forgiveness:



Awaziem may only play that role in this competition because of stability and not because he is the best. He has his weakness but we can overlook for now.

Don't use "may" say "will". He has never been a rb, he is there as a make shift ,yet, killing it but u and ur goons wouldn't give him the credit he deserves .


Dat ogogoro drinker wey dey beat empty chest say him go drive from London through Spain to Morocco, then Egypt to see the afcon live, plz help me tell am say Awaziem says Hi

ChrisKels:
this one wey nerdy and oasis dey mumu demselves here, na wetin

The guy always sound like he is bickering with someone and seeking attention which obviously some just enjoy here. He pretends like it matters not to him but he keeps coming here seeking it. I have been away for months at different times and Everytime I return, I am welcomed. I never plan or orchestrate such but it obviously bites the dude because he makes silly reference to how mighty I might be feeling here....

Dude is just soundly jealous and drops emojis like and more to cover up his vain emotional storms claiming it is for fun when in fact he is suffering a funny bout of attention deficit disorder.... Lol


Abeg leave am for me Chris... I have seen his rubbish from a long mile before now... No battle here takes me by surprise. I have been here long enough to know how everyone thinks and what their lines of thoughts project...

So I am just enjoying the show of his foolishness...

..... Coz you don't wanna keep derailing.

Oasis007:




You no dey tired?! Seem your Ego is being dragged in the Mud?!

Take a Chill Pill Nerd, we are derailing, and you should learn to take a break from Jabs' throwing at the right time.

Shalom.

I loathe attention seekers... Had your fill? Good... now please stay "changed...."

Icant believe Iam saying this, but etebo has been my best midfielder and most consistent player in this tournament. Yes I labelled him a Carpenter, buh boy is killing it .

someone should plz find Mikel a super glue on that bench

ChrisKels:
Some weed smokers said awaziem was a weak link

They won't comment on his display yesterday, they gonna wait till he slips, so that dey will crawl outta their caves to say rubbish again.



Even the ones that said awaziem can't do without a defensive winger in Simon

Awaziem have done well so far in this tournament

ChrisKels:
Icant believe Iam saying this, but etebo has been my best midfielder and most consistent player in this tournament. Yes I labelled him a Carpenter, buh boy is killing it .

someone should plz find Mikel a super glue on that bench

Agreed

ChrisKels:


Don't use "may" say "will". He has never been a rb, he is there as a make shift ,yet, killing it but u and ur goons wouldn't give him the credit he deserves .


Dat ogogoro drinker wey dey beat empty chest say him go drive from London through Spain to Morocco, then Egypt to see the afcon live, plz help me tell am say Awaziem says Hi

I don't know Rohr's mind hence the need to use 'may'.

When did you see me not give him credit? Tell me.

Komekn never said he will drive to Egypt rather, he said he will drive to Morocco. Stop the wrong accusations, please.

joseph1013:


Rabzy my man! Long time.

It's funny reading Blacks use slavery as an excuse for lack of development.

Fact: More whites were brought as slaves to North Africa than blacks brought as slaves to the United States or to the 13 colonies from which it was formed. White slaves were still being bought and sold in the Ottoman Empire, decades after blacks were freed in the United States.

But let's not loud it. Excuse of slavery makes our backwardness sound tenable.

Ivory Coast or Algeria?

Africa is not yet free from colonialism in regards to neocolonialism.

I don't think that supports development.

joseph1013:

I will gladly refute this in another thread lest we derail this.

We are all here to learn. They will gladly enjoy your input.

ChrisKels:


Don't use "may" say "will". He has never been a rb, he is there as a make shift ,yet, killing it but u and ur goons wouldn't give him the credit he deserves .


Dat ogogoro drinker wey dey beat empty chest say him go drive from London through Spain to Morocco, then Egypt to see the afcon live, plz help me tell am say Awaziem says Hi

Efe Ambrose was a CB before 2013 AFCON. Was drafted to RB for the AFCON and continued to play that position post AFCON

Shehu was a DM before the 2016 Olympics. Was drafted to RB for the Olympics. And after the Olympics he has continued to play RB.

Mikel was a DM/CM in the SE before the 2016 Olympics. Played AM in the Olympics and became the SE AM afterwards.

This is not the first time a player will be drafted to a make shift position. Awaziem has done creditably well in that position and has continued to improve with every game. He, IMO was the second best player yesterday after Chukwueze.

Ebuehi and Shehu are too injury prone. Good that we have a new RB Option.

In-Depth: How the Super Eagles soared past sterile South Africa



Nigeria scored a late winner to knock Bafana Bafana out of Afcon 2019. Goal analyses the tactical battle that unfolded.
Nigeria and South Africa clashed in the quarter-final at the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) on Wednesday evening in Cairo. A last minute winner sent the Super Eagles into the semi-finals having seen South Africa equalise with the help of VAR. Gernot Rohr’s men will meet the winner of the Cote d’Ivoire vs Algeria quarter final on Sunday evening with a place in the final at stake.


Stuart Baxter named an unchanged team from the 1-0 win against Egypt despite Themba Zwane’s return from suspension. Thembinkosi Lorch kept his place on the flank, whilst Ronwen Williams continued in goal and it was again a three-man central midfield with Kamohelo Mokotjo alongside Dean Furman and Bongani Zungu.

Nigeria made two changes from the side which came from 2-1 down to beat Cameroon 3-2 in the Round of 16. At left back, Jamilu Collins made his first appearance of the tournament after illness, meaning Ola Aina dropped to the bench. On the right flank, Samuel Chukwueze got the nod ahead of Moses Simon after his lively substitute appearance against Cameroon.


From the start of the game, it was clear that Nigeria were not going to press high and try to close down the Bafana Bafana centre backs, but instead look to close down in midfield. Baxter’s team were being allowed long spells of possession in non-dangerous areas by Rohr’s men.

As Bafana looked to do in their opening match against Cote d’Ivoire, Dean Furman moved out to the right flank or right half-space when his side were trying to play out from the back. This was to escape Alex Iwobi in his zone, whilst freeing Thami Mkhize to play high up on the right flank, therefore pushing Percy Tau inside and closer to Lebo Mothiba. The problem was that even when Furman or Mokotjo got the ball, the latter dropping deep centrally, they lacked the passing range to find teammates further forward, switch the play or drive forward with the ball to draw out a man.

In midfield, Nigeria were very much man-oriented. All tournament long, they have had problems guarding the space in front of their defence due to Peter Etebo and Wilfred Ndidi being pulled away from that zone when closing down opposition central midfielders. It was the same in this game, but the duo were winning lots of challenges when pressing Zungu and Mokotjo. By full-time, the pair had made five tackles and six interceptions, dominating that area.

Bafana, meanwhile, were again trying to use Tau and Lorch as inside forwards, with both looking to play narrow. With Mothiba dropping off constantly to show for the ball, it was rarely dangerous for one of the central defenders to step out into that space to engage him, safe in the knowledge that there was little threat in-behind. This also allowed William Troost-Ekong and Kenneth Omeruo to defend higher up than usual, thereby compressing the space between-the-lines.


EAGLES ATTACK THE FLANKS

Despite having very little of the ball, by design, in the opening 25 minutes, Nigeria were very purposeful when they did get it. Nearly every regain was followed by a deliberate ploy to switch play into the wide areas. As Bafana were not using Lorch and Tau wide, the Super Eagles fullbacks were constantly free to overlap, whilst being a great out-ball on transition to bypass any counter pressing.

On the right flank, Chidozie Awaziem was much more progressive than usual (being a central defender naturally), so Etebo and Omeruo regularly hit long passes out to him, freeing Chukwueze to come inside onto his left foot to find space around Mokotjo. Iwobi was also causing real trouble by moving towards the flanks and creating overloads against South Africa’s fullbacks, who were already overloaded with a winger to face and either Collins or Awaziem arriving from deep.

The goal came from that source. Ndidi switched play to Ahmed Musa on the left touchline. Iwobi pulled wide to link with the winger as Zungu made a half-hearted attempt to track his man. Meanwhile, Chukwueze had come inside and Mokotjo had not spotted the danger, with Furman had been pulled across towards Iwobi. After a shot was blocked, it fell for Nigeria’s right winger to steer home. All game, Chukwueze had looked a threat and his excellent arrival into a scoring area brought the goal.

These problems in wide areas persisted for Bafana as Chukwueze isolated Hlanti, beat him on the outside and nearly forced a second goal. South Africa, as had been a problem throughout their Afcon campaign, also nearly conceded from their own freekick as Iwobi found Musa bursting free on the counter-attack, but Chukwueze blasted over the bar when he was picked out.

Bafana’s reaction had been non-existent. Williams was looking long from the back, whilst Mothiba was struggling in the duels with the Nigerian central defenders. Etebo characterised the half by reading a pass into Zungu and brushing him off the ball. The battle in the engine room was being completely dominated by Rohr’s team.



SECOND HALF – NIGERIA DROP DEEPER

If Nigeria had not been bothered to dominate possession in the first half, that was even more the case in the second period. The backline dropped significantly deeper, perhaps to draw Bafana out for counters through the speedy wingers. This also had the effect of seeing possession numbers for Baxter’s side swell further.

By the 67th minute mark, Bafana had 61% of the ball in the game, yet had shown no penetration to their play. Themba Zwane had come on to try to provide more threat between-the-lines, but removing Lorch was a curious move and did not do anything to cause Nigeria new problems. Withdrawing one of the visibly fatigued Zungu or Mokotjo would have given Rohr something new to think about.

One moment summed up Bafana’s poor buildup at the tournament. Zungu pulled wide and took Ndidi with him, thus opening space for Tau to drop into. Mkhwanazi’s attempt to find his teammate was poor, Nigeria broke and Hlatshwayo had to crash through Ighalo to stop the attack. Etebo stepped up and forced Williams to tip the resultant freekick onto the bar. Even when South Africa’s best player found separation, no one in deeper areas had the ability to find him consistently.


MKHIZE VERSUS MUSA

One of the key battles in the second half was on the right flank. After Zwane had come on, he was playing very narrow, with Tau now also playing even further inside. The shape looked more like a midfield diamond and with even less width, the Bafana fullbacks were pushed into very advanced positions.

This left plenty of space for Nigeria to break, and Musa got past Mkhize to fire a cross which Furman had to clear, whilst Chukwueze beat Mkhwanazi in the channel and nearly picked out Ighalo. At the other end, Mkhize’s influence was growing as Musa was reluctant to track him.

With just over 70 minutes to go, South Africa were level. Having shown no route back into the game from open play, the equaliser arrived from a set-play. Tau’s delivery was flicked on by a Nigerian player, meaning Zungu was incorrectly flagged offside from his finish and VAR over-ruled the decision. Despite being level, Bafana were still not compact and gave Chukwueze a chance to beat Mokotjo on a counter and find Iwobi to lash over the bar.

Rohr decided after 82 minues to trade Musa’s pace on the break, but lack of defensive nous, for Moses Simon. The latter immediately did a better job of tracking Mkhize. He was also looking to replicate Musa’s direct running at the South Africa right back, twice taking him on but getting nowhere. On the third occasion, he drew a corner. The substitute delivered, Williams came out to punch – with his call audible on the television replays – but he missed the ball completely and Troost-Ekong bundled in the winner.

Stuart Baxter had used his usual Plan B shortly prior to the goal, bringing on target man, Lars Veldwijk for the ineffective Mothiba. This change, as usual, saw Bafana play direct. The substitute won one good header from a deep freekick, but without any genuine width, there were not crosses for him to attack. Nigeria looked very susceptible against deliveries from wide in their win against Cameroon, whilst Daniel Akpeyi has struggled aerially in this tournament. However, two possible weaknesses for the Super Eagles were never really exploited by Bafana.

There was still time for another Nigeria counter as the outstanding Chukwueze set up Ighalo for a chance, but Williams smothered. Rohr then put on Leon Balogun for Alex Iwobi for the final moments to give extra cover against Veldwijk. Baxter didn’t bother with using his third change.


SUMMARY

Although this game was settled by a goalkeeping error in the final moments, that does not tell the story of a far superior Nigeria side. Rohr’s men had significantly more chances despite having just 39% of the ball in the game. Their switching of play to their wide men allowed constant chances to isolate South Africa’s fullbacks. Whereas Hlanti had been given close support in facing Mohamed Salah against Egypt, he was constantly left alone against Chukwueze, whilst Musa and Iwobi also found space to exploit on the flanks.

In midfield, Nigeria dominated proceedings with both Ndidi and Etebo performing excellently, not only in closing down but with their long passing out to the flanks – Bafana’s trio lacked the physicality and freshness to compete. Whereas the aggressive closing down from the Super Eagles pairing had left the zone in front of the back four exposed against Cameroon, it was no real problem here as the backline defended much higher up in the first half than usual, due to the lack of depth to Bafana’s play as Mothiba spent most of the game showing for the ball with his back to goal.

Bafana’s performance was similar to that against Cote d’Ivoire and Namibia, in that they were allowed to play out from the back, had significantly more possession, but had no real ideas of what to do with it. There was no width to their play, there were no runners in-behind and there were no midfielders with the energy to run with the ball, arrive in the box, or play penetrative passes over the top. Baxter’s changes were typically uninspiring as he removed Lorch and then simply went long to Veldwijk. The equaliser had come from a dead-ball situation and aside from those scenarios and the space afforded to Bafana by Egypt’s reckless approach, this was a tournament of sterility for South Africa when trying to break down opponents.

Nigeria did well to solve their problems from the last game and in Chukwueze, Etebo and Ndidi, they had the three outstanding players on the pitch. With 38% and 39% possession respectively in their two knockout wins, Rohr has found a way to draw opponents out and make space for his attackers to exploit.

Courtesy : Goal.com

ChrisKels:
Icant believe Iam saying this, but etebo has been my best midfielder and most consistent player in this tournament. Yes I labelled him a Carpenter, buh boy is killing it .

someone should plz find Mikel a super glue on that bench

Etebor is one player that has really impressed in this tournament and is improving with every game. Boy's recovery rate is is always awesome.

His Stoke City move and championship football seems to have helped him a lot.

Oasis007:




Sir Chris..... It's all for fun.

I dey enjoy two of una. Make una continue bro

Mickael2:


I can't believe this

Is moving towards the ball with the intention of playing the ball? That SA player was moving towards the far post without any intention of playing the ball na. Haba, he was not the one that contested for the ball with Ighalo, he was not obstructing Ighalo and he did not have any intention of playing the ball rather he got involved in the second sequence of events which started from when his teammate contested with Ighalo and he sent the ball backwards to him.

Oga, the SA player was in an offside position. The (south African) commentator even alluded to this fact during the Long wait for VAR check. He said if Nzungu was in an offside position before the ball was play then the goal won't count, but if not, ighalo touching the ball despite the fact he was offside will make the goal count.

See the offside rule is kinda complex, and in this situation there were two phases of play. First phase was when the ball was played, and the second phase is where there is another touch.

If in the first phase of play, a player was in an offside position, then the offside rule counts. But if he was onside in the first phase but strayed offside during the second phase, then the offside rule will not count if the defending team had the last touch.

Imagine this scenario, let's say there is a two on one situation between an attacking team and a defending team , two attackers against one defender, and one of the attackers is yards offside while his partner plays the ball to him, the lone defender makes a desperate attempt to intercept the pass and the ball brushes his leg but still got to the attacker who is yards offside, will the offside rule apply to not?

Aina hasn't really been given a fair chance to play on his preferred rb position. Awaziem isn't doing bad but I'd like to see Aina in his preferred position

IronGalaxy:
after you b.itch

I guess you are still hurting from the Super Eagles breaking your heart last night. I told you you knew nothing about football just like your players.

Lordabas:
Aina hasn't really been given a fair chance to play on his preferred rb position. Awaziem isn't doing bad but I'd like to see Aina in his preferred position

Change not what works bruv

Nigeria's Top 3 Performers at Afcon 2019


Who makes your list of our top 3/best 3 Performers at Afcon 2019 SO FAR?

Colin Udoh's picks so far from 1st round to Quarterfinals are 4 in number:

Ndidi, Etebo, Omeruo and Awaziem.



It must be mentioned that Ndidi and Etebo have truly held their own against some of Africa's tough looking midfields so far at this Afcon. Alongside Iwobi, they have given us fine presence in the middle and they must be highly commended.

But again, I know not all three will automatically be counted among the top 3 performers so far in several lists.


So what's your take? Who makes your Top 3? Colin picked no forward.... Very interesting.

Liverpool ex-player, Don Hutchinson on Chukwueze via twitter


“What a player mate. English clubs won’t have the balls to go for him. I’ve told loads of scouts/coaches Etc about him! Going right to the top.”


An English man said that. A bonafide English man... Komekn won't like this.

I remember once saying our serious local clubs could play friendlies with clubs from established countries

Look at Kariobangi Sharks (Kenyan club ) holding their own against Everton

ChrisKels:
Icant believe Iam saying this, but etebo has been my best midfielder and most consistent player in this tournament. Yes I labelled him a Carpenter, buh boy is killing it .

someone should plz find Mikel a super glue on that bench

I apologize for saying this at the wrong time but:

I warned them about Mikel. Hope you can see that we are doing well without him. Some went so far as tagging me hater. I'm so happy it is turning out this way. We don't have to depend on any maestro to win. Teamwork is paramount

TheSuperNerd:
Liverpool ex-player, Don Hutchinson on Chukwueze via twitter


“What a player mate. English clubs won’t have the balls to go for him. I’ve told loads of scouts/coaches Etc about him! Going right to the top.”


An English man said that. A bonafide English man... Komekn won't like this.

Anybody that still doubts this player shouldn't be taken seriously.

Well, it his opinion sha

Odunayaw:
I remember once saying our serious local clubs could play friendlies with clubs from established countries

Look at Kariobangi Sharks (Kenyan club ) holding their own against Everton

Bit out clubs may not have the resources or even will to pull it off

TheSuperNerd:
Nigeria's Top 3 Performers at Afcon 2019


Who makes your list of our top 3/best 3 Performers at Afcon 2019 SO FAR?

Colin Udoh's picks so far from 1st round to Quarterfinals are 4 in number:

Ndidi, Etebo, Omeruo and Awaziem.



It must be mentioned that Ndidi and Etebo have truly held their own against some of Africa's tough looking midfields so far at this Afcon. Alongside Iwobi, they have given us fine presence in the middle and they must be highly commended.

But again, I know not all three will automatically be counted among the top 3 performers so far in several lists.


So what's your take? Who makes your Top 3? Colin picked no forward.... Very interesting.

I will go with the following in the order given:

Etebo

Ndidi

Omeruo


Our forwards haven't been consistent enough especially Ighalo so, I can understand why they weren't picked

Icon4s:


Etebor is one player that has really impressed in this tournament and is improving with every game. Boy's recovery rate is is always awesome.

His Stoke City move and championship football seems to have helped him a lot.

I expected scouts to have jostled for his signature after his season in Stoke but his performance in this tourney should give premiership teams something to think about

Icon4s:


Efe Ambrose was a CB before 2013 AFCON. Was drafted to RB for the AFCON and continued to play that position post AFCON

Shehu was a DM before the 2016 Olympics. Was drafted to RB for the Olympics. And after the Olympics he has continued to play RB.

Mikel was a DM/CM in the SE before the 2016 Olympics. Played AM in the Olympics and became the SE AM afterwards.

This is not the first time a player will be drafted to a make shift position. Awaziem has done creditably well in that position and has continued to improve with every game. He, IMO was the second best player yesterday after Chukwueze.

Ebuehi and Shehu are too injury prone. Good that we have a new RB Option.

Tbh, I don't think Shehu may have dome as well as AwaIem offensively. He always runs out of ideas

Just like the 2014 format

CAF announce 2022 World Cup qualifiers format

by Ali IsmailJuly 11, 2019



The Confederation of African Football (CAF) have announced the new format of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.

The 2022 World Cup will take place in Qatar and it will be the last of its kind as it will host 32 countries, as starting 2026 the tournament will see the participation of 48 teams.

The tournament format will be as follows:

The 26 highest ranked teams (according to FIFA) will be exempted from the preliminary round. As for the remaining 28, the 14 highest ranked teams will face the 14 lowest.

Then the 14 winning teams will participate in the group stages alongside the 26 highest ranked teams in the continent. They will be divided into 10 groups of four teams.

Finally, each group leaders will face each other in the knockout stages, where the five highest ranked teams will face the remaining five.

(C) Kingfut

lakesidepapa:



Sir Mike, God bless u! This is what I have being explaining to this dude but his over-patrotism is making him ignorance, Im still surprise forgiveness could also bring himself so low like that.
The ball is a clean goal, Not office as sir forgy regards it.

That goal wasn't offside. Even the commentator explained after the video check that Ighalo's back header nullified whatever claims of offside there were

TheSuperNerd:
They are fortunate to be in that half of the draw in the lead up to the final. Our half of the draw is a lot more stronger. We had to play Cameroun for goodness' sake. Ours have been hell.

But beware of shockers shaa... Madagascar MAY surprise.

I can't wait to meet ad beat these guys to put them in their place properly. That loss was painful to darkelf