Nigerian Football
Super Eagles Remain African’s FIFA Confederations Cup Goal Kings
BY BOLAJI OKUNOLA.
Even though Nigeria did not qualify for the just concluded FIFA Confederations Cup which the World Cup holders, Germany won as Coach Joachim Low took the team to a glorifying 152 outings and 102 wins, the competition still harbours for the Super Eagles, fond eternal memories.
With just two participations in 1995 in Saudi Arabia and 2013 in Brazil, the Super Eagles remain the African team with the highest number of goals in the FIFA Confederations Cup.
Despite the Super Eagles being absentees in the ongoing FIFA Confederation Cup in Russia, investigation by Sports Village Square reveals that the Super Eagles of Nigeria remains Africa goal king of the competition of Champion.
The Super Eagles scored 11 goals spread over two competitions and six matches. But the African team with best performance remains Nigeria’s next competitive opponent, Cameroon which played the final match of the 2003 competition but lost to hosts, France.
Russia 2017 was Cameroon’s third outing. Cumulatively, the current African champions have scored seven goals spread across nine matches in 2001, 2003 and 2017.
Apart from goal scoring, Nigeria made other marks in the Confederations Cup. Until the 2017 opening match which paired hosts, Russia, with New Zealand, Nigeria’s former national coach, the late Amodu Shaibu was the youngest coach to lead a team to the ‘Festival of Champions’. Sports Village Square reveals that the late Nigerian coach was 36 years and 263 days old when he led the Super Eagles to beat Japan 3-0 on January 6, 1995.
That record held until June 17 this year when Anthony Hudson led New Zealand to face Russia. He was 36 years and 96 days old. But since Hudson’s team lost the encounter with Russia, Nigeria’s Amodu therefore remains the youngest coach to have led a team to win a FIFA Confederations Cup match.
Nigeria’s Nnamdi Oduamadi remains the only African player to have scored a hat-trick in a FIFA Confederations Cup match. He achieved his feat four years ago when Nigeria beat Tahiti 6-1 which also remains the highest victory margin an African side achieved at the competition.
Breakdown of Goals by African teams runs thus:
• Russia 2017 ( Cameroon 2 goals)
• Brazil 2013 (Nigeria 7 goals)
• South Africa 2009 (South Africa 4 goals)
• South Africa 2009 (Egypt 4 goals)
• France 2003 (Cameroon 3 goals)
• Korea/Japan 2001 (Cameroon 2 goals)
• Mexico 99 (Egypt 5 goals)
• Saudi Arabia 1997 (South Africa 5 goals)
• Saudi Arabia 1995 (Nigeria 4 goals)
• Saudi Arabia 1992 ( Cote d’Ivoire 2 goals)
The miserable run of Akwa United and Ikorodu City came to an end after six games in the Nigerian Premier League this season. Both teams were initially glued at the bottom of the league table.
They now got respite as Akwa United beat Kano Pillar by 2-0 while Ikorodu City even did what could be considered an upset, beating Bendel Insurance 3-0.
Remo Stars bounced back to the top of the log after a 3-0 defeat of Nasarawa United. Shooting Stars are yet to get their rhythm this season, playing a barren draw with Enyimba in Ibadan.
Kwara United who got their first full points of the season last week after a 1-0 defeat of Remo Stars could not consolidate as they were beaten 1-0 by Abia Warriors.
Heartland under Emmanuel Amuneke are gradually recovering as they got a valuable away draw against El-Kanemi Warriors.
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.
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 85th minute.
Sunday Results
- Kwara United 1-0 Remo Stars
- Rangers International 1-0 Abia Warriors
- Heartland FC 2-0 Niger Tornadoes
- Kano Pillars 2-0 Sunshine Stars
- Plateau United 1-0 Ikorodu City
- Rivers United 2-1 Akwa United
- Enyimba 3-0 Katsina United* Suspended
- Nasarawa 0-0 Bayelsa United
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