AFCON
ANOTHER WAGE ROW AS ZIMBABWE THREATEN NATIONS CUP PULLOUT
The Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) and the players were locked in talks over unpaid salaries on Thursday with both parties threatening to withdraw from the Africa Cup of Nations ahead of their final pool match, local media has reported.
Reports said no agreement was reached with ZIFA offering to pay $5,500 of the $12,500 the players are owed on Friday, but it was rejected amid the threat of a boycott of training until the full amounts were settled.
Both parties then threatened to quit the tournament ahead of Sunday’s clash with struggling Democratic Republic of Congo, where victory would give Zimbabwe a strong chance of progressing to the second round.
“We were called in and told of the developments about the possible withdrawal from the tournament and we told them (ZIFA officials) that we were ready to go home because we believe they haven’t fulfilled our contracts,” Zimbabwe’s Herald newspaper quoted an unnamed player as saying.
The reports suggested ZIFA has gone so far as to engage the Confederation of African Football over the cost of withdrawing — which could invite a ban from future tournaments.
For their part, a number of players have told officials they are ready to call it quits as the parties trade barbs and clamour for the upper hand in negotiations.
A ZIFA spokesman told Reuters he would not comment on the matter, but suggested clarity would be provided later on Friday.
The players were at loggerheads with ZIFA before the team left for Egypt and had threatened to boycott their opener against the host nation on June 21.
ZIFA crafted a lengthy statement on Tuesday to dismiss “misleading and false” allegations made on social media that funds destined for tournament preparations and player salaries had been misappropriated by officials.
“ZIFA is advising both CAF and FIFA on the role of these individuals in destabilising our football,” the statement read.
“At the right time, a full dossier shall be released by ZIFA with detailed information on resources received and used, (as well as) destabilising efforts prior and during the tournament
-Reuters
The Libyan Football Federation (LFF) has sacked its Serbian coach, Milutin Sredojević who is popularly known as Micho.
This is coming ahead of Libya’s back-to-back Africa Cup of Nations clashes with Nigeria next month.
Paradoxically, Sports Village Square gathered that the coach’s contract was only recently renewed for six months before the axe fell on the Serbian.
His sack was precipitated by the results obtained in their teo matches of the AFCON qualifiers.
Libya drew 1-1 with Rwanda at home and lost 2-1 away to Benin Republic despite beig a goal up at half time.
The Libyan side, Mediterranean Knights are due to play against the Nigeria Super Eagles in Uyo on 6 October while the return leg holds on 14 October at the 11 July Stadium in Tripoli.
According to information Sports Village Square gathered from Tripoli, the Mediterranean Knights’ coach, Micho led the Libyan national team to win nine matches since taking over in October of last year, he failed to build a strong team due to his poor choices.
He also took a risk with the footballers chosen in the AFCON qualifiers, and the result was shocking to the Libyan sports audience.
According to sources close to the Libyan Football Federation, there is a strong tendency to sign a national coach to lead the Libyan team during the remaining qualifiers for the African Cup of Nations.
CAF President Patrice Motsepe has lashed out at Ghana and some other African countries whose home grounds were recently banned from hosting CAF matches owing to inadequate facilities. He made the remarks in Nairobi, Kenya during a press conference,
After the MatchDay 2 of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, CAF ruled Ghana’s Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi as being inadequate to host international matches. Being the only approved ground in the country, Ghana will now look towards either Cote d’Ivoire or Togo for their remaining home matches of the Afcon qualifiers.
Other African countries without approved home grounds are: Djibouti, Chad, Niger, Eritrea, Gabon, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, São Tomé and Burundi.
Motsepe voiced his frustration over the recurring issue of nations being unable to host home games.
“Nothing frustrates me more than a national team or club side having to play home matches outside,” he stated.
He stressed the significance of playing in front of home fans, adding, “You can’t grow football if the national teams or club sides aren’t playing in front of their home fans.”
Motsepe reiterated CAF’s commitment to working with countries to ensure they have at least one suitable stadium to host international fixtures.
“Our conversations in every country are to make sure there is at least one stadium capable of hosting a CAF category C game,” he emphasized.
The on-going CAF AFCON Cote d’Ivoire 2023 Coaches Symposium in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire has brought together, the last three coaches that handled the Nigeria national football team.
Gernot Rohr, Jose Peseiro and Austin Eguavoen are part of the the elite coaches currently gathered in Abidjan.
Gernot Rohr whose tenure of 5 years and 55 matches is the longest ever by any coach in Nigeria, is currently handling Nigeria’s Africa Cupof Nations and World Cup qualifying rivals, Benin Republic. He was succeeded in the interim by Austin Eguavoen who is currently having another interim stint.
Peseiro left his position after the Africa Cup of Nations
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