International Football
UPDATED: QATAR 2022 QUALIFIERS PITCH SUPER EAGLES AGAINST MINNOWS
BY MUYIWA AKINTUNDE
The Super Eagles’ journey to a seventh FIFA World Cup finals kicks off in October with a home fixture against Central African Republic, while Cape Verde Islands and Liberia are the other teams in Group C of Africa’s second round qualifiers.
The Super Eagles’ journey to a seventh FIFA World Cup finals kicks off in October with a fixture against Liberia, while Cape Verde Islands and Liberia are the other teams in Group C of Africa’s second round qualifiers.
Forty teams were drawn into 10 groups, but only one country per group will reach the last qualifying round where Africa’s five representatives for Qatar 2022 will emerge.
Going by current rankings and pedigree in international competitions, Nigeria have an easy group in theory. Thirty-first in the world and third in Africa, no other team in the group come close to the Super Eagles.
Cape Verde are in 78th spot in global standing (16th in Africa), while Central African Republic are 26th in the continent and 109th in the world.
Liberia are the lowest rated in the group – 44th in Africa and 152nd in the world.
Unlike the other teams in the Group C, none of which have ever advanced to the final qualifying round in the continent, Nigeria have missed only one FIFA World Cup finals (Germany 2006) since their debut at the global tournament in 1994.
Nigeria and Cape Verde have never met in a competitive game. A friendly match on January 9, 2013 ended goalless. It was a warm-up for that year’s Africa Cup of Nations which the Super Eagles won in South Africa,
While the Central African Republic will be engaging their Nigerian counterparts for the first time on the road to Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup, Liberia had fallen victims to their West African “big brother” on two occasions in FIFA World Cup qualification.
For the 1986 tournament, which Nigeria would fail to qualify, the then Green Eagles stopped the Lone Star of Liberia 4-0 in the first round, winning both legs 3-0 in Lagos and 1-0 in Monrovia.
And on the road to sealing their second FIFA World Cup participation in 2002, Nigeria were in Group B of the second round qualifiers with Liberia, losing 1-2 in Monrovia and winning 2-0 in Lagos.
Nigeria won the group to go through with just a point over Liberia. Sudan, Ghana and Sierra Leone finished behind the duo in that order.
At Mali 2002 Africa Cup of Nations, Nigeria and Liberia were in Group A with the host nation. Julius Aghahowa’s 63rd minute goal won the last group match against Liberia, which ensured that the Super Eagles topped the group.
The qualifiers for AFCON 2013 also brought Nigeria and Liberia together; their paths crossing in the second round. Nigeria returned from Monrovia with a 2-2 outcome and wrapped up the tie 6-1 at home to progress 8-3 aggregate.
The Super Eagles recent results have given their compatriots hope of advancing from Group C. Their last two matches in the qualifiers for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations saw the Super Eagles winning at home (2-1 against Benin Republic) and 4-2 in Lesotho.
Other highlights of the draw include the disappointment that at least two of the continent’s past representatives at FIFA World Cup will miss the next edition in Qatar.
Due to their low rating and the lottery of the draw, the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon and the Ivorien Elephants, as well as the Black Stars of Ghana and South Africa’s Bafana Bafana find themselves in the same groups.
In Group D are Cameroon, Africa’s record qualifiers for the global tournament, who have been to the finals seven times. They also have the honour of being the first African team to reach the quarterfinals in 1990.
The Ivorien, on their part, qualified three times.
Both teams, who will now go head-to-head for the sole ticket in Group D, will attempt to redeem themselves after failing to qualify for the last edition in Russia.
For the Black Stars of Ghana, who recently fired and hired their coaching crew, the main hurdle in Group G are South Africa. Ghana have featured in three finals, including at South Africa 2010 where they missed the semifinals when a last minute goal-line handball by Luis Suarez ensured that Uruguay survived at the expense of the last African team standing.
Apart from playing as hosts in 2010, South Africa also qualified for 1998 and 2002 editions.
The second round of Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers for Africa starts in October and will be concluded in the same month a year later. The third and final round will then hold between November 8 and 16, 2021 in a two-legged knockout format.
The Super Eagles’ journey to a seventh FIFA World Cup finals kicks off in October with a home fixture against Central African Republic, while Cape Verde Islands and Liberia are the other teams in Group C of Africa’s second round qualifiers.
The Super Eagles’ journey to a seventh FIFA World Cup finals kicks off in October with a home fixture against Central African Republic, while Cape Verde Islands and Liberia are the other teams in Group C of Africa’s second round qualifiers.
Forty teams were drawn into 10 groups, but only one country per group will go reach the last qualifying round where Africa’s five representatives for Qatar 2022 will emerge.
Going by current rankings and pedigree in international competitions, Nigeria have an easy group in theory. Thirty-first in the world and third in Africa, no other team in the group come close to the Super Eagles.
Cape Verde are in 78th spot in global standing (16th in Africa), while Central African Republic are 26th in the continent and 109th in the world.
Liberia are the lowest rated – 44th in Africa and 152nd in the world.
Unlike the other teams in the group, none of which have ever advanced to the final qualifying round in the continent, Nigeria have missed only one FIFA World Cup finals (Germany 2006) since their debut at the global tournament in 1994.
Nigeria and Cape Verde have never met in a competitive game. A friendly match on January 9, 2013 ended goalless. It was a warm-up for that year’s Africa Cup of Nations which the Super Eagles won in South Africa,
While the Central African Republic will be engaging their Nigerian counterparts for the first time on the road to Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup, Liberia had fallen victims to their West African “big brother” on two occasions in this competition.
For the 1986 FIFA World Cup, which Nigeria would fail to qualify, the then Green Eagles stopped the Lone Star of Liberia 4-0 in the first round, winning both legs 3-0 in Lagos and 1-0 in Monrovia.
And on the road to sealing their second FIFA World Cup participation in 2002, Nigeria were in Group B of the second round qualifiers with Liberia, losing 1-2 in Monrovia and winning 2-0 in Lagos.
Nigeria won the group to go through with just a point over Liberia. Sudan, Ghana and Sierra Leone finished behind the duo in that order.
At Mali 2002, the Africa Cup of Nations hosted that year by that West Africa state, Nigeria and Liberia were in Group A with the host nation. Julius Aghahowa’s 63rd minute goal won the last group match that ensured the Super Eagles topped the group while Mali were runners-up.
The qualifiers for AFCON 2013 also brought Nigeria and Liberia together. Their paths crossed in the second round. Nigeria returned from Monrovia with a 2-2 outcome and wrapped up the tie 6-1 at home to progress 8-3 aggregate.
The Super Eagles recent results have given their compatriots hope of advancing from Group C. Their last two matches in the qualifiers for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations saw the Super Eagles winning at home (2-1 against Benin Republic) and away (4-2) to Lesotho.
Other highlights of the draw include the disappointment that at least two of the continent’s past representatives in FIFA World Cup will miss the next edition in Qatar.
Due to their low rating and the lottery of the draw, Cameroon and the Ivorien Elephants as well as Ghana and South African find themselves in the same groups.
In Group D are Cameroon, Africa’s record qualifiers for the global tournament, together with Côte d’Ivoire. The Indomitable Lions have been to the finals seven times, and have the honour of being the first African team to reach the quarterfinals in 1990.
The Ivorien, on their part, qualified three times. Both of them however missed the last edition in Russia.
For the Black Stars of Ghana, who recently got a new coach, they will face South Africa in Group G. Ghana have featured in three finals including at South Africa 2010 when they missed the semifinals through a last minute goalie handball by Luis Suarez for Uruguay.
Apart from playing as hosts in 2010, South Africa also qualified for 1998 and 2002 editions.
The second round of Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers for Africa starts in October and will be concluded exactly a year later. The third and final round will then held between November 8 and 16, 2021.
The Super Eagles’ journey to a seventh FIFA World Cup finals kicks off in October with a home fixture against Central African Republic, while Cape Verde Islands and Liberia are the other teams in Group C of Africa’s second round qualifiers.
Forty teams were drawn into 10 groups, but only one country per group will go reach the last qualifying round where Africa’s five representatives for Qatar 2022 will emerge.
Going by current rankings and pedigree in international competitions, Nigeria have an easy group in theory. Thirty-first in the world and third in Africa, no other team in the group come close to the Super Eagles.
Cape Verde are in 78th spot in global standing (16th in Africa), while Central African Republic are 26th in the continent and 109th in the world.
Liberia are the lowest rated – 44th in Africa and 152nd in the world.
Unlike the other teams in the group, none of which have ever advanced to the final qualifying round in the continent, Nigeria have missed only one FIFA World Cup finals (Germany 2006) since their debut at the global tournament in 1994.
Nigeria and Cape Verde have never met in a competitive game. A friendly match on January 9, 2013 ended goalless. It was a warm-up for that year’s Africa Cup of Nations which the Super Eagles won in South Africa,
While the Central African Republic will be engaging their Nigerian counterparts for the first time on the road to Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup, Liberia had fallen victims to their West African “big brother” on two occasions in this competition.
For the 1986 FIFA World Cup, which Nigeria would fail to qualify, the then Green Eagles stopped the Lone Star of Liberia 4-0 in the first round, winning both legs 3-0 in Lagos and 1-0 in Monrovia.
And on the road to sealing their second FIFA World Cup participation in 2002, Nigeria were in Group B of the second round qualifiers with Liberia, losing 1-2 in Monrovia and winning 2-0 in Lagos.
Nigeria won the group to go through with just a point over Liberia. Sudan, Ghana and Sierra Leone finished behind the duo in that order.
At Mali 2002, the Africa Cup of Nations hosted that year by that West Africa state, Nigeria and Liberia were in Group A with the host nation. Julius Aghahowa’s 63rd minute goal won the last group match that ensured the Super Eagles topped the group while Mali were runners-up.
The qualifiers for AFCON 2013 also brought Nigeria and Liberia together. Their paths crossed in the second round. Nigeria returned from Monrovia with a 2-2 outcome and wrapped up the tie 6-1 at home to progress 8-3 aggregate.
The Super Eagles recent results have given their compatriots hope of advancing from Group C. Their last two matches in the qualifiers for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations saw the Super Eagles winning at home (2-1 against Benin Republic) and away (4-2) to Lesotho.
The second round of Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers for Africa starts in October and will be concluded exactly a year later. The third and final round will then held between November 8 and 16, 2021.
Here’s the pairing for the second round of 2022 FIFA World Cup (Africa draw):
Group A: Algeria, Burkina Faso, Niger Republic, Djibouti
Group B: Tunisia, Zambia, Mauritania, Equatorial Guinea,
Group C: Nigeria, Cape Verde Islands, Liberia, Central African Republic,
Group D: Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Mozambique, Malawi,
Group E: Mali, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda,
Group F: Egypt, Gabon, Libya, Angola,
Group G: Ghana, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia,
Group H: Senegal, Congo Republic, Namibia, Togo,
Group I: Morocco, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Sudan,
Group J: DR Congo, Benin Republic, Madagascar, Tanzania
A clash of kit colours caused confusion for players and made it difficult for fans watching on TV to tell the teams apart as World Cup co-hosts, the U.S., were accused of being responsible for a mix-up in a 5-2 friendly defeat by Belgium on Saturday.
Both teams used the match to launch the new kit they will wear at the June 11 to July 19 World Cup, which is also being held in Canada and Mexico.
The U.S. sported a design that pulls directly from the red and white stripes in the American flag, while Belgium wore their away kit, which was light blue with pink accents.
“Sometimes you had to look twice, especially if you wanted to play quickly,” Belgian winger Jeremy Doku told his national television afterwards. “I would have preferred clearer colours.”
American captain Christian Pulisic said it was difficult to deal with.
“A lot of times you get the ball, and you look up, you can’t really lock in on something. You can only base it on the colour of the shirt. That’s how it works,” he told reporters. “And when it’s very similar, it’s difficult.”
Belgian television apologised to viewers after the match, with analyst and former Belgian international Marc Degryse criticising organisers.
“Football is a product that needs to be sold. Everything always has to be better and better, yet they still managed to make the match annoying with the jerseys,” he said.
“This goes completely against the whole commercial aspect. This is really unacceptable.”
US Soccer said pictures of both jerseys were sent to match referees before the match, and at no time did they indicate they felt there was a conflict.
Belgian media said on Sunday the fault lay with the hosts, who insisted on playing in their new red and white jerseys, which clashed with both Belgium’s first-choice red strip and also the lighter away kit.
Both countries wanted to unveil their new jerseys for the first time, but after becoming aware of the situation, Belgium proposed to play in their traditional red, the reports said.
However, that was not an option because the U.S. shirt also contains a lot of red. One solution could have been for the U.S. to play in their dark blue kit, but that did not fit into their commercial plan, the reports added.
-Reuters
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Mexico and Portugal played out a 0-0 draw at the Estadio Azteca on Saturday in a friendly to mark the stadium’s reopening ahead of the World Cup.
The match doubled as a test event for the revamped stadium, drawing a festive crowd eager to sample the atmosphere ahead of the June 11 to July 19 global soccer showpiece, which Mexico is co-hosting with the U.S. and Canada.
“It’s the best possible scenario, as I’ve said; to play here, you’ve got to have guts, because the fans are demanding and want to win and see good football,” Mexico coach Javier Aguirre told reporters.
“The players gave it their all right to the end against Portugal, who are not an easy team. They’re a top-10 side, a really solid team.”
Portugal’s Joao Felix went close in the 14th minute before Goncalo Ramos struck the post midway through the first half.
The visitors continued to look the more dangerous side after the break, with Bruno Fernandes firing just wide.
Tensions briefly flared between Pedro Neto and Jesus Gallardo, while the introduction of Toluca’s Portuguese striker Paulinho was met with loud cheers from the home crowd.
“I think we had 10 shots on goal, which isn’t far off what we were aiming for,” Portugal coach Roberto Martinez said.
“What isn’t good is the number of shots on target; we lacked accuracy.
“Success or failure isn’t just about the score. There are many more factors at play these days. I think that, after 90 minutes, the team is better prepared for the World Cup.”
Mexico almost claimed a late winner through substitute Armando Gonzalez but the forward’s header went wide.
Mexico, who were booed by sections of the crowd at the final whistle, face Belgium in another friendly on Tuesday, while Portugal take on the United States the same day.
-Reuters
Portugal’s Goncalo Ramos in action with Mexico’s Erik Lira REUTERS/Eloisa Sanchez
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Amid the controversy over Senegal being stripped of the Africa Cup of Nations title and Morocco being declared winners, the international debut of Issa Diop on Friday proved something of an irony as well as a public relations coup.
The Fulham defender was born in France and played for the country at the Under-21 level, but on Thursday had his application to switch nationality to Morocco approved by world football’s governing body FIFA and was immediately drafted into the starting line-up for the 1-1 draw against Ecuador in Madrid.
Diop, whose father is Senegalese and mother from Morocco, had previously rejected overtures from both countries to play for them while holding out hope he might represent France.
The 29-year-old said several times he wanted to play for Les Bleus, but with no call-up from France coach Didier Deschamps, he has now taken up the opportunity to possibly play at the World Cup for Morocco.
“I was very happy to play in a team with a lot of good players, and I think I’ve made a good choice,” Diop said after Friday’s match.
Diop had talks with Morocco’s new coach, Mohamed Ouahbi and Moroccan Federation President Faouzi Lekjaa.
“They explained their vision to me, and I was taken in with open arms by a cheerful group of players with a great atmosphere in the camp,” he said.
The North Africans have a track record of assiduously courting players with links to the country who they believe can improve their national team, but this is the first tug-of-war over player loyalty with another African country they have won.
Senegal also draw heavily on their diaspora in France, and the 28-man squad which won the Cup of Nations in Morocco in January featured 12 French-born players.
Senegal this week formally contested the decision of the Confederation of African Football’s Appeal Board to take the title away from them.
They were ruled to have forfeited the final in Rabat on January 18 because they walked off the pitch in protest at a potentially decisive penalty awarded to Morocco, but have now referred the matter to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
The posturing between the two countries continued on Friday when Senegal held a press conference ahead of Saturday’s friendly against Peru in front of a banner that read “Champions of Africa”.
They are expected to display the Cup of Nations trophy to supporters ahead of the match at the Stade de France.
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