Sport

AFCON: Super Eagles Defeat Leone Stars 3-2 to fly to the Final Tournament.

Published

3 years ago

June 18, 2023

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The Super Eagles of Nigeria left it late to defeat Leone Stars of Sierra Leone on Sunday 3-2 in a Group A match at the 22,000 capacity Samuel Kanyon Doe Stadium in Monrovia, Liberia which included the Liberian President, George Weah as the team flies into the AFCON final tournament.

Napoli dynamite, Victor Osimhen scored a brace in the 19th and 32nd minutes to clearly maintain highest goal scorer at the qualifying stage with 7 goals including a double brace against Sao Tome and two goals ahead of Sadio Mane of Senegal who is next to him on the CAF AFCON 23 top Scorers chart.

Osimhen slammed in the first goal in Monrovia in the 19th minute from a clearance off Captain Kenneth Omeruo and scrambled in the second one from Alex Iwobi pass to become the man to be hacked by the Leone Stars Defence.

Anderlecht forward, Mustapha Bundu reduced the tally for the Leone Stars in the 41st minute from a Samadia assist before Augustine Kargbo who plays for Italian side, Crotone leveled up 2-2 in the 84th minute which rattled the Super Eagles forcing the Nigerian bench to make vital changes from six available official opportunities bringing Kelechi Ihenacho of Leicester and Taiwo Awoniyi of Nottingham Forest for Osimhen who had hamstring injury and Samuel Chukwueze among other changes.

The match also gave a water break per each half to douse the 270C weather as permitted by Ref. Mahmood Ali Ismail from Sudan which the coaches used for pep talks to the players who seems to find the artificial grass of the stadium tough to cope with as the ball bounces off too sharply.

Ihenacho fondly called senior man in camp got a pass from Sanusi toed it into net 90+5th minute and ran into the net to ensure there is no diversion for Nigeria’s winning goal that actually qualified Nigeria for the tournament finals.

Nigeria slammed the Leone Stars in the first encounter on 9th June 2022 with a 2-1 drubbing when Guinea Bissau same day walloped Sao Tome and Principe 6-1. On the 2nd Day fixtures played 13th June last year Sierra Leone played 2-2 draw with Guinea Bissau while Nigeria took Sao Tome to football classroom with a 10-0 drubbing on their land.

.There is an outstanding match for Day 6 in the group, to be played on 8th September 2023 when Guinea Bissau will host Sierra Leone and Nigeria will host Sao Tome.

Nigeria leads group A with 12 points from 4 wins and a loss now followed by Guinea Bissau with 10 points from 3 wins, a draw and a loss; Sierra Leone is 3rd with 5 points with a win, two draws and two loses while Sao Tome sits at the bottom with a point from a draw.

Nigeria and Sierra Leone has met six times before with Nigeria dominating with four wins and two draws. On 11th October 2008 Nigeria de-shined the Stars 4-0; beat them in an International Friendly on 9th February 2-1; smashed the Stars 2-0 in a WAFU encounter on 11th September 2017; played goalless in an AFCON match of 17th November 2020; after the 13th November 2020 duel in Nigeria that ended 4-4 when Nigeria was leading 4-3 and the last meeting of 9th June 2022 also an AFCON match that Nigeria won 2-1.

Sierra Leone has appeared in only three AFCON finals of 1994, 1996 and 2021 losing all appearances at group stages. Whereas Nigeria is three times champions of the African title in 1980 at the National Stadium under Christian Chukwu as Captain, 1994 in Tunisia and 2013. Nigeria also won the CHAN Cup called Cup of Nations meant for only local players two times. Nigeria is a star of African football.

Here are the countries already qualified for the AFCON finals scheduled for Ivory Coast in January namely from Group A- Nigeria and Guinea Bissau; Group B Burkina Faso and Cape Verde; Group C- Namibia and Cameroun; Group D – Egypt and Guinea; Group E – ??; Group F- Algeria and Tanzania; Group G- ??; Group H- Ivory Coast and Zambia; Group I-??; Group J- Equatorial Guinea and Tunisia; Group K- South Africa and Morocco Group L-Senegal and Mozambique. A total 24 teams are lined up to contest in Ivory Coast.

At the last edition played in Cameroun, Senegal lifted the trophy with Egypt as Runners-up; hosts Cameroun won the Bronze and Burkina Faso placed 4th.

A total 100 goals was scored in Cameroun with the Indomitable Lions Captain, Vincent Aboubakar winning the Golden Boot with 8 goals; Senegalese Captain, Sadio Mane was Best Player; Best Young player was Issa Kabore of Burkina Faso; Golden Gloves for Best Goal Keeper went to Edoard Mendy of Senegal and Senegal also carted home the Fair Play award.

The Author, Eniola Olatunji (Formerly Yomi Kassim) has been in the media for some 46 years with vast experience in Radio Sports Commentaries and Newspaper reporting. He worked as Presenter/Producer on many radio stations and Reporter/Editor in some Newspapers,

International News

Iran squad travel to Turkey for friendlies, US visas

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21 hours ago

May 18, 2026

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Iran’s national football team was headed to Turkey on Monday to play a final friendly match and apply for visas to fly to the United States for the 2026 World Cup, Iranian media reported.

The team plan to participate in the tournament despite co-host Washington having launched a war against Iran with a massive wave of attacks alongside ally Israel on February 28.

The fighting has been on hold for weeks thanks to a ceasefire, but peace talks have failed to make a breakthrough and new drone attacks against Gulf countries at the weekend combined with threats from US President Donald Trump raising fears of a return to fighting.

The team “departed this morning for Antalya, Turkey to play its final friendly match before flying to the United States for the 2026 World Cup,” the Tasnim news agency reported.

It said the squad consisted of 22 domestic-based players alongside their coaching staff.

On Saturday, head coach Amir Ghalenoei said they would also be completing visa applications for the US while in Turkey.

– ‘Let ’em play’ –

Iran secured their spot at the World Cup in March 2025, but since then the United States has twice launched attacks on the country.

US officials have insisted that Iran is welcome at the tournament, while organiser FIFA has said it will go ahead as planned and rejected Iranian suggestions that their games be moved to co-hosts Mexico or Canada.

“I think let ’em play,” Trump said in late April.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said any problem would not be with Iranian players but “some of the other people (they) would want to bring with them”, suggesting they may have ties to the Revolutionary Guards, which Washington has branded a terrorist organisation.

Last month, officials from Iran’s football federation abandoned a trip to the FIFA congress in Canada, saying they had been “insulted” by Canadian immigration officers.

One of their delegation, Mehdi Taj, is a former member of the Revolutionary Guards, which Canada has also designated a terror group.

The Iranian football team hope to play two friendlies in Antalya.

They have already confirmed one match, against The Gambia, on May 29, said Sam Mehdizadeh, an Iranian-Canadian who heads a company that sets up friendlies for the team.

“No visas have been issued yet,” Taj, the head of Iran’s football federation, told Iranian media on Thursday.

On Saturday, FIFA secretary general Mattias Grafstrom held a meeting in Turkey with the federation, describing it as constructive, as did Taj.

When the squad reaches the United States, Iran will set up their base camp in Tucson, Arizona.

The team, who are in Group G, are due to kick off their campaign against New Zealand in Los Angeles on 15 June, before facing Belgium in the same city and then Egypt in Seattle.

AFP

International News

Man U In Three Players Swap Deal As Club Forfeits Financial Boost

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3 weeks ago

April 30, 2026

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AC Milan will consider three Manchester United players as part of a swap deal for Rafael Leao, according to Gazzetta dello Sport. The outlet claim that United have already made contact with agents over a potential deal for Leao this summer, but their first choice target is Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers.

However, Leao could be an easier deal to do, with Milan now ready to listen to offers for the winger. The Italian side are reportedly asking for around €50 million (£43.3m) but their interest in three United players could possibly lead to a swap deal.

Joshua Zirkzee, Manuel Ugarte and Marcus Rashford are all mentioned. All three players are expected to leave Old Trafford this summer.

Zirkzee has struggled to make an impact since his move from Bologna, while Rashford has spent the season on loan with Barcelona. The Spanish side have the option to make the move permanent for £26 million but they are looking less and less likely to trigger it.

United could therefore be looking for sale in the summer. Using him as part of a swap for Leao could be seen as a solution.

United have forfeited a financial boost from a friendly against RB Leipzig. Sky Germany report that as part of the agreement between the two sides over striker Benjamin Sesko, a friendly match must be played.

But instead of United financially benefitting from the game, Leipzig will instead receive all of the revenue. It’s reported that the game must be played within the ‘next few years’.

United completed a deal for Sesko last summer, paying a fee of around £66.3million. However, Sky Germany report that it is now set to rise to £74 million with add-ons.

It’s claimed that there will be around £3.5 million in bonuses for things such as appearances, goals and Champions League qualification.

In his first season with the club, Sesko has scored 11 times, in 31 appearances in all competitions. He scored what turned out to be the winning goal in Monday night’s win over Brentford.

Sport

Barca Pissed As Yamal Caught In All Night Romp With Strange Model

Published

7 months ago

October 31, 2025

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Recently, Barcelona’s young star Lamine Yamal has once again found himself embroiled in off-field controversy. Just days after the defeat in the Clásico, on Monday local time last week, he was photographed travelling to Milan with several friends.

According to renowned paparazzo Jordi Martín, Yamal attended a party with a prominent Italian model during his trip and spent the night with her – a woman who is not his current girlfriend. Rumours suggest Yamal had previously shared an ambiguous relationship with this model before he began dating his current partner.

During his stay in Milan, Yamal attended a party with a prominent model who was not his current girlfriend Nicki Nicole. It is understood that this model, Anna Gegnoso, is Italian and rumoured to have had a prior romantic connection with Yamal before his relationship with Nicki Nicole began.

According to the photographer, Yamal first attended the party with Anna that evening before the pair spent the night together at Milan’s Armani Hotel – an incident that would undoubtedly displease Nicki Nicole should it prove true. Furthermore, Yamal and his accompanying friends deliberately obstructed media personnel from capturing photographs and footage at the scene.

Jordi Martin further disclosed that this behaviour has provoked considerable displeasure among Barcelona’s club hierarchy. They have grown weary of Yamal’s lifestyle. Several weeks prior, whilst injured, he flew to Croatia for a holiday with Nicki Nicole, publicly sharing photos of their trip on social media – an act that already drew criticism.

This latest incident – reportedly flying to Milan for revelry within hours of the Clásico defeat – has only exacerbated the situation. Particularly given his lacklustre performance against Real Madrid, he now finds himself dominating headlines for off-field reasons.

These successive off-field incidents, coupled with his earlier controversial remarks about Real Madrid at an event, have increasingly raised concerns within Barcelona’s ranks. Club officials fear he is becoming increasingly overwhelmed by this “noise,” drifting away from his core focus on football