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CAF Confederation Cup

NFF GETS TODAY AS DEADLINE TO NAME NEUTRAL VENUE FOR RIVERS UNITED/ CELTIC CONFEDERATION CUP CLASH

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Confederation of African Football, CAF, has explained that the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) will decide the venue of the rescheduled Confederation Cup clash of Rivers United and South Africa’s Bloemfontein Celtic.

The match is to be played in any of Nigeria’s neighbouring countries. It is however not clear, if neighbouring countries mean the countries that immediately share boundaries with Nigeria. In that case, it should be any of the quartet of Benin Republic, Chad, Niger or Cameroon.

Otherwise, it could also be Ghana or Togo. The NFF, Sports Village Square gathered, have to communicate the venue, the date, kick-off time and the approval of the neutral host football association by today, Tuesday 12 January.

The match, originally scheduled for Port Harcourt on 6 January had to be rescheduled as the South African delegation could not meet up with the Nigeria’s seven-day quarantine policy of preventing importation of the new strings of Covid-19 for which South Africa has been identified as …

A neighbouring country to Nigeria with more lenient COVID-19 protocols regarding travellers coming from South Africa became the only option of deciding the second leg match.

Rivers United have a 2-0 away advantage but could forfeit the match if the NFF fail to find a host.

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Sports Village Square also gathered that the designations of the match officials are maintained. Rivers United are to take charge of all organizational expenses in the neutral country as the host club and to ensure that the visiting team has the approvals for the entry in the neutral country.

The additional player registration period started on Sunday 10th January, but neither Rivers United nor Bloemfontein Celtic are allowed to field any of the players registered during this period for the rescheduled match.

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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CAF Confederation Cup

‘Nzogbu Nzogbu’ Enyimba enyi as Enyimba limp into Confederation Cup Group stage!

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It was not easy, but the end justified the means. Enyimba had to go through the lottery of penalty shoot-out to get into the group stage of the CAF Confederation Cup on Sunday in Uyo after playing a barren draw with visiting Etoile Filante of Burkina Faso.

 The first leg also ended goalless leading to penalty shoot-out as tie breaker. Enyimba won 3-2 on penalties.

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CAF Confederation Cup

CAF Confederation Cup: Enyimba target victory after Solid Showing in Bamako

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Enyimba FC head coach Yemi Olarenwaju has set his sights on securing a crucial victory in Sunday’s second leg of the CAF Confederation Cup tie against Étoile Filante de Ouagadougou.

His confidence is built on the  goalless draw in the first leg in Bamako.

“The job is far from over, and we can’t afford to celebrate yet. The return leg in Uyo will be crucial,” Olarenwaju was quoted by the club’s website as saying.

“We’ll go back to the drawing board, work harder, and prepare for the challenge ahead.”

Olarenwaju praised his team’s tactical edge and discipline, which nullified the hosts’ attacking threats. “We had a clear game plan, and the players executed it perfectly. Our tactical discipline prevented Étoile Filante de Ouagadougou from creating any meaningful scoring opportunities.”

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The Enyimba FC boss acknowledged the tough opposition but remains confident in his team’s ability to secure a win at home.

“Étoile Filante de Ouagadougou is a formidable opponent, but we have the quality and determination to get the job done in Uyo.”

As we look forward to the return leg, we urge all Enyimba FC fans to come out in their numbers and support the team at the Uyo Stadium. Let’s make our home advantage count and cheer the People’s Elephant to victory!

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CAF Confederation Cup

Enyimba’s midfielder, Daga confident of Confederation Cup group stage ticket

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Enyimba’s midfielder,  Daniel Daga, has pledged to lead club to victory against Etoile Filante in the return leg of the CAF Confederation Cup second round on Sunday.

The People’s Elephant are looking to build on their impressive performance in the first leg, which ended in a goalless draw in Bamako, Mali. Despite creating several scoring opportunities, Enyimba were unable to find the back of the net.

However, Daga remains optimistic about their chances in the return leg having missed the first leg of the encounter due to a slight knock

“Our resolve is to win and advance to the group stages,” he stated confidently. “We understand that they are a difficult opponent, but we have just one task, which is to win, and that is exactly what we are going to do.”

A win for Enyimba FC would guarantee their spot in the group stages, a feat that would make them the only Nigerian team in the competition’s group phase.

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“We know the importance of this match, and we’re ready to give it our all,” Daga added. “We want to make Nigeria proud and show that we’re a force to be reckoned with in African football.”

Head coach, Yemi Olarenwaju, has been fine-tuning his tactics, and the team is eager to execute their game plan.

“The first leg result gives us an advantage, but we won’t take anything for granted,” Olarenwaju said. “We’ll push for victory and secure our spot in the group stages.”

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