These Algerians are useless, they couldn't win any match throughout the qualifiers despite their star studded team, not even their home match against Zambia to at least provide us with 2 dead rubber games.

Theirs is to go about looking for loopholes in order to get some miserable 3 points/3 goals that would be of no benefits to them.

Goke7:
Away from the FIFA sanction pls, is it true what am hearing that Everton is chasing Mikel, hmmmm abeg o, I don't want injuries in a world cup year o!

that chinese balm on mikel's legs working wonders is what I need in Russia o. Just my thoughts

That will probably be his last move if it happeneds to be true

mazimee:



That will probably be his last move if it happeneds to be true

Rumours.

Everton can not afford him.

Wait a minute, what about the match commissioner? We were supposed to be notified immediately Shehu received that card against Zambia. "Shehu misses the next match" should have been displayed on the screen. CAF were also uninformed??

Danycrusoe:
[b]From Champions League to Checkatrade Trophy - why has Iheanacho bombed at Leicester?

[/b]Dec 13, 2017 10:30:00 Premier League

Signed for £25 million from Manchester City in the summer, the forward has started just two league games this season and could leave in January

At the age of 21, Kelechi Iheanacho has played in excess of 50 Premier League matches, has eight Champions League appearances under his belt, has garnered a £25 million transfer fee and is hopeful of leading the line for his country at this summer’s World Cup.

Why, then, has his only club start since late October come at Glanford Park, the home of Scunthorpe United, in a competition that primarily consists of clubs from England’s third and fourth tiers?


Eyebrows were raised when Leicester City opted to play six genuine first-team players in their recent Checkatrade Trophy victory in north Lincolnshire, no more so than when it was revealed that the Foxes’s primary summer signing would be starting up front.

Though Claude Puel was obviously keen for the Nigeria international to get some football having not appeared for the 2015-16 champions since November 18, Leicester fans have unsurprisingly been asking just why he has not been given more of an opportunity.

“He is a good player and if he improves he will find his place in the squad,” Puel said at the end of November. “We have a lot of players in this position. It is good competition between them and we will need all these players with good qualities and attitude.”

Since making those comments, Iheanacho has played precisely zero minutes in the Premier League, and was even left out of the squad altogether for the recent win against Tottenham.

Puel will rightly point to his side’s results in that period — three victories and a draw — but if Iheanacho cannot force his way in during the busy festive schedule, starting with Wednesday’s clash at Southampton, the question of whether he even has a future at the King Power Stadium must be asked.

A foot injury picked up in pre-season coupled with the good early season form of Shinji Okazaki alongside Jamie Vardy meant opportunities were hard to come by for Iheanacho in the immediate aftermath of his departure from Manchester City. The only hope he had was then-manager Craig Shakespeare’s insistence on playing two strikers as he looked to recapture the magic of the title-winning campaign of two seasons ago.

With Shakespeare now gone, though, Puel has reverted to a 4-2-3-1 system in a bid to allow Riyad Mahrez more freedom as well as bring Demarai Gray into the starting XI - and has picked up immediate results. It is no coincidence Iheanacho — who once upon a time boasted the best minutes-per-goal record of any player to have netted on at least 10 occasions in the Premier League — made his last league start in Shakespeare’s final game in charge.

So how does Iheanacho work himself into Puel’s plans? In just over six months’ time, he will be hoping to be starting his first World Cup match against Croatia ahead of facing down Lionel Messi and Argentina later in the group stage. Odion Ighalo has recently usurped him as the Super Eagles's first-choice striker, and it would be foolhardy for them to believe they can realistically rely on a player who has barely kicked a ball in anger in the months leading into the tournament.

One area where Iheanacho can improve is his adaptability. He was regularly compared to Marcus Rashford when both players were coming through the ranks on either side of the Manchester divide, and it is noticeable how Rashford has been able to maintain a regular place within the United line-up despite the arrivals of Romelu Lukaku and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Undoubtedly a different kind of player from the England forward, Iheanacho can still pick up some lessons in terms of how open Rashford is to attempting to further his game in unfamiliar roles while also learning from the likes of Vardy and Okazaki back at Leicester, particularly when it comes to work-rate.

Puel has commented that the youngster is unable to play out wide, but with Mahrez likely to be the subject of yet more transfer speculation in January, a push from Iheanacho to prove he can help fill the void — either as a winger or a No.10 — might see him earn his chance.

The only other option would be me to move on in the upcoming January transfer window. West Ham were interested in his services during the summer while the likes of Newcastle and West Brom are desperately looking for a genuine goalscorer to help lift themselves away from trouble.

“Time will tell. The window is not open, we will see,” Puel said in the aftermath of Saturday’s win over Newcastle. With the likes of Islam Slimani, Leonardo Ulloa and Ahmed Musa also vying for a place in attack, it seems inevitable at least one will be moved on before the start of February.

What is for certain is that after 17 Premier League matches without a goal and having not played 90 minutes in the league since September 2016, Iheanacho needs to change something. Whether that is his own game or the club he plays for is up for debate, but one of the brightest young strikers in the English game simply cannot spend the remainder of the campaign playing in the Checkatrade Trophy.

source: http://m.goal.com/x/en-ng/news/4071/premier-league/2017/12/13/40994692/from-champions-league-to-checkatrade-trophy-why-has

Yet some fans vehemently oppose the invitation of Martins for frivolous reasons.
We better get real.

I'm hearing that Nigeria is playing Poland in Marchkudos to NFF. But please, NFF should ensure we have a 2nd game in that March window. Most teams are playing 2 games. Even non-worldcup bound teams are playing 2 friendlies. How much more a WC bound team. We could use that avenue to play against either, Denmark, Norway or Finland. I hear Lagerback is now coach of Norway and you know he moulded the core basics of the Icelandic team. I believe we can quickly get Norway to play in March. Not every time big team.

As I said earlier nobody in Africa knew. I'm even sure that the Asian and CONCACAF teams that have different preliminary rounds would have not known these rules. I bet every one is looking to see where the rule is embedded. Although I'm sure the WC starts with a clean slate it'll be good to ensure that no single yellow card offence is transferred to the actual WC. But I know that it's wiped out. But with FIFA u no de know when them de change rules.

junnyjake:
Wait a minute, what about the match commissioner? We were supposed to be notified immediately Shehu received that card against Zambia. "Shehu misses the next match" should have been displayed on the screen. CAF were also uninformed??

No! this is really disgusting as much as it is annoying. You qualified from the group stage of a competition to the next round and you expect the card records to be automatically wiped out??


Oh God, Someone who's getting paid makes such consequential assumptions that could have cost us our place at the mundial, and some people see nothing wrong that and are ready to sweep that act of gross negligence under the carpet; How pathetic.

Oh, how I love the Brits.

The excuse of the person in charge being hospitalized just makes this all the more annoying, what if he had died, won't anyone be there to replace him?? If nobody was made to replace him, then the head of the team should be the one on firing line.


I'm a professional, I didn't get to where I am today by making stupid mistakes, and no one would ever forgive me if I made professional mistakes that would cause my organization serious harm.

With this singular show of incompetence, I'm not sure what to expect from the NFF come 2018 at the Mundial.

Dedebanky85:
As I said earlier nobody in Africa knew. I'm even sure that the Asian and CONCACAF teams that have different preliminary rounds would have not known these rules. I bet every one is looking to see where the rule is embedded. Although I'm sure the WC starts with a clean slate it'll be good to ensure that no single yellow card offence is transferred to the actual WC. But I know that it's wiped out. But with FIFA u no de know when them de change rules.

No one knew??

Well, it's their job to know, they are paid to know, you mean, no one is paid to read and interpret the FIFA rule book? No legal adviser to the NFF technical committee?

Dedebanky85:
I'm hearing that Nigeria is playing Poland in Marchkudos to NFF. But please, NFF should ensure we have a 2nd game in that March window. Most teams are playing 2 games. Even non-worldcup bound teams are playing 2 friendlies. How much more a WC bound team. We could use that avenue to play against either, Denmark, Norway or Finland. I hear Lagerback is now coach of Norway and you know he moulded the core basics of the Icelandic team. I believe we can quickly get Norway to play in March. Not every time big team.

I am sure, they will try and get another match.

I am sure they have someone. But these over sights happen and from Amaju's tweets, I think they were already mooting the idea of reorganizing the Technical Group. I just think this has triggered it. Expect changes sooner than expected.

junnyjake:



No one knew??

Well, it's their job to know, they are paid to know, you mean, no one is paid to read and interpret the FIFA rule book? No legal adviser to the NFF technical committee?

Dedebanky85:
I am sure they have someone. But these over sights happen and from Amaju's tweets, I think they were already mooting the idea of reorganizing the Technical Group. I just think this has triggered it. Expect changes sooner than expected.

Seriously, there better be.

Could have been two. Who knows....


How injury saved Eagles from fielding 2nd ineligible player

.com - source

Dec 13, 2017 8:58 AM



The Super Eagles could have fielded TWO ineligible players for the final 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Algeria, if not for what is now a stroke of fortune.

FIFA on Tuesday, fined the Nigeria Football Federation 6,000 CHF, for fielding Shehu Abdullahi in the dead-rubber match, while also subsequently awarding the match by a 3-0 scoreline to the Algerians, even though it originally ended 1-1.

However, it has now been revealed that had it not been for the injury which ruled him out of the game, Ogenyi Onazi could have been the second ineligible player fielded against Algeria, as he was the second Super Eagles player FIFA warned was ineligible for the match after he was also booked twice previously in the qualifiers.

SCORENigeria quoted an unnamed Super Eagles official as saying: “Shehu Abdullahi and Ogenyi Onazi were the two players FIFA warned were ineligible for the Algeria match a month to the game.

“But while the Eagles went on to play Shehu in the match, Onazi could not feature because he was injured.”

The ruling, however, does not affect Nigeria’s qualification to Russia 2018 as they still finished with 13 points from six matches as Zambia were a distant second on eight points.

Uche Agbo: I Have Played Against Croatia's Barca & Real Madrid Stars, Mikel Our Biggest Star
Published: December 10, 2017




Uche Agbo says he is unfazed by the prospect of facing Barcelona star Ivan Rakitić and Real Madrid's Luka Modrić at the 2018 World Cup as he has come up against the pair while in Spain with Granada.


And the Standard Liege man has warned Croatia not to underrate the Super Eagles at the World Cup, adding that the biggest star on the team is ex-Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel.


''I played against Rakitić and Modric, fought with them, I learned first hand the kind of players they are, '' says Uche to
Croatian website sportske.jutarnji.hr.


''We have a tough group, one of the most difficult at the World Cup, Argentina and Croatia are excellent teams, however, we certainly do not come to Russia just to play, our ambition is to go far.''

Uche added : ''We're a young team, but
powerful, talented. We have several players already playing in the big clubs, in the English Premier League, there is also our biggest star Obi Mikel.


''We have confidence, we have qualified without defeat, we are considered legitimate candidates to advance to the second round, these are the minimal ambitions we will have at the World Cup.


''We are coming to Russia to impress the soccer world, to show what kind of football is in Africa and Nigeria. We are hungry for the big results, because we have not been so successful so far.''

Uche Agbo is a teammate of Croatia international striker Duje Čop at Standard Liege.

ANS

If we are to look at the positives from this embarrassment it's that the federation will be under severe pressure and criticism especially after abandoning the team in rio. With this stupid mistake our federation can buckle up and become more organized.
Just like the South Africa match which was a wake up call for our team! this should serve as a kick in the ass of NNF officials to get thier shit together, you can't aim for success and make such mistake. Assuming those points cost us the World Cup ticket I can bet every penny a lot of these Anglo/Nigerian players would lose the love and interest in the country, I can only imagine the emotional trauma it would have caused the players were we not to qualify. we also would not get any of the top prospects, what's the use when they they hustle and fight for success then some official causes the team failure just because of laziness and incompetencey.
Our president has apologized it's accepted since it didn't cost us, but this kind of situation cannot repeat themselves.

Sorry, but our searchlight isn't really on the MLS.


Russia 2018: Klinsmann recommends Adi to Rohr



• As Poland picks Nigeria ahead of Ghana


By Emma Jemegah




Former USA head coach and Germany World Cup star, Jurgen Klinsmann, has recommended MLS’ Portland Timbers striker, Fanendo Adi to Super Eagles technical adviser, Gernot Rohr.


Klinsmann had, towards the end of his contract with the USA national team, courted Adi to swap nationality and play for the American team having developed interest in the Nigerian’s ability to play the box and wide attacking roles conveniently, a move the Nigerian rebuffed.

The former Germany captain was said to have called Rohr to brief him of the abilities of the Nigerian striker.


According to the German, Adi has the qualities that are rare in modern strikers and could be of immense importance to the Nigerian attacking style.


“This guy is a great guy with absolute ability to combine the box and wide striking roles effectively with a huge area strength. I was talking to him about switching over to USA but it seems he had much hopes and respect for his homeland, maybe if I had stayed back with the American national team he would have changed his decision but I really want to believe that Gernot will be excited with this young man,” he was quoted to have said.


Klinsmann is on the verge of landing the Australia national team job after completing his interview with Australia FA on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Media Officer of the Polish Football Association (PZPN), Jakub Kwiatkowski, has reconfirmed that the Poles will face the Super Eagles in a pre-World Cup friendly on March 23, 2018 but stressed that the venue of the match has not yet been decided.


Nigeria national team coach Gernot Rohr first revealed that a friendly was in the offing which was later confirmed by the head of the PZPN, Zbigniew Boniek.


Poland who have been paired with Colombia, Japan and Senegal at the World Cup, were looking for a strong rival from Africa with whom they could play a friendly match and there was talk about a possible clash with Ghana, but the choice ultimately fell to Super Eagles, writes Sport Onet.


Jakub Kwiatkowski, spokesman of the PZPN tweeted on Monday : ‘’We can confirm that on March 23, we’re playing with Nigeria. Decisions on the venue of the match not yet made.’’

Nigeria thrashed Argentina 4-2 in their first pre-World Cup friendly staged in Krasnodar on November 14.

Sunnewsonline

Moses: Honoured To Make My 200th EPL Appearance




By Johnny Edward: Chelsea’s Nigerian wing-back, Victor Moses, says he feels honoured to have capped his 200th English Premier League (EPL) appearance with a win on his 27th birthday, Completesportsnigeria.com reports.

The 27 year old Nigeria international made his 10th EPL appearance of the 2017/18 season for Chelsea in Tuesday’s 3-1 win over Huddersfield Town at the John Smith Stadium.


Moses has featured for Crystal Palace, Wigan, Chelsea, Stoke City, Liverpool and West Ham in the EPL and has made 67 appearances for Chelsea in the EPL having made his debut against Sunderland on February 6, 2010.


Moses becomes the seventh Nigerian player to have attained such enviable achievement in the EPL after Shola Ameobi (298 games), Nwankwo Kanu (273 games), Yakubu Aiyegbeni (252 games), John Obi Mikel (249), Joseph Yobo (228) and Victor Anichebe (204).


The BBC African Footballer of the Year and CAF African Player of the Year nominee…

Who is the best Nigerian player in the Juliper Pro league currently this seasons going by this statistics?

Pls, list dem according to how you rate dem based on their statistics.

Then afterwards, compare the players in the same position and choose the best.

Numbers of
.Name..........Pos.........games....goal....Assist...min

1 Onyekuru - LW........26.........10........0......1,885

2. Dennis.......CF.........21........11.........2......1,125

3. Olayinka..LW.........19..........5..........9......1,623

4. Simon......LW.........19.........5...........3.....1,579

5. Kalu.........RW........18........4.............3......1.061

6. Ajagun.... AMF.....21.........5............3......1.619

I don't think the best is what you think it is based on these statistics.

junnyjake:
Sorry, but our searchlight isn't really on the MLS.


Russia 2018: Klinsmann recommends Adi to Rohr



• As Poland picks Nigeria ahead of Ghana


By Emma Jemegah




Former USA head coach and Germany World Cup star, Jurgen Klinsmann, has recommended MLS’ Portland Timbers striker, Fanendo Adi to Super Eagles technical adviser, Gernot Rohr.


Klinsmann had, towards the end of his contract with the USA national team, courted Adi to swap nationality and play for the American team having developed interest in the Nigerian’s ability to play the box and wide attacking roles conveniently, a move the Nigerian rebuffed.

The former Germany captain was said to have called Rohr to brief him of the abilities of the Nigerian striker.


According to the German, Adi has the qualities that are rare in modern strikers and could be of immense importance to the Nigerian attacking style.


“This guy is a great guy with absolute ability to combine the box and wide striking roles effectively with a huge area strength. I was talking to him about switching over to USA but it seems he had much hopes and respect for his homeland, maybe if I had stayed back with the American national team he would have changed his decision but I really want to believe that Gernot will be excited with this young man,” he was quoted to have said.


Klinsmann is on the verge of landing the Australia national team job after completing his interview with Australia FA on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Media Officer of the Polish Football Association (PZPN), Jakub Kwiatkowski, has reconfirmed that the Poles will face the Super Eagles in a pre-World Cup friendly on March 23, 2018 but stressed that the venue of the match has not yet been decided.


Nigeria national team coach Gernot Rohr first revealed that a friendly was in the offing which was later confirmed by the head of the PZPN, Zbigniew Boniek.


Poland who have been paired with Colombia, Japan and Senegal at the World Cup, were looking for a strong rival from Africa with whom they could play a friendly match and there was talk about a possible clash with Ghana, but the choice ultimately fell to Super Eagles, writes Sport Onet.


Jakub Kwiatkowski, spokesman of the PZPN tweeted on Monday : ‘’We can confirm that on March 23, we’re playing with Nigeria. Decisions on the venue of the match not yet made.’’

Nigeria thrashed Argentina 4-2 in their first pre-World Cup friendly staged in Krasnodar on November 14.

Sunnewsonline

Adi has not been given a fair shot. He could be a decent addition to the initial 30.

junnyjake:
Uche Agbo: I Have Played Against Croatia's Barca & Real Madrid Stars, Mikel Our Biggest Star
Published: December 10, 2017




Uche Agbo says he is unfazed by the prospect of facing Barcelona star Ivan Rakitić and Real Madrid's Luka Modrić at the 2018 World Cup as he has come up against the pair while in Spain with Granada.


And the Standard Liege man has warned Croatia not to underrate the Super Eagles at the World Cup, adding that the biggest star on the team is ex-Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel.


''I played against Rakitić and Modric, fought with them, I learned first hand the kind of players they are, '' says Uche to
Croatian website sportske.jutarnji.hr.


''We have a tough group, one of the most difficult at the World Cup, Argentina and Croatia are excellent teams, however, we certainly do not come to Russia just to play, our ambition is to go far.''

Uche added : ''We're a young team, but
powerful, talented. We have several players already playing in the big clubs, in the English Premier League, there is also our biggest star Obi Mikel.


''We have confidence, we have qualified without defeat, we are considered legitimate candidates to advance to the second round, these are the minimal ambitions we will have at the World Cup.


''We are coming to Russia to impress the soccer world, to show what kind of football is in Africa and Nigeria. We are hungry for the big results, because we have not been so successful so far.''

Uche Agbo is a teammate of Croatia international striker Duje Čop at Standard Liege.

ANS

My guy dey try hard market himself ,u better buckle up,ur slot no sure

tbaba1234:


Adi has not been given a fair shot. He could be a decent addition to the initial 30.

Sia1 been no try for the guy at all. And I'm not sure Rorh has eyes on the MLS though.

elyte89:





My guy dey try hard market himself ,u better buckle up,ur slot no sure

Them never give the guy chance now, we said sane thing about Ogu, he was given a chance and he took it.

What are going to do with a friendly against Egypt for God's sake??

ummm

junnyjake:



Them never give the guy chance now, we said sane thing about Ogu, he was given a chance and he took it.

But what's d rationale behind his call up wout bin tested... Ever since rohr is at d helms of affairs,Dis guy keeps getting called up,but not tested..
Na dis kind case forgiveness suppose fight,maybe his Almighty "MARTINS" Av a look in

Which of these midfield combos would you choose at any point in the game?


Ndidi ---- Onazi ----- Mikel

Ndidi ----- Onazi ----- Agu

Ndidi ----- Ogu ------ Mikel

Onazi ----- Ogu ------ Mikel

Onazi ------ Joel Obi ---- Mikel

Ndidi ----- Joel ----- Mikel

Ndidi ---- Onazi ----- Etebo

Barcelona In Attendace As Super Eagle Joel Obi Stars Against Lazio

Published: December 13, 2017
Barcelona In Attendace As Super Eagle Joel Obi Stars Against Lazio
Attacking midfielder Joel Obi showed off his skills to Barcelona representatives during Torino's impressive 3-1 win at Lazio on game week 16 in the Italian Serie A on Monday, December 11.

According to Sportmediaset, making reference to Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo, technical secretary of Barcelona Robert Fernandez and one of his scouts closely followed the match at Stadio Olimpico in Rome.

And it is being suggested that Spanish midfielder Luis Alberto, wearing the number 18 jersey for Lazio, was the main attraction.

Joel Obi has thrived for Torino in the current season, having been directly involved in five goals (3 goals, 2 assists) in ten appearances across all competitions.

The Nigeria international played well following his introduction for the last fifteen minutes against the Biancocelesti.

He is contracted to Torino until the summer of 2019.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel

http://www.allnigeriasoccer.com/read_news.php?nid=25811

elyte89:



But what's d rationale behind his call up wout bin tested... Ever since rohr is at d helms of affairs,Dis guy keeps getting called up,but not tested..
Na dis kind case forgiveness suppose fight,maybe his Almighty "MARTINS" Av a look in

That tells you the kind of Manager Rorh is, he hardly test new players. Isn't he thesame man who played same lineup against Cameroon home and away, and against Zambia? If not for injuries, you'd probably see a more similar lineup against Algeria and Argentina.


Even forgiveness would tell you, Uche deserves to be in the 23s.


Mind you, there's no guarantee that any player that takes his place in the 23s would automatically get a look in. There must be players who should be there to make up the 23-man number.

FIFA SANCTION: 5 Other Times NFF’s Negligence Embarrassed Nigeria

By Kayode Ogundare :

News broke late Tuesday that the Federation of International Football federation (FIFA) had wielded the big stick to sanction Nigeria by voiding the Super Eagles’ hard-earned one point from the last 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying game against Algeria in Constantine last October.


FIFA’s grouse was that Nigeria fielded an ineligible Shehu Abdulahi who had copped two yellow cards in the games against Swaziland away in November 2015 and in Uyo against Zambia last October. By FIFA rules he was supposed to have missed the game against Algeria but through the negligence of some officials who should have spotted and alerted the coaching crew, he went on to play the full 90 minutes in the ultimately meaningless tie against Algeria, a 1-1 draw that has now been awarded as a 3-0 win to the North Africans.


Completesportsnigeria.com trails and presents five other times that the negligence of the NFF had caused Nigeria embarrassment and, in some cases, lengthy bans from the game of football.


1. South African Matchballs debacle 2017
The opening day AFCON 2019 qualification game against South Africa in Uyo last June resulted in a 2-0 defeat for the Super Eagles against all expectations. However, the news out of the home loss was the information that filtered out after the game that the matchday balls used for the game actually belonged to the South Africans as the NFF could not provide the balls to be used for the game.
South Africa branded their balls with a red marker before allowing them to be used for the match.

Apparently, the players had been training with the wrong set of balls which were different from the FIFA-approved ones for the game as the NFF were said to be too broke to take delivery of the balls sent by FIFA.
Whether this was enough excuse to have lost the game to South Africa or not, the fact remained that somebody neglected to do his job and it cost Nigeria not just three points but also caused us international embarrassment.


2. Golden Eaglets passport scandal 1997
After failing to go beyond the quarter-final stages at the 1995 FIFA U-17 World Cup in 1995, the NFF mandated coach Fanny Amu to put together a crack squad for the 1997 edition which would be capable of redeeming Nigeria’s image in age-grade competition and win again the cadet cup which we had won twice previously in 1985 and 1993.


However, in the team’s first competitive African Youth Championship qualifier against Benin Republic at the Liberty Stadium (now Obafemi Awolowo Stadium) Ibadan in 1996, it was discovered that the NFF had forgotten the players’ passport in Lagos!
Muyiwa Lawal, in 3SC colours here, was one of the Golden Eaglets of 1997 set which won the Meridien Cup in Portugal
The Beninoise, sensing a backyard victory over their more illustrious neighbours, refused to start the game despite assurances that somebody would be dispatched to Lagos to bring the passports before the end of the game. They protested to CAF which upheld their protest and kicked out the Golden Eaglets from the qualifiers without kicking a ball.

A glimpse of how good that generation of young players which included Ejike Izuagha, Muyiwa Lawal, Hashimu Garba etal was seen at the 1997 UEFA-CAF Meridian Cup where they beat Spain 3-2 in the final of the friendly invitational tournament in Portugal.
Again, we would never know if that squad would have won the World U-17 title in Egypt which Brazil won after a 2-1 victory over Ghana.


3. Forgotten shorts 1991
On July 27th, 1991, Nigeria’s Super Eagles were billed to play the Stallions of Burkina Faso in the last game of the qualification race to the 1992 AFCON. The national stadium Surulere was already packed to the rafters with an enthusiastic of fans who’d come to witness how the Burkinabes would be slaughtered.

The Super Eagles at Senegal ’92
Both set of players were in their respective dressing rooms and Nigeria manager was rounding off a quick last-minute strategy session when somebody raised the alarm that the Super Eagles kits were missing. Somebody forgot to bring them from the team’s camp in Otta, some 25-minutes drive away from Lagos. It was just five minutes to kick-off and nothing was going to stop the match referee, Guinea’s Karim Camara from going ahead with the game. Except, probably, a walk-over for the home team.

According to former Super Eagles defender Rueben Agboola who was on the starting line-up, the referee was about to call the game off when someone suggested that they cut off the tracksuit bottoms and use as shorts. A scissors was quickly found and the players emerged from the dug-out with knee-length shorts.

It was an amusing sight seeing the Super Eagles players chasing down balls in ridiculous-looking shorts but, fortunately, that didn’t stop the players from winning handsomely with a 7-1 annihilation of their opponents.


4. Banned from age-grade competitions 1989
In 1989, FIFA placed a two year ban on Nigeria from participating in FIFA age-grade tournaments and also withdrew the country’s right to host the 1991 World Youth Championship.
Captain Samson Siasia leading the Super Eagles out for a match was one of the players involved in the 1989 ban


The infraction for which Nigeria was banned was the alleged falsification of the ages of three players, Andrew Uwe, Samson Siasia and Dahiru Sadi.
The trio had featured for Nigeria in the U-20 World Cups of Mexico ’83 and Moscow ’85 and had altered their ages to participate in the Seoul ’88 Olympics.

FIFA had condemned this negligence on the part of the then NFA but the two-year ban of 1989 ensured a 10-year absence for the Flying Eagles at the FIFA U-20 World Cup as they couldn’t qualify until Nigeria hosted the world in 1999.


5. Obafemi Martins’ age mix-up 2005
In 2005, in the heat of the qualification race to the 2006 World Cup in Germany, the NFA put itself, and Nigeria, up for public ridicule by feeding false information to the world which threatened the career of striker Obafemi Martins, then playing for Italian giants Inter Milan. The NFA put Obafemi Martins at the centre of an age dispute by stating falsely, on the website, that the player was born on May 1, 1978 instead of the authentic date of October 28, 1984.


This negligence embarrassed Martins who was branded an age cheat and affirmed the stereotype about Nigeria being a country of criminals. The player was so infuriated that he vowed never to play for the country again. While he rescinded his decision, Nigeria ultimately failed to make it to the World Cup of that year.

On the same website, since yanked off, the NFA claimed that former midfielder Seyi Olofinjana made his national team debut on June 12, 1980, two years before he was born on November 15, 1982!

Nigerians will heave a sigh of relief that this latest sanction did not cost the nation more than international embarrassment but hope that the NFF president Amaju Pinick will live up to his promise to fish out and punish the negligent staff responsible for this international ridicule.

Onlinenigeria

junnyjake:
FIFA SANCTION: 5 Other Times NFF’s Negligence Embarrassed Nigeria

By Kayode Ogundare :

News broke late Tuesday that the Federation of International Football federation (FIFA) had wielded the big stick to sanction Nigeria by voiding the Super Eagles’ hard-earned one point from the last 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying game against Algeria in Constantine last October.


FIFA’s grouse was that Nigeria fielded an ineligible Shehu Abdulahi who had copped two yellow cards in the games against Swaziland away in November 2015 and in Uyo against Zambia last October. By FIFA rules he was supposed to have missed the game against Algeria but through the negligence of some officials who should have spotted and alerted the coaching crew, he went on to play the full 90 minutes in the ultimately meaningless tie against Algeria, a 1-1 draw that has now been awarded as a 3-0 win to the North Africans.


Completesportsnigeria.com trails and presents five other times that the negligence of the NFF had caused Nigeria embarrassment and, in some cases, lengthy bans from the game of football.


1. South African Matchballs debacle 2017
The opening day AFCON 2019 qualification game against South Africa in Uyo last June resulted in a 2-0 defeat for the Super Eagles against all expectations. However, the news out of the home loss was the information that filtered out after the game that the matchday balls used for the game actually belonged to the South Africans as the NFF could not provide the balls to be used for the game.
South Africa branded their balls with a red marker before allowing them to be used for the match.

Apparently, the players had been training with the wrong set of balls which were different from the FIFA-approved ones for the game as the NFF were said to be too broke to take delivery of the balls sent by FIFA.
Whether this was enough excuse to have lost the game to South Africa or not, the fact remained that somebody neglected to do his job and it cost Nigeria not just three points but also caused us international embarrassment.


2. Golden Eaglets passport scandal 1997
After failing to go beyond the quarter-final stages at the 1995 FIFA U-17 World Cup in 1995, the NFF mandated coach Fanny Amu to put together a crack squad for the 1997 edition which would be capable of redeeming Nigeria’s image in age-grade competition and win again the cadet cup which we had won twice previously in 1985 and 1993.


However, in the team’s first competitive African Youth Championship qualifier against Benin Republic at the Liberty Stadium (now Obafemi Awolowo Stadium) Ibadan in 1996, it was discovered that the NFF had forgotten the players’ passport in Lagos!
Muyiwa Lawal, in 3SC colours here, was one of the Golden Eaglets of 1997 set which won the Meridien Cup in Portugal
The Beninoise, sensing a backyard victory over their more illustrious neighbours, refused to start the game despite assurances that somebody would be dispatched to Lagos to bring the passports before the end of the game. They protested to CAF which upheld their protest and kicked out the Golden Eaglets from the qualifiers without kicking a ball.

A glimpse of how good that generation of young players which included Ejike Izuagha, Muyiwa Lawal, Hashimu Garba etal was seen at the 1997 UEFA-CAF Meridian Cup where they beat Spain 3-2 in the final of the friendly invitational tournament in Portugal.
Again, we would never know if that squad would have won the World U-17 title in Egypt which Brazil won after a 2-1 victory over Ghana.


3. Forgotten shorts 1991
On July 27th, 1991, Nigeria’s Super Eagles were billed to play the Stallions of Burkina Faso in the last game of the qualification race to the 1992 AFCON. The national stadium Surulere was already packed to the rafters with an enthusiastic of fans who’d come to witness how the Burkinabes would be slaughtered.

The Super Eagles at Senegal ’92
Both set of players were in their respective dressing rooms and Nigeria manager was rounding off a quick last-minute strategy session when somebody raised the alarm that the Super Eagles kits were missing. Somebody forgot to bring them from the team’s camp in Otta, some 25-minutes drive away from Lagos. It was just five minutes to kick-off and nothing was going to stop the match referee, Guinea’s Karim Camara from going ahead with the game. Except, probably, a walk-over for the home team.

According to former Super Eagles defender Rueben Agboola who was on the starting line-up, the referee was about to call the game off when someone suggested that they cut off the tracksuit bottoms and use as shorts. A scissors was quickly found and the players emerged from the dug-out with knee-length shorts.

It was an amusing sight seeing the Super Eagles players chasing down balls in ridiculous-looking shorts but, fortunately, that didn’t stop the players from winning handsomely with a 7-1 annihilation of their opponents.


4. Banned from age-grade competitions 1989
In 1989, FIFA placed a two year ban on Nigeria from participating in FIFA age-grade tournaments and also withdrew the country’s right to host the 1991 World Youth Championship.
Captain Samson Siasia leading the Super Eagles out for a match was one of the players involved in the 1989 ban


The infraction for which Nigeria was banned was the alleged falsification of the ages of three players, Andrew Uwe, Samson Siasia and Dahiru Sadi.
The trio had featured for Nigeria in the U-20 World Cups of Mexico ’83 and Moscow ’85 and had altered their ages to participate in the Seoul ’88 Olympics.

FIFA had condemned this negligence on the part of the then NFA but the two-year ban of 1989 ensured a 10-year absence for the Flying Eagles at the FIFA U-20 World Cup as they couldn’t qualify until Nigeria hosted the world in 1999.


5. Obafemi Martins’ age mix-up 2005
In 2005, in the heat of the qualification race to the 2006 World Cup in Germany, the NFA put itself, and Nigeria, up for public ridicule by feeding false information to the world which threatened the career of striker Obafemi Martins, then playing for Italian giants Inter Milan. The NFA put Obafemi Martins at the centre of an age dispute by stating falsely, on the website, that the player was born on May 1, 1978 instead of the authentic date of October 28, 1984.


This negligence embarrassed Martins who was branded an age cheat and affirmed the stereotype about Nigeria being a country of criminals. The player was so infuriated that he vowed never to play for the country again. While he rescinded his decision, Nigeria ultimately failed to make it to the World Cup of that year.

On the same website, since yanked off, the NFA claimed that former midfielder Seyi Olofinjana made his national team debut on June 12, 1980, two years before he was born on November 15, 1982!

Nigerians will heave a sigh of relief that this latest sanction did not cost the nation more than international embarrassment but hope that the NFF president Amaju Pinick will live up to his promise to fish out and punish the negligent staff responsible for this international ridicule.

Onlinenigeria

and believe me you, no one got any reprimand for all these.

Nobi Nigeria where we rather pray away problems we can solve in person and also blame the devil for things we caused with our korokoro eyes?

Dedebanky85:
I'm hearing that Nigeria is playing Poland in Marchkudos to NFF. But please, NFF should ensure we have a 2nd game in that March window. Most teams are playing 2 games. Even non-worldcup bound teams are playing 2 friendlies. How much more a WC bound team. We could use that avenue to play against either, Denmark, Norway or Finland. I hear Lagerback is now coach of Norway and you know he moulded the core basics of the Icelandic team. I believe we can quickly get Norway to play in March. Not every time big team.

if there is any country to play more friendlies,is Nigeria,
it was NNF that suggested WCQ b postponed for WC teams to play friendlies

That wouldn't surprise me one bit. Nigerians are their own worst enemies, especially if money is involved.



O pari

goldfish80:
Algeria couldn't have gotten a wind of this information if they didn't act on a tip off by a Nigerian journalist. This was how journo from Ibadan made $2000 from Etoile du Sahel in 2012 when he sold them information about the contractual snafu between 3Sc and Rangers over Emmanuel Daniel. Rangers forfeited the match after beating Etoile over 2 legs.
The Tunians went on to win the Confederations cup that year.
I can bet my car keys a Nigerian journalist sold this information to Algeria.