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Paris 2024: Ajibade wants Nigerians to believe in Super Falcons

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Captain Rasheedat Ajibade has called on Nigerians to have confidence in the ability of the Super Falcons to earn a ticket to the Women’s Olympic Football Tournament in France, as the team flies to South Africa on Sunday night for a flaming battle with the Banyana Banyana in Pretoria on Tuesday night.

Ajibade’s strike from the penalty spot earned Nigeria a lone-goal victory over the visitors in the first leg in Abuja on Friday, and even as there is all to play for in the return in South Africa’s administrative capital, the Atletico Madrid ace says the players will be propelled to victory knowing that the faith of over 200 million Nigerians in them is unwavering.

“We are not under any illusions. It is going to be a big and tough fight. For us, we have 90 minutes standing between us and the long-elusive ticket to the Olympics and we will give it our all.

“We want Nigerians to believe in the Super Falcons. The players are motivated by the keen desire to play in the Olympics. I have played at every tournament you can think of, except the Olympics. The time to do it is now.”

The players trained in the premises of their hotel on Saturday morning and also trained at the MKO Abiola National Stadium on Sunday morning, before departing Abuja for Lagos aboard an Air Peace flight, to connect their flight to South Africa on Sunday night.

Nine-time African champions Nigeria will arrive in Johannesburg on Monday morning, and then do a one-hour road trip to Pretoria. They are scheduled to have the official training at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium by 7.30pm (6.30pm Nigeria time on Monday.

Chinwendu Ihezuo, Jennifer Echegini and Esther Okoronkwo had opportunities to add to the scoreline on Friday evening, but Banyana Banyana goal-tender Kaylin Swart affirmed her reputation as one of the best goalkeepers in African women football with some brilliant saves.

Similarly, the Banyana must have realized and appreciated that the reputation of Nigeria’s number one, Chiamaka Nnadozie as one of the world’s best goalkeepers was no exaggeration, as she thwarted them the couple of times that they got past the defence. Jermaine Seoposenwe was particularly stunned by Nnadozie’s world-class save when she unleashed a belter from 20 yards after receiving a pass from Thembi Kgatlana. Kgatlana herself was foiled on a couple of occasions.

The Banyana celebrated the low deficit after Friday’s encounter, but Nnadozie said the Super Falcons will play their hearts out inside the 51,000-capacity Loftus Versfeld Stadium.

“The Super Falcons are used to big battles. This one will not be any different. Australia were playing in their home ground at the World Cup but we defeated them.”

The goal-tender was referring to last year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup finals, when the Falcons edged the Matildas 3-2 in front of their home fans in Brisbane, and thus guaranteed a spot for themselves at the tournament’s Round of 16.

Nnadozie was also in goal when the Falcons overwhelmed hosts Cote d’Ivoire 1-0 in a Women Africa Cup of Nations final qualifying match in Abidjan more than two years ago, and has also been in goal in the two earlier away matches in these qualifying series, in which the Falcons earned a 1-1 draw in Addis Ababa and 0-0 draw in Douala.

Home turf advantage has severally been proved to be a mirage in football, even in the on-going qualifying series, with Zambia defeating Ghana in Accra, Morocco defeating Tunisia 2-1 away, South Africa trouncing Tanzania 3-0 in Dar es Salaam and Morocco also defeating Zambia 2-1 in Ndola in the first leg of their own final qualifying fixture on Friday.

Ajibade added: “At the end of the day, the grass will be green and it will be eleven players against eleven players. We are ready.”

The Confederation of African Football has again picked North African referees for the second leg match, with Tunisian Dorsaf Ganouati as referee and her compatriots Houda Afine and Emna Ajbouni as first assistant and fourth official respectively. Egyptian Yara Atef Said Abdelfattah will be second assistant referee.

Agar Mezing from Cameroon will be the referee assessor while Cindy Dludlu from e-Swatini will be match commissioner.

 

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Morgan slams ‘disgraceful’ Tottenham ‘idiots’ after Arsenal blow

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Television broadcaster and Arsenal supporter Piers Morgan has branded any Tottenham fan celebrating their 2-0 loss to Manchester City last

Television broadcaster and Arsenal supporter Piers Morgan has branded any Tottenham fan celebrating their 2-0 loss to Manchester City last night as ‘disgraceful idiots’ in a fierce rant.

In what was such a pivotal game for the title race, Spurs dealt their bitter rivals Arsenal a brutal blow as they handed Man City the top spot in the league table thanks to Erling Haaland’s second-half brace alongside Heung-min Son’s late missed chance that could’ve levelled the scoreline with just five minutes left.

Ange Postecoglou’s side could’ve still mathematically finished in the top four before last night’s clash, with them needing to overturn a five-point deficit to Aston Villa, but the result meant that Spurs were left in a position where they can now finish outside the top five on the final day of the season.

Even after the full-time whistle, supporters noticed a playful conversation between Pep Guardiola and Tottenham centre-back Cristian Romero, with the Man City boss finishing it off by playfully punching the Argentinian in the chest with a smile – a stark contrast to the post-match press conference of Postecoglou who appeared incensed on the touchline at a fan celebrating his side’s loss.

With emotions running high for all three teams, it was Morgan who summarised what many Arsenal fans have been claiming in the days leading up to the match, which saw Tottenham fans asking the club on social media to lose in order to derail Mikel Arteta’s side’s attempt at lifting their first Premier League trophy in over 20 years.

One of those fans was former Spurs midfielder Jamie O’Hara, who took to watching the match in a Manchester City shirt during a live watch along on talkSPORT, in which he was also seen doing the poznan and singing Blue Moon.

Speaking to Ally McCoist and Alan Brazil on TalkSPORT’s Breakfast show the following morning, Morgan fumed: “Morning chaps. I’ll tell you what I can say [about the match], Jamie O’Hara and all the other little Spurs fans who were actually celebrating their team losing are possibly the most disgraceful bunch of tiny-club-mentality idiots I think world football has ever seen!

“I mean honestly, they were dancing around in celebration as Man City scored against them. O’Hara is wearing a City shirt and jumping around because it’s the closest thing they’ll ever get to winning anything in their tiny, godforsaken lives.

“It’s got to be the most embarrassing, humiliating, self-harming act of treachery I’ve ever seen and I really feel sorry [for them], because I’ve woken up this morning knowing how it feels to be a Spurs fan for a night and it’s horrible. I’ve woken up with a massive headache, I got hardly any sleep, I drank too much and I felt a sense of self-loathing which only disappeared when I remembered I was an Arsenal fan.

“Just to remind everyone, O’Hara was in the Arsenal academy before we got rid of him and sent him to Tottenham, that just shows his mentality. I do feel sorry for Ange Postecoglou because he’s an Australian, he doesn’t understand what it means to want to lose something in sport because losing is alien to them. Postecoglou has literally had to turn around in a massive game for them which could’ve helped them to qualify for the Champions League but no, there was a Tottenham fan behind him chanting throughout the game for him to throw the match.

“Postecoglou, because he’s a winner, turned around and had a go at him. What a moment for Tottenham fans, I mean, how can any of them live with themselves after watching that scene go down last night? They had a chance to try and make top four, they were the better team for 70 percent of that match against City but Son missed an absolute sitter and Arsenal aren’t heading for the Premier League on Sunday. I’m annoyed, I’m annoyed but I’m also ashamed, even more so than usual, of Spurs fans.”

 

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First Women’s Club World Cup to take place in 2026

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The inaugural Women’s Club World Cup will take place in January and February 2026, Fifa has confirmed. The 16-team tournament will be held

The inaugural Women’s Club World Cup will take place in January and February 2026, Fifa has confirmed.

The 16-team tournament will be held every four years and fall during the domestic season for European leagues, between the Women’s Champions League group stages and the knockout rounds.

The USA’s National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) season usually begins in March.

Fifa announced its intention to create a global women’s club competition in December 2022 and a Fifa congress confirmed the plans on Wednesday in Bangkok.

Barcelona are the current European champions, NY Gotham FC the reigning NWSL champions and Brazilian side Corinthians are the holders of the Copa Libertadores Femenina.

The Fifa congress also approved a new international match calendar from 2026-29 with the aim of providing players with more opportunities for rest and recovery by reducing the number of international breaks from six to five.

“The women’s international match calendar and the subsequent amendments to our regulations represent an important milestone in our pledge to take the women’s game to the next level by enhancing competitiveness across the world,” said Fifa president Gianni Infantino.

The first edition of the expanded men’s Club World Cup tournament – which will also be staged every four years – is scheduled for next summer.

The Fifa congress is also set to vote for the host of the 2027 Women’s World Cup with Brazil up against a joint bid from Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands.

 

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Danladi Bako hails NFF on choice of Finidi George as Super Eagles Coach

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Nigerian broadcasting icon, Dr. Nasir Danladi Bako has praised the Nigeria Football Federation for settling for former international

Nigerian broadcasting icon, Dr. Nasir Danladi Bako has praised the Nigeria Football Federation for settling for former international and ex-Enyimba FC strategist Finidi George as Head Coach of the Super Eagles.

The Kogunan Sakwatto, 66, who created a plethora of famous TV programmes including Morning Ride, Mastersports and Second Chance, among others, and served as Special Adviser to a number of Sports Ministers many years ago, insisted the NFF leadership struck a bull’s eye with the appointment of the two-time FIFA World Cup star, stating that George oozes class and character, and an iron determination to succeed despite his public carapace of a quiet person.

“Finidi George has that cultured, disciplined mien and personality that makes you want to trust him with a big project. He understands the meaning of constituted authority and right from his playing days, has always displayed the attribute of a team player. He has always had that calm, collected nature even in the face of pressure or danger.

“Above all, he is not someone who thinks he is doing the nation a favour. He is grateful for the opportunity and I believe that he has all it takes to succeed. I am calling on the Federal Ministry of Sports Development, the NFF and Nigerians as a whole to support him to take the Super Eagles to brand-new heights.”

Bako, who holds a doctorate degree in development communication from the Ahmadu Bello University and was Director General of the National Broadcasting Commission between 1999 and 2002, says all hands must now be on deck to ensure victories in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches against South Africa and Benin Republic on 7 June and 11 June respectively.

“No doubt, the NFF got this one appointment right. Very much on point. Now, they should endeavour to give George all the support he needs to succeed in his task of qualifying Nigeria for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.”

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