Sports
Africans In Europe: Asamoah On Target For Juve
It was a solitary goal for African strikers in the English Premier League as Arouna Kone scored for Wigan in their 1-2 home loss to West Brom.
However, 28 other strikers from the continent registered their names in the scors sheet across Europe at the weekend to indicate bumper return for African strikers in Europe.
Italy
Kwadwo Asamoah scored one of the goals for Juventus as they crushed Pescara 6-1 to stay at the top of the table with a four-point margin. The Ghana striker scored his side’s third goal in the 30th minute, his first in two months after 12 games.
Mounir El Hamdaoui made sure of the points for Fiorentina who won their fourth straight game by defeating AC Milan 3-1. The Morocco striker secured the points with three minutes remaining after coming on as a substitute in the 56th minute.
Spain
Equatorial Guinea striker Rodolfo Bodipo found the back of the net in added time for Deportivo la Coruna, but his side lost a two-goal lead to lose 5-3 away at Real Zaragoza. Bodipo came on as a substitute in the last eight minutes to score his second goal this season for Depor who lie in the bottom three of the table.
France
Nancy are stuck at the bottom of the table after losing their third consecutive game 3-1 to visiting side Rennes. Nancy had equalised through Nigeria striker Simon Zenke, scoring for the first time this season, in the 50th minute, but Burkina Faso’s Jonathan Pitroipa sealed the game for Rennes with six minutes remaining as he netted in his fourth goal of the season. Cameroon striker Paul Efoulou , failed to reduce the deficit after he missed a penalty in the 82nd minute, four minutes after coming on as a substitute.
A goal by Ivory Coast striker Salomon Kalou just before half-time secured the points for Lille who defeated Brest at home.
Gabon striker Pierre Aubameyang continued his fine form as he scored two minutes to time for Saint Etienne who defeated Troyes 2-0. Aubameyang has scored eight goals in 12 games for Saint Etienne. He is the league’s second top scorer with two goals short of Zlatan Ibrahimovic of Paris Saint-Germain.
A goal in each half by the Algeria midfielder Foued Kadir helped Valenciennes to a 3-2 away win at Bastia. It was Kadir’s fifth Ligue 1 goal and helped lift Valenciennes to fifth position.
Tunisia defender Aymen Abdennour was on the score sheet for Toulouse who were beaten 4-2 at home by Ajaccio. Mali striker Sigamary Diarra was among the scorers for Ajaccio with his first goal of the league.
Ghana’s Andre Ayew gave Marseille the lead in the 40th minute as his side drew 2-2 at home with Nice. However, Marseille have a game in hand and are equal on points with leaders Paris Saint-Germain.
Turkey
Two African goals, both from the penalty spot, ensured that the encounter between Kasimpasa and league leaders Antalyaspor finished with the two sides sharing the points. Nigeria striker Kalu Uche rescued the home side Kasimpasa by converting from the spot in the very last minute after Morocco’s Ismail Aissati had given Antalyaspor the lead 13 minutes earlier.
DR Congo striker Lomana Lua Lua came on mid-way into the second-half to seal victory for Karabukspor who came from behind to beat Istanbul BB 3-1. The Cameroon striker Pierre Webo had given Istanbul the lead after just four minutes of play.
Fenerbahce moved up to third position after a 2-1 victory over Orduspor with Senegal striker Moussa Sow scoring the opening goal in the 11th minute.
Portugal
Nacional played the last two minutes at Vitoria Guimaraes with 10 men but they had already secured the points mid way in the second-half to win 3-1 after coming from behind. Ladji Keita from Senegal and the Angola substitute Mateus were both on target for Nacional.
Somalia striker Liban Abdi accounted for the only goal of the game in the 29th minute as his side Olhanense defeated Beira Mar. Abdi has now scored four goals in the league.
Belgium
Hamdi Harbaoui broke the deadlock after 42 minutes to give Lokeren the lead in their 2-1 victory over Standard Liege. After the Tunisia striker celebrated his fourth goal of the league, the South Africa midfielder Ayanda Patosi scored Lokeren’s second in the 65th minute to take his tally to six goals.
Senegal striker Mbaye Leye equalised for second-placed Zulte-Waregem in the 73rd minute as they drew 1-1 at home with 10-man Mechelen.
Anderlecht triumphed 6-1 over rivals Club Bruges to remain at the top of the table with the DR Congo striker Dieudonne Mbokani scoring one of the goals in the 33rd minute.
Russia
Nigeria striker Ahmed Musa made sure that CSKA Moscow maintained top position after scoring twice as his side beat Kuban Krasnodar 3-1.
Anzhi Makhachkala are in second position despite drawing 1-1 at Locomotiv Moscow. Morocco midfielder Mehdi Carcela-Gonzalez gave Anzhi the lead in the 72nd minute but Senegal striker Dame N’doye equalised six minute later to salvage a point.
Greece
Two giants of Greek football, both on extreme opposite ends of the Super League table, met on Sunday for a chance to win some bragging rights. And it was the league leaders Olympiakos who triumphed emphatically with a 4-0 win over rivals AEK Athens, who are languishing at the bottom of the table.
Algeria midfielder Djamel Abdoun scored from the penalty spot to give the visitors the lead in the 23rd minute, and with only 10 men to continue, it was all downhill afterwards for AEK Athens.
Netherlands
Waalwijk won only their third game in 12 league matches after beating Utrecht by a resounding 4-0 score line to climb up to 11th position. Morocco defender Imad Najah was on target for Waalwijk, whose previous victory was back in August.
Ukraine
Ideye Brown scored twice at the weekend for Dynamo Kyiv who crushed Metalurh Zaporizhya 5-0. The Nigeria striker has taken his tally to 10 goals so far to become second-top scorer in the league.
England
Ivory Coast striker Arouna Kone scored for Wigan but could not prevent them from going down 2-1 to West Brom. Kone got o0n the end of a Jean Beausejour cross to finish from six yards.
Victory for the Super Eagles in Casablanca followed the disappointment of losing shoot-outs that cost them chances to compete at the 2026 World Cup and in the 2025 AFCON final.
Nigeria lost on penalties to the Democratic Republic of Congo last November in a play-off for a place in the World Cup intercontinental play-offs.
Then, three days ago, they lost another shoot-out to fail against hosts Morocco in an AFCON semi-final.
Success maintained a perfect Nigerian record in third place AFCON matches after seven previous play-offs victories.
Before Lookman scored, Fisayo Dele-Bashiru missed the Eagles’ first kick, then Akor Adams, captain Moses Simon and Alex Iwobi scored.
Premier League pair Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush both had kicks saved by Stanley Nwabali before Ramy Rabia and Mahmoud Saber scored.
Egypt made six changes and Nigeria five to the teams that started semi-final losses to Senegal and hosts Morocco respectively three days ago.
Captain Salah started for the Pharaohs while traditional first choices in goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawy and forward Marmoush were among the substitutes.
Attackers Victor Osimhen and Lookman, both former winners of the annual African player of the year award, sat on the bench for Nigeria.
Most Moroccans in a crowd that nearly filled the 45,000-capacity Stade Mohammed V backed Nigeria. They whistled whenever Egypt gained possession and when coach Hossam Hassan was shown on the big screen.
This support for the Super Eagles was attributed to the great rivalry between Morocco and Egypt, both at national team and club levels.
– Goals disallowed –
Nigeria initially, then Egypt had spells of dominance in a goalless opening half on a cold, cloudy evening in the Moroccan commercial capital.
Paul Onuachu thought he had broken the deadlock on 36 minutes as he deflected the ball with his head past goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir.
However, a VAR review by the Moroccan referee revealed Onuachu had accidently struck Hamdy Fathy with an elbow. The goal was disallowed and the Nigerian yellow-carded.
Lookman was introduced by coach Eric Chelle for the second half, replacing Onuachu, and he had the ball in the net in the opening minute of the second period. However, the goal was ruled out for offside.
Nigeria started after the break with a series of attacks. Following a largely uneventful first half, Shobeir — the son of former Egypt goalkeeper Ahmed Shobeir — was forced to make several saves.
Salah seldom threatened and when he did cut in with the ball, the potential danger was quickly averted. Marmoush came on as the play-off passed the hour mark to try and boost a blunt strike force.
But as the match entered the final 10 minutes there was no sign of Osimhen being brought on, suggesting he might not have been fully fit.
In quick succession, Adams, then Marmoush threatened to score, but neither could deliver the finishing touch under pressure from opponents.
Salah then disappointed when offered a scoring opportunity from a free-kick outside the box. He hit the ball straight into the wall and it was swiftly cleared.
In a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, on Saturday, the President praised the team for their resilience and professionalism, noting that the players rose above the disappointment of their semi-final defeat to hosts Morocco earlier in the week to finish the tournament strongly.
The Super Eagles secured third place after overpowering Egypt, a seven-time AFCON champion, in the bronze medal match.
Nigeria dominated proceedings during regulation time before edging their opponents in a tense penalty shootout.
President Tinubu said the victory was a clear reflection of the determination and can-do spirit that define Nigeria, describing the team’s response to adversity as exemplary.
“Despite their good run during the tournament, the Eagles lost the semi-final match to Morocco during the penalty shootout last Wednesday, and our people’s hopes of winning the championship were dashed.
“However, our players remained undaunted, and exhibiting the resilience of the Nigerian spirit, their efforts have now paid off”, the President said.
The President noted that Nigerians would take pride in seeing the team receive their medals at the official ceremony on Sunday in Rabat, where the tournament is being concluded.
“We will all be proud of them as they receive their hard-earned bronze medal. Thank you, our gallant Super Eagles. Thank you, our national team players. This bronze medal surely feels good like gold”, he added.
The Cottagers have been without their Nigerian trio since they departed for the tournament in Morocco, with all three in excellent form and integral to Silva’s starting lineup prior to their departure.
Despite their absence, Fulham have fared remarkably well, losing just one of their last seven games in all competitions while playing without the Nigerian contingent.
The players are expected to return to West London shortly, as Nigeria conclude their campaign against Egypt in the third-place match on Saturday.
“This is the last game the three players at AFCON will miss,” Silva said, according to Jack Kelly.
“When you have all the squad available, you’re going to be stronger as a team. Like when Kenny, King or Muniz will be back – they will be very important for us.”
The defeat to Leeds leaves Fulham 10th in the Premier League table with 31 points as they head into the final four months of the season.
After the third-place playoff, Bassey, Iwobi and Chukwueze are expected to leave Morocco together immediately and should be available for Fulham’s game against Brighton at Craven Cottage on January 24.
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