Lulu backs Amodu

NFF President Sani Lulu Abdullahi has backed Super Eagles coach Shuaibu Amodu to qualify for the World Cup despite a shaky start to the campaign.Amodu's Eagles were held 0-0 by Mozambique, giving Tunisia the early initiative in the battle for qualification, but Lulu insists that Amodu will get the job done. "When we employed Amodu, we believed he was the best coach in Nigeria and I still have that belief that he is the best coach in Nigeria," Lulu said after the game.

"We had opportunities to score and the strikers did not score. You dont expect the coach to enter the pitch and score." Lulu however pointed out that the coach would need to improve tactically. "I still believe he is a good coach but he still has the opportunity to improve his tactical system. "However, as far as we have decided that we will stick with a Nigerian coach, I believe he is the best coach we can have in Nigeria. "We can encourage him, we can empower him, we can push him hard to get to where we want. "I still have hope that we will get where we want."

Amuneke Laments Bad Take Off of Eagles

Former Super Eagles star, Emmanuel Amuneke, yesterday expressed disgust at the performance and the result that followed the barren draw of highly rated Nigerian squad against the Mambas of Mozambique at the Stadio Mashava arena in Maputo. The result leaves Super Eagles two points behind their main rival, the Carthage Eagles of Tunisia in Group 2 where the two are battling for the single ticket. The North African side, 24 hours earlier, had secured a 2-1 away victory in Nairobi over the Harambe Stars of Kenya.Reacting to the game, Amuneke said: “I do not think I will be able to recover from the shock in the next few days. I was so optimistic Nigeria will triumph but the reality of what Nigeria has on ground as regards our football potentials are beginning to manifest now because the so called minnows seems to be catching up on us. And they seem to be doing it at an astronomical speed. Still, many of us who are staunch believers in the team see this one poor result as temporary set backs.“The Mozambicans today (yesterday), appear to be more determined to win, while our players seem to be content to sit back to see what their opponents were capable of doing. In the process, the home team dominated play while Nigeria relied on creating the one-off and occasional chances to score. And those came in trickles. In fact, they hardly came except the near sitters that Obafemi Martins and Ike Uche had.“I know many people will want to crucify the coaching crew but beyond that, we have to face the reality; and that is that what we saw in that match was the unconscious accumulation of lack of developmental program that will lead to discovery of abundant talents from which the coaches can choose from.“We are deficient in quality players the likes that made this country proud in the past; that have made us truly the giant of Africa.“We used to have players of real quality that did in previous generations made Nigerians to be proud of their national teams. Players that did this even before my set, which made the debut at the World Cup finals in USA in 1994, came around.“We must not try to blame Coach Shaibu Amodu, or the players. I think they did their best and all we need to do now is to encourage them in subsequent rounds. Yes, we have had a bad start, but we can still make it. In fact we will make it. There are still plenty of matches to go.“Let me remind that in our campaign for the USA ’94 ticket, we lost our opening match of the final round of qualifiers to the Elephants of Cote d’ Ivoire in Abidjan. The match ended 2-1. But we went on to win our next two home matches 4-1 convincingly against the Ivorians and Algeria and picked the vital draw away in Algiers to book the ticket to Nigeria’s first Finals.”Amuneke still lamented the fact that the away win for Tunisia would no doubt give them a vital psychological boost and that it would definitely make them to aim to continue the wining streak, even against Nigeria when both meet this June at the Rade Stadium in Tunis.“I admire the position of the Tunisians because the away win coupled with Super Eagles’ misstep on this Day One of the Qualifiers will definitely give them a psychological advantage.”Nigeria will host Kenya in Abuja in June on the same weekend Tunisia will host Mozambique. The two top draws of the group would then meet at the imposing Rade Stadium. The reverse fixture comes up in Abuja in the next round of matches.

Eagles held by Mozambique

Nigeria stumbled to a 0-0 draw away to Mozambique to hand the initiative in their 2010 World Cup qualifying race to Tunisia, who won 2-1 in Kenya on Saturday.The hosts had two efforts ruled out for offside, while Obafemi Martins and Ike Uche spurned good chances to give the Super Eagles the lead in a close fought game. A packed Machava Stadium was covered in a sea of red and gave full voice to their support. Dominguez headed an effort over within the opening three minutes to set the tone for a dominant first period, as the Eagles struggled to find their footing on the artificial turf and the heat. They were almost made to pay for that sluggish start when Dario found some space and found the back of the net, but the flag was up. Two minutes later, Martins could have put Nigeria ahead. The Newcastle forward found himself one on one with the goalkeeper, but took the near post option and Kampango saved easily. Nigeria finally began to find some rhythm after 20 minutes and Martins got behind his marker, but passed the ball just behind Ike Uche, to the relief of the home crowd. Uche then found himself in a similar position as Martins early on, latching onto a long, inch-perfect ball from John Mikel Obi. Again, Kampango came up big. Mozambique had the ball in the net for a second time, but again, they were denied by the flag. Enyeama was then forced to save a dangerous header as the Mambas broke with intent in the closing minutes of the first half. It was more even in the second period, but both defences held firm. The best chance of the half, again falling to Martins. The striker turned his marker inside out, but again went for the near post and hit the side netting. Nigeria finished stronger as the second half closed out, but they ran out of time.

Nigeria Vs Mozambique The Result

World Cup qual. - Africa (Group 1)
March 28

FT Togo 1 - 0 Cameroon

FT Morocco 1 - 2 Gabon



World Cup qual. - Africa (Group 2)
March 28

FT Kenya 1 - 2 Tunisia

18:00 March 29

FT Mozambique 0 - 0 Nigeria



World Cup qual. - Africa (Group 3)
March 28

FT Rwanda 0 - 0 Algeria

World Cup qual. - Africa (Group 4)
March 28

FT Sudan 1 - 1 Mali

World Cup qual. - Africa (Group 5)
March 28

FT Burkina Faso 4 - 2 Guinea

Mikel, Yobo arrive

Super Eagles assistant skipper Joseph Yobo and midfielder John Mikel Obi both arrived at the Super Eagles’ Mthunzi Lodge camp on Thursday afternoon.The players came in just as the rest of the squad were on their way out for a half day off to enjoy the impressive Kruger National Park in Mpumalanga. Yobo has been ruled out of the game with a slight injury and Mikel picked up a throat infection in the last week. The Chelsea midfielder will be assessed by the Nigeria medical team ahead of Sunday's 2010 World Cup qualifier, but is looking increasingly unlikely to play a part. Head Coach Shuaibu Amodu was left impressed with the spirit and commitment of the players. "When injured players are turning up at their own expense to give their team mates support even when they know that they are not playing, it shows you the kind of spirit we have in the team and how seriously they take the task at hand. "All we have to do now is make sure we translate that commitment into the field and get good results, because we cannot afford not to go to the World Cup."

Uche eyes goals

Striker Ike Uche has set his sights on continuing from where he left off in the last round of qualifiers by targeting more goals in the race to South Africa 2010.Uche led the Super Eagles in scoring last time out, and says he would be happy to do so again. "I thank God I was able to score goals last time, and I hope I can do the same again. But it is not about whether I score or not, it is about whether the team wins, and if the team can win and I don’t score, that is better." The Getafe forward insists that the Super Eagles are focused on getting all three points from Maputo on Sunday. "We did not travel all this way for nothing. We understand how important it is for us to get a good result and that is what we want to do so that we cn start well and take off the pressure."

Full camp for Eagles

Six players arrived in Johannesburg on Wednesday to give Shuaibu Amodu the full complement of expected players for this weekend's 2010 World Cup qualifier in Maputo.

Vincent Enyeama, Chidi Odiah, Sani Kaita, Obinna Nwaneri and the Uche brothers hit South Africa on Wednesday morning and immediately boarded a flight to Nelspruit to join the rest of the team.
 
Their arrival brings the total number in camp to 19 players.
 
On Tuesday, skipper Nwankwo Kanu led five other players in. Obafemi Martins, Osaze Odemwingie, Obinna Nsofor, Femi Ajilore and Onyekachi Apam were the other players who breezed into the Mthunzi Lodge camp of the Eagles.
 
The team trained for the first time later that day at the Thumalahashe Stadium in Mpumalanga, which is about an hour's drive from the hotel.

   

Nigerian Team List For Mozambique

Newcastle of England striker, Obafemi Akinwunmi Martins is billed to return to the Super Eagles starting line-up against Mozambique as Head Coach, Amodu Shaibu released the list of 22 invited players for this month’s 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Maputo.
According to the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Chief Media Officer, Ademola Olajire, Amodu’s list has three goalkeepers, eight defenders, five midfielders and six forwards.Goalkeepers: Vincent Enyeama, Austin Ejide and Dele Aiyenugba
Defenders: Taye Taiwo, Joseph Yobo, Obinna Nwaneri, Daniel Shittu, Chidi Odiah, Dele Adeleye, Apam Onyekachi, Yusuf MohammedMidfielders: John Mikel Obi, Kalu Uche, Sani Kaita, Osaze Odemwingie, Olufemi Ajilore
Forwards: Nwankwo Kanu, Obafemi Martins, Ikechukwu Uche, Chinedu Obasi, Obinna Nsofor, Joseph Akpala
Meanwhile, Amodu said he had never told anyone he would quit the job if the NFF Technical Committee vets his list of players for any match.The 49 –year old tactician spoke against the background of media reports that he was vehement about the decision of the technical committee to look through his list of players to be invited for this month’s 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Mozambique in Maputo.
“I never told anyone I would resign. I am not that kind of person, and I want to use this opportunity to tell our media people to stop all this sensationalism. We want to remain focus for the task at hand and it is important to be sober.
“Even in my first stint as Head Coach of the Super Eagles, there was a technical committee that used to brainstorm over any list; it is nothing strange. The NFF technical committee has a right to brainstorm, all for the good of the nation. What I did say was that the Committee and I are united for one course, that the Members have respect for me and I respect them. I believe they will not reject my list, though I can be asked to explain why one player or the other is invited.
“There are so many things we have to do to get the ticket and I don’t want distractions. I appreciate the tremendous efforts of the gentlemen of the media; they are also principal stakeholders. But I urge that we exercise restraint in the way we report certain issues”.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) have paid for the Super Eagles’ hotel and training venue in Johannesburg, South Africa. Players and officials of the team will start arriving in Johannesburg on Monday, March 23, and be there until the evening of Friday, March 27, when they take the short flight to Maputo. The team will train on the artificial turf of Machava Stadium on Saturday, March 28, while the match takes place on Sunday, March 29.

Anichebe rejects police apology

Victor Anichebe has rejected the apology issued by the Cheshire Police following his apprehension along with a friend, in front of a jeweller's shop on Wednesday.

In a statement posted on the Everton website, Anichebe said the police statement, while welcome, did not 'constitute the unreserved apology' which the circumstances demanded.

"Whilst both myself and my friend welcome the statement which has been issued by Cheshire Police this afternoon, we do not feel it constitutes the unreserved apology we were seeking and which we believe is justified under the circumstances," Anichebe said.

The striker added that he is 'humiliated and embarrassed' by the incident.

The Everton forward was stopped by police, as he was looking in a jeweller shop's window in Knutsford.
A friend of Anichebe was then placed in handcuffs following suspicions the duo were part of a series of violent robberies targeting jewellers in the area.

The police have since issued an apology but Victor released the following statement regarding the incident, which stated in part:

"Whilst I do fully understand Cheshire Police's desire to tackle the problem of robberies on jewellery shops in the Knutsford area, I remain deeply upset and very angry about the treatment which was meted out to myself and a friend yesterday (Wednesday).

"We were doing no more than window-shopping when we found ourselves surrounded by Police officers who accused us of attempting to steal watches. Both myself and my friend, Lee, were accused, by Cheshire Police officers, of ‘attempted theft‘. Sadly, even when I explained who I was and what I was doing, they continued to treat both of us as not just suspects but as criminals."

Anichebe is currently on crutches after undergoing knee surgery on an injury picked up against Newcastle last month.

And the Nigerian striker explained that he almost had them taken off him during questioning.

"It was not only totally ridiculous but also highly embarrassing and totally humiliating," his statement continued.

"Simply because we stood our ground and insisted that we had done absolutely nothing wrong, they decided to place my friend in handcuffs. I am currently having to use crutches to walk as I recently underwent surgery on a knee injury and - astonishingly - one of the officers even tried to grab the crutches in order to prevent me from ‘escaping'.

"After what seemed like an eternity the Police officers seemed to realise that they had made a mistake, acknowledging that I was a footballer with Premiership club and not someone who was preparing to commit a crime."

Anichebe went on to accuse the police officers of racial profiling.

"At the time, I asked the officers if they would have taken the action they did had I been white rather than black. Whilst I do not wish to turn this unfortunate and unnecessary incident into a race issue, I believe it is a question which does need to be asked.

"I am pro-Police - always have been and always will be. However, on this occasion they clearly got things badly wrong.

"Whilst both myself and my friend welcome the statement which has been issued by Cheshire Police this afternoon, we do not feel it constitutes the unreserved apology we were seeking and which we believe is justified under the circumstances."

Yakubu to join Eagles in Maputo

Nigeria striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni says he will pay his way to Maputo to support the Super Eagles when they take on Mozambique in the opening game of the final qualifying stage of the 2010 World Cup.

Yakubu, who has been ruled out for the remainder of the season with a cruciate ligament injury, says the sacrifice is to show his commitment to the World Cup qualifying dream.
 
"I may not be there to play, but I wish the boys all the best and I am going to pay my own ticket to Mozambique to cheer them to victory."
 
The forward is currently undergoing therapy following surgery, and it is not clear how Everton boss David Moyes will receive the news, but the Yak is undeterred.
 
"It is my country and the players need all the support to win. We all know the importance of qualifying for the World Cup and everybody is determined to make sure we qualify."
 
Yakubu also declared that he believes his absence will not be too much of a factor in the Eagles striking department.
 
"We have strikers who can score goals, like Martins, Ike and Osaze. We should all support them so that they can give their best to the country.
 
"Criticising players all the time does not allow them to give their best. Everybody should try to cheer them up so that the players will feel happy when they are representing the 
country."

   

Obafemi Martins Vows To Atone For Bolton Miss

Newcastle United striker Obafemi Martins is going to make amends for his dreadful miss against Bolton Wanderers at the weekend, he has assured Toon fans today.
The Nigerian missed two opportunites to score yesterday, one a glaring miss from a Jonas Gutierrez left-wing cross, and was substituted by stand-in Magpies' manager Chris Hughton, to the chagrin of some sections of the Toon Army.
However, the striker, who is making a comeback form a hernia operation he underwent in January, has promised that he will score more goals, and soon, to help keep the Geordies in the top division.
"I tried as hard as I possibly could to score, but it’s a little bit difficult when you come back," he told The Newcastle Chronicle today.
"I had a chance, but I missed it. I just have to continue to play my football. The ball was a little bit slow for the second header, so I tried to jump and head it, but unfortunately I missed it.
"For me, we didn’t play well at all. It’s not good at all, because we have to put our maximum effort into our football.
"It’s been a long, long time, but I think I’m over my injury now.
"I’m happy I’m back with the team, and I hope to score a lot of goals before the end of the season. Now hopefully I can go on a run of goals."
Martins will want that run to begin on Wednesday evening, when the Magpies welcome League Cup winnners Manchester United to St James' Park for a crucial league game, especially as he missed the club's trip to Old Trafford way back in August, when Kevin Keegan was still managing the team.

NFF sign N1billon deal with Afribank

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) have signed a Memorandum Of Understanding with Afribank for sponsorship of the national teams for N1 billion over a four-year period.The deal, worth N250 million a year to the NFF, will have Afribank named as the Official Bank of the national teams. NFF Assistant General Secretary (Marketing), Adama Idris stated that the partnership is the result of an aggressive drive round financial institutions in the country. "We are always determined to increase our partnership base, and we are happy this has come to pass. "Afribank is also prepared to support all our national teams’ players in the areas of investment opportunities in order to help them plan adequately for their retirement. Also, through their consulting partners in Europe, Afribank is set to bankroll the new Secretariat project of the NFF. "Discussions have also reached advanced stages for the bank to endorse replica and other apparels of the national teams as the official national dress of its staff in all branches all over the country. Furthermore, we are equally discussing with Afribank on underwriting all matches of the national teams at a cost to be borne by the bank," Idris stated. The NFF also revealed that in conjunction with Afribank, it is developing a platform for the registration of all Nigerian football fans as part of the vision of the present NFF Executive Committee to commence the Nigeria Football Fans project.