Sports

Mixed Reactions Trail Messi’s Emergence As World Best

Published

15 years ago

January 14, 2011

Soccer fans in Nigeria have expressed mixed reactions to the emergence of Lionel Messi as the Best Player of the World for the second consecutive year.

The Barcelona striker was voted the FIFA Ballon d’Or on Monday in Zurich, Switzerland.

The Argetine beat his Spanish club team mates Andres Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez to clinch the crown.

While Barcelona fans are happy that Messi won the award, others are questioning his emergence, particularly as he failed to sparkle at the World Cup and ouster of Argentina in the quarter-finals in June in South Africa.

Former Rangers International player, Arthur Nwankwo, in Awka wondered why Messi should win the award when he failed to score at the World Cup following the early exit of his country in the competition.

“Since it is a World Cup year, I just do not know why Messi should be chosen ahead of those that performed well at both club and World Cup in South Africa.

“What do you say of the accuracy of Xavi Henandez and his consistent passes that earned him a double. His team, FC Barcelona won the league, FA Cup and Spain his country also won the World Cup,” said Nwankwo.

From Aba, two members of the Nigeria Football Association (NFA), Mike Umeh and Felix Anyasi, said Messi deserved to win the award.

Anyansi, who is the Chairman of Enyimba FC, said.

“It’s an award well deserved,” and noted that his consistency for club and country earned him the award.

“He has become a role model to many who watched him play at the club and the Argentina national team.”

He, however, expressed regrets that no African player had won award after Liberia’s George Weah clinched the award in 1995.

He noted that many African players, including Samuel Etoo of Cameroon and Didier Drogba of Cote d’Ivoire, had performed creditably for their respective countries and clubs to deserve the award.

Umeh said that Messi’s scintillating skill gave him the award.

“The young man improves with each game, which helped Barca to be among the best teams in the world,’’ he said.

The Chairman of the Ebonyi FA, Obinna Ogba, told our source that Messi took soccer entertainment to an art form in 2010, especially with Barcelona “as his contributions ensured that the club excelled in club competitions.

“Though Argentina flopped at the World Cup in South Africa, he was the only bright spot in the team which showed his immense talent,” he said.

A governorship aspirant on the platform of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Adol Awam, described the award as a gain of youth development in football.

“At 23, Messi had shown with his exploits that if adequately nurtured, the future of football in the world lies with the youths,” said.

Vincent Okpalaka, former Enugu Rangers International FC defender, said the award was previously won by players who excelled during the World Cup year and expressed surprise Monday’s award did follow the criteria.

“Players who held the world spell bound at the World Cup in South Africa, such as Diego Forlan of Uruguay, Wesley Sneidger of Holland among others, were not even nominated for the award,” Okpalaka said.

A female youth activist, said it was a wake-up call to soccer authorities in Africa to develop football to ensure players from the continent were short-listed for future awards.

Football fans were seen arguing among themselves at newspaper stands in Onitsha.

They said FIFA should be consistent in giving the award to players whose national teams won the World Cup.

John Obosi, a football analyst, with Contact Sports newspaper, said that there was no need in arguing over whether Messi deserved the award or not.

“It was done by national team coaches selected around the World which clearly shows that FIFA had no hand in the decision,” Obosi said.

Osita Unachukwu, Anambra Pillar FC Secretary, said that he least expected somebody such as Messi to be given the World Footballer of 2010.

“There is sometime amiss; if not, the tradition should have continued. I can see some politics in the whole show,” Unachukwu said.

Ike Okeke, an ardent fan of Barcelona FC, said that Messi had made an indelible mark in all the matches he played for his club in 2010.

“For me, Messi has no rival, he deserves the award; and his outstanding performance had improved the game in 2010.

“He has dwarfed other efforts made by the other players at the World Cup in South Africa,” said Okeke.

Sports

Amusan Clinches Gold, sets record in Taiwan

Published

2 days ago

June 8, 2026

The Tide

Nigeria’s world record holder, Tobi Amusan, continued her impressive 2026 season by winning gold and setting a new meet record in the women’s 100 metres hurdles at the New Taipei Athletics Open in Taiwan on Saturday, Tidesports source reports.

Amusan crossed the line in 12.72 seconds despite running against a slight headwind of -0.3 metres per second, finishing well clear of Chinese Taipei’s Bo Ya Zhang, who took silver in 13.17 seconds.

The performance erased the previous meet record and underlined the 29-year-old’s consistency as one of the dominant forces in women’s hurdling on the international circuit.

The New Taipei victory adds to a string of strong outings this season for the Nigerian. Earlier in the campaign, Amusan claimed her first Diamond League win of the season in Rabat, Morocco, clocking 12.28 seconds to break her own meeting record of 12.45 seconds set in 2025.

That time equalled her season’s best, which she had also posted at the Xiamen Diamond League.

Before Rabat, Amusan had recorded a third-place finish in Shanghai with 12.41 seconds and a runner-up spot in Xiamen with 12.28 seconds, where she was edged by American hurdler Masai Russell.

The season has also included a continental triumph, with Amusan winning gold in the women’s 100 metres hurdles at the African Championships in Accra, helping Nigeria to its first gold medal of the competition.

Her 12.28-second performance remains among the fastest times globally this year and ranks as one of the finest of her distinguished career.

Only her world record of 12.12 seconds, set at the 2022 World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, and the 12.24 seconds she clocked at the Meeting de Paris last year stand above it in her personal all-time list.

A three-time Diamond League champion, Amusan will be looking to reclaim the overall title this season while also preparing for the Diamond League finale and the Commonwealth Games later in the year.

4th

Super Falcons Must Improve- Coach Madugu

Super Falcons head coach Justin Madugu has offered an honest assessment of his side’s performance after Nigeria defeated Senegal 2-1 in an international friendly at the Remo Stars Sports Complex in Ikenne, admitting there is still considerable work ahead of the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, Tidesports source reports.

Goals from Asisat Oshoala, who converted a first-half penalty, and Toni Payne gave Nigeria a commanding lead before Sokhna Nogaye’s long-range effort in the 86th minute reduced the deficit and set up a tense finish.

While the nine-time African champions secured the result and met their primary objective of assessing squad depth, Madugu acknowledged the performance was not without its shortcomings.

“It’s a good result, and naturally, when you play any game, you always want to win. This is a preparatory game, and the aim is to assess our readiness, test the strategies we want to execute in the competition, and give players the opportunity to showcase what they can do to provide us with more options,” Madugu told official54fx.

“These are the matches we use to identify which players are fully ready for the WAFCON. It was not a bad game for us, but as you know, there is always room for improvement. Yes, we did well, but we know there is still a lot of work to be done.”

The two sides meet again on Monday, June 8, in the second match of their friendly double-header as both nations continue their WAFCON preparations.

Sports

Govt, Allen Onyema to Immortalise Stephen Keshi

Published

2 days ago

June 8, 2026

The Tide

As Nigeria buries one of its legendary football heroes this weekend, the spirit of another late football hero of the same generation is being evoked.

As the body of late Henry Onyenmanze Nwosu, MON, is being committed to mother-earth on Saturday, June 6, in Naze, near Owerri, on

Sunday, June 7, 2026, the first in a two-part series of activities in remembrance of late Stephen Okechukwu Keshi, MFR, the one referred to as ‘the Big Boss’ by the football faithful, will take place in Lagos at the 10th Memorial Lecture organised yearly by a Foundation established by his friends and family at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, Lagos.

Also, on July 28, 2026, exactly a day to the date (July 29) that Stephen Keshi died 10 years ago in 2016, his contributions as a sports diplomat within Nigeria’s strategic foreign affairs will be showcased and acknowledged. His name will be inscribed in gold letters on ‘the NIIA Sports Diplomacy Wall of Fame’ in everlasting memory of the great Nigerian football hero and patriot.

His name will be an addition to those of 69 other sporting heroes from Nigeria’s history that have already been found deserving of a place on famed Wall.

The ‘NIIA Sports Diplomacy Wall of Fame’ is a national monument established by an agency of the federal government of Nigeria, the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, to immortalize Nigerians that are known to have made major contributions to Nigeria’s international politics and diplomacy objectives through sports.

On July 28th 2026, it will be 3 years since the edifice was erected within the premises of NIIA in Lagos sponsored by Dr.Allen Onyema and his AirPeace Airline. It is an environment of water fountains, a beautiful garden and a Black marbled-wall on which the names of Nigerian sports heroes considered deserving are inscribed.

The existing list will now be extended to include the name of former Nigerian Green Eagles Captain and national team Coach, Stephen Okechukwu Keshi, CON. He has been considered worthy, and his contributions identified, justified and approved by the NIIA.

The extension of the space on the wall to accommodate his name, plus the small ceremony to be done in his honour, will be courtesy of Dr. Allen Onyema and AirPeace Airline.

Stephen Keshi played and captained the Nigerian national football team. He also coached and managed the National team of Nigeria to an African Cup victory, qualified and took another African national team, Togo, to the FIFA World Cup, personally opened the way and assisted a whole generation of Nigerian and other African football players in the transition to professional ranks in Europe.

Meanwhile, inside the sports diplomacy department of the NIIA, a few other Nigerians athletes are being considered for a place on the wall in the very near future. They include world record breaker and holder,Tobi Amusan; first and only female Olympic Gold medalist, Chioma Ajunwa, and the Atlanta ‘96 ‘Dream Team’ and Olympic Gold medalists.

The honours list is not based on sports achievements only, but on impact in the international diplomatic and political space in conformity with Nigeria’s foreign affairs agenda and objectives!

I remember the great ‘Stefan’, as I called Keshi, very fondly. He called me ‘Segunda Fero’!

Sports

“Nigerian athletics has fallen”

Published

2 days ago

June 8, 2026

The Tide

Former national 400m hurdles champion, Olympian Henry Amike, has called for greater investment in athletics, athletes’ welfare, training and competitions to restore Nigeria’s competitiveness in track and field events.

Amike who spoke in Abuja Thursday said the pace of development in Nigerian athletics has fallen short of expectations despite the achievements recorded by previous generations of athletes.

“We expected that after we left the scene, people would take over immediately, but it has taken almost 40 years before things like this are coming up. We are not happy with what we have seen in Nigerian track and field,” he said.

He said that their technical expertise and experience could contribute significantly to policy formulation and institutional reforms within the sector.

Amike, one of Nigeria’s most accomplished track and field athletes, represented the country at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles and the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul.

He competed in the 400 metres hurdles and 4×400 metres relay events.

The Olympian’s most notable international achievement came at the 1987 World Championships in Rome, where he became the first Nigerian athlete to qualify for the final of the men’s 400m hurdles. His personal best time of 48.50 seconds stood as Nigeria’s national record for 35 years before it was broken in 2022.

Amike also won medals at continental competitions and was widely regarded as one of Africa’s leading hurdlers during the 1980s, contributing to Nigeria’s growing profile in international athletics.

Amike, who served as a legislative assistant to the speaker of the House of Representatives, has confirmed his intention to contest the Lagos West Senatorial District seat in 2027.

According to him, his political agenda will focus on youth empowerment, sports development, education and broader socio-economic issues affecting residents of the senatorial district.