International Football
WHAT PROSPECTS AFTER 20 YEARS SINCE NIGERIAN LAST WON CAF AWARD?
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
It is 20 years since a
Nigerian last won the African Footballer of the Year award. The last Nigerian recipient
was the legend, Nwankwo Kanu who was decorated on the opening match day in
Lagos at the 2000 Africa Cup of Nations for his exploits in 1999.
When the final shortlist was released on New Year Day, the sole Nigerian candidate in the top 10, Alex Iwobi, crashed out. Nigerians can only look forward to next year to find out if any of the country’s footballers can win the award.
Yet in the first eight years of the CAF organised award, Nigerians dominated, winning five times, while five other Nigerian players made the final cut of three in other years of the early period.
Ever since 1999, Nigeria’s best outings were the runners-up position by Mikel Obi in 2013 and the second-runners up ranking of Vincent Enyeama in 2014.
Another edition of the award holds tomorrow on the slave-trade island of Gorée, two kilometres off the Atlantic Ocean coast of Dakar the capital city of Senegal.
When a shortlist of 34 was initially composed, there were three Nigerians – Alex Iwobi, Ahmed Musa and Odion Ighalo.
When the list was pruned to 10, speedy striker, Ahmed Musa and current highest goal scorer in the qualifying series for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, qualifying series, Odion Ighalo did not make the cut.
Iwobi, a nephew to the legendary Austin Jay Jay Okocha, had a mountain to climb among the penultimate 10 before last week’s final shortlist. It was a heavyweight composition, hence he could not make it to the last three like his uncle, Austin Jay Jay Okocha did some years ago.
Despite his acclaimed fame and admiration, Okocha never won the title as he agonizingly missed out in 1998, 2003 and 2004. Incidentally, those were the eras when Nigerian footballers made waves across the globe.
When Victor Ikpeba won the 1997 award, Nigeria’s Taribo West, then featuring for Inter Milan was the second runner up.
In 1998 when Okocha lost the award to Morocco’s Mustapha Hadji, Sunday Oliseh, then playing for Ajax Amsterdam.
The African Footballer of the Year Award has a long history as it was initially done by French publication, FranceFootball magazine in the 1970s. Expectedly, the award skewed in favour of players from the Francophone countries who were the main focus of the magazine.
In 1980, with the assistance from the late Bashorun MKO Abiola, the then African Sports Journalists Union (ASJU), now simply AIPS-Africa, initiated its awards ceremony that were held in irregular intervals and often adopt the results released by FranceFootball,
In 1992, CAF started its official awards. At the early stage, Nigerian dominated. Even though Abedi ‘Pele’ Ayew of Ghana won that of 1992, the next years saw a preponderance of Nigerians.
Rashidi Yekini won that of 1993 while Emmanuel Amuneke beat Liberia’s George Weah to win that of 1994 and Yekini emerged as the second runners-up.
George Weah won that of 1995, but had two Nigerians as runners-up – Emmanuel Amuneke and Daniel Amokachi.
Nwankwo Kanu beat George Weah to the award in 1996 while Daniel Amokachi was the second runners-up.
Iwobi could see his club mate and former winner, Gabon’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang emerging as winner again. He won in 2015.
Apart from Arsenal as a common denominator for both, they also have Gernot Rohr as a coach both have passed through.
Rohr handled Gabon to the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations and had Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as one of his players. Iwobi is one of Rohr’s key players in the Super Eagles.
Also, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s father, Pierre-François Aubameyang who had 80 international caps, was in the Gabonese team beaten 3-0 by Super Eagles at the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations in Tunisia.
In a final shortlist that is a replication of that of 2017, Aubameyang have Egypt’s Mohamed Salah and Senegal’s Sadio Mane to contend with. The Egyptian was two weeks ago named as BBC’s African Footballer of the Year 2018.
If past trend is anything to go by, CAF Award may just re-echo the award result of BBC.
Those who fell out along with Iwobi in the final shortlist are Andre Onana (Cameroon & Ajax), Anis Badri (Tunisia & Esperance), Denis Onyango (Uganda & Mamelodi Sundowns) and Mehdi Benatia (Morocco & Juventus).
The
others are: Riyad Mahrez (Algeria & Manchester City) and Walid Soliman
(Egypt & Ahly).
The final phase will involve votes from CAF Media Experts, Legends, Coaches of
the quarter-finalists of the CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup,
and Coaches & Captains of the 54 Member Associations.
With Iwobi out of contention for the topmost award, there are other Nigerians who hope to begin 2019 with accolades. Asisat Oshoala is hoping to win the women’s version of the African Footballer of the Year. She is the reigning queen of the pitch. Contending with Oshoala are two other Nigerians; Francisca Ordega and Onome Ebi.
Nigeria still eyes awards in other categories. Super Eagles’ Wilfred Ndidi who features for Leicester City in the English Premiership is in line for the Youth Player of the Year Award. His challengers are Achraf Hakimi of Morocco and Borussia Dortmund as well as Franck Kessie of Cote d’Ivoire and AC Milan.
Nine time African champions, Super Falcons are shortlisted along with Cameroon and South Africa for the Women’s National Team of the Year Award.
The three teams will be at the FIFA Women’s World Cup in France next year. Nigeria beat the other two countries via penalty shoot-out in the semi finals and final respectively of the CAF Women’s Nations Cup in Ghana.
The coaches of the three women’s teams are also in line for the Women’s Coach of the Year Award. For the Men’s National team of the Year, the big teams are glaringly absent. The shortlisted are Madagascar, Mauritania and Uganda.
Madagascar, the home country for CAF president, Ahmad, got into reckoning by becoming the first team to qualify for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations. The team will make a debut at the competition which venue remains undecided.
Hard playing Uganda qualified back-to-back for the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time since their 1976 and 1978 qualifications.
Mauritania is another surprise qualifier for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, profiting from the disqualification of Sierra Leone. Like Madagascar, Mauritania will be debuting at 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.
SHORTLIST FOR AFRICAN FOOTBALLER OF THE YEAR 2018
- Mohamed Salah (Egypt & Liverpool)
- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Gabon & Arsenal)
- Sadio Mane (Senegal & Liverpool)
Women’s Player of the Year Nominees
- Asisat Oshoala (Nigeria & Dilian Quanjian)
- Chrestinah Thembi Kgatlana (South Africa & Houston Dash)
- Francisca Ordega (Nigeria & Washington Spirit)
Youth Player of the Year
1. Achraf Hakimi (Morocco & Borussia Dortmund)
2. Franck Kessie (Cote d’Ivoire & AC Milan)
3. Wilfred Ndidi (Nigeria & Leicester City)
Men’s Coach of the Year
1. Aliou Cisse (Senegal)
2. Herve Renard (Morocco)
3. Moine Chaabani (Esperance)
Women’s Coach of the Year
1. Desiree Ellis (South Africa)
2. Joseph Brian Ndoko (Cameroon)
3. Thomas Dennerby (Nigeria)
Men’s National Team of the Year
1. Madagascar
2. Mauritania
3. Uganda
Women’s National Team of the Year
1. Cameroon
2. Nigeria
3. South Africa
Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Mateus Mane has become hot property after Portugal named the 17-year-old in their Under-18 squad on Friday, one day after England included him in their squad.
Mane was called up for a second successive England youth camp by coach Liam Bramley before the team travel to Marbella for a four-team tournament this month.
Mane is eligible for both teams having played for the Portugal Under-17 side last season. As the Under-18 team is a non-UEFA age group, both nations are entitled to call the player up.
He made his England international debut last month against the Portugal Under-18 side who have named Mane in their squad for a four-nation tournament this month.
With both tournaments running concurrently, Mane can only play for one team and Wolves and England confirmed he would feature in Bramley’s side.
Reuters has contacted Portugal’s football association for clarification.
While players with multiple nationalities have played for more than one country if they are eligible, they are not allowed to switch allegiances at senior level – unless they have played only in friendly matches for the first country.
-Reuters
After 107 matches spanning nine years, Aliou Cisse will not have his contract renewed as Senegal coach, officials confirmed on Wednesday. Of the 107 matches, Cisse’s team won 70, drew 24 and lost 13.
But the impressive scorecard is not enough to impress his employers.
Thus, the end beckons for Cisse’s successful nine-year spell in charge of the side that included a first Africa Cup of Nations title and two World Cup qualifications.
He had been under increasing pressure after Senegal’s surprise last 16 exit at the 2023 Cup of Nations when they lost on penalties to hosts Cote d’Ivoire.
Senegal are unbeaten in six matches since then, but home draws with the Democratic Republic of Congo and Burkina Faso, and criticism from certain quarters over their style of play, made up the mind of the country’s sports ministry, who fund the salary of the national team coach, that a change was needed.
“The FSF would like to thank Aliou Cisse for his good collaboration and his brilliant results at the head of the various national selections that he has managed since his arrival in 2011 and wish him every success for the future,” the Senegalese Football Federation (FSF) said in a statement.
FSF added Cisse’s exit stemmed from a failure to fulfil the targets in his last contract, which expired at the end of August, which included victory at the 2023 Cup of Nations and reaching the quarter-finals of the 2022 World Cup.
They also said the “regression of our national team in the FIFA rankings and the risk of disaffection between our national team and the Senegalese (public)” had played a role.
The FSF will appoint an interim technical team to lead the side in Cup of Nations qualifiers against Malawi at home on Oct. 11 and away four days later.
Cisse, 48, was captain of Senegal when they reached the quarter-finals of the 2002 World Cup with what is heralded as a golden generation of players.
He briefly had a spell as caretaker coach of the national team in 2012, but took over full time three years later.
He led Senegal to 2018 and 2022 World Cup qualification, making the last 16 in the latter before losing to England. They were beaten in the final of the 2019 Cup of Nations by Algeria.
The side made up for that disappointment when they beat Egypt in the final two years later to be crowned African champions for the first time.
Always in the news for bad reasons, Samuel Eto’o has again made global headlines. The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has banned the former striker and the current president of the Cameroon Football Federation.
He is banned from attending Cameroon’s matches for the next six months for violating conduct rules during the recent U-20 Women’s World Cup, where his national team faced Brazil in the round of 16.
According to FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee, Eto’o was found to have breached articles 13 (“Offensive behaviour and violations of fair play principles”) and 14 (“Misconduct of players and officials”) of FIFA’s Disciplinary Code.
The sanction stems specifically from the match between Brazil and Cameroon, held on September 11 in Bogotá, Colombia. As a result, Eto’o will be prohibited from attending any matches involving Cameroon’s national teams, both male and female, across all age groups.
“Mr Eto’o has been notified today, the date on which the sanction comes into force,” stated the FIFA press release.
This is not the first time Eto’o has faced controversy. He previously drew attention for his behavior towards players and national team coach Marc Brys, whom he allegedly threatened in front of cameras if his directives were not followed.
During the Qatar World Cup, the former Real Madrid, Mallorca, and Barcelona player made headlines again after assaulting a fan who filmed him outside a stadium after a match.
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