Shocking: Paul Le Guen Rejects Nigeria Post

Barely 24 hours after confirmation, Frenchman Paul Le Guen has rejected his appointment as Nigeria coach claiming that the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) did not meet his contractual terms, according to media reports from France.

According to French sports newspaper L’Equipe, Le Guen has rejected the Nigeria post after the NFF’s failure to meet several of the conditions he tabled before them.

It was understood that, among his conditions, was he coming down with his back room staff that included an assistant coach and a goalkeeper trainer.

It is however unclear whether the NFF will reach a concensus with Le Guen or a new coach will be appointed.

Nigeria have been without a permanent coach since February, when Sunday Oliseh walked out on the Super Eagles after claiming his contract has been severally breached.

The three-time African champions are drawn in a tough 2018 World Cup qualifying group that has Algeria, Cameroon and Zambia.

Shocking: Paul Le Guen Rejects Nigeria Post

Nigeria Set To Appoint New Coach

The Technical and Development Committee of the Nigeria Football Federation will meet in Abuja on Monday to interview three persons shortlisted for the Super Eagles’ Head Coach position, and thereafter forward the name of the successful candidate to the NFF Board.

Nigerian Salisu Yusuf (54), Belgian Tom Saintfiet (43) and Frenchman Paul Le Guen (52) are the candidates in the running.

On Sunday, Chairman of the NFF Technical and Development Committee, Barrister Chris Green, told the NFF.com: “We have concluded arrangements for the interview process to take place at the NFF secretariat on Monday and thereafter, we will forward the name of the successful candidate to the NFF Board, which will deliberate on it and thereafter make their decision public.”

Green made it clear the committee will only settle for the candidate they see as most qualified and capable of qualifying the Super Eagles for the 2018 FIFA World Cup finals in Russia.

Saintfiet coached the National Teams of Namibia, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Yemen, Malawi and Togo, and also worked with the Qatar U-17 side, Young Africans FC of Tanzania and Free State Stars FC in South Africa.

Yusuf was capped by Nigeria at U20 level, won FA Cup titles with El-Kanemi Warriors of Maiduguri as a player and coached top clubs Kano Pillars, El-Kanemi Warriors and Enyimba FC. He assisted Super Eagles’ head coaches Samson Siasia and Stephen Keshi (of blessed memory), and was caretaker coach for two friendlies that the Eagles won against Mali and Luxembourg in Europe at the end of May.

Le Guen, 52, played for Brest, Nantes and Paris Saint Germain and won 17 caps for France, before coaching Rennes, Lyon, PSG (in France) and Glasgow Rangers (in Scotland). He qualified the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon for the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals and also coached Oman.

Nigeria Set To Appoint New Coach

Nigeria: Paul Le Guen Favourite For Eagles Job

Celebrated French trainer, Paul Le Guen is set to be named the new manager for the Super Eagles as a replacement  to Stephen Keshi.

The 52-year-old former Indomitable  Lions coach will reportedly close the deal with the Nigerian Football Federal in a meeting scheduled  for next week.

Paul is competing for the vacant managerial seat alongside Belgium trainer, Tom Saintfiet and the home based Mohamed Salisu.

The NFF were rocked by the death of their head coach Stephen Keshi after a brief illness, leaving them with no option but to fill the void.

A scheduled meeting with all three candidates has been fixed for next week with Paul Le Guen in pole position  for the Eagles job.

Paul managed a number of French Ligue I sides including, Paris Saint German before taking over the managerial role of the Cameroon national team between 2009 and 2010.

He last managed the national team of Oman before submitting his application for the West African’s hot seat.

Nigeria: Paul Le Guen Favourite For Eagles Job

CAF Fines Nigeria, Others For Overcrowding

The Nigeria Football Federation has been fined US$5,000 for overcrowding at its Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Kaduna against Egypt on 25 March.

It is one of several sanctions handed out by the Confederation of African Football’s disciplinary committee.

An estimated 40,000 fans took over the stadium in Kaduna designed to hold just 16,000 spectators as the Super Eagles drew 1-1 with Egypt.

Nigeria were also warned of further sanctions if similar incidents occur.

Egypt were fined the same amount for the “excessive use of lasers” at the return match against Nigeria in Cairo four days later.

DR Congo, Sudan, Comoros, The Gambia and Kenya were also sanctioned.

Kenya were give a fine of US$10,000 for “players severely contesting referee decisions, supporters throwing stones and police had to use tear gas to disperse crowd.”

The incidents happened as they lost 1-0 in Nairobi in a Nations Cup qualifier against Guinea Bissau on 23 March.

The committee also issued a warning about the “security measures in Caf matches” and that in the case of similar incidents, the team may have to play on neutral territory.

A few days earlier when Guinea Bissau beat the visiting Kenyans 1-0 ball boys had invaded the pitch the Guinea Bissau federation were given a warning letter to respect the rules and reinforce security.

There was also a warning letter for Comoros after a spectator got onto the pitch during their 1-0 win over Botswana in a Nations Cup tie.

A spectator also got onto the pitch as DR Congo has they beat Angola 2-1 on 26 March, objects were also thrown on the pitch too for which the Congolese authorities were fined US$5,000.

That amount will double though if the team is found guilty of similar offences in upcoming matches.

The Gambia and Sudan will have to pay US$5,000 for the throwing of missiles, including stones, during their 2017 matches against Mauritania and Ivory Coast respectively.

CAF Fines Nigeria, Others For Overcrowding

NFF Apologises For Eagles AFCON Qualification Failure

Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has apologised to the nation for the Super Eagles failure to qualify for a second straight Africa Cup of Nations.

The Super Eagles failed to qualify for next year’s Afcon on Tuesday night, after a 1-0 defeat to Egypt in Alexandria which followed last Friday’s 1-1 draw in Kaduna.

The north African side top the qualifying group with seven points, five points clear of Nigeria, with both teams still having a final group game against bottom side Tanzania.

Nigerian midfielder, Ahmed Musa was kept under wraps during the 1-0 defeat to Egypt

The is is the second consecutive tournament where the three-time African champions Nigeria will not feature in the finals and the team sent a contrite message to fans on Wednesday.

“We apologise for our inability to qualify for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations. We gave this campaign our best efforts but sadly fell short,” read a message on the @NGSuperEagles Twitter account.

Interim coach Samson Siasia, who took over after Sunday Oliseh’s shock resignation a month ago, was more matter of fact.

“We inherited a broken bridge which we couldn’t fix. We only amended it,” he said.

The exit has sparked fears about the country’s chances of featuring in the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

NFF Apologises For Eagles AFCON Qualification Failure

Arsenal Forward Chooses Nigeria Over England

Arsenal young centre forward, Alex Iwobi has switched allegiance to play for country of his parents birth,  Nigeria. 

The young forward has represented England at junior levels and was deemed to make the mark with the Three Lions (senior national team) thanks to recent impressive performance with his club side.

Alex Iwobi celebrates scoring for Arsenal

Iwobi, 19, is reported in the United Kingdom to have agreed to play for the ‘Super Eagles’ where he believes his chance of getting regular playing time is brighter than with England.

Arsenal Forward Chooses Nigeria Over England

Sunday Oliseh Resign As Nigeria Coach

Sunday Oliseh has resigned as Head Coach of the Nigerian football national team, the Super Eagles, just over seven months after he was appointed.

Oliseh, who announced his resignation on Twitter, said he took the decision due to the inability of the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, to honour the terms of his contract.

“Due to contract violations, lack of support, unpaid wages, benefits to my players, assistant coaches and myself, I resign as Super Eagles Chief Coach,” he tweeted.

In a preceding tweet before announcing his resignation, Oliseh thanked Nigerians for the opportunity to serve as coach of the national team

“I feel fortunate, blessed and eternally grateful for having the honour to play, captain and coach this great nation of ours, Nigeria.”

Oliseh, whose appointment was made with much fanfare by the NFF, soon started having problems with the executives of the federation over remuneration, match tactics and results.

His complaint about being owed was not well received by the NFF, which rather threatened to sanction him.

He also had challenges managing the players. An altercation between the coach and the team’s former captain and the country’s most capped goalkeeper, Vincent Enyeama, led to the goalie’s premature resignation from the team last October.

Apparently, the last straw for Oliseh was the woeful outing of the Super Eagles at the CHAN competition in Rwanda, where the team was eliminated in the first round.

Following widespread criticisms that greeted the team’s elimination, a Youtube video soon surfaced in which Oliseh lambasted his critics, referring to them as “insane”.

On Thursday, the NFF directed Oliseh to henceforth report to former coach and the federation’s technical director, Amodu Shuaibu.

The NFF is yet to respond to his resignation.

Sunday Oliseh Resign As Nigeria Coach

Ghana Drawn Against Liberia in AYC Qualifiers

Ghana Black Starlets has been drawn against Liberia in the preliminary phase of CAF  U17 African Championship.

The draw for the tournament scheduled to be played in Madagascar 2017 was performed last Friday in Kigali, and Ghana will play in the first round.

Before the Black Starlets can qualify for the competition in Madagascar, they are expected to go through three qualifying rounds.

The first round matches will be played between 24 and 26 June and the return encounters will be played between July 1 and 3, 2016.

Twenty two countries will battle it out for a place in second round of the qualifiers which will take place on  August 5 to 7 and the return legs expected to be on August 19 and 21.

Round 1 fixtures:

Ghana – Liberia

Libya – Algeria

Mauritania – Morocco

Benin – Sierra leone

DR Congo -Chad

Sudan – Djibouti

Malawi – Kenya

Tanzania – Seychelles

Namibia – Botswana

Lesotho – Mauritius

Comoros – Zimbabwe

Ghana Drawn Against Liberia in AYC Qualifiers

26 Countries Will Disobey CAF - Bility

At least 26 African countries will defy their continental confederation and not vote for Sheikh Salman of Bahrain in the FIFA presidential election, the outspoken head of the Liberia football federation said on Monday.

Musa Bility, who himself failed an integrity check to stand in the Feb. 26 election, said he had spoken to representatives of nearly half of Confederation of African Football members.

“Let me tell you” they won’t back Salman, Bility told The Associated Press.

Liberia Football Association president Bility also said he had sent a letter to the head of FIFA’s election committee demanding he step down over a “conflict of interest.” Domenico Scala should resign because he has the same Swiss nationality as one of the candidates, UEFA secretary general Gianni Infantino, Bility said.

“None of the admitted candidates has raised this matter to date, which makes it evident that Mr. Scala’s impartiality is not put in question by any of them,” FIFA ad-hoc election committee spokesman Andreas Bantel said.

On Friday, Sheikh Salman, the Asian Football Confederation president, was publicly endorsed in the FIFA election by CAF, apparently a major boost to his chances. CAF urged its 54 member countries to vote for the Bahraini royal.

Africa, with the largest number of voting members out of the continental confederations, is set to be a significant battleground in the vote.

But Bility’s comments followed assertions by some of Salman’s rival candidates that an endorsement by CAF’s executive committee does not translate into widespread support among the confederation’s member countries.

“As a nation we have the right [to vote for who we want],” Bility said on Monday. “Our rights are not tied with the rights of the executive committee of CAF.”

Bility’s association announced in the hours after CAF’s public show of support for Sheikh Salman that it would instead be voting for Prince Ali of Jordan. Prince Ali said Egypt had also promised him its vote, while South Sudan declared its support for Infantino.

There are five candidates in the running to succeed Sepp Blatter. Salman, Infantino, Ali, former FIFA official Jerome Champagne of France and South African businessman Tokyo Sexwale. Salman and Infantino appear to be the strongest contenders.

 

Source: AP

26 Countries Will Disobey CAF - Bility

Burkina Faso Will Host WAFU U17 Competition

WAFU U17 Will Go On As Planned After Ebola Scare – Kwesi Nyantakyi

The president of the West African Football Union – WAFU, Kwesi Nyantakyi has confirmed this year wafu u17 tourney will go on as planned.

 

 

The event which was scheduled for last year did not see day light due to the ebola virus that hit sub region hard and took away human lives.

 

Nyantakyi was speaking at the ongoing West African Football Union’s Congress at the Movenpick Hotel.

 

He said, “Burkina Faso Will remain as host of this year’s wafu u17 tournament.

The tournament was called off due to the ebola epidemic last year but the Burkina Football federation has confirmed it’s readiness to host the juvenile competition which will be the first organised in the sub-region, ” He added.

 

Burkina Faso Will Host WAFU U17 Competition

Sign Of Respect: Ayew Congratulates Aubamayeng On Coronation As "King Of African Football"

Finally! Ayew Congratulates Aubamayeng

Ghana midfielder and 2nd runner-up during the recent GLO/CAF awards gala has eaten humble pie after he took too social media to congratulate Gabonese striker, Emerick-Pierre Aubamayeng.

 

 

The Ghanaian placed third for the second time in a row and had initially lost the crown for BBC footballer of the year to Ivorian international and Manchester city midfielder, Yaya Toure. The Swansea City midfielder was touted to be crowned king of African football after favourite Yaya Toure was named as second place after winning 4 times in a row.

 

The Swansea City top goal scorer wrote on his official instagram account, “God is great. 3rd place for the 2nd time in my career. I know Ghanaians and my fans were waiting for the 1st place and that was my goal just like the AFCON.”

The 26 – year old added, “But I will work hard to make my country and fans proud. congratulations to my brother Aubamayeng for winning and my big brother Yaya Toure for all what he has done for our continent.”

 

 

The son of Ghana’s maestro and arguably best ever footballer, Abedi Ayew ‘Pele’ will now be focused on reviving his dwindling form and that of his club, Swansea City and hope for better luck at next year’s event.

Sign Of Respect: Ayew Congratulates Aubamayeng On Coronation As "King Of African Football"

Coach Yussuf Abubakar fails to rule out return to domestic football despite Nigerian offers

Former Heart of Lions head coach Yussuf Abubakar has not to rule out a return to domestic football despite opening talks with Nigerian Premier league side FC Ifeanyi Ubah.

The former Lions trainer confirmed opening talks with the NPL side after mutually parting ways with the Kpando based side.

Yussuf Abubakar has been reportedly approached by a number of Ghanaian clubs after leaving Kpando at end of the season.

The soft spoken trainer admitted negotiations with the Nigerian top flight side but availed himself for an immediate domestic return as he weigh up his options.

The astute trainer left his doors widely opened for domestic clubs amidst a trip to Nigeria in the coming season.

The ex Heart of Lions trainer left the shores of the country on Thursday January 7, 2016, for personal negotiations with the NPL side but is expected back in Ghana early next week as he weighs up his next destination.

“I am currently in Nigeria on the invitation of FC Ifeanyi Ubah but will be back in Ghana early next week. I am weighing up my options ahead of the season but has not ruled out managing another Ghanaian club next season.

”I will come down on Monday and decide on my future as a coach. A return to the domestic scene is however not out of place.” Abubakar told sports crusader.

The ex Heart of Lions trainer has reportedly been in touch with ‘newly promoted’ Ghana premier league side Techiman City ahead of the expected inaugural season.

Abubakari is revered in Ghana for his unique eye in unearthing youthful talents including Samuel Inkoom and Ennock Atta Agyei.

Coach Yussuf Abubakar fails to rule out return to domestic football despite Nigerian offers

EXCLUSIVE: Ghanaian coach Yusif Abubakar in Nigeria to hold talks with FC Ifeanyi Ubah

Ghanaian coach Yufi Abubakar in in Nigeria to hold talks with Premier League club FC Ifeanyi Ubah, Sportscrusader.com can exclusively reveal.

The Anambrah state have invited Abubakar over to discuss terms over the possibility of him taking over as coach.

Abubakar, a former coach of Hearts of Oak arrived in Nigeria on Tuesday on the invitation of the club owned by businessman Dr. Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah.

“Yusif is here with us to hold talks toward becoming our new head coach,” an FC Ifeanyi Ubah official told Sportscrusader.com.

“We think he has the qualities to take our club to the next level and that is why the club is making this move for him.”

The former Heart of Lions trainer wants to keep his options before finally settling on his choice of club as he plots his return to active coaching.

Abubakar had already held talks with newly promoted Ghana Premier League club Techiman City FC.

FC Ifeanyi Ubah finished 11th in last season’s Nigeria Premier League made up of 20 clubs.

EXCLUSIVE: Ghanaian coach Yusif Abubakar in Nigeria to hold talks with FC Ifeanyi Ubah

Nigeria to negotiate with Boko Haram to release kidnapped girls

Nigeria’s government is prepared to negotiate with Islamist militant group Boko Haram to secure the release of around 200 schoolgirls kidnapped last year, if credible leaders are identified, President Muhammadu Buhari said on Wednesday.

“We are prepared to negotiate with them without any preconditions,” Buhari told journalists in a televised interview.

Boko Haram seized the girls from their dormitories in the northeastern town of Chibok in April 2014, sparking international outrage.

He said there was no firm intelligence on the whereabouts of the girls or whether they are still alive.

–

AFP

 

Nigeria to negotiate with Boko Haram to release kidnapped girls

Nigeria Bans Credit Card Use Abroad

Nigeria’s central bank has ordered commercial banks to stop customers from using their debit and credit cards abroad, a source has told the BBC.

One bank has emailed customers to this effect, stressing it is a “temporary measure”.

Access to foreign online retailers will also be affected when the ban takes effect on 1 January 2016.

It is part of the government’s effort to try to stem the flow of foreign exchange out of the country.

The unofficial value of the Nigerian currency, the naira, has plunged because of the fall in the oil price – its main export.

Africa’s largest economy has spent billions of dollars propping up the currency since it fixed the exchange rate in February and tightened trading rules to curb speculation.

It is not clear how many people will be affected by the latest measure but the BBC’s Bashir Sa’ad Abdullahi in the capital, Abuja, says wealthy Nigerians travel abroad regularly and use their local cards for shopping and other transactions.

Some top-end shops in London have signs in Hausa to cater for the large number of Nigerian customers.

One of the banks, Standard Chartered, has emailed its customers notifying them of the ban.

In June, the central bank banned businesses from accessing hard currency to import about 40 items.

The list included Indian incense, plastic and rubber products, soap and even private jets.

The amount that Nigerians could spend on credit cards abroad has already been reduced by the banks.

–

BBC

Nigeria Bans Credit Card Use Abroad