Sports
Confed Cup: Cautious Optimism As Dolphins Host Vegetarians
There will be mixed
feelings and fear of the unknown tomorrow at the Port Harcourt Liberation Stadium, as Dolphins FC will play host to Leones Vegetarians FC of Guinea, in the second leg of CAF Cup.
Anxiety and nervousness have started to grip dolphins players and supporters, following the poor performances of the club in recent outings, especially, the just concluded Super Four, where the team played five matches and lost all. Besides, they also lost to their visitors by a lone goal, a forthnight ago.
Dolphins technical adviser, Stanley Eguma, attributed the unimpressive performance to late preparations occasioned by players not reporting to camp early.
In spite of , all these, Eguma still believes that his team will scale through to the next stage, as the technical crew has plugged the loopholes noticed in their previous games.
According to him, the team is now fully recovered from the exit of Emem Eduok team’ s goal machine, saying that in football, players come and go and that the club has gotten adequate replacement.
“Dolphins settled for Christian Pygbara, he can comfortably fit in the shoes of Emem.
He has a knack for scoring goals and he did so last season, so we will hope he continues that way this season, especially in the CAF Confederation cup, apart from him also we have other good strikers like Omo Johnson and Ifeanyi Egwim. “ Eguma said.
He continued that his players were in high spirit, Mentally and psychologically balanced to ensure success in the encounter.
Eguma noted that his players have demonstrated more commitment and vowed to win the game to make the country proud, especially Rivers State.
Dolphins captain Sunday Rotimi said that what happened in Malabo has been put behind them.
He said they would have won, but his players lost many scoring chances, saying that if they had converted at least two goals, his team would have been at an advantage.
However, fillers from the visitors camp who arrived yesterday have revealed that they plan to repeat what they did at home.
According to the source, the Vegetarianos are sound technically and determined to run away with victory.
however, it is expected that Dolphins players would not repeat what happened in Malabo, going to the match about an hour to kickoff time, following non-payment of match bonuses and salaries. They must put on their shooting boots and take their chances as they come.
Tonye Orabere
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CAFCL : Rivers United Arrives DR Congo
Rivers United FC of Port Harcourt contingent, comprising players, technical crew, backroom staff, and officials, depart the Murtala Mohammed International Airport in Lagos State on Wednesday, bound for Kinshasa, DR Congo.
The team is set to face FC Les Aigles du Congo in the first-round first-leg match of the CAF Champions League.
This was contained in a press release signed by the media officer of the club, Charles Mayuku and made available to Tidesports on Wednesday.
He said that the highly anticipated match is scheduled to take place at the 80,000-capacity Kinshasa-Complexe Omnisports Stade des Martyrs on morrow with kickoff slated for 3:30pm.
According to the statement the encounter marks the first-ever meeting between both sides in any competition, adding that an air of excitement and unpredictability to the fixture.
“As the Pride of Nigeria embarks on this crucial journey, the team is determined to return with a decent result that will set them up favorably for the second leg on Sunday, 28th September” the statement said.
Sports
FIFA rankings: S’Eagles drop Position, remain sixth in Africa
The new rankings, released via FIFA’s official X handle on Thursday, reflect the team’s continued struggles under Coach Eric Chelle amid a stuttering 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign.
This marks a second consecutive decline after the Nigerian side dropped from 43rd to 44th in August on the back of poor outings in recent international matches.
Despite Nigeria’s setback, several African teams made progress. Morocco remains the continent’s highest-ranked side, sitting 11th in the world after winning eight of their last nine matches. Senegal, Egypt, Algeria and Côte d’Ivoire complete Africa’s top five.
Lesotho slipped to 153rd place, while Benin Republic, Nigeria’s upcoming opponent, climbed to 93rd. South Africa’s Bafana Bafana, who held the Super Eagles to a 1-1 draw in June, rose to 55th, strengthening their bid for World Cup qualification.
Zimbabwe had the biggest slide down the ranking table, dropping nine places to 125th position in the world.
The rankings highlight Nigeria’s struggle to regain form on the global stage as key rivals continue to surge ahead.
Similarly, the Super Falcons of Nigeria remain 36th best in the world], while the Spanish female national team replaced the USA at the top of the women’s ranking.
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