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Enoch Nwali On Cloud 9 After Winning 2023 Lekki Scrabble Classics

The tense muscles on Enoch Nwali’s face began to relax as they stretched into a smile, revealing a sigh of relief for the African champion as he confirmed his first-place position at the 2023 Lekki Scrabble Classics after a rigorous 18 rounds of games over two days.

Playing in the Nigerian circuit by any crowned champion in this game has shown that nothing is guaranteed as every player is capable of creating a devastating upset- the signature of the finicky game in Nigeria.

For Nwali who is the current African champion, the journey to the top was interestingly arduous despite having a dominating run, starting from the first day when he recorded a draw in round three against former African champion Moses Peter after 11 rounds.

His winning streak appeared to have ignited some flames as other top players took turns to challenge him on Table 1.

Former World Champion and two-time winner on the continent Wellington Jighere, Sunday Oshodi and Timi Doko all tried to remove him by out-pointing him as games were running out but failed.

Only Olatunde Adigun on 13 wins, who has found good ground in Lekki in the past succeeded twice but faltered on his third attempt in the crucial 18th round for Nwali to win the coveted title and a prize of N500,000 with an unassailable result of 14 wins, one draw and two defeats.

His impressive stats showed he played a total of 43 Bingos with an average of 2.4 per game while his opponents played 27 Bingos.

“I really don’t know what made me stand out, but I was very calm even when l was losing a few at the closing stages, I wasn’t scared. I just didn’t allow the loss to get to me. What I just did was to focus on the next game, and remain calm. Even when I knew I could have won the game against Adigun” he revealed.

Jighere came second with 13 wins same as Adigun, James Ewruje, Dayo Tayo and Oshodi following suit but with different cumulative points.

Unexpectedly, the LSC2023 organisers would surprise all by awarding spot prizes to the top three players in other categories.

In the intermediate, Dayo Tayo, Adowei Ebikeme, Akpojotor Ochuko and Curtis John all got rewarded as well as Priscilla Akhabue who got 100,000 naira as the Best Female.

Dickson Iyelih, Kuye Ademola, James Eteng and Eniola Ashaolu were also rewarded as top Open players.

Adowei who was the immediate past President of Lekki Scrabble Club Adowei showed he was truly at home as he shocked bookmakers to claim the Most Valuable Player.

Players were also presented with opportunities to win with monetary rewards in every round once they could meet different criteria set during the tournament.

LSC President Engr. Samuel Anikoh commended all participants as he extolled members for the success of the Classics.

“I feel honoured to be honest as the President of the club. It’s quite interesting that joining the club, I just felt I would play based on my childhood passion, but things just evolved, and I took up the mantle as the president. Under the leadership of Adowei Ebikeme, the former president he helped establish our tournament as a mainstay in Nigeria. “

“It’s been an exciting two days. Lots of players, lots of fun and I think worthy winners have emerged as well. Scrabble is an intellectual game and it’s also an interesting sport good for our youths especially children in schools.”

“We hope one day, players will be able to win as much as N10m as prize money because it’s such a game that offers so much for development. We want support,” he said.

He thanked the management of Ikoyi Club 1938 where the LSC was held for its support in making the second edition more memorable.

Over 90 players from Lagos, Oyo, Ondo, Ekiti, Ogun, Rivers, Edo, Delta, Osun and Kwara states featured at the Classics.

Nigeria remains one of the strongest bases of Scrabble in the world and the best in Africa.

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King Ademola Lookman Brings Out His Love

Like his father opened up, Ademola Lookman is essentially a private person, who prefers to do his stuff without all the media blitz.

But on one of his biggest days, when he was crowned Africa’s best player, he could not but make the first public appearance with the woman in his life – Jayda Love.

‘Adebobo’ would even steal a moment on his big night to kiss his American beau.

The 27-year-old Super Eagles star is still single.

Rumours of this romance first surfaced in the summer when the couple appeared to have spent the holidays together.

This was after ‘Mola’ scored his unforgettable hat-trick for Atalanta to win the UEFA Europa League in super style.

Jayda, an Information Technology specialist is based in Dallas, Texas, graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 2021 with a degree in public relations.

She follows Ademola Lookman and his foundation on social media.

She is also known to have visited him at his Italian base.

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FIFA Rankings: Nigeria’s Super Eagles End 2024 Ahead Of Ghana, South Africa, Cameroon

Nigeria’s Super Eagles have ended 2024 ranked as Africa’s fifth-best team in FIFA’s latest global standings, released Thursday morning, Soccernet.ng reports.

Despite a challenging end to the year that saw the team drop eight places to 44th globally, the Super Eagles still managed to hold their own against eternal continental rivals like South Africa, Cameroon, and Ghana.

This year’s ranking represents a mixed bag for Nigeria. While the team retained its fifth spot in Africa, their decline in global rankings was driven by underwhelming performances in key fixtures.

Most notably, the Super Eagles struggled during the final rounds of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers, securing just a solitary point in lackluster outings against the Benin Republic and Rwanda.

Nigeria were forced to a scored draw by the Cheetahs in Abidjan only for Samuel Chukwueze’s excellent strike to end up as consolation in a 2-1 home defeat to the Wasps.

Looking at year-to-year standings, at this time in 2023, Nigeria’s Super Eagles were ranked 42nd in the world but sixth on the continent.

Elsewhere, South Africa’s Bafana Bafana showed marked improvement, climbing th

Cameroon and Ghana, however, endured disappointing campaigns. Ghana’s Black Stars finished the year ranked 77th, a stark reminder of the ongoing struggles within the Black Stars setup.

At the continental summit, Morocco retained their status as the continent’s best, finishing as Africa’s top-ranked team in 14th place globally.

Senegal (17th), Egypt (33rd), and Algeria (37th) rounded out the top four, with Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Mali, Tunisia, and South Africa completing the top 10.

Globally, Argentina retained their position as FIFA’s top-ranked team, followed by France, Spain, England, and Brazil.

With 1,181 international matches played across the calendar year, the rankings reflected consistent dominance from the world’s elite teams.

As Nigeria enter 2025, all eyes will be on the Super Eagles to reignite their competitive spark, with the World Cup qualifiers returning in the first quarter of the year.

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Mbappé: Would Have Been ‘Fun’ To Play With Cristiano Ronaldo

Kylian Mbappé has said he wishes he could have played with Real Madrid legend Cristiano Ronaldo, the club’s all-time leading scorer.

The France international has been a teammate of other football icons but would have relished playing alongside Ronaldo, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner and Portugal captain.

“I’ve played with great players: Lionel Messi, Neymar, [Antoine] Griezmann, [Paul] Pogba, [Karim] Benzema…” Mbappé told BeINsports.

“It would have been fun to play with Cristiano Ronaldo — it’s going to be very difficult now — but I was lucky enough to play against him, a legend of the sport.”

Ronaldo, 39, left the Spanish giants in 2018 now plays for Saudi Pro-League side Al Nassr.

Mbappé helped Madrid win the Intercontinental Cup on Wednesday, his second title since joining the Spanish giants in the summer after his contract with Paris Saint-Germain expired.

Speaking to young people with disabilities as part of the BeUNITED program, Mbappe, 25, said he would have never left Paris Saint-Germain had it not been to join Madrid.

“I went to the biggest club in the world,” the 2018 World Cup winner said.

“I have always said that it was the only club I would have left PSG for. If I hadn’t been able to go to Madrid, I would have stayed at PSG all my life.”

Although Mbappé has been prolific for Madrid so far, he has faced criticism for his all-round performances with the team having suffered some high-profile defeats earlier in the season.

“Since I was 14, everyone told me I was going to be great,” Mbappé said.

“But when you’re big, sometimes you feel small…At first I was too hungry and it played tricks on me because I was impatient. But I have passion and this competitive side.

“My dream now is to win trophies with my team, not individual awards. What great title is left for me? The Champions League, but I’m in the best club in the world for that.”