Sports

Liverpool’s David Ngog Can Be The Player Ryan Babel Should Be

Published

15 years ago

November 1, 2009

It seems that any substitution involving Yossi Benayoun causes surprise these days. Less than a week ago the Israeli’s late withdrawal, during Liverpool’s loss to Lyon drew a chorus of boos from the club. Last Wednesday, he emerged from the bench 15 minutes from time as the Reds chased the game at Arsenal, and his introduction raised more than a few eyebrows.

It was not that it was Benayoun being brought on, of course. The 29-year-old’s guile and composure was more than welcome at a stage when Liverpool were on top of their energetic but inexperienced opponents. The consternation from the travelling pocket of Reds supporters packed into a sold-out Emirates Stadium came from seeing that it was David Ngog who was to be replaced.

Ok, it is not the same as removing, say, Fernando Torres, but still it was surprising. The young Frenchman had given Rafa Benitez 75 minutes of hard-work, and plenty of quality. It was his clever back-heel which opened up a glorious chance for Philipp Degen in the early stages, one that the Swiss full-back wasted.

Contrasting his performance with another Liverpool player looking to establish himself as an understudy (or partner) for Torres, Ryan Babel, and it is clear to see which player is showing more promise at this stage.

Babel cost more than £11 million, seven times as much as Ngog, when he arrived at Anfield from Ajax in 2007, and the early signs were highly promising. Moving with a fluidity which reminded Kopites of John Barnes or Thierry Henry, the Dutchman netted ten goals in his debut season at the club, and looked set to push on and establish himself as first choice.

That he has not is a damning indictment, at a time when quality attacking players at the club are apparently in such short supply. Torres is undoubtedly the top dog at Anfield, but there is an undoubted chance for someone like Babel to nail down a regular place. A chance, it appears, he is unable, or unwilling, to grasp.

On Wednesday night, he flitted around halfheartedly, offering only a partial threat as Liverpool were second-best for large spells. One nod down for Emiliano Insua’s goal, and a skimming 30-yard free kick that Lukasz Fabianski fielded well was the sum total of his night’s work. A night that was capped with a poor miss, as he failed to connect with Dirk Kuyt’s low cross late on.

Babel’s apologists point to the fact that he is yet to fully earn the faith of Benitez, and that he has never received a prolonged run in the first team. There may be an element of truth in this. Babel has already been named as a substitute 55 times in his short Anfield career, and has been substituted on countless other occasions. But when confronted with statistics such as those, is it not logical to wonder why?

The answer, it seems, is a case of attitude. Ngog may not be the darling of the Kop, though his strike against Manchester United last weekend will help, but his performances always display plenty of hard-work, a willingness to learn and improve, and a team-first attitude. Supporters respond to such traits, and the Frenchman is currently reaping the rewards.

For Babel, who has made plenty of noise in the past about needing to leave in order to secure first-team football, the long-term prognosis is less promising. It is clear that the talent is there, but Benitez could be forgiven for doubting if this Liverpool side are able to unlock it on a regular basis. The January transfer window may represent Liverpool’s best chance to pick up a sizable fee for Babel, who will be 23 by the time Christmas comes.

Obviously things can change. Babel’s pace and shooting power means he will always appeal as an alternative option from the bench, but at this moment in time, it makes more sense to back the Frenchman than it does to go Dutch.

Sports

Chess Championship: Dan-Jumbo Emerges Best Female Player

Published

3 days ago

April 30, 2024

The Tide

The third edition of Naphtail Chess Open Championship which ended on Wednesday in Port Harcourt saw Rivers State born Queen Dan-Jumbo emerged best female player in the tournament following her impressive performance.

It was clash of the Titans as top Chess players in Nigeria gathered to chase honours.

The three days competition was held at Vee Hotel, Trans Amadi ,in Port Harcourt and over 80 players in Nigeria registered for the tournament this championship was recognised by International Chess Federation (FIDE).

Speaking with Tidesports in an exclusive interview on Saturday, Dan-Jumbo said her dream was to become Grand Master in Chess worldwide.

According to her, she started playing Chess at the age of 15 but went into it professionally in 2009 as she represented Rivers State in National Sports Festival (NSF) in Kaduna, the same year.

“I started playing Chess in the early 2000s. I picked the interest through my my elder brother as him and his friends always play Chess in our compound so I began to learn it.

” In 2009 I went to National Sports festival in Kaduna represented Rivers State and I won a silver medal on my board.

“In 2011 and 2012 NSFs I won two Gold medals each hosted by Rivers and Lagos States respectively. While in Edo NSF I won bronze medal” Dan-Jumbo said.

The Asari-Toru, in Rivers State born Chess player use the forum to advice upcoming Chess players to be focus, saying losing a game is part of every competition but the most important thing was that you don’t lose hope.

“My advice for upcoming chess players was that don’t lose focus. Even when you lose, find a way to adjust and get back out”, she added.

Tonye Orabere

Sports

Siasia Blames NFF Over FIFA Ban

Published

6 days ago

April 26, 2024

The Tide

Former Super Eagles Coach, Samson Siasia says the Nigeria Football Federation supported FIFA to have him banned for alleged involvement in match-fixing in August 2019.
In a recent interview with Athlist, the 56-year-old, whose ban ends in a few months, said the NFF not only refused to support him but also carried out FIFA’s instruction not to let him know he was under investigation by the world football body.
“Nigeria abandoned me at that time of need; that’s my own take on how this thing played out,” the former Eagles striker and member of the 1994 AFCON-winning squad, said.
“It’s an allegation; they said bribery. What is bribery? Is it not when money changes hands? Was there any proof of that? There were none.
“I spoke with someone who was trying to hire me as a coach in Australia. I didn’t know the guy was a match-fixer, but FIFA knew this guy. Why would they allow him to be around any FIFA tournament?
“So, when they found out through emails, our correspondence about how this guy would take me to Australia, I played in Australia, so I felt it would be nice to go back there.
“We talked about how much salaries, transfers, bonuses, and sign-on fees were, and that was all.
“When FIFA was looking for me, I didn’t even know. I am not affiliated with FIFA; their affiliation is with the NFF. So, they went to the NFF and told them not to let me know that they were investigating me. But if they didn’t tell me, how was I supposed to defend my self Siasia added, “Then they sent me a letter, but it went to my spam. It was two days before the ban that I found out that FIFA was looking for me.
Siasia added, “Then they sent me a letter, but it went to my spam. It was two days before the ban that I found out that FIFA was looking for me.
“Then we started to see how we could communicate with them to see how I could have a hearing. But they said the time had elapsed and I should go to the CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport).

Sports

WADA Plans Review Of Failed Tests

Published

6 days ago

April 26, 2024

The Tide

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) will launch an independent review after 23 Chinese swimmers were cleared to compete at the Tokyo Olympics despite testing positive for a banned substance.
WADA has said it was not in a position to disprove an assertion from the China Anti-Doping Agency (CHINADA) that contamination was the source of the heart medication trimetazidine (TMZ) for which the swimmers tested positive.
Findings of the independent investigation, led by Swiss prosecutor Eric Cottier, are expected to be delivered within two months.
“WADA’s integrity and reputation is under attack,” said Wada president Witold Banka.
“WADA has been unfairly accused of bias in favour of China by not appealing the CHINADA case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
“We continue to reject the false accusations and we are pleased to be able to put these questions into the hands of an experienced, respected and independent prosecutor.”
United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) Chief Executive Travis Tygart said WADA and CHINADA had swept these positives under the carpet, claims WADA described as completely false and defamatory while adding that it had referred the comments to its lawyers.
Aquatics GB said it was extremely concerned by the allegations, which it said threatened “potential loss of trust and reputational damage to sport”.
WADA was notified of CHINADA’s decision in June 2021, ahead of the delayed Games, and said it had no evidence to challenge China’s findings and that external counsel had advised against appealing.
In addition to the independent investigation, WADA said it will send a compliance audit team to assess the state of China’s anti-doping programme and invite independent auditors “from the broader anti-doping community” to join the trip.
WADA director general Olivier Niggli said: “While not one shred of evidence has been presented to support any of the allegations made against WADA, we wish to deal with the matter as quickly and as comprehensively as possible so that the matter is appropriately handled in advance of the upcoming Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games.”
Details of the positive tests were revealed by the New York Times, which shared reporting with German broadcaster ARD.
China won six swimming medals at the Tokyo Olympics, including three golds.