International Football
Seven points of interest as Super Eagles begin quest for seventh World Cup appearance
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
As the Super Eagles begin their quest for a seventh World Cup appearance this Friday in Lagos, Sports Village Square is bringing out seven points of interest as Nigeria host Liberia at the Teslim Balogun Stadium.
- The Nigeria versus Liberia duel will be Nigeria’s 105th World Cup qualifying match since the first one played against Ghana’s Black Stars in Accra on 28 August 1960. The 105 World Cup qualifying matches is the second highest in Africa after Morocco’s 116. In contrast, this match will be Liberia’s 59th World Cup qualifying match.
- Till date, no African side has raked up as many World Cup qualifying victories as Nigeria which has overall record of 58 wins in 105 matches. They are followed by Morocco’s 53 victories in 116 matches.
- The duel with Liberia will be the third time that the Super Eagles will be playing at the Teslim Balogun Stadium. In the previous two matches, Nigeria won 2-1 against Sierra Leone in a friendly match on 9 February 2011 and 3-0 against Lesotho in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match on 30 March 2021.
- With 30 players in the Super Eagles’ armoury, this is the largest assembly of Nigerian foreign-based footballers.
- Save for their last encounter which technically is categorized as exhibition match owing to the featuring of president George Weah, Nigeria and Liberia have met 17 times, the Super Eagles winning 10 and drawing four times. The remaining three encounters were won by Liberia.
- If fielded, the match with Liberia will be Ahmed Musa’s 99th international match, just one game for him to enter the famed FIFA Century Club.
- If Nigeria wins, Coach Gernot Rohr will be moving closer to equalling the number of victories Nigeria raked up under Dutchman, Clemens Westerhof under whose the Super Eagles had 27 wins. Till date, Nigeria under Rohr have won 22 matches.
Brazil will round off their 2025 calendar with two friendly matches in Europe next month, taking on Senegal and Tunisia as part of their preparations for the 2026 World Cup, the Brazilian FA (CBF) announced on Thursday.
The five-time world champions, managed by Carlo Ancelotti, will face Senegal on November 15 at Emirates Stadium in London and, three days later, they will meet Tunisia in Lille, France.
The CBF announced that these fixtures were designed to “provide the team with valuable experience against African opposition” ahead of next year’s tournament in North America.
After the conclusion of the South American qualifiers, the choice of opponents follows October’s encounters against Asian teams, which saw Brazil beat South Korea 5-0 but suffer a stunning first defeat to Japan.
With coach Ancelotti facing limited preparation time after arriving in May from Real Madrid, the matches form part of a broader plan to expose Brazil to a variety of playing styles in preparation for next year’s the World Cup.
Looking ahead to March 2026, the CBF has indicated that Brazil’s next set of friendlies will likely be against top-level European nations, with the U.S. as the expected venue.
Ancelotti has been steadily implementing his vision for the squad and has emphasised the importance of adapting to diverse tactical challenges, particularly against teams from other continents.
CBF sources indicated that the plan for the three remaining international breaks would be to make final observations regarding players and tactical adjustments in November, lock in the starting line-up in March and strengthen ties with Brazilian fans with a final friendly at Rio de Janeiro’s Maracana before departing for the tournament.
The upcoming friendlies against Senegal and Tunisia will provide an opportunity to test Brazil’s readiness against two of Africa’s strongest sides.
Senegal boast a formidable squad featuring Sadio Mane, Nicolas Jackson and Kalidou Koulibaly. They shocked Brazil 4-2 in their last encounter, a friendly played in Lisbon two years ago.
Tunisia, meanwhile, are known for their defensive organisation and have consistently performed well in African competitions.
Back in September they were the second African team to qualify for the 2026 World Cup with two games to spare.
-Reuters
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Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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