Connect with us

Sports

Nigerian Union Canvasses Support For S’Eagles In S/Africa

Published

on

Ahead of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, the Nigerian Union (NU) in Gauteng Province has resolved to appear in the Super Eagles colours every Saturday.

Gauteng Province is the venue for the Super Eagles 2010 World Cup matches.

The Chairman of the chapter, Mr Ike Anyene, told our source in Johannesburg that the decision was aimed at demonstrating support for the national team.

Anyene said the decision, which was taken at a meeting of the union a week ago, had been well received, adding that the union would make jerseys available.

He said that the idea was to galvanise support for the Super Eagles ahead of the soccer tournament and to make the World Cup spirit blow across the land.

The union’s plan was patterned after the “Football Friday” in which South Africans don the colours of their national team, Bafana Bafana, every Friday.

Anyene said the union was also exploring the possibility of securing a location close to the Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg for Nigerians to converge for the mobilisation of support.

The chairman also said that plans were under way to ensure that the rights of Nigerians were not infringed on.

“We should work towards the formation of a legal committee made up of Nigerian lawyers in South Africa, who will stand and take up the cause of those unfairly treated,” he said.

He said funds would be mobilised to sustain the committee once it was constituted.

He said the union was working with the Nigerian Consulate to protect citizens in the country and prevent them from being molested .

The NU Chairman said the idea of having a ‘consular card” issued to Nigerians in the country was also being considered to reduce the possibility of losing the new passports.

He said the fact that the new e-passports could only be re-issued in Nigeria made it imperative to find ways to safeguard it.

Meanwhile, Nigerian flags are being sold in Johannesburg for supporters to display on their cars, alongside South African flags and those of some other participating countries in the 2010 World Cup.

Continue Reading

Sports

New Coach Promises Trophies At Barça

Published

on

Hansi Flick has said that Barcelona’s desire to always win trophies is why he is at the cub during his official unveiling as the club’s new head coach.
The former Bayern Munich and Germany coach signed a two-year deal with the LaLiga giants and said: “Before signing my contract I had a dinner with the president and I felt from the first second that I was arriving at an impressive club.”
“The squad has worked very hard from the first day in training. Each player wants to give 100% to show that they can play. The quality of the 16 or 17 year olds from La Masia is incredible.”
Two of the most recent standout products from Barça’s fabled academy are Lamine Yamal and Ansu Fati, two players who find themselves in very different situations.
On his 17-year-old star man, Flick was complimentary but also had words of warning.
“In the last year he has improved a lot. What he did in the Euros was incredible,” he added.

Continue Reading

Sports

Chelsea Will Concede Goals This Season – Coach

Published

on

Chelsea manager, Enzo Maresca says his side “are going to concede goals this season playing out from the back” after two defensive errors in a 2-2 draw with Wrexham in his first game in charge.
Midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu scored an 82nd-minute equaliser in Santa Clara, California, cancelling out two second-half strikes by the League One side.
A sharp finish in the penalty box from Christopher Nkunku opened the scoring in the 35th minute of Chelsea’s opening friendly on their pre-season tour of the United States.
But Wrexham took a surprise lead after both teams made wholesale changes at half-time with Luke Bolton and Jack Marriott scoring following mistakes.
The defensive errors were part of a weak second-half performance as Chelsea adapt to Maresca’s possession-based approach.
Wrexham impressed – adding to their 1-1 draw against Bournemouth on Saturday in a half-empty Levi’s Stadium, home of the San Francisco 49ers.
It is the Welsh club’s second consecutive US pre-season tour, capitalising on their popularity under co-owners, Hollywood actors, Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds, with Phil Parkinson’s side preparing for third tier football for the first time since 2005.
Maresca was asked about conceding goals through his playing philosophy, which included more patient build-up from back to front.

Continue Reading

Sports

France’s Olympics Come Alive With Les Bleus Victory

Published

on

The French starting 11 was worth more than $250 million. Their home crowd was stirring, waving flags, chanting “Allez Les Bleus.” Their fearsome front three alone had played more than 300 games in the English Premier League. They entered these 2024 Olympics as the men’s soccer gold medal favourite, and an early candidate to bring the Games to life.
And on Wednesday in Marseille, they did just that, beating the United States 3-0.
For an hour in Marseille, on opening night, a feisty American team stood up to them.
But in the 61st minute of Paris 2024’s first prime-time headliner, Alexandre Lacazette struck, and the Stade Vélodrome erupted. Kids kissed the French Football Federation badges on their shirts. Thousands of blue, white and red flags twirled.
Until that moment, the game had been somewhat dormant. And the Games, more broadly, were still waiting to awake. In Paris, many locals have escaped the craziness of the Olympics. Areas around the River Seine are all but locked down to prepare for today’s opening ceremony. Tuesday and Wednesday, in some ways, felt like normal Parisian nights, sans buzz.
The best cure for all of that was France’s most popular sport, the one that led the media’s front pages on Tuesday in a non-Olympic context, just three days before the official start of the Olympics.
This, of course, was not a full French soccer team. The Games are a mostly under-23 tournament. But it was still a French soccer team. And it was, by Olympic men’s soccer’s JV standards, stacked.
It came from Bayern Munich and Sevilla, RB Leipzig and Crystal Palace, in the German Bundesliga and throughout France’s Ligue 1. There were players valued at 25 million euros stuck on the bench. There were athletes all over the field whom, unlike many Olympians, the French public knows.
And the two biggest stars among them ignited the public. Lacazette, a veteran striker, one of three over-age picks, broke through the United States resistance.
Michael Olise, a 22-year-old creator who recently signed with Bayern, scored the second.

Continue Reading

Trending