Nigerian Football

SPANISH OUTLET EXTOLS KANU’S OUTSIDE FOOTBALL ACTIVITIES

Published

4 years ago

October 10, 2020

Nigerian football legend, Nwankwo Kanu has been praised by Spanish sports news outlet, Tribuna over his activities that touch human lives.

Kanu, a survivor of heart-related ailment in the 1990s set up a heart foundation that has helped many people. His is regarded as an inspiring story taking roots in his own issues

According to the publication, Kanu, also a legend of Premiership side, Arsenal, remarked: ‘We have saved 542 lives. This means more than football’

The ex-Gunner underwent heart surgery in 1996 and his health problems inspired him to set up a foundation later on.

According to Tribuna, by September 2018, 542 lives had been already saved, thanks to the Nigerian’s foundation.

The publication went ahead to reveal that Kanu’s ultimate goal was to build his own cardiological hospitals in Africa.

Quoting from The Guardian, the Spanish publication reported that Kanu remarked: As a footballer you win trophies and it’s good. But this is so much more.”

Kanu, having undergone a life-threatening surgery himself back in the day, set up the Kanu Heart Foundation which helps children with heart problems.

It all started in the year 2000 when a woman brought her ill daughter to the Nigeria team hotel, where the squad was preparing for an Africa Cup of Nations game.

“The mum wanted to show me the girl for me to help,” Kanu said. “When she saw me at the hotel, she was shouting and suddenly the girl fainted.

Later on at the hospital I promised the mum that the first kid we were going to operate on would be her daughter.

“For a little girl of that age – not playing, no energy in her, not moving around; she doesn’t smile, the eyes were blue. They are really suffering, in a really bad situation, and you ask yourself: ‘If nobody comes in to help and they die …’

“But after all of the children had their operations, I went to visit them and they were full of smiles, jumping and playing with me, rolling around with me and when you looked at the mums, you saw the happiness.

“From that day, I said: ‘This is something that we have to do more and do more.’

Kanu wasn’t lying to himself. By September 2018, that girl, Enitan, was about to graduate from Lagos State University. And she was among the first out of many saved thanks to Kanu’s foundation.

“We have saved 542,” Nwankwo revealed. “But we keep doing it. This week four patients went to Sudan and we’re hearing that the operations were successful and another six are about to leave as well.

“We have partnered with hospitals, we do check-ups, we talk to the parents, we educate them and at the same time we take the kids to other countries for operations.

“The goal of the foundation is to build our own cardiac hospitals in Africa, starting in Nigeria. It would make it all much easier. As a footballer you win trophies and it’s good. But this is so much more.”

Kanu, 44, won two Premier Leagues and two FA Cups at Arsenal. The legendary striker now works for FIFA and the Nigeria Football Federation as an ambassador.

Two years have passed since Kanu gave that interview and it’s hard to imagine how many more lives he has saved.

Nigerian Football

Behold! Nigeria Football’s October 8 Magic

Published

5 days ago

October 8, 2024

Kunle Solaja

Nigeria’s Godwin Iwelumo terrorising Egypt’s goalmouth 47 years ago in an October 8 match. Nigeria won 4-0 inflicting the worst ever defeat on Egypt in a World Cup qualifier.

BY KUNLE SOLAJA.

It is 75 years since Nigeria’s national football team first played an international match. That was on 8 October 1949 when the first set of Nigeria’s assembly on their return voyage stopped over in Freetown and engaged Sierra Leone in an international football match. Nigeria won 2-0, setting a chain of positive results on 8 October.

The country never lost any competitive duel on that date. More significantly, the Super Eagles first qualified for the World Cup on an 8 October date.

That was in 1993 when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Algeria in the quest for USA ‘94 World Cup.

Nigeria became the first English-speaking African country to qualify for the World Cup. Another significance of the October 8 match at the July 5 Stadium, Algiers is that Nigeria were unbeaten for the first time by Algeria at home.

The only deviation from the 8 October Magic was in 2015 when Nigeria lost 2-0 to Congo in a friendly match.

Twenty-six years after Nigeria’s debut international match, one of Africa’s biggest football nations, Egypt fell to the October 8 magic, losing 4-0 to Nigeria in the last stage of the triangular World Cup qualifying series for Argentina ’78.

Up till October 15, 2013, when Ghana beat Egypt 6-1 in Kumasi, the October 8, 1977 duel with Nigeria remained Egypt’s biggest loss in a World Cup qualifying match.

Before the 1977 duel, Nigeria in 1963 played a friendly match with Liberia in Monrovia. The October 8 magic was active, even in an away match. Nigeria drew 2-2 in their very first encounter with Liberia. It was shortly after the team had, through a protest, upturned a victory by Guinea to pick Nigeria’s very first African Nations’ Cup ticket.

Little wonder then that when FIFA suspended Nigeria in 2010, the world governing body provisionally lifted the ban on October 8!

Nigeria on 8 October

1949 – Freetown (Friendly) Sierra Leone 0-2 Nigeria
1963 – Monrovia (Friendly) Liberia 2-2 Nigeria
1977 – Lagos (World Cup qualifier) Nigeria 4-0 Egypt
1993 – Algiers (World Cup qualifier) Algeria 1-1 Nigeria… qualify for USA ‘94.
2005 – Abuja (World Cup qualifier) Nigeria 5-1 Zimbabwe
2010 – FIFA, in apparent respect to the 8 October magic, provisionally lifted a ban imposed on Nigeria.
2011 – Abuja (African Nations Cup qualifier) Nigeria 2-2 Guinea. Although undefeated, Nigeria failed to make it to the 2012 African Nations Cup.
2015 – D.R. Congo beat Nigeria 2-0 in Visé, Belgium. The ‘October 8 Magic’ is finally broken.

Nigerian Football

Rivers flow to the top!

Published

6 days ago

October 6, 2024

Kunle Solaja

Rivers United have launched themselves to the top of the log at the end of the match day 5 of the Nigeria Premier League. The Port Harcourt side beat Akwa United 2-1 to go afloat after initial leaders, Remo Stars crumbled to a 1-0 defeat at Kwara United in Ilorin on Sunday.

It was Remo Stars’ first defeat in the season. Rivers United are now with 13 points. Stephen Mayo put Rivers United ahead after 31 minutes. But it turned a temporary lead as Akwa United bounced back almost at the blast of the referee’s whistle for the second half.

Friday Apollos levelled up for Akwa United before Ndifreke Effiong Udo scored the winner in the 85^th minute.

Sunday Results