The Super Eagles of Nigeria thrashed their Sudanese counterparts in a four goal African Cup of Nations (AFCON) thriller on Saturday.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Chukwueze, Awoniyi and Simon scored Nigeria’s goals to secure a spot in the round of 16 with a game to spare.
Nigeria’s Super Eagles beat their Sudanese counterparts 3-1 in the Group D clash at Garoua in Cameroon to advance to the knockout phase of the competition.
Details later…
The Super Eagles squad for the second fixture of Nigeria’s Group D encounter with Sudan at the 2021 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) has been released.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the Super Eagles squad to square up with Sudan has M. Okoye between the posts and O. Aina, W. Troost-Ekong, K. Omeruo and Z. Sanusi in defense.
While J. Aribo and W. Ndidi are played deep in midfield, S. Chukwueze and M. Simon up in the midfield, K. Iheanacho and T. Awoniyi lead the attack.
On the bench are D. Akpeyi, H. Onyekuru, T. Ebuehi, C. Ejuke, S. Ajayi and A. Iwobi.
Others as well on the bench are A. Musa, O. Ndah, K. Nwakali, F. Onyeka, U. Sadiq and F. Uzoho.
TNG reports the Super Eagles squad against Sudan is not different from the one that detested Egypt in the first fixture of Group D.
Super Eagles interim coach Augustine Eguavoen said his team would play Sudan’s Falcons of Jediane in their second group game of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) with utmost respect.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Nigeria would take on Sudan in their second Group D game of the AFCON, at the Stade Roumdé Adjia in Garoua on Saturday.
Eguavoen told newsmen during the pre-match conference on Friday that the Sudanese were not pushovers and would be treated as such, adding that consolidating on the victory against Egypt, was the ultimate goal.
“I cannot look down on anybody, if you do that, you will be making a very big mistake.
“So, the Sudanese team will not be an exception. We will approach them the same way we did against Egypt.
“They are a respected side and not a weak side at all. We will play them with utmost respect.
“Every game comes with a different plan. Sudan are not pushovers and more so, they are on one point and we have three points.
“We want to consolidate on that, while they will be pushing harder to have a chance to qualify,” he said.
On the tactics he would deploy against the Sudanese, the coach was rather subtle in his response, saying that he expected his opponents to raise their game and his team, to respond accordingly.
“We have discussed as a background room staff and the entire team together.
“As we studied Egypt, the truth is that it is never going to be perfect, but there will always be loopholes and the ability to read the game and get a good result matters,” he said.
The gaffer showered praises on his team, adding that the difference between the present Super Eagles and the former, was about the freedom the boys now had to express themselves.
“The boys deserve alot of credit and praises, because when an instruction is given, they carry it out to the latter and they don’t need too much reminders.
“So that makes it a little bit easier, for me and the coaching crew.
“We haven’t actually done anything differently. It is the same personnel, but it is just about the freedom.
“Feeling free to express themselves and they see me as their father, brother and friend.
“Confide in me but don’t take advantage of me being too gentle and everyone understands that, including the players and of course, the backroom staff,” he said.
On the hype of the Super Eagles being favourite to win the AFCON title, Eguavoen noted that it was too early to draw such conclusions.
“It is hard to say, because it is a marathon. It is only the first game and like you all know Egypt are seven-time African champions.
“They are not pushovers. They are a very strong team and whoever thinks that Egypt are not a strong side, he or she is making a big mistake.
“Yes, we were able to neutralise them, we were lucky at some point as well. We played very well which is very good, credit to all the players.
“But to talk about being favourites now, I think will be too early.
“We are going to look at the next game and approach it with all seriousness and alot of respect as well and after crossing that hurdle, we will then look toward the next game,” he said.
Egypt who currently sit at the bottom of Group D table with no point, would be looking for redemption, when they take on Guinea Bissau from 8.00 p. m.
Super Eagles winger Moses Simon on Friday said Nigeria’s opening match in the ongoing 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) against Egypt was his best game ever.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Nigeria defeated their Egyptian counterparts 1-0 in their AFCON Group D clash in Garoua, Cameroon.
The Super Eagles had their last training session at the practice pitch of the Roumdé Adjia Stadium in Garoua on Friday before their second group D game against Sudan on Saturday.
Simon while fielding questions from newsmen on Friday said the style and tactics of Coach Eguavoen had impacted positively and improved his game greatly.
“The game against Egypt was one of my best games in the past two years.
“You know we changed our coach and of course, we changed tactics. So, every coach has his own mentality and how he impacts the players.
“With the previous one, I played based on his own instructions and with the current coach, he gives me the freedom to bring what you have in your club.
“So, I believe that has helped me and my teammates alot,”he said.
On missing missing many chances in the game against Egypt, Simon said he wasn’t perfect and was still a work in progress.
“We are working on it with the coach. Of course, we are not perfect.
“The likes of Emmanuel Amuneke and others are legends in the game and we watched them play live on television. So, we learn from them.
“I am not Messi or Ronaldo, everyone makes mistakes and everyone tries to improve.
“We are trying to improve in our game everyday,”he said.
FIFA have reportedly suspended Marseille midfielder Pape Gueye as part of their investigation into his move to the Ligue 1 club from Watford in 2020.
The suspension means that Gueye, who is currently at the Africa Cup of Nations with Senegal, cannot take part in any competition until further notice.
The 22-year-old came off the bench for Senegal’s 1-0 win over Zimbabwe on Monday but was not in the squad for their 0-0 draw against Guinea on Friday.
‘There were problems between Watford and Marseille on a transfer [and] FIFA has suspended him,’ Senegal manager Aliou Cisse said.
Gueye joined the Hornets in the summer of 2020 on a free transfer from the French side Le Havre, but was sold to Marseille just 17 hours later.
Despite his incredibly short stint as Watford player, the Premier League club were able to claim compensation as the Senegal international had signed a pre-contract with them in January 2020.
Gueye reportedly signed a £45,000-a-week deal with Watford in the summer of the same year and was registered as a player on 1 July 2020. However, according to the Mirror, the player subsequently claimed he had been badly advised.
Less than a day after he was officially presented as a Watford player, Gueye revealed he had agreed to join Marseille.
‘Very happy and proud to announce my signature at L’Olympic de Marseille for the next four years,’ he wrote on Instagram as caption for a picture of him wearing the Ligue 1 giants’ training top.
Former Nigeria international Victor Agali has advised Super Eagles interim coach Austin Eguavoen to retain the strike partnership of Taiwo Awoniyi and Kelechi Iheanacho.
Awoniyi and Iheanacho operated in the Eagles’ attack against Egypt with the latter getting the only goal with a brilliant volley.
They were also involved in other chances created by the Eagles as they opened their campaign with the impressive win.
Both forwards should be in action for the Eagles when they face Sudan on Saturday.
And Agali, speaking on ‘No Holds Barred’ on Brila FM, Agali urged Eguavoen to retain the partnership going forward.
“Iheanacho is not someone you want to play as a point man, so it’s better to have him support someone and Awoniyi coming with his form from the Bundesliga, and after missing Osimhen, it’s better to leave Awoniyi and have Iheanacho roam around him and that has happened.
“Iheanacho is someone that can drop in the midfield and looking at the formation against Egypt we played a classical 4-4-2 where we had Aribo and Ndidi in the middle, Iheanacho was like a pyramid in front and support the guys behind.
“So it worked for us because we were very aggressive and we controlled the game so I expect the coach to maintain that,” Agali said.
Ahead of the 2021 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) second Group D fixtures, Nigeria’s attacker, Moses Simon has sent a message of caution to fellow Super Eagles teammates.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the Nigerian Super Eagles will be battling it out with the Falcons of Jediane of Sudan on Saturday.
The encounter is the second fixture of Group D, which is currently being topped by Nigeria.
Simon, who plies his trade with Ligue 1 side, FC Nantes told his Super Eagles teammates that there is no small team at the 2021 AFCON.
He stressed that the Super Eagles must not get complacent when they face Sudan.
The Super Eagles opened their campaign in the competition with a 1-0 win against seven-time champions Egypt on Tuesday.
They will do battle with Sudan on Saturday at the Roumde Adija Stadium, Garoua.
A win against the Lions of Jediane will see Austine Eguavoen’s side secure a place in the Round of 16 with a game to spare.
Simon, who put up an exceptional performance against Egypt insisted that they go all out for a win against the Sudanese.
“The game against Sudan is something we just need to be careful with because now in Africa, there is no small team.
“So, of course, we just need to go all in all. The way we took the game against Egypt is likewise the same thing that we are going to do against Sudan.
“We have to do our best and give 100 per cent to have three points,” Simon said after Wednesday’s training session at the VSTS-ANNEX, Roumde Adija Stadium, Garoua.
Super Eagles goalkeeper Maduka Okoye says that the team are in high spirit to face Sudan on Saturday in the second match of Group D of the ongoing 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cameroon.
Leicester City striker Kelechi Iheanacho, scored the winner against the Pharaohs of Egypt in the Super Eagles’ first match of the tournament.
Okoye, who spoke in the Nigeria Football Federation Television (NFF TV) interview said that lessons learnt from their first match would help the team spirit against Sudan.
“The bar has been raised by the Super Eagles, we are hoping that it would be maintained to the end of the tournament,” he said.
Okoye said that with a good team spirit the Eagles are ready to face any team in the tournament.
“First of all, I’m looking forward to a good points and also having a clean sheet is also a good sign of good defending and competitive spirit.
“I saw a good team in Super Eagles from behind, I was the goalkeeper against Egypt and I think we performed well collectively.
“We need to stick together on this level and, with this, I am sure we can beat any team.
“We need to stick together to raise the bar we have set for ourselves, we have to keep our mindset and focus on our matches, because we have six more matches to go.
“We need to stay focused and work hard ahead of out next match,” he said.
NAN reports that the Super Eagles will face the Sudanese on Saturday, Jan. 15, at the Roumdé Adija Stadium, Cameroon.
In the spirit of sportsmanship, the Lagos State government has announced the establishment of 10 viewing centres through the Lagos State Sports Commission (LSSC) and sponsorship from private sectors.
Titi Oshodi-Eko, the LSSC Director of Public Relations, who made this known in a statement on Friday, said that the public/private sectors viewing centres had kicked off across the state in earnest.
Oshodi noted that the viewing centres, which were adequately secured, were located at Teslim Balogun Stadium in Surulere, Campos Mini Stadium, Lagos Island; Abesan playground and Naval Yard Ajegunle.
Others are Bishop Aggrey Youth Centre, Mushin, Epe Recreation Centre, Italewa Ikorodu, Badagry Grammar School, Badagry, Agege Stadium Agege and Mobolaji Johnson Sports Center, Rowe Park, Yaba.
“When Nigeria took on Egypt in their first Group match on Tuesday, all the centres were filled with Nigerians coming out in their numbers to show their patriotic support for their darling Eagles, who eventually won with 1 – 0.
“The idea of the private sectors partnering with State Government is to bring football closer to Lagos residents which will be more fun and entertaining as fans watch all the matches of the Africa Cup of Nations 2021 (AFCON).
“In addition, the government and the Private Sectors also want the people to have a feel of football action in the tournament and more importantly to connect to each other as football cut across classes, ethnics and religious,” she said.
Oshodi added, “As part of this administration’s theme, the viewing centres will serve as an avenue to bring people together for a better world and this is what LSSC is doing with the AFCON Viewing Centres.
“It’s a place where people from different backgrounds will come together to watch live matches, have fun and enjoy themselves.
“This will serve as an added value that Private Sector is interfacing with the State Government to develop sports in the State,” she said.
The latest edition of the Africa Cup of Nations is underway, and some of the world’s best players are on show. Liverpool stars Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane are leading the line for Egypt and Senegal respectively, while Manchester City creator Riyad Mahrez and Paris Saint-Germain wing-back Achraf Hakimi will be hoping to lead Algeria and Morocco to glory.
With the January transfer window also open, the tournament will act as a shop window of sorts for other players. Nigeria and Leicester City ball-winner Wilfred Ndidi will be one of those players. The 25-year-old is considered one of the finest defensive midfielders in the Premier League, and he has recently been linked to Manchester United and Real Madrid. Here we will analyse the player’s game and why the transfer rumours make so much sense.
Anticipation, marking and tackling
Ndidi joined Leicester from Genk in the middle of the 2016-17 season. The previous year, the Foxes had won the title under the guidance of Claudio Ranieri, with N’Golo Kante at the heart of their success. Kante left for Chelsea at the end of the campaign, however, and it was Ndidi’s job to fill the void in midfield.
Five years on, and it’s safe to say he did a pretty good job. Managers have come and gone at Leicester, but Ndidi has remained integral to the team throughout changes in formation and style. Now, under Brendan Rodgers, he often plays in a double pivot next to Youri Tielemans. He is performing in the same dynamic at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) for Nigeria, alongside Joe Aribo.
Ndidi is a positional midfielder. Very rarely does he venture too far away from the centre-backs, in or out of possession. When the team is attacking, he stays behind the ball virtually at all times, meaning he is always on hand to defend the opponent’s counter-attack. In Nigeria’s opening AFCON win over Egypt, this quality was consistently on show. Here, when Egypt try to break out from defence, Ndidi closes down the opponent, wins the ball, and Nigeria can go back on the attack.
Nipping counters in the bud is one aspect of Ndidi’s defensive role that requires both anticipation and speed. These qualities can also be witnessed in organised defensive play, when his team doesn’t have the ball. He is a clever marker, one who fills in for the defenders when necessary and is able to cover two opponents at once. In the next sequence, we see an example – he positions himself to access both the back-pass and the pass inside, and can then close down accordingly.
Standing at 6ft, Ndidi is reasonably tall and capable in the air, if not dominant. He is reasonably strong, with a wiry frame, is consistently able to get a foot in and wins a lot of his duels. According to WhoScored data, he is joint-top in the Premier League this season both for tackles and interceptions per 90 minutes. These numbers are primarily the consequence of his positioning, work rate, anticipation and speed to close down.
Simple passing
When his team is building play from the back, Ndidi stays in close proximity to the centre-backs. He doesn’t perform many changes of direction, pace or position to become available, so he isn’t desperate to get on the ball and make things happen, but he is always nearby and can be found within one or two passes.
Playmaking isn’t really Ndidi’s bag, and his passing is mostly short to the nearest man. At club level, Tielemans is the half of the double pivot expected to make things happen, while internationally Aribo is the more forward-thinking of Nigeria’s midfielders. As we see below, Ndidi will stay in front of the centre-backs but doesn’t necessarily show for the ball. Instead, the defenders do a lot of the ball progression with forward passes and diagonals to the wings.
Ndidi keeps his passing simple, with a focus on retention. In Nigeria’s win over Egypt he played 54 passes at an accuracy rate of 85.2%, and at club level his pass accuracy this season is 80.3%. All of this is not to say he isn’t proficient on the ball.
His footwork under pressure is good, using drag-backs to get free of his marker and make space for himself when necessary. He also throws in the occasional searching, driven long ball to switch or play over the top. However, in his five years of Premier League football, Ndidi has recorded just seven goals and eight assists. Given he’s played over 150 games, that’s less than one goal or assist every 10 games.
The Manchester United rumours
Ndidi is a safety-first defensive midfielder. He anticipates problems, closes down well, and is effective in the tackle, while in possession he tends not to over-complicate matters and lets more creative players do the heavy lifting. It’s not spectacular to watch him play, and that’s perhaps why he has yet to earn a move to a top European club. However, he could be just what is needed.
Real Madrid will have to replace Casemiro, who soon will turn 30 years old, at some stage in the near future. Manchester United may need Ndidi even more, though, considering they still don’t boast one single top-level defensive midfielder. Behind Bruno Fernandes, Paul Pogba, Mason Greenwood et al there is a need for someone to protect the centre-backs, and Ndidi could be the man.
United have been linked with other players in this position, including West Ham United vice-captain Declan Rice, Marseille’s Boubacar Kamara and RB Leipzig’s Amadou Haidara. But there is no player on that list who can better Ndidi for Premier League experience or defensive nous.
Ndidi isn’t a one-man Band-Aid that Manchester United can stick on to mask team tactical issues, but he would solve the problematic defensive midfield position and, finally, help to bring balance to an attack-minded team.
Source: Tribalfootball