International Football
DALUNG THANKS CAF PRESIDENT FOR RUSSIA 2018 SUPPORT
Nigeria’s Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung has thanked the President of the Confederation of African Football CAF, Ahmad for his support to the five African nations which qualified for the World Cup in Russia.
He was particularly thankful that Nigeria’s Super Eagles are beneficiaries of the assistance.
Dalung showed his gratitude in a meeting with Ahmad at the Four Seasons Hotel Casablanca in Morocco where Nigeria’s Super Eagles Team B are currently taking part in the African Championship.
The CAF President granted a financial subsidy of five hundred thousand US dollars to the five African teams which qualified for the World Cup in Russia to strengthen the technical supervision of the teams as well as a Fieldwiz equipment, a smart training bib that also measures the physical performance for outdoor team sports players.
The beneficiary teams are the Super Eagles of Nigeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Morocco and Senegal.
Dalung commended the CAF President for his vision in changing the face of CAF and African football.
‘I wish to thank you for turning around African football and giving it a facelift. Football in Africa today has been revolutionized and the effects of what we are seeing now are unprecedented.
“CAF now consists of a new generation of football administrators and I am happy too that we have a Nigerian in the person of Amaju Pinnick in the inner caucus of CAF.
“I thank you for supporting Nigeria with five hundred thousand dollars and an outdoor performance measurement equipment. This will assist the Nigeria Football Federation in preparing the Super Eagles for the World Cup.”
The CAF President Ahmad also praised Nigeria for qualifying for the quarter finals of CHAN adding that Nigeria has always been the cynosure of all eyes at African and World Cup tournaments.
“Nigeria has played an important role in African football and is the strongest African contender at the World Cup in Russia. CAF is backing Nigeria to make a mark at the 2018 World Cup. We must prepare our African teams to make us proud at the World Cup,”Ahmad said.
Also at the meeting was President of the Nigeria Football Federation Amaju Pinnick, the Nigerian Ambassador to Morocco, Edward Pakwok and Mrs Alabi Loveth Funmilayo, a staff of the Ministry.
Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.
The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.
This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.
The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.
Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.
As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.
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