, it might be considered the eighth wonder of the world

    Indication to this effect emerged Tuesday as the International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES) submitted its research, tipping 2014 world cup winners Spain to reclaim the title in Russia.

    The CIES Football Observatory has a global reputation for devising statistical indicators which are perfectly comparable from both a spatial and temporal perspective. The centre submits that the top five countries likely to emerge champions in Russia are Spain in the number one position, followed by Brazil, France, Germany and England in that order.

    Their study looked at the number of matches players were involved in at domestic league level since July 2017 and the profile of clubs that they featured for, with 2010 winners Spain topping the list ahead of Brazil and France.

    The 23 players La Roja used most often in the qualification stage played on average 81.1 per cent of domestic league games, the highest figure of all 32 nations who will compete at Russia 2018.

    Their study looked at the number of matches players were involved in at domestic league level since July 2017 and the profile of clubs that they featured for, with 2010 winners Spain topping the list ahead of Brazil and France.

    The 23 players La Roja used most often in the qualification stage played on average 81.1 per cent of domestic league games, the highest figure of all 32 nations who will compete at Russia 2018.

    Furthermore, their ‘average sporting level of the clubs’ is the greatest given their squad comprises players from teams like back-to-back Champions League winners Real Madrid, La Liga champions Barcelona and recently-crowned Premier League title winners Manchester City.

    Reigning champions Germany were fourth in the table while CIES found England were more likely to lift the trophy than their Group G rivals Belgium, 2014 runners-up Argentina or Euro 2016 champions Portugal.

    The Three Lions players used most frequently during qualifying appeared in 74 per cent of domestic league matches – a figure only bettered by Spain, Brazil, Denmark and Japan.

    Panama, who England face in their second group game in Russia, should be considered the rank outsiders, according to the study.

    Los Canaleros’ squad was also the oldest in qualifying with an average age of 29.4 whereas England’s average was 25.9, the third-youngest behind only Germany and Nigeria.

    All of the players Southgate used during qualifying represented clubs in England, with Saudi Arabia the only other country that selected players exclusively from its domestic league.

    From the teams that have advanced to Russia, 164 players involved in qualifying ply their trade in England, 15.3 per cent of the total and the most ahead of Spain (94 players) and Germany (90 players).

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • World Cup: Russia begins raid of stray animals

     

    Ahead of the world cup set to kick off in 52 days, Russian Authorities have flagged off a raid on stray animals in all the 11 host cities.

    The move is not unconnected with a desire to ensure that the cities are safe for the estimated 3.5 million visitors that will be in Russia for the month long event.

    Stray animals in the past were killed and most times littered. The littering of such dead animals however has often pitched authorities against body against cruelty to animals.

    Russia’s culling of stray animals gained international infamy when photos of their carcasses went viral ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. Now, as the country prepares to welcome large numbers of visitors for the FIFA World Cup this summer, activists say the practice is being activated once again.

    A petition addressed to President Vladimir Putin in January urged Russia to “stop the awful practice our country has of killing homeless animals in the run-up to international sporting events.” It has since garnered more than 1.8 million signatures from all over the world.

    In a statement to The Moscow Times, FIFA and Russia’s Local Organizing Committee said they “in no way condone cruel treatment of wild and stray animals.” They added that they were in contact with host cities and expected them to ensure animal welfare.

    Sports Minister Pavel Kolobkov who cited the need to “minimize ecological risks” for visitors to the World Cup” however assured that the removal of strays would be carried out “humanely”

    The sports minister and Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko after a recent meeting ordered host cities to set up shelters to house strays while assuring that the killings will stop. Animal right defenders however insist that it will be difficult to stop the killings without legal backing.

  • Expect surprises in Russia declares Pele

     

    *sets final target for Brazil

    Brazil legend Edson Arantes do Nascimento otherwise called Pele, has described football as a box of surprises because of the uncertainties inherent in the game. Pele who is marking 60th anniversary of his first world cup triumph noted that is normal to reel out big names as favorites ahead of any world cup but observed that the element of surprises cannot be wished away.

    The 77 year old former Santos forward who made world cup appearance as age 17, predicted that there would upsets in Russia especially given the shock of Italy’s failure to qualify for the event.

    “Always we select the biggest names [as favourites], like Argentina, Italy, England, Spain,” he said. “But football is a box of surprises and it’s difficult to say. This World Cup, the teams are very even. You wouldn’t have one big team.

    “Then you have some surprises. Italy is out. For football, it’s not good. Then you have two or three great teams who didn’t qualify. As I mentioned, football is always a box of surprises,” he said

    Although 60 years has rolled by since he first made appearance at the world cup in 1958, the 7-time Ballon d’Or winner still recalls the first time with nostalgia

    “I played four World Cups. The first one always is a little special, because I didn’t expect it, because I was 17 years old,” he added.

    “My father was a football player too and when my father came to my house after work, he said ‘listen, you have been selected for the national team of Brazil’. I said ‘Daddy, don’t make a joke’. He said ‘no, no, no, it’s not a joke, it’s true’. I started to cry, because it was a big surprise to me.”

    With 59 days to the world cup, Pele who is a strong believer in Neymar’s ability expressed hope that the PSG forward would used his second chance at the world cup to shine.

    “The last World Cup in Brazil, he got the injury, and Brazil lost. I think this is a great, great opportunity for him to recover. I think he’s a good player. Let’s see if he can help Brazil [win] this World Cup.”

    Pele believes Brazil boast the best collection of individual talents in the world and now hopes Tite can fit them into a strong system in time for their first group game against Switzerland on June 17.

    “Everybody knows Brazil have the best individual players in Europe,” he said. “I think our coach, Tite, has had little time to set up the team. We have three months to set up the team. Tite is a very good coach, but he doesn’t yet have the team working together. This will be a short time for them. “But individual players, no doubt Brazil has a team to get to the final of the World Cup, he enthused despite the element of surprises.

     

     

     

     

     

  • Russia 2018: Ibrah set for U-turn on retirement

     

    With 59 days to the World Cup in Russia, the fever is gradually catching up and players can hardly wait to get into action in the World’s greatest show piece.  One player that is ready to removed the retirement toga is former Manchester United ace and Sweden international Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

    Ibrah who recently joined MLS side LA Galaxy has dropped a huge hint that he is bound for this summer’s World Cup after saying chances of playing for Sweden in Russia are ‘skyhoga’, which is Swedish for ‘sky-high’.

    The 36-year-old striker sent the characteristically audacious message to his five-million Twitter followers on Sunday, suggesting he is ready to come out of international retirement to play at one more major tournament.

    He said: ‘The chance of me playing in the World Cup is skyhoga #FifaWorldCup2018.’

    Ibrahimovic has not played for Sweden since the European Championships in France two years ago, where they finished rock bottom of their group after collecting just one point.

    It was a disappointing conclusion to a record-breaking international career , he is Sweden’s all-time top goalscorer with 62 goals and 116 caps — and Ibrahimovic seems set on returning for a final flourish.

    Having scored three goals in three games for his new club LA Galaxy, Ibrahimovic has already suggested he would play for Sweden at the World Cup if he ‘feels well’.

    He said: ‘I want to play football, we’ll see what happens. They call me every day, they ask me how am I doing, but we need to take a step at a time. I repeat if I feel well and if I want to, I’ll be there.’

    Sweden were mightily impressive in qualifying for the World Cup, denying Holland a play-off place in Group A before famously beating four-time winners Italy over two legs.  It was the first time since 2006 that they have reached the finals.

    They face a tough task getting out of the group stages at the tournament; however, after they were drawn against defending champions Germany, Mexico and South Korea.

    Should Ibrah’s dream become a reality, he will not be the first player to make retirement U-turn for the sake of the World cup.  compatriot Henrik Larsson did so not just once but indeed twice ahead of Korea/Japan 2002. Also in the category are Cameroon’s Roja Milla, Jamie Carragher, Claude Makelele among others.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • W/cup Tickets: FIFA warn fans on security features

     

    Soccer fans heading to Russia for the forthcoming world cup have again been told to resist the temptation to patronise touts in acquiring tickets as no stone will be left upturned during screening before matches.

    For the avoidance of doubt the World soccer ruling body Friday released World Cup ticket design urging the fans to watch out for the security features on the tickets.

    Fans were however reminded that the ticket is not the only green card for entrance into the stadium as fans will be expected to present FAN ID as specifically directed by the Russian authorities.

    ‘The tickets feature key security elements including a barcode positioned on the right-hand side and a hologram next to the sector map.

    Tickets will be personalised, meaning that the name of the ticket holder will be printed on it. Provided the persons entering the stadium have a valid ticket and their FAN ID and have been duly registered by the ticket purchaser at  FIFA.com/tickets, access to the stadium will be granted “the release said with 69 days to the kickoff of the Mundial.

    FIFA regards the illicit sale and distribution of tickets as a serious issue and in cooperation with local authorities, including consumer protection agencies in numerous countries, strives to identify and curb unauthorised ticket sales.

    As a result, a number of unauthorised online ticket sale offers via websites and on social media in various countries have been removed in recent months.

    Fans who desire to transfer or resell their tickets can however do so from April 18 provided they do so in line with laid down rules according to FIFA release made available to staging.thenationonlineng.net

    “Ticket applicants will be able to transfer guest tickets or resell tickets within their ticketing accounts from 18 April 2018. Transfer and resale requests will be considered in accordance with the Ticket Transfer and Resale Policy”

  • Russia 2018: Last minute ticket sales for April 18

     

    Last minute sales phase of the forthcoming World cup in Russia will begin on April 18, World soccer ruling body FIFA has announced. Tickets for the World cup billed for kick off June 14 have been done in phases.  The second phase of the sales which opened on March 13 came to a close April 3rd with 1,698,049 tickets sold so far. The just ended phase coming just

    72 days to kick off saw a total of 394,433 tickets allocated to fans across the world in real time at FIFA.com/tickets.

    Most of the tickets during this sales period were allocated to Russian fans (216,134), followed by fans from USA (16,462), Argentina (15,006), Colombia (14,755), Mexico (14,372), Brazil (9,962), Peru (9,766), China (6,598), Germany (5,974), Australia (5,905) and India (4,509) – the top ten countries from abroad.

    1,698,049 tickets have been allocated to fans worldwide since sales started in September 2017, with the overall international demand accounting for 53%.

    “The last-minute sales phase will commence on 18 April at 12:00 Moscow time at FIFA.com/tickets. From then until the end of the FIFA World Cup in Russia, fans will have their last opportunity to purchase tickets online for FIFA’s flagship event on a first-come, first-served basis (subject to availability)”FIFA informed on Tuesday.

    The soccer body however reminded fans of the need to apply for fan ID, adding that it will not assume any liability or responsibility concerning the application, issue and or use of FAN IDs.

    “At the request of the Russian authorities, all fans attending matches at the 2018 FIFA World Cup need to apply for a FAN ID – the official identity document issued to fans. Fans are encouraged to apply for this free document as soon as possible after they have received their ticket confirmation email, “It said.

  • Stay away from Shisha pipes Russia warn players

     

    Ahead of the World Cup billed for kick off June 14, Russian Football Union (RFU) has warned players against drinking ‘exotic tea’ or smoking Shisha pipes to avoid being linked to doping scandal

    The governing body said on Friday that stars heading to the World Cup this summer in Russia should be cautious of accidentally consuming banned substances.

    The RFU, in a guide to help players avoid failing drugs tests, recommended they read the label on exercise supplements and check on the internet whether they can possibly be contaminated with banned products.

    The RFU are being extra cautious ahead of the eagerly-anticipated tournament after Russia has been rocked by a number of failed doping tests recently and a state-sponsored cover-up.

    The guide also comes amid FIFA’s investigation of allegations that positive drug tests in Russian football in years gone by were covered up. The RFU reminded the players that they could kiss their career good bye if they fail to heed the warning.’Be aware. Your career depends on it!” the campaign submitted

    Back in 2015, Algerian footballer Youcef Belaili tested positive for cocaine, which he said he accidentally consumed via a friend’s shisha pipe.

    Meanwhile, despite not knowing what prompted the tea warning, a study from 2012 claimed green tea could make testosterone appear lower on drugs test. However, that doesn’t constitute an offence.

    The Russian guide comes just two-and-a-half months before the World Cup gets underway, with the hosts taking on Saudi Arabia in the opener.

    Many people believe that smoking a shisha is safe and hence, an excellent alternative to smoking cigarettes. However, a study conducted back in 2005 by the World Health Organization showed that smoking shisha poses risk to the health of the smoker and is not a safe substitute for smoking a cigarette.

    The average shisha session tends to last around 40 minutes if not longer, consisting of around 50-200 inhalations that can range from 0.15 liters of smoke to 0.5 liters of smoke. In fact, if a shisha session lasts an hour, the smoker may consume around 100-200 times the volume of smoke consumed from a cigarette.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Slow work at Samara stadium worries FIFA

     

    Slow  pace of work at the Samara Stadium one of the venues of this year’s world cup, is giving soccer ruling body FIFA goose pimples .  FIFA revealed this on Wednesday, noting that huge amount of work still needs to be done to get the venue ready ahead of the kick off on June 14. African representatives Senegal will be confronting Colombia at the venue on June 28.

    Other matches slated for the venue include Costa Rica against Serbia, Demark versus Australia and Uruguay versus hosts Russia.

    Construction work at the 45,000 capacity Samara Arena has been hit by a number of setbacks in recent months, putting authorities under additional pressure to deliver a proper venue for the tournament.

    ‘Over the course of this project, we have spoken about delays in Samara,’ FIFA Chief Competitions and Events Officer Colin Smith told reporters at the venue.

    ‘Those delays are still evident now even though… a lot of progress has been made. There is a huge amount of work to be done.’

    Smith said the ‘full support and commitment’ of Russian authorities and the venue’s contractor were essential for the venue to be commissioned by the end of April as had been originally planned.

    ‘We would expect further progress than this,’ Smith said. ‘But what’s important to us is that the stadium is commissioned on time, then we have the use of the stadium and we can install all our temporary overlay and equipment that we need for the World Cup.’

    Sports Minister Pavel Kolobkov said last year that the authorities were monitoring the troubled stadium’s construction and had set up a timetable to track progress and compensate for delays.

  • FIBA Women Basketball World Cup: ‘Hunger for glory can propel D’Tigress’

    The D’Tigress forward, Cecilia Okoye has said the Nigerian team needs to be well prepared and hungry for glory at the FIBA Women Basketball World Cup in Tenerife, Spain from September 22 to 30.

    The Nigerian team is drawn in Group B alongside Argentina, Australia and Turkey – countries that are better ranked than Nigeria. However, Okoye believes that the team’s target which is the same as every country should propel Nigeria to shock the world.

    “We will need to be well prepared and be hungry for the gold. The target of course will be the same as every country competing to win the World Cup and I hope we can shock the world if we get our acts together.”

    While stating that it will be difficult to rate the D’Tigress’ opponent at the moment, she, however, admitted that it would not be easy to come out tops in the group but expressed optimism in the team’s ability to qualify from the group.

    The 2017 Afrobasket winner told NationSport that she is preparing for the World Cup by making sure she gets the right preparation, push herself to be better everyday, changing the way she eats and what she eats.

  • World cup: It is an all white affair for Senegal others

     

    Global Sportswear Company Puma on Monday revealed the away kits for its national team’s Federations to be worn at the 2018 World Cup – all of which are white.

    The new kits will be paraded during the ‘International break this month and beyond,’ Puma announced in a statement on Monday.

    They will be introduced for the first time in the upcoming international friendlies, with Switzerland confirming they will debut their new away strip when they take on Greece in Athens on Friday, March 23.

    Uruguay, Switzerland and Puma’s newest partners Senegal and Serbia, will wear the jerseys at this summer’s global showpiece.

    The new stylish kits have been designed for 10 national teams, with four coming from the African continent; Ghana, Ivory Coast, Cameroon and Senegal.

    The other countries – all of whom did not qualify for the World Cup in Russia this summer – are Austria, Italy and the Czech Republic.

    Despite Nike receiving backlash for templating and creating boring Euro 2016 kits, Puma have not been deterred to strip back to basics with these latest simple and ‘clean’ designs.

    However, each strip does feature design elements that represent each nation individually.

    For example, the Austrian kit uses the Coat of arms badge, which consists of a double-headed eagle and broken chains to symbolise the nation’s liberation.

    Czech Republic, Ivory Coast and Ghana make up the rest of the nations with the new jerseys

    According to Puma, each design also incorporates the brand’s evoKNIT thermoregulation technology delivering an enhanced moisture management and adaptive cooling system that helps create the perfect on-pitch body temperature.

    Following the unveiling of the kits, Puma’s Teamsport Creative Director Stefano Favaro said: ‘When our federations step out on to the pitch, they all play with a nation’s support, and a passion for the crest that adorns their chest.

    ‘With this clean, contemporary design statement, we wanted to strip back all the noise and elements that stand between our teams, players, and crowd to celebrate what they play for, the badge, the flag, and the fans.’