Tag: Football - Page 3 - African News Today

Former Super Eagles Captain Mikel Obi Retires from Football

28Sep

By Osaretin BalogbanNo Comments

Former Super Eagles Captain Mikel Obi Retires from Football

Former Super Eagles captain and Chelsea legend, John Obi Mikel, has retired from professional football after 20 years of action. Obi announced his retirement from football on Tuesday on his social media accounts with a farewell message to his fans. See Also: Otubanjo wins UEFA Conference League Goal of The Week Award “There is a saying that “all good things must come to an end”, and for my professional football career, that day is today." “I look back at the past 20 years of my career, and I must say that I am very satisfied with all that I was able to achieve and, more importantly, the human it has helped shape." “All of this would not have been possible without the unwavering support of my family, managers, clubs, coaches, teammates, and most importantly, my ever-loya...

Otubanjo wins UEFA Conference League Goal of The Week Award

17Sep

By Osaretin BalogbanNo Comments

Sports

Otubanjo wins UEFA Conference League Goal of The Week Award

Nigerian Forward, Yusuf Otubanjo, wins the UEFA Conference League Goal of the Week prize for matchday two. See Also: Napoli Suffer Injury Blow as Osimhen to Stay on the Sidelines Otubanjo’s goal in the first half for Armenian club, Pyunik, was nominated along with three others. The goal was the second and the last of the match against Slovan Bratislava securing the win for Pyunik. The Nigerian’s goal was his first in the competition this season. Otubanjo is the first Nigerian to claim the individual award. On Matchday one, Samuel Chukwueze and Peter Olayinka were also nominated. The 30-year-old moved to Pyunik from Ararat-Armenia in the summer transfer window. Source: Daily Post

Umar Sadiq to Miss The Rest of Laliga Campaign as He Suffers Injury Blow

14Sep

By Osaretin BalogbanNo Comments

Sports

Umar Sadiq to Miss The Rest of Laliga Campaign as He Suffers Injury Blow

Umar Sadiq has sustained an injury and will undergo surgery on Thursday as announced by Laliga Club, Real Sociedad. See Also: Umar Sadiq Seals Late Move from Almeria to Real Sociedad The Club announced on Monday that the Nigerian striker suffered a rupture of his anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. Sadiq had come off injured during Real Sociedad’s 2-1 defeat against Getafe on Sunday. In a statement, the Club said: “After suffering a rupture of his anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, Sadiq Umar will undergo surgery on 15th September in Vitoria, with Dr. Mikel Sánchez taking control of the procedure". Sadiq will miss the rest of the campaign as a result of the injury. Source: Daily Post

Qatar 2022: Bring Home World Cup, Eto’o Tells Indomitable Lions

1Sep

By Kosi UchennaNo Comments

Cameroon, News, Sports, World Cup

Qatar 2022: Bring Home World Cup, Eto’o Tells Indomitable Lions

Samuel Eto’o, the President of the Cameroon Football Federation, FECAFOOT, has tasked the Indomitable Lions to bring home the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The 2022 World Cup will be placed in Qatar from the 20th of November to the 18th of December, 2022. The Cameroon national football team has qualified for eight editions of the FIFA World Cup finals so far with their best outing being a quarter-finals place. Eto’o in a tweet on his Twitter handle urged the Indomitable Lions to make the country proud at the 2022 edition. See Also: 2022 U-20 WWC: Why Falconets Crashed Out Against Netherlands – Danjuma He tweeted, “During last week’s General Assembly, we came together to discuss the road ahead for Cameroonian football. We must seize every opportunity, nationally and international...

Victor Osimhen Scores His 30th Goal for Napoli

22Aug

By Osaretin BalogbanNo Comments

Sports

Victor Osimhen Scores His 30th Goal for Napoli

Napoli striker and Nigeria’s National Team player, Victor Osimhen, scored his 30th goal as Napoli trashed Serie A side Monza four goals to nil at the Stadio Maradona Stadium. The Nigerian Striker joined Napoli from French club Lille in 2020 and he has proven to be a formidable player as he bags a total of 30 goals and 10 assists in 63 games for the club. Osimhen netted his 30th goal in yesterday’s Sunday match against Monza as he scored in the 47th minute making the scoreline 2-0 at halftime. See Also: Anthony Joshua Loses To Usyk Again, Fails To Reclaim Heavyweight Titles Osimhen praised his teammates for their performance in yesterday’s game, he also praised Georgia winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia for scoring 2 goals in the match. “It was a great performance, I’m proud o...

2022 U-20 WWC: Why Falconets Crashed Out Against Netherlands – Danjuma

22Aug

By Kosi UchennaNo Comments

News, Nigeria, Sports

2022 U-20 WWC: Why Falconets Crashed Out Against Netherlands – Danjuma

Head coach of the Falconets, Chris Danjuma, has blamed wasted chances for the team’s failure to beat the Netherlands in the semi-finals of the 2022 U-20 Women’s FIFA World Cup. The Falconets were defeated 2-0 by the Netherlands at the Estadio Alajuela Morera Soto to bring an end to a good outing at the tournament. Despite dominating most part of the match, the Falconets paid for a lack of clinical finish. Zera Hulswit and Ziva Henry were on target for the Dutch. Reacting to the defeat, Danjuma said, “This is football when your opponent capitalizes on your mistake and they punish you for that. See Also: Pinnick Comments on Possibility Of Vying For Third Term “I think we had these few mistakes starting and we were punished for it and we had our chances and we could not...

Nigeria’s Falconets Qualify for the U-20 World Cup Quarterfinals

18Aug

By Osaretin BalogbanNo Comments

Sports, World Cup

Nigeria’s Falconets Qualify for the U-20 World Cup Quarterfinals

Nigeria’s Falconets qualify for the quarterfinals of the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup after defeating Canada 3-1 in their final group game on Thursday morning. The Falconets were able to maintain their unbeaten run after winning their first two games of the tournament. The West Africans conceded in four minutes by a goal from Canadian, Kaila Novak but the Nigerians leveled the scoreline after Esther Onyenezide scored from the penalty spot in the 24th minute. See Also: 2022: U-20 WWC: How Falconets Beat South Korea – Danjuma The Falconets took the lead as Onyenezide scored another goal eight minutes later again from the penalty spot after a foul on Mercy Idoko. The last goal came from Mercy Idoko who made the scoreline 3-1 after she made a close-range shot into the b...

Pinnick Comments on Possibility Of Vying For Third Term

16Aug

By Kosi UchennaNo Comments

News, Nigeria, Sports

Pinnick Comments on Possibility Of Vying For Third Term

Amaju Pinnick, the President of the Nigerian Football Federation, NFF, has confirmed that he will not run for a third term after his current tenure expires this year. Pinnick, a former chairman of Delta State Football Association took over as NFF President in 2014 and his tenure is expected to end next month. There has been speculation that Pinnick who is equally a member of the FIFA executive council committee nurtures the ambition of seeking a third term. See Also: 2022: U-20 WWC: How Falconets Beat South Korea – Danjuma However, the NFF President in an interview with Arise Television said that he will not interfere with the process to elect a new President. He said, “There are so many Nigerians capable of being there (NFF boss). I will assist and work with any...

Victor Osimhen Scores for Napoli in Season Opener

16Aug

By Osaretin BalogbanNo Comments

Sports

Victor Osimhen Scores for Napoli in Season Opener

Nigerian Forward, Victor Osimhen scored in his first match of the new Serie A season as Napoli defeated Hellas Verona 5-2 on Monday night at the Stadio Marc’ Antonio Bentegodi stadium. Osimhen scored the second goal for the away team at extra-time of the first half after he headed in Giovammi van Lorenzo’s corner-kick. See Also: Ademola Lookman Scores on His Atalanta Debut The Napoli striker also set up Matteo Politano for the fifth goal of the match before he was substituted for Algeria's international, Adam Ounas, in the final stages of the game. Victor Osimhen bagged 14 goals in 27 league appearances for the Serie A side last season. Source: Daily Post

2022: U-20 WWC: How Falconets Beat South Korea – Danjuma

15Aug

By Mary UgwuanyiNo Comments

News, Nigeria, Sports

2022: U-20 WWC: How Falconets Beat South Korea – Danjuma

Christopher Danjuma, head coach of Nigeria’s Falconets, has disclosed how his team outsmarted South Korea in their second Group C encounter at the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup. The Falconets beat South Korea 1-0 thanks to a late goal by Esther Onyenezide in the 83rd minute of the match. The win means the Nigerian side have won their first two matches after a 1-0 win against France in their first match. Reacting to the win against South Korea, Danjuma said, “Football is about building your own tactics as it suits you. Playing against the Korean team, if they find space they run and there are certain areas in the field they use to make incursions into your box. See Also: Super Eagles Forward Dessers Set For Serie A Transfer “So what we did was to make sure they...