Fans Commend Eagles’ Commitment

Published

14 years ago

February 11, 2011

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.

CAF Postpones CHAN To August

Published

2 weeks ago

January 15, 2025

The Tide

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has announced the postponement of the TotalEnergies CAF African Nations Championship (CHAN), originally scheduled for February 1, in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, to August 2025.
The decision followed recommendations from CAF’s technical and infrastructure experts, who reported that more time is needed to bring the facilities in the host nations up to the required standards for a successful tournament.
CAF President Dr. Patrice Motsepe, in a statement on yesterday, January 14, 2025, expressed appreciation to the presidents of Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda for their support.
He emphasised that the postponement is intended to ensure adequate planning and infrastructure readiness for the competition.
“I would like to express my deep gratitude to President William Ruto of Kenya, President Samia Suluhu Hassan of Tanzania and President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda for their leadership, commitment and the good progress that has been made in building and upgrading the stadiums, training fields, hotels, hospitals and other infrastructure and facilities in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda for hosting a successful TotalEnergies African Nations Championship (CHAN) Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda 2024.
“I am impressed with the ongoing construction and renovations of the football infrastructure and facilities in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. I am confident that the stadiums, training fields, hotels, hospitals and other infrastructure and facilities will be at the requisite CAF standards for hosting, in August 2025, a very successful TotalEnergies African Nations Championship (“CHAN”) Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda 2024″, he said.
However, the exact date for the completion was not disclosed but the CHAN 2024 Draw is scheduled for Wednesday 15 January, 2025 at the iconic Kenyatta International Conventional Centre, Nairobi.

Sports

Chelle Sure To Qualify For 2026 W’Cup

Published

2 weeks ago

January 15, 2025

The Tide

New Super Eagles coach Eric Chelle has expressed his desire to lead Nigeria to the ‘pinnacle of world football’ starting with the ticket to the 2026 World Cup as he takes the reign of the three-time African champions.
Chelle was unveiled on Monday at a brief ceremony at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja by the Nigeria Football Federation, one week after his announcement as the 37th coach of the Super Eagles.
He was handed a two-year deal with an option to extend if he gets the 2026 FIFA World Cup ticket.
Since his appointment last week, the NFF has constantly hammered the coach’s task of leading Nigeria to the tournament which will be played in the USA, Canada and Mexico despite the precarious situation of the Eagles in the qualifying series.
After four rounds of matches in the series, Nigeria are fifth in Group C with just three points having only drawn three and lost one.
To avert the danger of missing out on a consecutive FIFA World Cup, the Eagles must win all their six remaining matches in the group or even hope for favourable results in other ties – a task Chelle fronted at his unveiling.
Asked if he would take responsibility at the end of the qualifying campaign, the ex-Mali coach said, “If you want to be a great coach, you need to take some risks, you need to make some sacrifices.
“I want to be in the history. The first thing, I need to talk to the players. I will be a big brother. It is my prayer that we are going to the World Cup.
“I want to thank my agent, the NFF, the NSC and indeed all Nigerians for this big opportunity. Coaching the Super Eagles of Nigeria is an amazing job; I do not take this appointment for granted. I am elated and will do my utmost best.”
For most of the reactions that have trailed his appointment, the rallying point was his enterprising and attacking style with the Mali national team at the AFCON, which he emphasised he would be bringing to Nigeria.
“Football is about scoring goals, so I favour an attacking style. I know the expectations of Nigerians and I will settle down and work diligently with assistants towards the goal of qualifying the Super Eagles for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.”
The 47-year-old also relished his long-time dream of getting the Super Eagles job, having been a fan of the Nigerian national team in his boyhood.
“Nigeria’s team is more than a team. When I was young, this was my favourite team. I owned a shirt; I watched all the games at the World Cup in France. I was in Marseille and it was my team.
“From this very moment, I am already hard at work. My goal is clear: to restore the Super Eagles to the pinnacle of world football, where they truly belong. This will require hard work, discipline, and a strategy that is both ambitious and realistic. I will rely on the exceptional talent of our players, whether they play at home or abroad, and build a team that reflects the unity, strength, and excellence of Nigeria,” the coach added in a social media post.
Chelle, who took Mali’s Aiglons within breathing distance of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations semi-finals, left his job at top Algerian side MC Oran – 1989 African Champions’ Cup finalists – to team up with the Super Eagles.

Sports

Gokana Chairmanship Cup Symbol Of Unity Peace – Chairman

Published

2 weeks ago

January 15, 2025

The Tide

Gokana Local Government Council, Chairman Hon. Monday Dumiye has said that 2024 Gokana Chairmanship Cup symbolises unity, peace and love for Gokana people.
Hon. Dumiye said this during the grand finale of the 2024 Gokana Chairmanship cup titled “Unity Cup” as the fourth edition of the Chairmanship Cup ended last Saturday at Kpor, the council headquarters.
He expressed gratitude to the Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminialayi Fubara for his tremendous support, most especially the peace Rivers people are enjoying including Gokana LGA.
He also applauded members of the local organising committee of the tournament and all those that contributed towards the success of the championship.
He hinted the huge crowd witnessed during the tournament shows peace has come to stay in Gokana,saying that it has been his intention to ensure that there is peace ,unity and togetherness among the people.
” Without peace we all know that there will be no meaningful development. I want to say that it is the first of its kind in the annals of the people to use the instrumentality of sports to develop talented Gokana youths.
“The mamoth crowd you are seeing here today shows our people have embraced peace. This is exactly what we intend to achieve uniting our people through sports.
On his part, former Super Eagles player and current coach of Rivers United, Finidi George, commended the Gokana Chairman for organising such a wonderful tournament for the youth.
He advised the chairman to form a formidable team from the tournament, admitting the unprecedented crowd that witnessed the championship shows that the chairman is on the right direction.
The Leader of the Simplified in Gokana, Hon. Friday Beema thanked the Chairman for his zeal to develop Gokana.
He also commended the Rivers Governor forgiving them well focused Chairman who reason like him.
The leader called on the people of the area to support Governor Fubara for the development of Gokana.