Sports
Whither Emenike’s Goal Scoring Touch?
Without a doubt one of
the biggest posers for millions of Nigeria fans is whether the goals of Emmanuel Emenike have finally dried up.
Nicknanied ‘The New Yekini’, Emenike has not scored in the last 11 games for Nigeria after he last hit target for the African champions on October 13, 2013, in a 2-1 win over Ethiopia in a 2014 World Cup playoff, where he scored a brace.
He completely bombed at the World Cup in Brazil, where he failed to score in four appearances much against pre-tournament forecasts.
Emenike’s goals drought is a major problem for the Super Eagles as they have in the past two years depended a great deal on his goals.
The highlight of Emenike’s international career was at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, where he emerged as the tournament’s top scorer with four goals.
He enjoyed the whole-hearted endeavour of twin striker Brown Ideye, who assisted in his goals at South Africa 2013.
His partnerships with Osaze Odemwingie and Shola Ameobi have not been as effective, and he looked all stranded and on his own at Brazil 2014.
The Fenerbache striker is also a marked man since his exploits at the 2013 AFCON and many teams believe if they could stop him, they would have neutralised the Super Eagles as well.
The lack of creativity in the Eagles midfield has equally held back the former Sparkak Moscow star because he is that kind of striker who needs good supplies from the middle for him to make hay.
Also, for all his hard work, speed, power and commitment, Emenike has not shown enough tact and intelligence to lose his markers.
He is direct and very predictable, which makes it easier for defenders to mark him out of a game.
Ex-Nigeria international Jonathan Akpoborie told newsmen that Emenike has to do a lot more now to end his goal drought in Eagles.
“I have watched Emenike for a long time now and personally, I believe he has a lot of power and speed, but he lacks a little in the skill department, which he needs to really work on,” said the former Wolfsburg striker.
“The midfield is not doing well enough to get balls across to him and this is contributing to his lack of goals,”
“But do we need to look for someone for him to get the goals every time? He too should try and add some skills to his power and speed and he will be among the best in the world.
“He has gone 11 games for the Eagles without a goal, and because we rely on him for the goals, we can see why our national team are not doing well at the moment.”
Akpoborie will suggest Nigeria give another player to lead the country’s strike force.
“As far as I am concerned, the coach should start looking elsewhere for another player to score goals for the team,” he said.
“This is a national team and he has to perform or the coach gets a new striker on board. We have many of them by the way.”
“A player is only as good as his last game. That’s football for you.”
After a rather slow start in his international career, Emenike has scored 15 goals in 26 games for Eagles.
His lean spell is another test of his strong character.
If he could overcome this slump, Emenike will again be on his way to becoming one of the country’s most feared goal bursters.
Alao writes for African Football. Com
Olusola Alao
Only Denmark, ranked 21st globally, sits higher among nations that failed to qualify for the tournament, which is being co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada.
England and Chelsea legend John Terry was among those to voice his disappointment, describing Nigeria as a significant loss to a tournament that features 48 nations for the first time.
“Nigeria will be a big miss. This is a World Cup for participants who haven’t had the opportunity to play in the tournament. I would have loved to see a top team like Nigeria there because they’ve got some great individuals. They’re a great nation,” Terry said during a virtual roundtable session organised by SuperSport.
“I think they are a big miss because Nigeria probably would have gone further in the competition, but unfortunately, one side’s loss is another’s gain,” the former England captain added.
Eric Chelle’s side finished second in Group C of the CAF World Cup qualifiers behind South Africa, who secured automatic qualification. Nigeria kept their hopes alive with a playoff semi-final victory over Gabon before falling to the Democratic Republic of Congo on penalties in the decisive playoff final — their second successive absence from the World Cup after also missing the 2022 tournament in Qatar.
The Nigeria Football Federation later challenged DR Congo’s qualification, alleging the use of ineligible players during the campaign, but the appeal was dismissed.
Despite missing the World Cup, the Super Eagles remain Africa’s 3rd highest-ranked team behind Morocco, who sit seventh in the world, and Senegal. Algeria and Egypt complete the continent’s top five.
Defending champions Argentina enter the tournament as the world’s top-ranked side, ahead of Spain, France, England and Portugal. Brazil are sixth, followed by Morocco, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.
The next FIFA World Ranking will be released on July 20, a day after the World Cup final.
Chima Akachukwu and Miracle Akhigbe are among the 16 notable stars picked by the Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF) for the forthcoming Namibia Tour, where the YellowGreens will compete in a T20 and 50-Over Tri-Series, featuring hosts Namibia and Hong Kong China.
Both players make their way back into the YellowGreens fold after periods away from the side and will be eager to contribute their experience and quality as Nigeria pursues success in Namibia.
The NCF said yesterday that the squad, which departs Nigeria today, forms part of the national team’s continued preparations for future international assignments as the YellowGreens seek to build on recent performances and strengthen their standing on the global stage.
Leading the squad is Captain Sulaimon Runsewe, who will spearhead Nigeria’s campaign against two formidable opponents in what promises to be a highly competitive series.
The selected squad combines experienced internationals with emerging talents, providing the technical crew an opportunity to assess player development and team combinations in both the T20 and 50-over formats.
The team will be led on tour by Coaches Leke Oyede and Tamuno John, who will oversee preparations and match operations during the opening phase of the series.
Joining the squad later in Namibia will be the newly appointed Head Coach and High Performance Manager, Stephen Magongo, whose arrival marks another significant step in the Federation’s commitment to strengthening the national team structure and enhancing player development pathways.
Supporting the coaching staff are Team Analyst Jamal Okechukwu, Strength and Conditioning Coach Seye Olympio, and Team Physiotherapist Timothy Adesomowo, forming a well-rounded technical crew focused on maximising player performance and welfare throughout the tour.
The NCF views the Namibia Tri-Series as an important platform for the continued growth of the national team, offering valuable international exposure and competitive match experience against quality opposition. The series will provide the players and technical crew with another opportunity to evaluate progress, fine-tune strategies, and build momentum ahead of future international competitions.
The YellowGreens will face Namibia and Hong Kong China in both T20 and 50-over contests, with the matches expected to test the team’s adaptability, discipline, and resilience in challenging conditions.
Blessing Otu on Monday overcame hard-fighting Kelvin Bebe- Emmanuella in two sets of 6-1, 6-3 to qualify for the second round of the women’s singles of the ongoing 47th Central Bank of Nigeria Senior Tennis Championship, held at the Tennis Courts of the package “B” of the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja.
Speaking after the round of 32 game, Otu, who will be 19 years old in September, said she capitalised on her opponent’s weaknesses to gain victory, having studied her game very well.
“Bebe is a very good and tough player. But I studied her game and did the job well.
“Although she tried to come back in the second set, I punctured all her tricks to win the match and move on. I wish I could continue like this in the rest of my games,” she said.
Another member of the Otu family, John Out, was also victorious as he defeated Mohammed Abdusalam 2-1 (6-2, 6-7, 6-1) in the men’s singles category to advance into the round of 32.
But the third Otu in the game, Thomas, was not that lucky as he lost by 6-0, 7-5 in two straight sets to Danjuma Isaac.
In other matches, Michael Emmanuel defeated Ibrahim Aminu to advance, while Drimiya Mevi outclassed Seyi Ogunsakin by beating him 2-1 (6-7, 6-3, 6-1). Action continues tomorrow when other top players, including the men’s singles top seed, Abua Cannice, join the chase for honours.