International Football
On Zik’s anniversary, Nigeria’s Super Eagles seek World Cup playoff slot
BY KUNLE SOLAJA
On a day that Nigeria is seeking a major soccer glory to move into World Cup qualification playoff, it is coincidentally a twin anniversary of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, the country’s first president and easily the most sports-inclined.
It is 117 years today that Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, popularly known as Zik, began the long adventurous journey. It is also the silver jubilee of his interment on 16 November 1996.
Perhaps it was to his eternal honour that the Nigerian Super Eagles first played on the sacred turf of the old Wembley Stadium on Zik’s anniversary in 1994 and also qualified for the Brazil 2014 on a 16 November date in 2013.
For the former Nigerian president it was a life well lived, a thrilling sporting life.
Perhaps no other Nigerian of his profile adequately combined statesmanship with sportsmanship.
In political area, Zik was noted for compromise. Perhaps also, it had to do with his sporting background.
Sports is about winning some and losing some – a compromise of sort.
More than any other well known Nigerians, Zik was involved in all facets of sports. He was a player in many disciplines – athletics, boxing, tennis and football.
He was an umpire in boxing, athletics and a football referee.
Of course he was a supporter, cheering from the stands in athletics and football and also by boxing ringsides.
As a sports organizer he owned the famed Zik Athletics Club (ZAC) which incorporated many sports disciplines – an envious dream of today’s so called club professional sports clubs.
Archival materials speak volumes of the exploits of the club which was also the first privately owned and also one to own its arena. The club also had branches outside Lagos.
The ZAC Ibadan, contrary to statistics dished out yearly on Challenge Cup finals (now Aiteo Cup), was the first one-man club and first team outside Lagos to play in the finals of the then Governor’s Cup, losing 0-2 to Marine on 6, October 1947.
The ZAC Lagos later transformed to the ACB football club which folded up in 1994.
Endowed with creativity, Zik introduced the word ‘stadium’ into Nigeria’s sports lexicon when he named his football ground, ‘The Yaba Stadium’.
Before then, football arenas were simply called grounds, hence ‘The Association Ground’ which had been variously named as King George V Stadium, Lagos City Stadium, Onikan Stadium and now called Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan.
As statesman, his speeches were sometimes laced with sporting ‘lingo’. While stating his desire to play fairly in the general election, he remarked: “I will not score an offside goal…
“I have been taught by my athletics coach not to beat the gun; by my boxing coach not to hit below the belt…”
Of significance was his address to the nation on January 1, 1964. The broadcast was essentially on Nigeria’s dwindling sporting stature.
Since then, no other head of state or president of Nigeria has ever made sports the theme of a nationwide broadcast.
He dismissed the famous cliché’ of Baron Pierre de Coubertin that honour in the Olympics was in taking part and not winning.
Hear Zik: “Gentility in sports was a by-product of the Victorian era with its aristocratic tradition.
“The concept of not playing to win but having the honour to participate formed the basis of British ethics of sportsmanship”.
He went on to say that the idea spread to everywhere the Union Jack had been hoisted.
Everyone now shares Zik’s view hence the saying of the Olympics: “Winning is not everything, but it is the thing”
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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