International Football
NIGERIAN PLAYER, ADESINA, MAKES WAVES IN SEYCHELLES
Seychelles is an unlikely destination for every footballer, but for Nigerian Peter Adesina, it has become home, an opportunity he forever remains grateful.
The 28-year old midfielder Adeshina has been one of the unsung heroes Seychellois champions, Cote d’Or, but doesn’t mind being in the background and play his part towards the success of the team.
“I played in Nigeria for a long time notably in the second-tier (Nigerian National League) with City of David (COD) Club and Calabar Rovers.
After a short stint in Benin, I was due to return to Nigeria until this opportunity to play in these beautiful islands came, and I grabbed the chance with both hands,” he reflected.
Adesina recalls he needed some time to adapt with the climate especially upon arrival in 2017, but he managed to do the business on the pitch helping Cote d’Or to runner-up spot in the Seychellois top flight.
The following season, the club based in Praslin, the second biggest Island in Seychelles, moved a step further winning the national title championship, with the Nigerian netting 12 goals in all competitions.
“I played in Nigeria for a long time notably in the second-tier (Nigerian National League) with City
He had to fight for his place as one of the four foreigners at the club for the three slots per club according to the regulations of the Seychelles Premier League.
Others foreigners are Uganda Tonny Kizito and Jonah Randriamisaina of Madagscar are other foreign players at the club.
“It has been a privilege to get the chance to showcase my talent and I’m grateful for the club management and coaches as well as the other partners and the whole community of Praslin where the team is based for all the support. I will always strive to give my best for the club,” Adesina said.
The league title feat earned Cote d’Or the right to represent Seychelles in the CAF Champions League 2019/20, a participation which has come with bitter-sweet memories.
For the first time, the Praslin-based club went past the preliminary round after eliminating Fomboni of Comoros on the away goal rule after a 3-3 tie on aggregate.
Next in line was South Africa and 2016 champions, Mamelodi Sundowns, standing between the islanders and a historic place at the group stage of the premier continental club championship.
However, the Brazilians as Sundowns are nicknamed proved a
mountain too tall for Cote d’Or. After a 5-0 loss in the first leg, the
Seychellois outfit suffered a humbling 11-1 loss in the reverse, a result which
went down as the biggest loss in the history of the competition, and the
aggregate score of 16-1, also another record.
Despite the infamous result, which has seen Cote d’Or drop to the Playoffs of the second-tier Total CAF Confederation Cup, where they come up against El Masry of Egypt, Adesina who has one goal to his name has described the experience worthy.
The Islanders host the Port Said-based outfit in the first leg on Sunday in Victoria, and the Nigerian is upbeat about a convincing result to boost their quest for a historic feat, this time for the positive reasons by becoming the first-ever Seychellois club to participate to reach the group stage of a major continental club championship.
“We hope to use the experience from our last contest against Sundowns to do better.
“Though we are conscious that we are playing a highly ranked club on the continent, what is important is that our players have the right attitude for the match as we must realize we have our reputation and that of the club at stake,” Adesina added.
The Seychellois champions are boisterous mood after a record 9-3 win over Red Star Defence Forces last Saturday in the domestic top flight. The result ranks as the biggest of the season so far.
“The record league win against Red Star Defence Forces, one of the title contenders will serve as a morale booster for the continental test against El Masry, which will be of a different level,” the Nigerian concluded.
-CAFonline
International Football
Former Brazil coach Tite taking break to take care of mental, physical health
Former Brazil coach Tite said he is taking an indefinite career break in order to take care of his mental and physical health.
The 63-year-old, who led Brazil to the 2019 Copa America title, was hospitalised due to a heart issue last August. He was sacked by Flamengo the following month and had most recently been linked with the Corinthians job.
“I realised that there are times when you have to understand that, as a human being, I can be vulnerable and admitting that will certainly make me stronger,” Tite said in a statement posted on his son Matheus Bachi’s Instagram on Tuesday.
“I’m passionate about what I do and I’ll continue to be so, but after talking to my family and observing the signals my body was giving off, I decided that the best thing to do now is to take a break from my career to look after myself for as long as it takes.
“As has become public, there was a conversation in progress with Corinthians, but it will have to be paralysed by a difficult but necessary decision.”
Tite, who stepped down as Brazil coach after their quarter-final exit from the 2022 World Cup, has previously coached a string of Brazilian sides including Gremio, Atletico Mineiro and Palmeiras.
-Reuters
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Brazil have sacked head coach Dorival Jr, the country’s football confederation (CBF) said on Friday after the five-time world champions were thrashed 4-1 away to fierce rivals Argentina in a humiliating qualifying loss in Buenos Aires.
The 62-year-old was appointed in January 2024 after the team spent a year under two caretaker coaches as the Brazilian FA were unable to lure Italian Carlo Ancelotti from Real Madrid.
“The Brazilian Football Confederation informs that coach Dorival Jr is no longer in charge of the Brazilian national team,” the confederation said in a statement.
“The management thanks (Dorival) and wishes him success in continuing his career … the CBF will work to find his replacement,” it added.
Dorival was handed the job after his success with Flamengo in 2022 where he won the Copa Libertadores and Brazilian Cup, a trophy he lifted again the next year with Sao Paulo.
However, he never seemed to get to grips with the national team job and failed to earn the trust of Brazil’s demanding fans after winning only seven of his 16 games in charge.
Sources told Reuters the CBF was not confident in Dorival’s work, considering there had been little to no progress since a lacklustre Copa America campaign when Brazil were knocked out in the quarter-finals by Uruguay last year.
Still, the CBF was willing to wait and see until the 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Ecuador and Paraguay in June to reassess the situation following the end of the European season and the Club World Cup in the U.S. in June and July.
But after Brazil slumped to their heaviest-ever loss in a qualifier when they were thrashed by Argentina this week, CBF president Ednaldo Rodrigues decided to pull the trigger.
IDEAL CANDIDATE
Sources told Reuters Ancelotti was still the ideal candidate but he is under contract with Real until July 2026 and there is no indication he would leave the European and Spanish champions.
Brazilian media have reported that Al Hilal’s Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus is the favourite to replace Dorival.
Brazil have been in unfamiliar territory for over two years since crashing out of the 2022 World Cup against Croatia on penalties in the quarter-finals, a heartbreaking elimination that led to the exit of long-time manager Tite.
Their humbling defeat in Buenos Aires was the latest of a series of negative records Brazil have set under caretakers Ramon Menezes and Fernando Diniz and with Dorival in charge. They had never conceded four goals in a World Cup qualifier.
Brazil are in the midst of their worst-ever World Cup qualifying campaign. They are fourth in the South American standings with 21 points, a point above sixth-placed Colombia who currently occupy the final direct qualifying berth.
Never have Brazil lost so many games, conceded so many goals or set so many negative records in the qualifying competition. They have lost five of their 14 games and conceded 16 goals.
Brazil’s 1-0 defeat by Argentina in the Maracana late in 2023 was their first-ever qualifying loss on home soil.
They also lost to Colombia for the first time, saw the end of their unbeaten run against Uruguay stretching back over two decades and were defeated by Morocco and Senegal, having never previously lost to an African nation.
-Reuters
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International Football
England’s German manager Tuchel will not sing the English anthem in his first game
England manager Thomas Tuchel said he would have to “earn the right” to sing the national anthem, God Save the King, after announcing his 26-man squad on Friday ahead of the team’s World Cup qualifiers.
Tuchel, who was appointed as Gareth Southgate’s successor in October and named his first squad to face Albania and Latvia this month, said he would not sing the anthem in his first games in charge.
“It means a lot to me, I can assure you, but I can feel that because it is so meaningful and it is so emotional and it is so powerful, the national anthem, that I have to earn my right to sing it,” the 51-year-old German told a news conference.
Former caretaker manager Lee Carsley was criticised last year for not singing the anthem during his tenure.
However, Tuchel added that while he is proud to be in charge of the team and knows the words to the anthem, he plans to earn the right with results.
“Maybe I have to dive more into the culture and earn my right from you, from the players, from the supporters, so everyone feels like ‘he should sing it now, he’s one of our own, he’s the English manager, he should sing it’,” he said.
-Reuters
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