Federation Cup: Big Battles Begin Wednesday

The Round of 64 matches of this year’s Federation Cup competition will start across the federation on Wednesday.

Huge battles loom, with ABS of Iloring clashing with elite division new boys Giwa FC in Minna and Heartland FC keeping a date with Ebonyi United in Umuahia, while the clash between Wikki Tourists and El-Kanemi Warriors in Gombe headline the matches for Thursday.

Kwara United FC and Sharks of Port Harcourt clash in Benin City, Dynamite FC of Benin City and Rancher Bees of Kaduna meet in Lokoja and Akwa United must overcome FC Abuja in Enugu.

Kano Pillars go up against Gateway FC in Lokoja, Gombe United and Baton FC of Imo tango in Ilorin and Enyimba FC will take on Sokoto North FC in Abuja.

There are only two matches in the women’s section, with Rising Queens of Ondo tackling Ebonyi Babes in Warri on Wednesday while Tin City FC of Jos clash with Tokas Queens in Lokoja on Friday.

2014 FEDERATION CUP ROUND OF 64

WEDNESDAY (02-07-2014)

Enyimba Vs Sokoto North (FIFA Goal Project, Abuja, 4pm)

Zara Studio (Kebbi) Vs Niger Tornadoes (Gusau)

CBN Cashless (Jigawa) Vs Nembe City (Katsina-Ala, 4pm)

Ibom Youth Vs Katsina Sportlight (Lafia)

Heartland FC Vs Ebonyi United (Umuahia)

Kwara United Vs Sharks FC (Benin City)

APA United Vs Ekiti United (Lokoja, 2pm)

Nasarawa United Vs Young Elephants (Jos, 4pm)

Bobbies FC Vs Ajiroba FC (Enugu)

ABS FC Vs Giwa FC (Minna)

Yarmalight FC Vs Jigawa Stars (Kaduna)

AS Racine Vs FC Taraba (FIFA Goal Project, Abuja, 2pm)

Sky Academy FC Vs Plateau United (Gombe)

Abia Warriors Vs Mafara United FC (Old Parade Ground, Abuja)

Dolphins FC Vs Ingas FC (Warri)

Remo Stars Vs Bayelsa United (Rojenny)

FC Lokoja Vs First Bank FC (Akure)

Gombe United Vs Baton FC (Ilorin)

THURSDAY

Dalhatu FC Vs 3SC FC (FIFA Goal Project, Abuja, 4pm)

Dynamite FC Vs Rancher Bees (Lokoja, 2pm)

Kaduna United Vs Leopard FC (Katsina-Ala, 4pm)

Bright Stars Vs Crown FC (Benin City)

Bendel Insurance Vs Sunshine Stars (Kaduna, 4pm)

Enugu Rangers Vs Ikpeazu FC (Umuahia)

Lobi Stars Vs Tornadoes Feeders (Jos, 2pm)

Wikki Tourists Vs El-Kanemi Warriors (Gombe)

Yobe Desert Stars Vs Kogi United (Jos, 4pm)

Binani FC Vs FRSC (Katsina-Ala, 2pm)

Akwa United Vs FC Abuja (Enugu)

Gateway FC Vs Kano Pillars (Lokoja, 4pm)

Prime FC Vs El-Kanemi Babes (Minna)

Dan Buran FC Vs Warri Wolves (Area 3, Abuja)

WOMEN FEDERATION CUP

Rising Queens Vs Ebonyi Babes (Warri) – Wednesday

Tokas Queens Vs Tin City FC (Lokoja) – Friday

Ukraine Drop 2022 Bid In Favour of 2026 Olympics Bid

London 2012 OG, Olympic Village – The Olympic
flag.
© 2012 / Comité International Olympique
(CIO) / FURLONG, Christopher

Following positive discussions between the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, the Ukrainian Prime Minister, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, and the President of the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Ukraine, Sergey Bubka, all parties have agreed that Lviv will turn its attention to an Olympic bid for 2026, and not continue with its application for 2022.

The decision comes as a result of the present political and economic circumstances in Ukraine, which were discussed between the three parties.

“The preliminary evaluation by the IOC’s working group found that the Lviv bid offered huge potential for future development,” said IOC President Thomas Bach. “In my discussions with the Ukrainian Prime Minster and NOC President, we concluded that it would be extremely difficult to pursue the 2022 bid under the current circumstances, but that a future bid would make sense for Ukraine and Ukrainian sport.”

The Ukrainian Prime Minister agreed that “a bid for 2026 would have excellent potential for the economic recovery of the country, and could have huge benefits for Ukrainian society”.

For the NOC, President Sergey Bubka added: “We would like to thank the IOC very much for its help and understanding, as well as the great assistance that it has given to Ukrainian athletes from all parts of the country, both morally and financially.”

Iran reach first final and Serbia still in contention while Cuba take Group 3 gold

Iran booked their place in the World League final for the first time in their history with a convincing 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-22) victory over Poland in Tehran on Sunday evening.

The result means Iran move level on points with Italy at the top of Pool A and look forward to a double-header with bottom-placed Poland in the final pool matches (4-5 July).

“When we started the World League with two defeats, nobody believed in my team but we proved that we have the quality to go through,” said Iran coach Slobodan Kovac. “It’s important that we win our next matches in Poland and finish top of the group.”

The Iranian team gave notice of their intentions by racing into a 4-0 lead in the first set and, despite a solid start from Poland in set two, never looked like relinquishing their advantage at the Azadi Sports Complex.

A hard-fought third set came to an end when the home team took four successive points to settle the match thanks to a towering spike from Amir Ghafour.

In Pool B, Serbia kept their hopes alive of a place in the final with a straightforward 3-0 (25-23, 25-21, 25-14) win over Bulgaria in Nis. Serbia now sit one point behind second-placed Russia going into the final round of matches.

Results elsewhere on week six mean France are still dreaming of qualifying for the final six in Firenze (16-20 July) thanks to a powerful 3-1 (25-21, 25-22, 23-25, 25-16) win over Argentina.

Led by top scorer Mory Sidibé, with 13 points, the result means that France qualify for Group 2’s final four in Sydney (11-13 July), although coach Laurent Tillie says his side “have to improve in many areas” if they are to finish among the honours.

They could be joined in Australia by the Netherlands, who had to work hard to earn a 3-2 (25-21, 25-27, 18-25, 25-19, 15-9) victory over Korea at the Chungmu Indoor Gymnasium in Daejeon.

Inspired by the strong serving of Robin Overbeeke and the quick attacks of Michael Parkinson, the Netherlands kept the faith after seeing their 1-0 lead from the first set turn into a 2-1 deficit. They finished the day sitting on top of Pool E.

Iran’s Adel Gholami spikes against the Polish one-man block by Piotr Nowakowski
Photo Credit: FIVB Media

GROUP 3 GOLD FOR CUBA, CHINA TAKE BRONZE

There was gold for Cuba in Group 3 as they won a gruelling five-setter (26-24, 19-25, 25-20, 21-25, 16-14) against hosts Turkey to edge the final match in Bursa.

The Turks had been the only team to beat Cuba in this year’s World League, in the Intercontinental Round, but despite their best efforts were unable to repeat that success on Sunday in front of a spirited home crowd.

Captain Rolando Cepeda led the way for Cuba with 28 points, ably supported by Santiago Uriarte (22), while Turkey top scorer was Toy Metin (17).

The bronze medal in Group 3 went to China, who had lost narrowly to Cuba in Saturday’s semifinal.

The Chinese, who had lost 3-0 to their Slovakian opponents 15 days earlier, dropped the first set but fought back to win 3-1 (21-25, 39-37, 25-23, 25-19), with victory in the second set – the longest in the competition so far – giving them a huge boost.

There was joy too for Japan. In their final FIVB Volleyball World League match of the season, Masashi Nambu’s side recovered from throwing away a two set advantage to record their first win, beating Germany 3-2 (25-22, 25-22, 14-25, 23-25, 17-15).

“Since this team started out a year-and-a-half ago we have suffered so much,” said Japan captain Yu Koshikawa, who scored 22 points for his side. “Now we have finally won, and we can see what winning feels like. I think it will accelerate our growth as a team.”

14-Year-old American Headlines Final ITTF World Cup Qualification Events

14-year-old Kanak JHA (USA) has became the youngest winner of a continental event, by winning the 2014 ITTF-North American Cup, which qualifies him for the ITTF World Cup later in the year.

JHA will be joined at the ITTF World Cup by the 2014 ITTF-North American Cup Women’s champion, Canada’s ZHANG Mo, and the 2014 ITTF-African Cup Men’s and Women’s Champions, Nigeria’s Quadri ARUNA and Egypt’s Dina MESHREF.

The ITTF-North American Cup and ITTF-African Cup were the final two qualification events for the 2014 Men’s and Women’s ITTF World Cups, which are two of the most prestigious table tennis events on the ITTF calendar.

Only 20 of the best table tennis players in the world qualify for these top events. The 2014 editions will take place in:

Women’s World Cup, 17 – 19 Oct 2014, Place TBD

LIEBHERR Men’s World Cup, 24 – 26 Oct 2014, Dusseldorf, Germany.

The 2014 ITTF-North American Cup was staged in Burnaby, Canada from 25 Jun to 26 Jun 2014. In the Men’s finals, Kanak JHA overcame compatriot Adam HUGH in five games (12-10, 11-8, 11-9, 6-11, 11-4) to secure the Men’s title.

14-year-old Kanak JHA (USA) creates history by winning the ITTF-North American Cup which qualifies him for the ITTF World Cup. Photo Credit: ITTF.

After his victory, the 14 year old stated “In the finals, I knew that I had what it takes to beat him (Adam HUGH), but it was mostly a mental game. It was important to win the first few games to set the tone of the match.”

“I never expected to come to the finals and even make it to the World Cup! I am very happy and I definitely will play my best there, it will be a great experience.”

Meanwhile, Canada’s top ranked player ZHANG Mo defeated USA’s rising star, 12 year old Crystal WANG four-one (11-4, 8-11, 13-11, 11-4, 11-7) in the Women’s finals to secure the top position on the podium.

ZHANG will be making her third appearance in the Women’s World Cup, she played previously in 2009 and 2010. She stated: “The home crowd is great, helping me a lot! I am really happy to be qualified for the Women’s World Cup again, after missing it for three years.”

On the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, Nigeria hosted the 2014 ITTF-Africa Cup in the city of Lagos which Nigeria’s Quadri ARUNA and Egypt’s Dina MESHREF emerged successful in the Men’s & Women’s Singles respectively.

Defeated in the semifinals of the recent Nigeria Open, Quadri ARUNA had his sweet revenge against the top seed, Egypt’s Omar ASSAR in the semifinals of the 2014 ITTF Africa Cup.

Champion, Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri (standing second left back); Egypt’s El-Sayed Lashin; Egypt’s OmarAssar; Nigeria’s Segun Toriola; Vice President, Technical, African Table Tennis Federation (ATTF), Balla Lo; President, ATTF, Khaled El-Salhy and Francis Egbiri of National Sports Commission (NSC) during the final of the Africa Top 16 Cup at the weekend in Lagos

He eventually took down the defending champion, El-Sayed LASHIN (EGY) in the finals showdown in a tight 7-games match (11-9, 13-15, 5-11, 11-7, 11-9, 9-11, 11-2).

The 25-year-old Nigerian shared on his win: “This victory meant a lot to me and it is the beginning of a new era in my career because it will surely improve my ranking.”

In the Women’s Singles finals, Dina MESHREF overcame Quadri ARUNA’s compatriot Olufunke OSHONAIKE in 4 straight games (11-6, 13-11, 11-9, 16-14) to secure her ticket to the Women’s World Cup.

After her triumph, the Egyptian heroine stated: “It was not an easy match but I am so happy winning. I am excited to represent Africa at the World Cup and I hope I can win a medal there!”

JHA, ZHANG, ARUNA and MESHREF join the following players that have qualified for the Men’s and Women’s World Cups:

DHS 2014 Europe Cup: LI Jiao (NED), LIU Jia (AUT), Viktoria PAVLOVICH (BLR), Dimitrij OVTCHAROV (GER), Marcos FREITAS (POR), Michael MAZE (DEN)

GAC 2014 Honda Asian Cup: DING Ning (CHN), LI Xiaoxia (CHN), YU Mengyu (SIN), MA Long (CHN), Jun MIZUTANI (JPN)

K-Sport 2014 ITTF-Oceania Cup: William HENZELL (AUS), LAY Jianfang (AUS)

2014 ITTF-Latin America Cup: Cazuo MATSUMOTO (BRA), Caroline KUMAHARA (BRA)
Current World Champions ZHANG Jike (CHN) and LI Xiaoxia(CHN) also qualified directly.

The additional places will be based on world ranking on those who participated in the Continental Cups but did not gain an automatic qualification position.

Quick links:

2014 ITTF-North America Cup
Results, Schedule: http://bit.ly/2014NACup
Photos: http://bit.ly/1qYvCoE

2014 ITTF-Africa Cup
Results, Schedule: http://bit.ly/2014AfricaCup
Photos: http://bit.ly/1oeBOWl

Continental Cup Results: http://bit.ly/SGSPNI

Upcoming ITTF calendar: http://bit.ly/1bicxrF

FALCONETS PIPS BLACK PRINCESSES BY A LONE GOAL

The falconets continued their build up to the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Canada pipping Ghana by a lone goal. the only goal of the match was scored by chiwendu Ihezou in the 45 minutes of the first half.

The friendly is the last of the four series of International for the two sides.

The first few minutes of the game saw both teams making frantic efforts to secure a goal but it was the Ghanaians that came close with a shot at goal but the Falconets Goalkeeper was up to the task.

With a disappointing display by the Falconets on Friday against Ghana, the Nigerian Team was determined to get it right this time.

The Falconets played an impressive match, forcing their opponents to defend a lot.

Both teams missed many scoring opportunities, but Nigeria got an edge in the 45th minutes through Chinwendu Ihezou to break the deadlock and put the team ahead of the visitors.

First half ended 1 nil in favour of the Falconets.

On resumption of the second half the Black Princess made efforts to make the score even but the Falconets defence put up a stiff resistance.

Both teams made substitutions with the aim of testing the players and to strengthen their sides.

Falconets head coach, Peter Dedevbo, said the girls played as a team.

“I am impressed with the team’s performance today, there was cohesion among the players,they put on a tremendous fight. Though I was not concerned about goals, but rather the physical and mental capability of the team since this is a friendly game. The goal however, came and i am so happy”. Dedevbo said.

He added that the team needs to improve on ball finishing .

” They had many scoring chances, but could not execute them well. We shall work on that before the world cup”.

Ghanaian head coach, Bashir Hayford, said the Nigerian side played very well. He further praised his girls and hoped that with the preparations both teams will shine in Canada.

” We lost to a better side, but remember the Falconets are playing at home which was an added advantage. We are going back with some lessons to work on the team”.

The Falconets line up:

1. Sandra Chiichii (90mins),

2.Jiroro Idike(90 mins),

3.Ebere Okoye (62 mins),

4.Asisat Oshoala(90 mins),

5. Victoria Aidelomon(90 mins),

6.Sarah Nnodim(90 mins),

7.Halima Ayinde(90 mins),

8.Loveth Ayila(65 mins),

9. Chinwendu Ihezou (70 mins),

10. Ogechi Ukuoma(59mins),

11. Yetunde Adeboyejo (60 mins),

12. Ugo Njoku(28mins),

13.Osas Igbinovia(31 mins),

14.Sunday Uchechi (20 mins),

15. Chidinma Edeji(25 mins),

16.Uchenna Kanu (30 mins).

Jonathan, Adenuga Boost Eagles Ahead France Clash…

Jonathan, Adenuga Boost Eagles Ahead France Clash…Maigari Hails President…,Mikel Says Its Fight To Finish.

President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, on Sunday lifted up the spirits of the national team, the Super Eagles, when he said all their outstanding Brazil 2014 World Cup appearance fee have been ordered cleared by Sports Minister, Hon Tammy Danagogo.

He also promised to clear any outstanding that the team may incur in the course of the championship, including outstanding FIFA grants to the NFF, that will be off-set later by the soccer ruling house. The Minister made this declaration while addressing players and officials of the national team at their Brasilia Palace Hotel camp in the Brazilian capital.

He was in the company of the Nigerian Ambassador to Brazil, His Excellency, Adamu Azimeyeh Emozoza and top officials of the embassy, NFF President, Alhaji Aminu Maigari, his vice, Chief Mike Umeh and Technical Committee Chairman, Barr. Chris Green.

The President, said Nigerians from all works of life have implicit confidence in the abilities of the team to excel at the ongoing World Cup, and promised to be in Brazil later in the week to cheer the team to victory. Already, Senate President David Mark is expected on Wednesday in Brazil and a precursor to the President’s arrival. The Minister said the President was particularly thrilled by the team’s outing so far even in the defeat to Argentina, urging the team to remain focused and not fear of non-payment of any outstanding due them.

The Minister, also announced that Nigerian business mogul, Dr Mike Adenuga Jnr, has sent through him the sum of $250,000 to boost the team ahead of their clash against France on Monday. “He said this is a token and if the team goes ahead and shock the world he will join Mr President to shock the team” he declared amidst thunderous ovation from the players and their officials.

NFF President, Alhaji Aminu Maigari, said the country was very lucky to have a President like Goodluck Jonathan , who takes personal interest in the activities of the national team, assuring the President that the team will not let the nation down at this crucial point. Team Skipper, Joseph Yobo and Head Coach Stephen Keshi spoke in similar vein.

Later at the FIFA Media briefing, Chelsea star, John Mikel Obi, said the game against France is one that the team needs to make a statement that Nigeria has arrived at the soccer map of the world. “It’s a great opportunity for us and the weather will affect both sides but we hope to do what we have to do to win the match”, he declared.

ITTF Africa Top 16 Cup: Nigeria’s Quadri dethrones Egypt’s Lashin

The reign of Egypt as African champion came to an abrupt end at the weekend when Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri dethroned the defending, Egypt’s El-Sayed Lashin in the final of the Africa Top 16 Cup.

Besides beating Lashin, Quadri achieved one of the biggest feats of his career, when he also dismissed the continent’s highest ranked player in the world, Egypt’s Omar Assar on his way to the epic final against the veteran Lashin.

For more than 20 minutes, Assar was glued to his seat after suffering a 4-2 defeat against Quadri in the semifinal tie of the tournament.

Buoyed by the 4-1 win over Quadri in the semifinal stage of the ITTF Lagos World Tour, Assar was 100 per cent sure that he would overcome the Nigerian. But his permutation and logic were wrong when he suffered one his biggest defeat in his career against Quadri.

However, the final encounter to decide the player that will hoist Africa’s flag at the ITTF World Cup later this year was the climax of the tournament. Fans at the Molade Okoya-Thomas Hall of Teslim Balogun Stadium ensured that Quadri did not lack in support cheering every point that the Nigerian won against the Egyptian.

Lashin and Quadri has met five times with the Egyptian winning all the matches. But at the weekend, it was a different story entirely as Quadri gave the fans something to cheer with his superb performance against his opponent, and at the end, it was Quadri who carried the day with a 4-3 win.

In the women’s final, Egypt’s dominance over Nigeria continued as 20 year-old Dina Meshref defeated Nigeria’s Funke Oshonaike 4-0 to win the sole slot to the ITTF World Cup.

Champion, Nigeria’s Aruna Quadri (standing second left back); Egypt’s El-Sayed Lashin; Egypt’s OmarAssar; Nigeria’s Segun Toriola; Vice President, Technical, African Table Tennis Federation (ATTF), Balla Lo; President, ATTF, Khaled El-Salhy and Francis Egbiri of National Sports Commission (NSC) during the final of the Africa Top 16 Cup at the weekend in Lagos

“I played very well today because most of my matches with him have always been very close”, said a delighted Quadri Aruna after beating Omar Assar. “I did not make the same mistakes I made at the World Tour tournament; I made sure I played short whenever possible; this victory means a lot to me and it is the beginning of a new era in my career because it will surely improve my ranking.”

“It was not an easy match but I am so happy winning”, said Dina Meshref. “I am excited to represent Africa at the World Cup and I hope I can win a medal there.”

Quadri and Meshref have qualified for the respective Men’s and Women’s World Cup tournaments to be held later this year in October.

Maigari: Eagles will fly over France

African champions, Nigeria have the quality to torpedo France from the 2014 FIFA World Cup, so says President of Nigeria Football Federation, Aminu Mohammed Maigari.

The 58 –year old has presided over Nigeria football for the past four years and is excited at the litany of records his board has set on and off the pitch. “We are not done yet. I can tell you that the Super Eagles will overcome France on Monday and that will be another glorious record,” he said as he flew out of Sao Paulo to Brasilia on Sunday morning.

On Wednesday, as Maigari celebrated his birthday, the Super Eagles had a marvelous game against two –time world champions Argentina to qualify for the FIFA World Cup Round of 16 for the first time in 16 years, and defeat of France on Monday will mean a first –ever World Cup quarter –final for the world’s most populous black nation.

“I have confidence that we will beat France. If you have followed our campaign well, you would notice that we have improved match after match. We came close to upsetting Argentina in Porto Alegre. We do not fear France,” Maigari told a horde of media men at the local wing of Guarulhos Airport.

The Eagles have become a much –better brand over the past two years, on the back of collective hard work by the Federation, players and technical crew and a diligence that has ensured 26 friendly matches for the team since they left the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa with damp wings.

After earning four points in the group phase to come second behind perennial foes Argentina and a berth in the knock –out rounds, Nigeria stand to play at football’s most renowned temple, Estadio Maracana, if they conquer the Les Bleus on Monday.

Already, they have played at some of the world’s breath –taking arenas in Brazil, namely the Estadio Beira-Rio in Porto Alegre, the Arena da Baixada in Curitiba and the Arena Pantanal in Cuiaba, not forgetting that they did battle on the pitches of Estadio Mineirao in Belo Horizonte, Estadio Castelao in Fortaleza and the Arena Fonte Nova in Salvador during the FIFA Confederations Cup a year ago.

Setting out at the 72 -000 capacity Estadio Nacional Mane Garrincha is fulfilling in itself, but a date on the luscious turf of the Maracana, with the globally –famous Christ The Redeemer landmark overlooking the performers, is the dream of every footballer.

However, Maigari would rather concentrate on the job at hand.

“We believe we will fly over France but we have to focus on what we have to do to win that match, and not start thinking of what Maracana would look like. We must think of Monday before thinking of Friday,”

Maigari’s words of wisdom contrast with the attitude of players and coaches before a similar Round of 16 match against Denmark at the 1998 World Cup, with Nigeria thinking of a quarter final duel with Brazil before clashing with the Danes.

The Eagles lost that match 4-1, and Denmark forward Brian Laudrup cautioned at the post –match parley that “Nigeria must learn to count one before four.”

Already, NFF’s Director of Marketing, Adama Idris has secured enough tickets for all members of NFF delegation, members of the Nigeria Football Supporters Club who are in Brazil, as well as members of the Nigeria community in Brazil, to go to the stadium and support the Eagles against the French.

Monday’s match kicks off at 5pm Nigeria time (1pm Brasilia time).

FIFA restricts Yobo to quiet 100th cap

World football –governing body, FIFA, has turned down a request by the Nigeria Football Federation to honour Captain Joseph Yobo on his 100th cap –day against France in Brasilia.

Should he be picked for the match by Coach Stephen Keshi, it would be Yobo’s one hundredth senior cap for Nigeria, since he featured against Zambia in Chingola in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match that ended 1-1 on 24th March, 2001.

A request was made by the NFF to present a signed official jersey to the 33 –year old defender prior to kick –off inside the Estadio Nacional Mane Garrincha, but FIFA insisted it could not go ahead.

NFF chiefs have decided to have a brief presentation of the jersey to the player by NFF President Aminu Maigari, at the team’s Brasilia Palace Hotel after the match.

Yobo, who started his career as a striker and also featured for Nigeria at U-20 level, playing at the 1999 FIFA U-20 World Cup that Nigeria hosted, has scored seven goals in his previous 99 senior matches.

During this period, he has also won Africa Cup of Nations gold (2013) and bronze medals (2002, 2004, 2006 and 2010) and played in three FIFA World Cup finals (2002, 2010 and 2014).

If he features against France, he would be playing in his 10th FIFA World Cup match, more than Jay Jay Okocha and Nwankwo Kanu – the only other Nigerian players to have featured in three FIFA World Cup finals.

Photo Credit: FIFA

John Utaka Tasks Flying Eagles

Holidaying Super Eagles star John Utaka has tasked the Flying Eagles to rise to the occasion when he paid a brief visit to the team at their training base in Abuja.

“You are lucky to be considered for the national team and you should therefore give everything to justify your selection,” said Utaka.

“This is a very demanding profession, but I trust you will continue to work hard to actualise your dreams.”

He also wished the team the best of luck in their final qualifiers against Lesotho next month.

John Utaka of sivasspor, Turkey.

“I expect you to go past Lesotho and qualify for the AYC in Senegal,” he urged.

Utaka features for Turkish club Sivasspor and was at the 2002 and 2010 World Cups.

He heads the John Utaka Foundation, which caters for the poor in the society.

Photo Credit: Sivasspor website

Flying Eagles name 30-man Squad For Final AYC Qualifiers

Nigeria U20 team, the Flying Eagles, on Saturday named a 30-man squad ahead next month’s final 2015 African Youth Championship qualifier against Lesotho.

This followed a two-week rigorous screening exercise at the FIFA Goal project in Abuja.

The Flying Eagles will host Lesotho on August 16 with the return leg match in Maseru a fortnight later and the overall winners advancing to the 2015 African Youth Championship to be staged by Senegal.

The bulk of the squad remains the FIFA U17 World Cup-winning squad like skipper Musa Muhammed, Kelechi Iheanacho and Dele Alampasu.

There is also a sprinkling of players from the Nigeria Premier League like Obinna Nwobodo of Enugu Rangers and the Sunshine Stars duo of Olulayo Seun and Adeniji Tunde.

Flying Eagles

The full squad:

Goalkeepers
Joshua Enaholo (MFM Lagos), Adamu Abubakar (Flash Gombe), Olorun Leke (Giwa FC), Dele Alampasu

Defenders
Musa Muhammed (Besiktas Turkey), Ifeanyi Nweke (Riverlane Youth Club Enugu), Mustapha Abdullahi (Spotlight Katsina), Zaharadden Bello (Dabo Babes Kano), Prince Izu Omego, Adebayor Ademuluwa, Wilfred Ndidi

Midfielders
Olulayo Seun (Sunshine Stars), Chidiebere Nwakali (Manchester City England), Wasiu Jimoh (Kwara Academy), Musa Yahaya (Tottenham Hotspur England), Bernard Bulbwa, Ifeanyi Matthew (El Kanemi Warriors), Ifeanyi Ifeanyi, Chisom Eze, Akinjide Idowu, Abdullahi Alfa

Strikers
Taiwo Awoniyi (Kalmar Sweden), Sulaiman Abdullahi(El Kanemi Warriors), Segun Alebiosu (Kwara United), Adeniji Tunde, Kelechi Iheanacho (Manchester City England), Obinna Nwobodo (Enugu Rangers), Isaac Success (Granada, Spain), Alhassan Ibrahim (FC Hearts), Abubakar Lawal (Sokoto United)

FIFA World Cup Round of 16: The pressure is on France!

African champions Nigeria are the apparent underdogs in Monday’s FIFA World Cup Round of 16 Nigeria battle with France in Brasilia.

The Les Bleus, expectedly, finished top of their Group E with seven points, following wins over Honduras and Switzerland and a draw with Ecuador, and boast an embarrassment of talent in all departments.

Nigeria, who flew into Brazil’s administrative capital on Friday, bidding a final bye to their Team Base Camp (Vitoria Hotel Concept) in Campinas as they begin the run of ‘venue hopping’, finished second of Group F with four points after drawing with Iran, pipping Bosnia-Herzegovina and a narrow defeat by Argentina.

There is only one recorded clash between Nigeria and France at senior level, and that was a mere international friendly in Paris on June 2, 2009, which the Super Eagles won by a lone goal, scored by Joseph Akpala.

On Monday, it is a new day and a different temperament when the Eagles take the pitch against the 1998 world champions at the magnificent Estadio Nacional Mane Garrincha.

The 72,000 –capacity venue is the second largest at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, coming behind the fabled Estadio Maracana in Rio de Janeiro, which can seat 79,000 spectators.

France left the last FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa in disgrace, after unexpected group stage elimination surrounded by crass player-indiscipline and subsequent sanctions on some of their star performers.

Coach Didier Deschamps did much to revamp the soul and spirit of the squad and a number of young guns aim to blot that unflattering record by going all the way in South America.

Yet, even as they lost their first match of the tournament to Argentina at the imposing Estadio Beira-Rio in Porto Alegre on Wednesday, the Super Eagles looked to be growing in confidence and feel of the tournament, and will certainly make life difficult for the Les Bleus on Monday.

“I said before the tournament that our mentality must be strong. Our approach to every match has always been the same: to win. Whether we are playing against Spain at the FIFA Confederations Cup or playing against Liberia in a friendly match, I always tell the boys that victory is non –negotiable.

“For us, we will go into Monday’s match aiming to win. But as I also said before the competition, we take it one match at a time. We don’t even want to think of who might be lurking in the quarter finals if we win; we are not bothered. All we know is that we must win on Monday,” Coach Stephen Keshi reiterated as his team flew into Federal District on Friday.

Reward for the winner in Monday’s clash that starts at 5pm Nigeria time (1pm Rio de Janeiro) is a visit to the elegant Estadio Maracana (venue for the Final on 12th July, and which also hosted the final when Brazil lost 1-2 to Uruguay in 1950). The winner will play the victor of the tie between three –time champions Germany and African flag –bearers Algeria, who have reached the Round of 16 for the first time ever.

Six of Nigeria’s leading names play in the English Premiership alongside nine of France’s best, making this a potentially –explosive session in all ramifications.

Nigeria captain Joseph Yobo, who will reach the historic 100th –cap mark if featured against the French, features for Norwich City, with Osaze Odemwingie (Stoke City), John Mikel Obi and Kenneth Omeruo (Chelsea), Victor Moses (Liverpool) and Shola Ameobi (Newcastle) also involved.

They are quite familiar with Patrice Evra (Manchester United), Hugo Lloris (Tottenham Hotspur), Mathieu Debuchy, Loic Remy, Moussa Sissoko (Newcastle), Laurent Koscielny, Bacary Sagna, Olivier Giroud (Arsenal) and Mamadou Sakho (Liverpool).

Debuchy, Remy and Sissoko are Ameobi’s team –mates at Newcastle while Moses and Liverpool mate Mamadou Sakho will embrace before hostilities commence.

Nigeria goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama, rated one of the best at the tournament so far, comes up against Lille OSC of France team –mate Rio Mavuba.

Delegates commend NFF seamless arrangements

Members of the NFF delegation to the 2014 FIFA World Cup finals have continued to heap plaudits on the NFF leadership for seamless arrangements in all areas at the championship.

The Nigeria delegation were ferried to all three group stage matches of the Super Eagles and have only good words for the Aminu Maigari administration for the huge efforts invested in making everything smooth for all persons.

The NFF delegation at the tournament has included members of the NFF Executive Committee, Management, some members of Staff, members of the NFF Congress (Chairmen of State FAs and some Secretaries), some officials of the National Sports Commission, a number of Senators and Members of the House Committee on Sports (including the chairman, Hon. Godfrey Gaiya), members of the various Leagues, a number of media representatives and other stakeholders.

There have also been former NFF boss, General Dominic Oneya (rtd), former NFF General Secretary, Mr. Fanny Amun, former WAFU President Jonathan Ogufere, former Nigeria coaches James Peters, Christian Chukwu and Shaibu Amodu, former Nigeria captains Olusegun Odegbami, Garba Lawal, Victor Ikpeba and Nwankwo Kanu, directors of some federal agencies and departments and members of NFF Sub-Committees.

“The NFF led by Alhaji Aminu Maigari has done creditably well with all these arrangements. They made everything quite easy for all members of the delegation,” remarked former Nigeria captain and Coach, Christian Chukwu.

While the team flies to match venues two days before every match on FIFA arrangements, the NFF has arranged movements for all delegation members through chartered flights to and from Curitiba, Cuiaba and Porto Alegre, with the delegation returning to base in Sao Paulo same day.

Dominic Iorfa, who was in the immediate past Board of NFF, commented: “A lot of work and diligence must have gone into moving such number of people around a big country like Brazil with so much ease and efficiency. I commend Alhaji Maigari and his team.”

Odegbami, perhaps the best winger that Nigeria has ever produced, said: “We have to give kudos to the Maigari administration. They have handled the movement of persons with a great sense of duty and perfection.”

The Super Eagles have reached the FIFA World Cup Round of 16 for the first time in 16 years, and play 1998 champions France at that stage in Brasilia on Monday afternoon.