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AFCON 2023 Race: Simon, Ndidi, Iheanacho early birds in Super Eagles’ camp

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AFCON 2023 Race: Simon, Ndidi, Iheanacho early birds in Super Eagles’ camp




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Wing impresario Moses Simon will be one of the early birds at the Super Eagles’ John Woods Hotel abode as invited begin to stream in for the quickfire double 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches against Guinea Bissau’s Djurtus.

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Simon, who plays for FC Nantes of France, will arrive on Sunday alongside TSG Hoffenheim of Germany defender Kevin Akpoguma. Leicester City of England duo Wilfred Ndidi and Kelechi Iheanacho are also expected in town the same day.

The ambipedal Simon, one of the longest-serving players in the team, is expected to play a key role in the two games that could see the Super Eagles snatch an early ticket to the 34th AFCON finals in Cote d’Ivoire early next year.

Akpoguma, who captained Germany at the FIFA U20 World Cup in New Zealand in 2015 before committing to Nigeria a few years, will be among the pillars at the rear.

With six maximum points from their previous two matches, victory in the top-of-the-table clashes will see the three-time champions soar to 12 points and most probably in an unassailable position. Sierra Leone could earn six points in their clashes with Sao Tome and Principe, but that still keeps them on seven points, and the Super Eagles still have a home game against bottom-of-the-table Sao Tome and Principe on the final matchday of the campaign.

Majority of the remaining 19 invited players are expected in Abuja on Monday.    

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Kunle Solaja is the author of landmark books on sports and journalism as well as being a multiple award-winning journalist and editor of long standing. He is easily Nigeria’s foremost soccer diarist and Africa's most capped FIFA World Cup journalist, having attended all FIFA World Cup finals from Italia ’90 to Qatar 2022. He was honoured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup by FIFA and AIPS.

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AFCON

Moroccan officials for Nigeria’s last Morocco 2025 qualifiers

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Morcco's  Samir Guezzaz

BY KUNLE SOLAJA.

 Figuratively, Nigerians will have a feel of Morocco when the Super Eagles play their last Morocco 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification match in 20 days. Moroccan quartet of  Samir Guezzaz, Zakaria Brinsi, Abdessamad Abertoune and Kech Chaf Mustapha have been assigned as officials for the Match Day 6 of the qualifying series in which Nigeria will engage Rwanda.

Samir Guezzaz will be the centre referee. He officiated Nigeria’s 2-0 loss to Mali earlier this year at the Stade de Marrakech in Morocco.

His compatriots Zakaria Brinsi, Abdessamad Abertoune and Kech Chaf Mustapha will serve as assistant referee 1, assistant referee 2 and fourth official respectively.

The match slated for 5pm will hold at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium, Uyo.

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Prosper Harrison Addo from Ghana will be the commissioner while Somalian Ali Mohamed Ahmed will be in the role of referee assessor.

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AFCON

Reprieve for Libya national football team

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BY KUNLE SOLAJA

The Libyan national football team still received a reprieve when CAF announced its decision to cancel the Libya versus Nigeria Africa Cup of Nations qualifying duel that was to have been held on 15 October.

According to a Libyan outlet, Libya Akhba, the CAF Disciplinary Board recommended banning Libya from hosting three of their next home matches.

But CAF decided to cancel that penalty. Had the penalty not been cancelled, Libya would have to play their next three home matches on neutral ground.

The matches to be affected would have been their last 2025 Africa Cup qualifiers against Benin Republic on 18 November and their Group D match days 5 and 8 World Cup qualifiers against Angola on 17 March 2025 and Eswatini on 7 September 2025 respectively.

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According to Libyan News Agency, WAL, the decision not to impose the three-match ban at home came after the intervention of Libya’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in the Libyan government, Abdel Hadi Al-Huwaij.

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AFCON

For the second time, Senegalese Issa Sy to take charge of Benin Republic versus Nigeria match

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Senegalese referee Issa Sy

BY KUNLE SOLAJA.

Senegalese referee Issa Sy has been handed the task of officiating next month’s Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match between Group D table toppers and second-placed Benin Republic at the  Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny in Abidjan.

It is the second time that the 40-year-old will handle an African Cup qualifier that pitched the two countries.

He had earlier handled Nigeria’s 2-1 win over Benin in a 2021 AFCON qualifying game decided at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium, Uyo in November 2019.

Last February he also handled Nigeria’s defeat of Angola at the semi-finals of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations played at the Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny in Abidjan.

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Incidentally, Sy will be returning with the same set of on-field officials of that AFCON duel. He is being supported by compatriots Djibril Camara and Nouha Bangoura as assistant referee 1 and assistant referee 2 respectively.

The fourth referee for the 14 November match is El Hadji Amadou Sy.

Rene Williams Sere of Cote d’Ivoire will be the match commissioner while Inacio Manuel Candido of Angola will be the referee assessor.

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