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Fans Commend Eagles’ Commitment

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Football fans have said that the Super Eagles 2-1 victory over the Leone Stars on Wednesday showed that the players and their coaches were committed to rebuilding the national team.

The fans said  after the encounter at the Tesilm Balogun Stadium that the team exhibited a high team spirit.

“Though the result was slim, I must say that it is a good beginning for the team,” Femi Atolagbe, a banker, said.

“The team spirit must be commended. All the players displayed the commitment and coordination required to rebuild a team that has lost the confidence of fans.

“I want to also commend Coach Samson Siasia for his good leadership role and tactical discipline.

“He has been able to bring Nigerian players together and given all the opportunity to prove themselves.”

Bimbo Akinola, a businessman, said that the team should be given time to mature.

“This is a new team. Nigerians should not judge them with the result of the match because they need time to mature.

“Many of them are playing together for the first time and need to blend over time with continuous playing and understanding of one another.

“I only hope that they will continue to display the high level of commitment and patriotism they showed here which the last Super Eagles lacked,” Akinola said.

He urged the Nigeria Football Association (NFA) to organise more friendly matches for the team to avoid woeful performances in major competitions.

Osasu Obayuiwana, Associate Editor of New African Magazine, said that the match was just a friendly encounter which would serve as part of the team’s rebuilding process.

“The team still has a lot of work to do in coordination to understand each other.

“For now there is no cause for me to complain too much since we won the match anyway,” he said.

Fred Edore, a sports journalist, said that the team was going through the process of reconstruction and confidence building.

“This is a new effort in rebuilding our football and all hands must be on deck,’’ he said.

“The technical crew did not limit the players to the already established ones; the home-based were equally given the opportunity to prove themselves, even the reserves played except the goalkeeper.”

On the choice of Sierra Leone, he said it was good for a team that is going through transformation.

Meanwhile, Siasia commended the Lagos fans but blamed the synthetic pitch for the 2-1 score.

“Lagos fans are wonderful, they are one of the best spectators in the world; they cheer you when you are playing well and boo you when you are not playing well.

“For me, playing in Lagos is like playing an away match and I need to play well to get the support of the fans.

“Our problem is not with the fans but with the pitch. Most of the players are playing for the first time on such a pitch which made it a bit difficult for them to express themselves.

“But what is most important for us is that we won; this is part of our preparation for the Nations’ Cup qualifier against Ethiopia which is a must win,” Siasia said.

Super Eagles captain Joseph Yobo called on the fans to keep supporting the team to bring back the country’s lost glory in football.

“Considering the time and preparation, the result is not bad for we put in our best to redeem the image of the national team after the poor performance of the World Cup in South Africa.

“The pitch and the limited time we had for preparation were responsible for the slim victory but we urge our fans to keep supporting us because this is a new Super Eagles,” Yobo said.

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Amuneke Lauds Super Focused Heartland

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Heartland Technical Manager, Emmanuel Amuneke has praised his players for not losing focus at the crucial moment in Sunday’s 2-1 home win over Shooting Stars in a NPFL Matchday 24 fixture in Owerri.
The Naze Millionaires defeated the Oluyole Warriors through Chukwuma Agor and John Bassey goals in the 31st and 88th minutes with Mustapha Adam’s 80th minute spot kick a mere consolation for the visitors.
Amuneke while speaking to journalists shortly after the encounter, said his boys showed the zeal and determination to seal the three points and that despite the shenanigans of the centre referee, Kolawole Emmanuel, the boys were never troubled.l
“We were eager to get the three points and we were aware Shooting Stars are a good side and won’t allow us to have our way easily,” Amuneke told journalists in Owerri.
“We planned for them and almost throughout the entire game, they were never a threat to our team. We were able to control the game from the beginning. It was unfortunate how the game ended. We were just focussed on the three points and we are thrilled we got it. It was a very good game from both sides but we subjected them to constant pressure almost throughout the game.”
While he was asked if he believed his boys could finish the season impressively, Amuneke was evasive but noted that he and his players would continue to work harder.
“Everything in line is possible but we know that nothing happens without hard work. We will continue to work harder and continue to see how we can grow as a team. We have a lot of young players in the team. Some of them just got their topflight breakthrough.
“We didn’t lose focus at the time of the controversies. We continued to do the same thing we have been doing and taking the game to them.”

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Former President Kicks Off New Bayelsa Stadium Project

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Former President Goodluck Jonathan, on Monday, turned the sod of the new Olympic-standard 25,000-capacity Bayelsa Stadium project at Igbogene, Yenagoa, as part of the activities marking the fifth anniversary of the Senator Douye Diri administration.
The former Nigerian leader performed the ground-breaking ceremony as Governor Diri restated his appeal to the federal government, the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), oil firms operating in the state and the private sector to join hands with his administration to develop sporting talents.
The Federal Government through the National Sports Commission (NSC) and the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) equally thumped up Governor Diri for initiating the project.
Dr. Jonathan expressed delight over the project, saying as a Bayelsan, he was duty bound to celebrate with the state government for the progress so far achieved.
He lauded Diri’s developmental strides, urging him not to rest on his laurels and that the contractor and the state government should ensure the project met the highest standards.
Jonathan also called on the state and federal governments to set up a sports fund to cater for sportsmen after their active days and encourage younger ones to be involved in sports.
He said: “This is my state and I have to celebrate with the government for the progress so far made. This is an iconic project that will develop the state. Please do not rest on your laurels as we want this stadium to meet the best standards.
“I am happy with the presence of relevant federal government officials. I hope they will guide the state well and support where necessary.
“As a country, we must have a fund to care for sportsmen. The federal and state government can think about it so that the younger generation will be interested in sports.
“I am happy that you gave a target of 24 months and I hope that by that time I will escort President Tinubu to Bayelsa to inaugurate it.”

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NFF Mourns Midfield Pearl, Ogunlana

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The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has condoled the family of former Nigeria international midfielder, Ayo Ogunlana, who died in Kaduna on Friday after observing his early-morning walk.
NFF General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, showered tributes on the departed midfield pearl, who was a star attraction during a number of important Nigeria FA Cup battles in the 1980s and held sway in the middle for the Super Eagles in the late 1980s, and at the 1990 Africa Cup of Nations finals in Algeria.
“We are very sad to learn of the sudden passing of Ayo Ogunlana, only a couple of weeks after the demise of another former Eagle, Moses Effiong (a member of the 1980 AFCON-winning Green Eagles squad, in far-away USA). Ogunlana was a great midfielder who made playing football look so easy with his majestic touches and turns, and his magnificent free-kicks.
“We pray that the Almighty will grant both of them eternal rest and grant the families they have left behind the fortitude to bear the losses.”
Ogunlana was magisterial in the midfield as Nigeria overhauled Guinea and Zimbabwe to qualify for the 1990 Africa Cup of Nations, and was imperial against Cameroon in a 1990 FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Ibadan that the Super Eagles won with an emphatic 2-0. He also played in the 1990 ECOWAS Cup competition that Nigeria hosted in Kaduna.

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