Sports
Team Spirit, Attacking Football To Inspire Algeria In Angola 2010 Nations Cup
Blackpool’s Hameur Bouazza believes team spirit and attacking football can inspire Algeria to a shock Africa Cup of Nations title in Angola.
The North Africans failed to qualify for the last Nations Cup but confidence is running high following their recent qualification for the 2010 World Cup.
Algeria have been drawn in Group A at the Nations Cup alongside hosts Angola, Mali and Malawi.
“We definitely believe we can win the competition,” Bouazza told Tidesports source.
“As well as beating Egypt twice, we’ve done well against big teams like Brazil and Argentina in recent friendlies.
“We are going to be focussing on winning our first game against Malawi because Mali and Angola are both very strong sides,” says Bouazza.
“Having said that, I think Malawi will be thinking the same thing.
“I would say Angola are the biggest threat in the group because they will have all the supporters with them. Their players will be targeting going very far in the competition.
“It’s going to be a difficult tournament but I really believe we can do something big in Angola.”
The manager likes us to pass the ball and we have lots of quick players, which makes us dangerous Algeria’s Hameur Bouazza
He says that coach Rabah Sadaane is proving inspirational.
“The manager encourages us all the time and that is what we needed, as all players need confidence to do well,” he explained.
“The manager believes we can do well in the competition and that means the whole squad now believes as well.
“We want to remind a few people that Algeria are still here.”
Algeria were among the early standard bearers for African football but have been in the wilderness since hosting and winning the Nations Cup in 1990.
The Desert Foxes have had to watch on in envy as their North African rivals Tunisia (2004) and Egypt (2006 and 2008) have won three consecutive continental titles.
After edging Egypt to the final African spot at the World Cup in South Africa this year, Bouazza insists Algeria are scared of no one as they approach Angola.
“I would love to play Egypt again, to prove that it was not luck that we beat them,” he said.
“We won with hard work and because we have lots of talented players.
“Our team’s got really good character, our team spirit is probably our greatest strength.
“Teams win games when everyone is happy and that is the case with Algeria.”
Saadane is a hero in his home country after leading Algeria to World Cups in 1982 and 1986 as well as South Africa this year.
“It is not all down to the manager,” says Bouazza.
“Attractive football comes naturally to Algerians. He has got the best out of us though.
“We have been playing 3-5-2 recently, which suits us.
“The manager likes Nadir Belhadj to bomb forward and gets lots of crosses in, as we have lots of players who are good in the air up front.
“The manager likes us to pass the ball and we have lots of quick players, which makes us dangerous.”
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
