Sports
Ex-S’Eagles’ Player Banned For Match-Fixing
Former Super Eagles midfielder, Dickson Etuhu has been banned from all football-related activities in Sweden for five years following his involvement in a match-fixing scandal.
The 37-year-old was accused of offering a bribe to his former AIK Stockholm team-mate and reserve goalkeeper Kenny Stamatopoulos to fix a game against Swedish club Gothenburg in May, 2017.
Stamatopoulos was understood to have been offered around £180,000 to under-perform after an injury to the club’s No1 and flagged the approach, meaning the match was postponed.
Etuhu denied the allegations but after a lengthy investigation, he was found guilty in November, 2019.
And the Swedish FA has now reacted to the incident slapping the Nigerian with a five-year ban, but he escaped a prison sentence.
This however, means Etuhu will not be allowed to engage in Football in Sweden until April 13, 2025.
Ex-striker Alban Jusufi, who retired in 2013 has also been banned.
A statement from the Swedish FA read:
“The disciplinary board has decided to suspend two people because they have deliberately tried to persuade a football player to underperform in one of the team’s matches.
“Through their actions, these people have violated the anti-match fixing regulations and they are therefore, suspended for five years.
“The ban includes training, competing or performing any assignments in any sports.”
Etuhu featured for Fulham, Blackburn Rovers, Norwich City, Preston North End amongst others during his 17 years playing career.
The Kano-born ex-midfielder made his debut for Nigeria in 2007 and recorded 33 caps before quitting international football in 2011.
He represented the Eagles at three major tournaments – Ghana 2008 AFCON, Angola 2010 Afcon as well as the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.
Iwobi spoke to Tidesports source ahead of Nigeria’s crunch playoff semi-final against Gabon on Thursday, November 13, in Rabat, Morocco.
The 28-year-old was reacting to Nigeria’s shaky World Cup qualifying campaign that saw the Eagles finish second in Group C behind South Africa’s Bafana Bafana.
“We’ve managed to rescue ourselves from the dead,” Iwobi told Tidesports source.
We know we have the players and the abilities to compete against any other country in the world.”
The Fulham star pointed to Nigeria’s star power, highlighting African Footballer of the Year winners Ademola Lookman and Victor Osimhen as proof of the squad’s quality.
“We have last year’s African best player (Ademola Lookman), the year before that (Victor Osimhen),” he said.
“It’ll be a shame if we don’t make it, but we have a lot of confidence. We just have to prove it to ourselves.”
Nigeria’s path to the United States, Canada and Mexico has been turbulent, with two coaches departing during the early stages of qualifying before Éric Chelle steadied the ship to steer the Super Eagles into November’s CAF playoffs.
Four nations from the continent – Nigeria, Cameroon, DR Congo and Gabon – will vie for a solitary spot to compete in next March’s inter-confederation playoffs, with a view to joining the already nine qualified African nations at the Finals.
It would mark Iwobi’s second appearance at the World Cup Finals and the Super Eagles’ first since the 2018 edition of the competition.
Back then, Iwobi featured in all three games as Nigeria was knocked out in the group stage.
The Chief Executive Officer(CEO) and Publisher of the Atlantic Bell Online medium, Mr. Celestine Ogolo has advised sports writers in Nigeria to diversify in sports writing and not to concentrate on football reporting alone.
The Deputy National President of Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) Mr. Bonny Nyong has expressed commitment to support sports development and move SWAN forward.