By Obaloluwa Joshua, LAGOS Eric Chelle is determined to enjoy a successful reign as head coach of the Super Eagles of Nigeria. Chelle’s appointment came as a surprise and has been greeted with criticism from fans and pundits. The 47-year-old is however ready to prove he is the right man for the job. “Already, there are a lot of people who say that I don’t have much experience. But ultimately, I do have experience. I ended my career in 2014, and I’ve been coaching since that year,” he declared in an interview with matinlibre.com. “I coached a team, let’s say,…
Author: Obaloluwa Joshua
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By Obaloluwa Joshua, LAGOS Super Eagles forward, Cyriel Dessers has expressed his desire to leave Rangers in search of more regular playing time. Dessers has played second fiddle to Moroccan star, Hamza Igamane at the club in recent weeks. Prompt News reports that the 30-year-old has made one start for the Light Blues since December. Serie A clubs, Cagliari and Empoli as well as LaLiga side , Leganes are reportedly interested in the Feyenoord player. “Last month, I lost my starting spot. The boy who is playing now is also a good striker, he’s scoring goals. I try to support…
By Obaloluwa Joshua, LAGOS Nigerian striker Philip Otele has completed a loan move to Swiss club, FC Basel from UAE Pro League outfit, Al Wahda. Prompt News reports that the move can be made permanent for €3m at the end of the season. Otele made 13 appearances during his brief stint with Al Wahda. The 25-year-old only linked up with Al Wahda from Romanian club, CFR Cluj in 2024. The energetic forward is looking forward to a fruitful spell at his new club. “I am delighted that I was able to sign with FC Basel today. The club is internationally…
By Obaloluwa Joshua, LAGOS The Home Eagles have been pitted in Group D of the 2024 African Nations Championship with with defending champions Senegal, Sudan and Congo Brazzaville. Prompt News reports that the Home Eagles are making a return to the CHAN after a six-year absence. Group D is the only that has four teams, while the three other groups have five teams. Co-hosts Kenya, two-time champions Morocco, Angola, DR Congo and Zambia. Tanzania will slug it out in Group B with Madagascar, Mauritania, Burkina Faso and Central African Republic.In Group C are, Uganda, Niger and Guinea .They will be joined…
By Obaloluwa Joshua, LAGOS Trevoh Chalobah has been recalled by Chelsea from his loan spell with Crystal Palace. The centre-back joined Palace on a season-long loan deal last summer. Chelsea have now activated the clause in Chalobah’s contract to bring him back to the Stamford Bridge. The Blues acted due to a run of defensive injuries. Palace manager Oliver Glasner admitted on Tuesday: “Chelsea has the possibility to call him back from loan. “There is a little bit of uncertainty at the moment over will they do it. We need clarity, he needs clarity, so that’s the situation and let’s…
By Obaloluwa Joshua, LAGOS The Confederation of African Football, CAF, has unveiled a new logo and trophy for the African Nations Championship. The new look for the tournament brings a fresh identity and emphasises its deep-rooted connections to African football and culture. It comes with a new CHAN 2024 trophy that features a sleek, contemporary design, combining gold and silver elements, representing the prestige and growing stature of the tournament. A significant detail is the 54 distinct lines encircling the trophy, symbolizing the 54 African nations united with a map of the continent at its core.This element underscores the championship’s celebration…
By Obaloluwa Joshua, LAGOS Alex Iwobi is now the Nigerian with the second highest number of appearances in the English Premier League. Iwobi made his 274 Premier League appearance in Fulham’s 3-2 defeat to West Ham United at the London Stadium on Tuesday night. Prompt News reports that the 28-year-old scored a brace in the keenly contested encounter. The versatile midfielder previously played for Arsenal and Everton. Former Newcastle United striker Shola Ameobi is the Nigerian with the highest number of appearances in the English top-flight (293). Yakubu Aiyegbeni, a former Portsmouth, Everton and Blackburn forward and Chelsea hero, John…
Valencia manager Carlos Corberán has heaped plaudits on Umar Sadiq after the striker opened his goal account for the club. The Nigerian international was on target in Los Ches’ 2-0 Copa del Rey victory over Ourense on Tuesday night. Valencia took the lead five minutes after the break with Fran Carmona slotting the ball into his own net. Prompt News reports that Sadiq added the second goal 12 minutes from time. Corberán showered encomium on the 27-year-old after the keenly contested encounter. “Sadiq has shown that he lives close to the goal, he has achieved an individual move that has…
Technical Director of the Nigeria Football Federation, Coach Augustine Eguavoen, has arrived at the Ikenne-Remo camp of the Super Eagles B alongside new Super Eagles’ Head Coach Éric Sékou Chelle and the latter’s agent, Sidibe Abraham Brehima. The trio flew aboard a ValueJet Airline CRJ 700 aircraft from Abuja to Lagos on Tuesday morning, and then headed for the Remo Stars’ Sports Institute in the fabled Ogun State town On Monday, at Chelle’s unveiling, President of NFF Ibrahim Musa Gusau had clarified that Chelle will only be with the Eagles B in supervisory role, while the trio of Daniel Ogunmodede,…
By Obaloluwa Joshua, LAGOS The Confederation of African Football (CAF) on Tuesday announced the postponement of the 2024 African Nations Championship to August 2025. Good progress has been made in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda with the construction and upgrading of stadiums, training fields, hotels, hospitals and other infrastructure and facilities for the hosting of a successful competition. However the CAF Technical and Infrastructure experts some of whom have been based in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, have advised CAF that more time is required to ensure that the infrastructure and facilities, are at the levels, necessary for hosting a successful tournament.…