International Football
EX-NIGERIA ATTACKER CHINEDU OBASI IN 2014 WORLD CUP BRIBE CLAIM
Former Nigeria striker Chinedu Obasi alleged on Sunday (May 10) he was asked to pay a bribe to feature at the 2014 World Cup, before eventually missing out on selection.
Obasi, 33, who has been a free agent since leaving Swedish outfit AIK in January, made his last Super Eagles appearance in 2011 and had club spells in Germany with Hoffenheim and Schalke.
“I was supposed to be at the World Cup in 2014, I was playing with Schalke in the Champions League everything was going fine. At the end of the season, I was given an invitation for the World Cup preparations for friendlies in South Africa,” Obasi said on social media.
“So, two days before the list came out, I was asked to pay some money if I wanted to be in the team,” he added.
Obasi, who won a silver medal at the Beijing 2008 Olympics and played at the 2010 World Cup, said a move away from the Bundesliga fell through after missing the tournament four years later.
“I felt like I’ve paid my dues for the country, if you’re a new player, I can get that but for me, it was a bit personal and very heartbreaking because I got injured – I was supposed to move from Hoffenheim to England,” he said.
“And it takes a lot of dedication, it takes a lot of money and it takes a lot of investment in myself and my body. I went through surgery and did everything I could.”
However, one of Nigeria’s assistant coaches at the World Cup six years ago, Valere Houdonou, maintained Obasi was not good enough to make the final squad facing competition from the likes of Peter Odemwingie and Ahmed Musa.
“The question is, who could he have replaced among the strikers then?” Houdonou said.
“He was invited like every other potential player that could make the World Cup then because the coaching crew wanted to take the best to Brazil then.
“He failed to make the list because he could not displace anyone in the team,” he added
Daniel Amokachi, who was also assistant coach at the World Cup in Brazil, took exception to Obasi’s allegations particularly after head coach Stephen Keshi died in 2016, insisting the players are also guilty.
“This issue of bribe-taking or collecting in our football is not a one-way thing. Agents of players will come and meet a coach to offer money for their players to be taken,” said the former Everton striker, who featured at the 1994 and 1998 World Cups.
“It’s a two-way thing. Sometimes, players are the ones that will even go to the coach to say ‘my agent said he will pay for me to be part of the team’,” he said.
“You will also see some administrators and coaches who have turned agents that will try to be influencing things from the side,” he added.
-AFP
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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Nigeria’s Super Eagles secured a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Iran in an international friendly concluded on Friday in Belek, Turkey, boosting confidence ahead of upcoming competitive fixtures.
In a match played against the backdrop of geopolitical tension surrounding the Iranian team’s World Cup preparations, Nigeria showed greater composure in key moments to emerge deserved winners.
The Super Eagles took the lead in the first half after a lively start, through Moses Simon in the 7th minute.
Nigeria doubled the lead through Akor Adams in the 51st minute. Iran reduced the deficit in the 67th minute through Medhi Taremi.
The encounter was Nigeria’s first meeting with Iran since their goalless draw at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, and it provided an important test for the technical crew as they assess player combinations and tactical options.
The match also carried added attention following Iran’s pre-game protest gesture, where players wore black armbands and held schoolbags in solidarity with victims of a recent conflict-related incident.
For Nigeria, the result offers a positive platform as preparations continue, with another friendly against Jordan scheduled in the coming days. The win is expected to strengthen morale within the squad while giving the coaching crew clearer insight into the team’s readiness for future challenges.
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French soccer icon Zinedine Zidane has agreed to take over his national team’s head coaching duties following this summer’s FIFA World Cup, ESPN reported Monday.
Zidane, 53, reportedly reached a verbal agreement with the Federation Francaise de Football to replace Didier Deschamps, who has held the role since 2012.
Zidane, who managed La Liga powerhouse Real Madrid for two stints (2016-18, 2019-21), has long been expected to eventually become the skipper for France.
As a player, the dynamic midfielder won the 1998 Ballon d’Or and was a three-time FIFA World Player of the Year (1998, 2000 and 2003). He helped France win the World Cup in 1998 and finish second in 2006. He was infamously sent off during the final of the 2006 World Cup when he headbutted Italy’s Marco Materazzi in the chest.
-Reuters
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