AFCON
AFCON Round of 16 Build-up: Tunisia triggers Nigeria’s 1st expulsion and disqualification
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
The Round of 16 has pitched Nigeria against a reportedly depleted Tunisian side as the Africa Cup of Nations gets to the Round of 16.
This is the second of a eight-match series leading to the quarter-finals. Some of the 17 previous encountersof both teams gathered themes for eternal storage.
Of particular note is that a Nigerian player was first expelled in an international duel when Nigeria played Tunisia. Sports Village Square also recalls that the first disqualification of Nigeria in a competition was occasioned in Tunisia.
That was in their early encounters when the fixtures pitched them together for 1962 Africa Cup of Nations – Nigeria’s first entry as well as that of Tunisia.
After Nigeria’s elimination of Ghana, the then Green Eagles moved to the second round and had to play Tunisia to get to the finals.
Nigeria won the first leg match, 2-1 in Lagos. In the return leg in Tunis on 10 December1961, Nigeria’s Green Eagles were already 2-1 up, after goals from Chukwumah Egwuonu and Patrick Noquapor.
The team then staged a walkout in the 65th minute following a controversial goal by Tunisia.
The Nigerian team and officials then protested an alleged bad officiating by Egyptian referee, Mohammed Hassan Helim, who before halftime, had sent out full back, Alfred Achebe.
Thus, Sports Village Square can point out that Alfred Achebe enters the record books as the first Nigerian player to be expelled in an international match.
A little after the hour, the Nigerian defence alleged that Ridha Roubi handled the ball in Nigeria’s penalty box. But the referee ruled a drop ball that was scored by Chetali for Tunisia bringing score-line to 2-2, but an aggregate 4-3 in Nigeria’s favour.
At the prompting of Nigerian officials, the players staged a walkout, even though the Hungarian coach of the team, George Varda disagreed. As a result of the walkout, the match was awarded 2-0 to Tunisia.
The NFA naively sent a protest letter to the Confederation of African Football hoping to be awarded the match.
When the Nigerian protest came up for hearing as item number seven at the CAF executive meeting in Ethiopia on 13 January1962, the general secretary announced that in view of the importance of the subject, it was referred to the extraordinary general assembly that was held three days later.
CAF in particular took note of the tone of the Nigerian protest, which contained “some terms which hurt the African confederation”.
Such terms included words like segregation, which CAF noted, that international football federation did not allow.
“It is unfair that the protest contains such terms as ‘the tournament included Arabs and others, or East Africa and West Africa’ as this is against the general interest and the African Confederation”.
When the issue was finally discussed, the Nigerian protest was torn into shreds.
According to the minutes of the meeting obtained by Sports Village Square from FIFA sources, the delegate from Ethiopia remarked that it was strictly not allowed for Nigeria to make remarks that bordered on segregation “because we all joined in friendship and fraternity and such words (used by Nigeria) is an admission of segregation…
“On the match itself, the Tunisians claimed that when the first leg won 2-1 by Nigeria was played, the NFA made use of two Nigerian linesmen (assistant referees) for the encounter.
“We acted similarly, designating two Tunisians as linesmen in the second game, they (Nigerians) protested”.
But the Ghanaian delegate came to Nigeria’s defence, saying that when an error was committed once, as in the Lagos match, “it does not mean, for reason of similarity, that it should be committed once again.
“A neutral referee, i.e. who does not belong to a country participating in the tournament should have been elected for the second match”.
Dr. Chedly Zouitan, a Tunisian member of CAF executive committee who died the following year aged 62, pointed out that the walk out by the Nigerian team was due to an administrative action and “never during my 45 years experience have I seen the head of a mission enter the playground and order the players to quit.
“It is also unfortunate that nobody of the mission, whether players or administrative, (sic) objected to this procedure with the exception of the Hungarian trainer but nobody listened to him.
“They have always objected to the decisions of the referee of any nationality, whether in the first or the second game.” The General Assembly decided the issue against Nigeria and ruled that the walkout was against the game’s rules.
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
With CAF referring the case of the botched Libya-Nigeria match to its
Disciplinary Board, a nine-man panel has the task of deciding which party was at fault.
Possible decision could be forfeiture of the match by the offending party or rescheduling of the fixture. The latter seems unlikely considering the already congested international calendar.
Even if that were to be the decision, the match would likely be taken to a neutral ground.
On the other hand, the board may also take it that it was Nigeria that refused to play the match after having hosted the first leg.
In that case, Article 62 of the competition’s regulations will be enforced. It reads: “Any team that withdraws or refuses to play the return match after having played the first leg on its territory must refund the association of the visiting team a minimum sum of fifteen thousand (15,000) U.S. dollars in reparation for the damage suffered by the host country.”
If the NFF is adjudged as the culprit, the body will be fined $15,000. Chapter 19 of the regulations gives a window to appeal the fine. But judging from the CAF statement of the situation, and the condemnation of the treatment meted out to the Super Eagles, the fine is very unlikely as the weight of evidence tilts against the Libyans who in the x-handle admitted keeping the Super Eagles in captivity with an explanation that episode was largely due to an airport protocol mishap.
A decision lies firstly on the nine-man panel. With the possibility of the losing side not satisfied, another nine-man panel, the Appeals Board will take a possible final decision which can only be contested at the Switzerland-based Court of Arbitration in Sport (CAS)
Here are the decision-makers:
Disciplinary Board
- Ousmane Kane, Senegal. – President.
- Jane Njeri Onyango, Kenya – Vice President.
- Norman Arendse, South Africa – member
- Mohamed Mostafa El-Mashta, Egypt. – member
- Djonfoune Golbassia Felix, Chad. – member
- Patrick Shale, Lesotho – member
- Douma Ibrahim Issaka – Niger. -member
- Ruth Kisaakye, Uganda. -member
- Drucil Taylor, Sierra Leone. – member
Appeal Board
Justice Roli Daibo Harriman, Nigeria
Faustino Varela Monteiro, Cape Verde
Moez Ben Tahar Nasri, Tunisia
Moses Ikanqa, Namibia
Hamoud T’feil Bowbe, Mauritania
Mohamed Robleh Djama, Djibouti
Asogbavi Komlan, Togo
Justice Masauko Timothy Msungama, Malawi
Lubamba Ngimbi Hector, DR Congo
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
The Libya-Nigeria Group D tie of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers scheduled for this Tuesday has been put off owing to the refusal of the Libyan authorities to allow the Nigerian team to enter their territory for the match.
As a result, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has referred the case to its Disciplinary Board to make an appropriate decision. The immediate consequence of this is the delay of the Nigerian team picking an early qualification as has been done by Burkina Faso, Cameroon and Algeria who have all qualified after four matches.
A win by Nigeria on Tuesday would have taken their point haul to 10 while a draw would take their total to eight. That way, irrespective of the result of the Rwanda-Benin Republic corresponding match would have qualified the Super Eagles for Morocco 2025 as they would not have ended below second position in Group D.
They now await the decision of the CAF body. A possible outcome could be Libya’s forfeiture of the match. A case in point is that of USM Alger of Algeria versus Morocco’s RS Berkane in last year’s Confederation Cup semi-final duel when the Moroccans were unjustly delayed at the airport by the Algerians.
In the case of the Super Eagles, it was worse as theirs was not just delayed, they were locked up in a desolate airport in what was a psychologically draining and energy sapping tactics.
Five-time winners Cameroon and 2019 champions Algeria both booked their places at next year’s Africa Cup of Nations finals in Morocco after victories in qualifying on Monday, bringing the number of qualified teams to four.
Cameroon defeated Kenya 1-0 when Boris Enow scored the only goal of the game in neutral Kampala, while Ramy Bensebaini netted a first-half spot-kick winner for Algeria against Togo in Lome.
Enow drilled a low free-kick into the goal from just outside the box as Cameroon dominated the contest and did enough to win in the absence of their federation president Samuel Eto’o, who is serving a six-month stadium ban by world governing body FIFA.
The victory takes Cameroon to 10 points from four games in the pool and ensured they cannot finish outside of the top two, which is enough to secure a place at the 24-team finals.
Algeria have a full haul of 12 points from four games after Bensebaini converted a penalty on 18 minutes to give them lead, but they had to weather heavy pressure from their hosts, who created enough chances to get something from the game.
Cameroon and Algeria join the hosts and Burkina Faso as the four teams so far confirmed for the finals.
Zimbabwe moved into a strong position in their pool with a 3-1 win over Namibia in neutral Johannesburg that leaves them on eight points, four ahead of third-placed Kenya with two rounds to play. One of those fixtures is at home to Kenya next month.
Walter Musona scored a brace, one a penalty, to go with a strike from Prince Dube.
Equatorial Guinea are five points clear in second place in their pool after a 2-1 win over Liberia in Monrovia.
Luis Asue had them in front early, but William Gibson equalised for the hosts. Just as it appeared the game would end in a draw, Dorian Hanza netted a 94th minute winner.
Musa Barrow scored the decisive goal for Gambia in their 1-0 victory over Madagascar, making up for a penalty miss earlier in the game
Gambia move into second place in their pool, ahead of Comoros on head-to-head record, but having played a game more.
Mozambique moved to the top of their pool with a 3-0 win over Eswatini in Nelspruit, their first goal scored by 40-year-old winger Domingues.
They are five points clear of third-placed Guinea Bissau, who host Mali on Tuesday.
-Reuters
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