AN OVERVIEW OF NIGERIA’S AFCON QUALIFYING GROUP

Posted on April 29, 2022 by index

Nigeria’s opponents for the 2023 African Cup of Nations qualifiers were drawn on Tuesday in South Africa. Against all odds, the Super Eagles had conquered the continent for the third time in South Africa in 2013. It was an unprecedented triumph especially considering the sloppy start the Stephen Keshi-led team had to overcome. Sunday Mba’s brave winner was the difference on that night against Burkina Faso. It created memories that’d be difficult to erase especially considering a good number of members of the squad were home based.

A group comprising South Africa, Congo Brazzaville and Sudan saw Nigeria finish third, with 8 points from a possible 18 and missed out on the 2015 AFCON. It was a repeat of the 2012 low and a testament to the fact that the Super Eagles bounce back rather wobbly and sloppily. When mishandled, it could be borderline catastrophic. Continue reading →

MANE, SALAH LEAD LIVERPOOL TO GLORY

Posted on March 10, 2022 by index

African Football stars Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah played their respective parts as they helped Liverpool to win the Carabao Cup title this season. The Reds saw off Chelsea on penalties on Sunday to win the first major domestic of this season as far as the English top flight is concerned.

The African football duo of Mane and Salah were part of the Liverpool front trio alongside new signing Luis Diaz, but they were unable to breach the Chelsea rearguard for the entire duration of the game. The two African football stars came into the game on the back of scoring two goals each during the last league game at home to Leeds United. Salah and Mane scored two goals apiece to help Liverpool to the 6-0 thumping of Leeds United at home. Continue reading →

AFCON: IT’S SENEGAL OR EGYPT

Posted on February 13, 2022 by index

It was clear that African football will have a new champion when the Algerians were knocked out of the group stage courtesy the 3-1 loss to Ivory Coast in their last game as far as the ongoing 2021 AFCON tournament is concerned.

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The Fennec Foxes of Algeria conquered African football at the last edition of the AFCON tournament in Egypt thanks to the 1-0 victory over Senegal in the final. The Algerians were one of the favourites to rule African football at the end of the 2021 AFCON tournament in Cameroon only for them to produce a poor outing. Algeria skipper RiyadMahrez from Premier League side Manchester City and his players could only record a solitary point from their three games in Group E. They were stunned to a goalless draw by Sierra Leone before the 1-0 defeat to Equatorial Guinea. The aforementioned loss to the Ivorians sealed their fate in the group as they exited the tournament unexpectedly.
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SALAH SHORTLISTED FORFIFA AWARD

Posted on January 22, 2022 by index

African football star Mohamed Salah has been shortlisted for The Best FIFA Men’s Player of the Year. The Liverpool attacker made the final three-man shortlist alongside Bayern Munich star Robert Lewandowski and Paris Saint Germain (PSG) superstar Lionel Messi.

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The African football star was rewarded with a place in the final three for the 2021 edition of The Best FIFA Men’s Player of the Year award after a sensational start to the current season.
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LIVERPOOL END CAMPAIGN WITH PERFECT RECORD

Posted on December 16, 2021 by index

Premier League title contenders Liverpool ended their UEFA Champions League group stage campaign with a perfect record following the 2-1 comeback win over Italian Serie A leaders AC Milan in Group B. African football star Mohamed Salah was one of the two Liverpool goalscorers as they recovered from a goal down to beat the Rossoneri away from home.

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AC Milan came into the final set of games in Group B with a chance to qualify for the next round. The Rossoneri needed to beat Liverpool at home to have any chance of moving into the knockout stage as far as this season’s Champions League is concerned. On their part, Liverpool had a perfect Champions League record and the target was to endthe group stage with a perfect record.
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SALAH GOALSCORING RUN ENDED BY BRIGHTON

Posted on November 11, 2021 by index

It was a little surprising that African football star Mohamed Salah didn’t score for Liverpool as they lost a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 at home to Brighton and Hove Albion in a Premier League clash played at Anfield on Saturday afternoon.

Egyptian international Salah was on a run of finding the back of the net in ten successive games in all competitions before the Brighton game at the weekend. Salah has been a good ambassador for African football with 15 goals and five assists in his last ten matches. Continue reading →

SUPER EAGLES STUNNED IN LAGOS

Posted on October 26, 2021 by index

African football giants Nigeria were on the end of a stunning result in favour of the Central African Republic (CAR) when the two nations met at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos. The two countries met for the first of a double header during the October international break as the race for the World Cup 2022 tournament in Qatar hots up in the African section.

The Super Eagles of Nigeria are one of the best teams in African football but they didn’t show their quality against minnows CAR as they were lacklustre for much of the game. In the end, they were beaten 1-0 in front of their fans thanks to a stoppage time strike from Les Herbiers player Karl Namnganda. Continue reading →

WILL AFRICAN FOOTBALLERS BE ALLOWED TO GO FOR AFCON?

Posted on September 23, 2021 by index

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There is currently a huge question being asked about whether or not there is a possibility of the African players in the English Premier League being allowed to go represent their respective countries at the upcoming African Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament that is already fast approaching. The topic was not one to be considered as a major issue of concern but after the dramatic scenario that happened with the South American players in the league, it has come under the radar and has attracted more concern this time around, with players now facing uncertainties and having their questions unanswered ahead of accepting call-up from their national teams.

Before the end of last week, South American countries started sending call-up letters to their players that ply their trade in the English Premier League ahead of their fixtures that will be coming up during the international break. However, due to the rule about players moving to countries that are considered red zones in terms of their higher chances of harboring the Covid-19, the players were not allowed to accept the call-ups. Continue reading →

KLOPP BANKING ON SALAH AND MANE TO STEP UP THIS SEASON

Posted on August 19, 2021 by index

Liverpool will kick off their new English Premier League campaign after playing their final pre-season match which they lost by a scoreline of 4-3 against German opponents Bertha Berlin. Although it was just a pre-season friendly match, it was still not the sort of result the Reds would have wanted. The match also witnessed the return of star defender Virgil Van Dijk to action for the first time after his injury against Everton in the Merseyside derby last season. The club’s manager Jurgen Klopp has now revealed that even though it was just a friendly match, he still would have wanted his side to win the match because they didn’t want to start the season after suffering a loss.

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Fans have since been calling on the manager and the players to try and have a better campaign than they did last season and Klopp says he has heard the voice of the fans. The German tactician said that he holds the review and opinion of the fans dear to heart and as long as he remains the ma ager at Anfield, he would always listen to what they have to say.
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CHELSEA WINGER LINKED WITH SHOCK SUMMER EXIT

Posted on July 3, 2021 by index

It’s not the sort of news that Chelsea fans will be hoping to hear, especially when the summer transfer window is now open for business. But according to reports, the Blues winger Hakim Ziyech has been linked with a rather shocking move away from Stamford Bridge after only joining the club last summer. Although it can be argued that the African football star has not yet fulfilled his full potential for the Blues, it can also be agreed that he should be given some more time to adapt.

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Frank Lampard, the manager who signed the winger from Dutch Eredivisie Champions Ajax Amsterdam last summer, disclosed that Chelsea were completing a deal for a wing wizard and that he was sure that the player was going to perform upon his arrival to the north London club. But things have not gone according to how they planned it and it’s looking like he could be allowed to leave the club this summer.
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