Sports
AFCON: Adamu Lauds Participating Teams’ Increase
Former CAF Executive Committee member, Amos Adamu, last Sunday said increasing the number of participating teams at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) would be beneficial to more countries.
Adamu told newsmen in Lagos that the increase would give room for more countries to have the experience of what the competition was all about.
Tidesports source reports that the Confederation of African Football (CAF) had agreed to a proposal to expand the AFCON from 16 teams to 24 from the 2019 edition in Cameroon.
“It is a very laudable innovation. They (CAF) have given good consideration to other African countries which are just building their national teams.
“By so doing, we will have other African countries being given the opportunity to showcase their players’ talent during this competition.
“Although this decision will increase the number of weeks being used in staging the tournament, but I think the overall effect of it is going to be beneficial at the end of the day,” Adamu said.
CAF had also announced the decision to move the Nations Cup from the January to February period to the June to July period.
The decision has been seen as a result of the clash in timing between the tournament and the peak period many league competitions on the international scene.
The change was one of many made by the CAF executive committee at its meeting in Rabat, Morocco last week.
The meeting had followed a two-day symposium organised by CAF to discuss the state of African football.
On the decision to change the date, Adamu who is a former Director-General of the defunct National Sports Commission (NSC) said the change in date was long overdue.
“We have been at this for a very long time. It is better this way, because we understand that the timing clashes with the leagues in Europe, where most of our players ply their trade abroad.
“Now, since the English Premier League which is the major one with our players is usually May to June, we won’t have any more problem as regards the release of players billed to feature in the tournament.
“Even though it may still take its toll on the players, since it is supposed to be the time for them to rest after the league season, but it is the best we can accommodate for now.
“On this, I say `congratulations’ to the executive committee for taking this firm stand.”
Tidesports source also gathered reports that the shift in date is expected to enhance European clubs’ release of their African players for the tournament since their league seasons end around May.
The first expansion of AFCON was from eight to 12 in 1992 on an experimental basis in January then.
The January/February calendar was adopted at the 1996 tournament in South Africa.
England captain Harry Kane netted a hat-trick to guide Bayern Munich to an impressive victory against Stuttgart.
Kane’s goals, plus one from Kingsley Coman, helped Bayern end a three-game winless run in all competitions.
They faced a tough task against a Stuttgart side who sat back and limited their chances, leading Vincent Kompany’s side to enter the break frustrated and with the deadlock unbroken.
Bayern eventually found a way past Stuttgart’s steely defence when Kane drilled a low effort into the bottom corner from around 30 yards out after Joshua Kimmich overturned possession.
Former Nigeria goalkeeper, Dosu Joseph, is full of thanks to God after he miraculously survived another life-threatening automobile accident recent at Kara, along the Lagos-Ibadan Express Way, where a heavy-duty truck ran into his SUV.
Narrating his ordeal, the 51-year-old, who guided Nigeria to gold in the Men’s Football Tournament of the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, broke the news in a statement on his social media handles on Friday.
“To God be the glory, another death escaped by Grace and Mercy of God. Me and my friend SM were at Enyo Filling Station after Ojodu Berger bus stop to get fuel on Wednesday, October 2, 2024, around 6 p.m. when this MACK truck fully loaded with iron, with registration number LND 470 XX, left the road and crushed my car beyond repairs. Thank God for life,” he stated.
This is the second time the soft-spoken club proprietor will cheat death by a whisker, having been involved in an accident in 1997 that ended his career at 23 and left his spinal cord in bad shape.
He helped Julius Berger win the Nigeria FA Cup in November 1997 shortly a memorable Olympic outing by keeping a clean sheet in the finals against Katsina United. The following year, he was involved in the auto along Ikorodu Road, Lagos, which not only cut his career short but also left him almost paralysed, ending his spell at Serie A club Reggiana.
The former Nigeria international, who also kept goal for Julius Berger FC, said the case has been reported to Isheri Police Station, Ogun State, where the driver is currently detained and the truck also seized.
According to him, the owner of the truck said he can’t fix the badly damaged SUV until after a year.
Ex – Super Eagles of Nigeria, Okwuchukwu Waobikeze has observed that sports development in Nigeria is going down.
According to him, grassroots sports is very important, without it, the administrators cannot get it right. So everybody should key into grassroots sports development, he said.
Waobikeze said this last Wednesday in an interview with sports journalists shortly after the Port Harcourt All Stars Independence football festival (OCTOBERFEST) at the Port Harcourt club, Rivers State.
He explained that for sports administrators to get it right, grassroots development is key. “They should be organising competition at the grassroots level to fish out the young ones for different sporting activities.
“Grassroots sports is very important so the administrators have to go back to the grassroots.
” Sports Development in Nigeria is going down we need to go back to the basics.
“Look at the just concluded Paris Olympics, Nigeria did not win any medal.
” Our football team did not even qualify for the Olympics. We are going down.
” If they should go back to the grassroots, they will get young ones in the games and talents will be developed.
” I started from school games, to youth games before playing for the national team. Now everybody wants to fly board to play professional football and a lot do not know the basics of the game.
” A lot of people did not know the little things about the game, they just want to play. It is not done so,” Waobikeze stated.
Kiadum Edookor
