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Oliseh Laments Enyeama’s Late Withdrawal From Tanzania Tie

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Super Eagles’ Head Coach
Sunday Oliseh on Wednesday lamented the late withdrawal of the team’s first choice goalkeeper, Vincent Enyeama, from tomorrow’s  2017 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier.
Enyeama’s withdrawal from the game against Tanzania has presented Carl Ikeme and Ikechukwu Ezenwa as the only options for Oliseh.
The match, a Group G Match Day 2 fixture, is scheduled to take place in Dar es Salaam.
Oliseh told newsmen at the team’s weekly interactive session with the media that Enyeama’s late withdrawal had put the team in a precarious and complicated situation.
“The player himself withdrew for reasons I don’t know but what I can’t say on this is that the late withdrawal has put me in a very tight situation, I must confess.
“I made it clear from the onset that the task ahead of us is very difficult because we are practically starting afresh.
“With all due respect Enyeama is a good goalkeeper, but this development is not a pleasant one. However, we have to forge ahead because there is nothing I can do,’’ he said.
Oliseh said however that the development had shown that believing so much in a player would not augur well for the team.
He said this was why he had since resolved not to build the team around one individual.
The coach pointed out that his philosophy had been centred on teamwork.
“What happens if our best player falls sick a night before our match. Should Nigeria withdraw from the encounter?
“It is also not a sign of respect to my other players, to say because one person is not playing the team will fumble.
“We have to respect the choice of the player if he withdraws himself,’’ he said.
The Eagles coach also insisted that the situation did not mean that he was under any pressure to win in Tanzania, saying the match was not a do-or-die.
“The only time in my life that I was under pressure was 20 minutes before our match with Bulgaria at the 1994 World Cup. Ever since then, I have learnt that pressure is what you live with.
“There are three things that can happen in a game. We can win, draw or lose. But, we are building now and everybody can see that. But I am very optimistic.
“I am not looking at what happens if we lose, win or whatever. I want to see my team play to serve Nigeria and whatever the result is, we will take it like that.
“However, our objective is to qualify, and we still have games to play. Even if we win on Saturday, the journey is just starting,’’ he said.
Oliseh nonetheless expressed the optimism that Tanzania would fall in Dar es Salaam even with his little knowledge of the team.
The former Eagles captain said the video clips of the Tanzanian team’s matches, which he obtained from the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), had enough to help his team achieve victory.
He, however, noted that coaching the Super Eagles would be a difficult task with the level of criticisms and analyses Nigerians provide before and after every match the team played.
The Super Eagles, comprising of 17 foreign-based and six home-based players departed Abuja yesterday for Tanzania for the encounter in a chartered flight.
Nigeria and Egypt are currently topping Group G of the qualifiers, having both secured the maximum three points from their first group matches.
Egypt are however better placed, with a superior goal margin, having defeated Tanzania 3-0 in their first encounter, while Nigeria secured a 2-0 win over Chad.

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Inter Best Juventus To Maintain Serie  A Lead

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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.

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Szoboszlai’s Real Madrid Dream Sparks Concern At Liverpool 

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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.

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Wolves Beat Man Utd Conquerors

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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.

 

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