Sports
Nigeria’s Dream Team: Truth Or Fallacy?
Since after the Nigerian U-
23 team won the gold medal of the football event of the Atlanta ’96 Olympic Games, the team’s official designation has since changed to “Dream Team’’.
The team at that time had the very best of the nation’s football talents in its ranks, players like Nwankwo Kanu, Austin “Jay Jay” Okocha, Sunday Oliseh, Daniel Amokachi, Taribo West, Uche Okechukwu among others were some of the stars that made up the team.
This array of talented footballers literally took the football world by storm by overcoming very stiff and highly talented opposition like Brazil and Argentina to win the much coveted gold medal in the quadrennial global sports fiesta.
It is pertinent to note that the team’s victory was the first time an African country was winning the Olympic soccer gold medal.
The name, “Dream Team”, that was eventually adopted by the all conquering U-23 team, did not drop from the sky, it was a recourse to the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games where actually the concept was first used.
The original Dream Team, the U.S. basketball team that won the gold medal at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona was a phenomenon on and off the court.
It mattered not that it dominated the Olympic competition, beating its eight opponents by an average of 44 points.
What was important was that the Dream Team, the first U.S. Olympic team to include NBA stars, gave fans a glimpse of basketball at its finest, and the entire world responded.
The team had three of the game’s all-time greats: Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird.
The team also had the irrepressible Charles Barkley, as well as seven more NBA All-Stars: centers David Robinson and Patrick Ewing, power forward Karl Malone, swingmen Scottie Pippen, Chris Mullin and Clyde Drexler and point guard John Stockton.
Their coach, Chuck Daly, was so overwhelmed by the array of mega talents at his disposal and described the team thus: “It was, like Elvis Presley and the Beatles put together.
“Traveling with the Dream Team was like travelling with 12 rock stars.
“That’s all I can compare it to,’’ he said.
The team was described as an unplayable team because opponents didn’t have a chance, but they didn’t care.
It was even reported that one player, while trying to guard Magic Johnson, was seen frantically waving to a camera-wielding teammate on the bench, signaling to make sure he got a picture of them together.
Since their advent in the Barcelona Olympic Games in 1992, the succession of U.S. basketball “Dream Team’’ have gone on to win the basketball events of the Atlanta1996, Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008 and the 2012 London Olympics where Nigeria’s D’Tigers were crushed by a whopping score line of 156-73 in one of their outings.
The poignant question to ask at this juncture is whether the Nigerian Dream Team has lived up to its billing in terms of performance and reputation wise.
Since their epochal victory at the Atlanta ’96 Olympics, the closest the U-23 team has come to winning another gold medal was the silver medal that the Samson Siasia-tutored side won at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.
Since then the team had performed epileptically and not making the kind of impact that was expected of a team with such a name.
A development that made one of the nation’s renowned TV sports analyst, Kayode Tijani, to say that the U-23 team is not qualified to be called the “Dream Team’’.
“They are not qualified to bear the name Dream Team.
“We only named the victorious U-23 team, Dream Team after we won the gold medal at the football event of the Atlanta ’96 Olympics.
“Even the players themselves did not believe that they will win the competition, and the goalkeeper Joseph Dosu, said that at half time against Brazil, the players were more concerned about damage control.
“The players were more concerned about the reaction of the nation’s teeming fans and did not believe that they will turn the table against the Brazilian team that had the likes of Ronaldo da Lima, Rivaldo, Roberto Carlos, Dida etc.
“To me, what qualifies the U-23 to be called a Dream Team is to perform consistently like the American Olympics basketball team, the original Dream Team that has been consistently consistent performance wise,’’ he said.
In the same vein, a member of the victorious Green Eagles squad that won the 1980 edition of the Africa Cup of Nations in Lagos, Adokiye Amiesimaka said it’s a neither here nor there issue.
“You give yourself the name you want which you are entitled to, and I see it as an ego thing.
“But if others should name you according to their assessment, it will be a more realistic name that they will give to you.
“We can call ourselves whatever we want, it’s a neither here nor there thing.’’
There was a time when the Super Eagles were not performing well and fans started calling them the Super Chickens; but they are still known as the Super Eagles.
“As a matter of fact, our national team used to be known as the Green Eagles before our late Vice-President, Augustus Aikhomu, renamed the team Super Eagles after the team’s remarkable performance at the Maroc ’88 edition of the AFCON.
“Like I said earlier, self-assessment is not a realistic task, it’s more of an ego thing,’’the former AFCON winner said.
In spite of the misgivings by Amiesimaka and Tijani, a renowned football on air analyst, Eseoghene Edafe, was of the view that the current U-23 team can be rightly called the Dream Team VI.
He stressed that a world renowned team like the Selecao of Brazil have not been able to win the football event of the Olympic Games compared to the nation’s U-23 team that has a gold and silver medal in their kitty.
Edafe added that it will be unfair to compare the U-23 team to the famed U.S. basketball team that has all it takes to sweep every team out of their path since basketball was their forte, compared to the U-23 team that had succeeded where more illustrious teams have failed.
“Our football team is not even ranked in the top 50 of FIFA’s monthly football ranking, but yet the Nigerian U-23 team has won a gold and silver medal in the Olympic Games, compared to the Brazilians that have won the World Cup, Copa America, and FIFA Intercontinental Cup.
“But in all their achievements, they don’t have an Olympic gold medal in their trophy cabinet.
“You may not agree with me in terms of comparing our U-23 team and the U.S. basketball team in terms of consistency, but I feel our team has done well to be called the Dream Team VI,’’ Edafe said. With the nation’s qualification for the football event of the 2015 All Africa Games and the qualifiers for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games looming on the horizon, the nation’s current “Dream Team’’ is poised to prove that they deserve to be called Dream Team VI.
The Siasia-tutored side had to battle against the odds to eke out a 2-1 win over the hard fighting Zambians in Lusaka on April 12.
With Siasia at the helm again, the nation’s football fans are guardedly optimistic that the team is once more on the threshold of making Olympic football history by winning a second gold medal.
Okara is a staff of News Agency of Nigeria.
Andrea Cambiaso scored at both ends during the first half of Saturday’s Derby d’Italia, before Pierre Kalulu’s red card forced Juventus to play the entire second half a man light.
Substitute Francesco Pio Esposito got Inter back in front with a bullet header, then Manuel Locatelli’s pinpoint finish looked to have salvaged a point for the Bianconeri, before Zielinski struck on the cusp of stoppage time.
Juventus made the brighter start, but they were masters of their own downfall in the 17th minute, when Cambiaso deflected Luis Henrique’s cross beyond Michele Di Gregorio.
Cambiaso atoned within nine minutes, catching Henrique on his heels when Weston McKennie’s cross squirmed through to the back post and applying a side-footed finish.
But after Bremer cleared Zielinski’s dinked effort off the line, Juve’s hopes were damaged when Kalulu received his second yellow card for a 42nd-minute pull on Alessandro Bastoni, though the Inter centre-back appeared to go down theatrically.
Di Gregorio made a remarkable stop to thwart Hakan Calhanoglu, but as Juventus dropped ever deeper, they were punished when substitute Esposito guided Federico Dimarco’s searching cross into the far corner with 76 minutes on the clock.
It looked like Inter would have to settle for a point when Locatelli whipped a wonderful finish into the bottom-left corner in the 83rd minute, but Zielinski had the final say as his 20-yard drive fizzed through Locatelli’s legs and beat Di Gregorio.
A cloud of uncertainty has settled over Liverpool after comments from Hungary head coach Marco Rossi reignited speculation about Dominik Szoboszlai and Real Madrid.
Rossi, who has worked closely with Szoboszlai since his teenage years, revealed that the midfielder’s lifelong ambition is to play for the Spanish giants.
“Because of the very close and direct relationship I’ve had with Dominik since he was a child, Real Madrid has always been his dream,” Rossi said.
For a Liverpool side building around Szoboszlai as a centerpiece of Arne Slot’s project, those words landed hard.
Within hours of Rossi’s remarks, Szoboszlai interacted on social media with two Real Madrid players, applauding posts from Vinicius Junior and Trent Alexander-Arnold following Madrid’s win over Real Sociedad.
His reaction to Vinicius’ post drew particular attention. The exchange with Alexander-Arnold, his former Liverpool teammate, was seen as less surprising.
Still, in the hyper-connected world of elite soccer, even a digital thumbs-up can carry weight. On Merseyside, fans and pundits quickly began dissecting the meaning behind the interactions.
Szoboszlai, Hungary’s captain, has become one of Liverpool’s most influential players. That status is precisely why Rossi’s comments triggered such an intense reaction in England.
The midfielder had just delivered on the field as well, scoring in Liverpool’s 3-0 FA Cup fourth-round victory over Brighton & Hove Albion at Anfield.
After the match, Mohamed Salah heaped praise on his teammate, calling Szoboszlai “the best player in the world.” Slot struck a slightly more measured tone but echoed the sentiment.
“I think there are many elite players in the world, but I definitely agree with Mo that he is one of them,” Slot said. “He is very important for us.”
Szoboszlai is under contract at Liverpool through 2028. However, the club is reportedly eager to open extension talks in the coming months to secure his long-term future.
The player himself addressed the situation recently with notable candor.
“There’s nothing yet, to be honest. Nothing from now on. It’s not in my hands. That’s how it works,” he said. “There’s no progress, but if the right offer comes, we’ll see.”
He was equally clear about his affection for Liverpool.
“We’ll see what happens. Hopefully everyone will be happy in the end. Of course I want to stay. I like the city, I like the club, I like playing with these guys. I love Anfield, I love the fans. Let’s see what the future brings. It’s not my fault. I’d love to stay. We’ll see.”
Inter’s dramatic victory boosted their lead over rivals AC Milan to eight points, ahead of the Rossoneri hosting Como on Wednesday. Juventus, meanwhile, could drop out of the top four as Roma visited Napoli last night.
The last four Serie A matches between Inter and Juventus have produced a total of 21 goals (an average of 5.25 per game), compared to just nine in the previous six (1.5 per game).
Cambiaso became the first player in Derby d’Italia history to score and put through his own net in the same match between these old rivals, but it was Zielinski’s fifth Serie A goal of the season that proved decisive.
Inter will argue they were deserved victors after amassing 21 shots and 1.88 expected goals (xG), while Luciano Spalletti’s visitors mustered 10 shots and 0.92 xG – though the Bianconeri actually attempted six of their shots while down a man in the second half.
Premier League strugglers Wolves overcame resolute Grimsby Town in challenging conditions at Blundell Park to reach the FA Cup fifth round at the expense of the side that eliminated Manchester United in the last round.
Santiago Bueno scored from Wolves’ only shot on target with an hour played, diverting Joao Gomes’ cross past goalkeeper Jackson Smith with his thigh to end the League Two club’s resistance.
Unrelenting rainfall caused heavy ground underfoot and one penalty area in particular- that of Grimsby’s Smith in the first half – was already a quagmire before kick-off.
Charles Vernam shot narrowly wide from the edge of the box with just 43 seconds on the clock as Grimsby sought to catch their top-flight visitors cold.
Wolves had to wait until the 17th minute for their first opportunity of note, forward Tolu Arokodare firing over with a first-time attempt.
The white paint of the pitch markings soon blended and blurred with the mud as the surface rapidly deteriorated, and both sides struggled to stitch together cohesive attacks as passes travelled unpredictably across the sodden ground.