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Tag: CAF

Egypt 2025: Flying Eagles Reach Quarter-Finals

Fola Badmus03 mins

Nigeria reached the quarter finals of the ongoing CAF U20 Championship in Egypt despite having to force Kenya’s Rising Stars to a 2-2 draw in the last match of group B on Wednesday. In the event, the Flying Eagles finished second on the table with five points, two behind group leaders Morocco who drilled Tunisia 3-1 in the other match of the pool and will remain in Cairo for the quarter finals, against the second-placed team in group A. Group A is made up of hosts Egypt, South Africa, Sierra Leone, Zambia and Tanzania. Seven-time champions Nigeria will now have to make the trip to Ismailia for their quarter-final game on Monday, against the second-placed team in group C. Group C is made up of title-holders Senegal, bitter-rivals Ghana, Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Kenya’s Rising Stars made the game difficult for the Flying Eagles, as the wards of Aliyu Zubairu had to come from behind twice to salvage the encounter. Kevin Wangaya put the Rising Stars ahead after only five minutes, scoring from the penalty spot after a Nigerian defender stopped the ball with his hand in the box. Nigeria restored parity seven minutes later, after Kparobo Arierhi waltzed his way through the defence to place the ball firmly beyond the reach of the opposition goal-tender. The East Africans were back in front in the 68th minute, as the Flying Eagles’ rearguard ball-watched a freekick from the left and allowed William to blast the ball past goalkeeper Ebenezer Harcourt from Lawrence’s in-swinger. Five minutes later, Nigeria were level again, with captain Daniel Bameyi sending the goalkeeper the wrong way from the spot after substitute Mendos Rickson was upended in the box. The Flying Eagles’ match on Monday will be the first quarter-final, starting at 3pm Egypt time (1pm Nigeria time) in Ismailia.

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Egypt 2025: Kenya on Firing Line as Flying Eagles Aspire to Celebrate 100th AFCON Match

Fola Badmus05 mins

Kenya’s Rising Stars are right in the firing line as seven-time champions and two-time runners-up Nigeria are determined to celebrate their 100th match of the U20 Africa Cup of Nations with a win in downtown Cairo on Wednesday evening. The clash, one of the closing games of group B of the ongoing CAF U20 Championship and which is scheduled to kick off 4pm Nigeria time, is on different gradients for both teams, with the Kenyans in need of a handsome win to stand a chance of progressing to the quarter finals while the Flying Eagles only require a draw. Second-placed Nigeria, on four points, will reach the last eight of the competition if they secure a draw (which will take their haul to five, and spring them to the next round irrespective of the result in the clash between first-placed Morocco and third-placed Tunisia). A win for Morocco will take them to seven points, and keep three-pointer Tunisia in third place, while a draw earns Morocco a total of five points from their three matches and keeps Tunisia at four. A win for Tunisia will take the Junior Carthage Eagles to six points and drag the Lion Cubs to third place. With 19 teams involved in the tournament, and teams drawn into three pools, the top two teams in each group, alongside the best two third-placed teams, will progress to the quarter finals. Despite their promise, the Rising Stars have failed to light up Cairo, losing a five-goal thriller to Morocco on the opening day and failing to deliver in the 1-3 loss to Tunisia on Sunday. Getting a win against Nigeria will be huge for the Kenyans, who have struggled badly over the decades against Nigeria opposition on the field of play. Their first three encounters, between 1968 and 1991, were friendly matches, with Nigeria winning twice in Nairobi and the other match (also in Nairobi) ending in a 1-1 draw. In a 1986 FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Nairobi in April 1985, goals by Fatai Amao and Rashidi Yekini, and a Hussein Khari own goal, gave Nigeria a 3-0 win. In the return leg in Lagos, Yekini and Dr Joe Masiga each scored a magnificent goal, but Dahiru Sadi and Yisa Sofoluwe added to Nigeria’s tally for a 3-1 win. Nigeria won 3-0 and 2-1 in 1988 and 1992 AFCON group phase matches respectively, and in a 1998 World Cup qualifying fixture, both teams drew 1-1 in Nairobi before Nigeria triumphed 3-0 in Lagos to qualify for France 1998. Nigeria won friendly matches in 2002, 2007 and 2011, and also beat the Kenyans home (3-0) and away (3-2) to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals. In 2013, a 1-1 draw in Calabar and 1-0 win in Nairobi in 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers confirmed Nigeria’s undoubted superiority. In qualifying matches for the 1996 Olympic Games, both teams played a 1-1 draw in Nigeria, but the Dream Team victimised their hosts 3-0 in Mombasa. The Flying Eagles will be determined to underscore this superiority on Wednesday, in order to pop champagne in what will be their 100th match of the tournament and also stand a chance of finishing as group B winners.

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‘Chairman’ Christian Chukwu Can Never be Forgotten – Gusau

Fola Badmus03 mins

President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau has declared that late former Green Eagles’ captain ‘Chairman’ Christian Chukwuemeka Chukwu is a man that can never be forgotten. Gusau spoke Friday afternoon in Enugu when a delegation from the NFF and FA Chairmen from the South East zone paid a condolence visit to Chukwu’s family. Gusau, who spoke through the NFF 1st Vice President, Chief Felix Anyansi-Agwu, described Chukwu as a diligent and patriotic on-field leader who served the country with all his heart and mind, and every ounce of his energy. “The late Chukwu gave his all for the country. He served Nigeria with all his heart and he is a hero even in death. One thing is clear: Chukwu can never be forgotten given how well he served the country and his achievements both as a player and as a coach,” Gusau stated. The NFF President noted that the visit was not just a condolence visit but one the football-ruling body made in order to be intimated, first-hand, plans being put in place by the family ahead of Chukwu’s burial, and for the family and the soccer house to be on the same page. “We want to be on the same page with the family and know what plans they are putting in place. Chukwu is a hero and the NFF will participate fully in his burial,” Gusau assured. Chukwu’s son, Emeka, while responding on behalf of the family commended the NFF leadership for the visit even as he disclosed that the family will soon make public the programme of the final burial rites for the 1980 Africa Cup of Nations-winning team captain and Most Valuable Player. Also on the delegation were Member of the NFF Executive Committee and Chairman of the Nigeria National League Mr. George Aluo; Chairman of Enugu State Football Association Barrister Tony Ugwu; Imo State FA Chairman, Barrister Ifeanyi Dike and; Anambra State FA Chairman Mr. Chikelue Iloenyosi.

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Egypt 2025: Nigeria to Go Hard on Morocco For Early Ticket into Quarter Finals

Fola Badmus04 mins

Another North African delicacy is served to the Flying Eagles as they confront Morocco in Group B’s top-of-the-table clash at the 30 June Air Defence Stadium in Cairo on Sunday evening. Auwal Ibrahim’s 37th minute strike snatched the maximum points against the Tunisians on Thursday, but Morocco then upstaged a very good Kenyan side 3-2 in the day’s second match to crawl to the top of the table on goals’ difference. For the second time in consecutive games, the Lion Cubs also face the daunting challenge of a sub-Saharan squad weaned on power, pace and clinical delivery, and the night encounter in downtown Cairo promises fireworks and cutting-edge entertainment. Goalkeeper Ebenezer Harcourt, who plays his club football for exciting Lagos ensemble, Sporting Lagos, came up with a big save three minutes to the end against Tunisia, and will surely be called on for more interventions against the Lion Cubs who are not shy to shoot from any distance. Captain Daniel Bameyi, Adamu Maigari, Caleb Ochedikwu and Odinaka Okoro built a tight rearguard on Thursday, and must be even more alert on Sunday to protect Harcourt, and also feed midfielders Divine Oliseh and Clinton Jephta as the Flying Eagles push forward. CAF’s brandishing of forward Kparobo Arierhi (who scored three goals at the WAFU B U20 Championship and netted one of the goals in the 2-1 defeat of hosts Egypt in a friendly last week) as one of the players to watch out for in Egypt, has cast the Norway-based as a goldfish, and the tight marking by Tunisian defenders was surely as a result of the searchlight. Nonetheless, Arierhi must endeavour to prove himself going forward, and Head Coach Aliyu Zubairu’s desire for an early ticket to the quarter finals means the forward must diligently seek to extricate himself from any contrived mesh. Auwal Ibrahim, hero against Tunisia, showed he is capable of a quick-slip-and-delivery, and will also be relied on to carve the Moroccan defence open and hurt them on the break. Victory will take the Flying Eagles to the top of the pool, and a confirmed spot in the quarter finals, ahead of their last group phase feud with Kenya on Wednesday.

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Egypt 2025: Flying Eagles Pick Three Points Off Carthage Eagles, Set for Atlas Lions

Fola Badmus03 mins

A first-half strike by Auwal Ibrahim off an inch-perfect pass from Odinaka Okoro was the difference as Nigeria maintained their dominance over Tunisia in youth football at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo on Thursday. The Flying Eagles played with confidence against the aggressive North Africans, and Ibrahim’s goal was well-deserved after Nigeria dominated in the first period. The seven-time champions thought they had secured a penalty kick in the 72nd minute to increase their lead, after Mendos Richson was shoved to the floor, but the Video Assistant Referee ruled otherwise. Goalkeeper Ifeanyi Harcourt came up with a big save three minutes to the end, denying Tunisian forward Ben Ali from close range, and the game ended with the Nigerians on the high and looking forward to their clash with Morocco’s Lion Cubs at the same venue on Sunday evening. Victory meant a fourth victory for Nigeria in six clashes with the Tunisians at U20 level, going back to 1981 when the Flying Eagles defeated their visitors 4-0 in a qualifying fixture for the FIFA World Youth Championship in Australia. They lost the return leg 1-4 in Tunis but qualified for the final round. In 1985, both teams played a 1-1 draw in Tunis in the title fixture of the African U20 competition, but the Flying Eagles won the return 2-1 in Lagos to collect their second continental title. Two years ago, in the third-place match of the Africa U20 Cup of Nations also held in Egypt, Nigeria mauled Tunisia 4-0 to pick up the bronze medals.

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Egypt 2025: Flying Eagles Go for Three Points Against Junior Carthage Eagles

Fola Badmus18 mins

Nigeria will on Thursday launch their campaign for an eighth Africa U20 title when the Flying Eagles file out against the Junior Carthage Eagles of Tunisia at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo, in the opening match of Group B. Forty years ago, the boys from Carthage were the victims as the Flying Eagles won the second of their seven African titles, in the era when the winner was decided over two legs. With both teams already qualified for the FIFA World Youth Championship (now FIFA U20 World Cup) finals in then USSR, Nigeria forced a 1-1 draw with their hosts in Tunis, and then won a close-fought return leg 2-1 at the National Stadium, Surulere. Two years ago, the Carthage Eagles again bowed to the Eagles from West Africa in the third-place match of the U20 AFCON, also hosted by Egypt. It ended 4-0 against the North Africans. Head Coach Aliyu Zubairu and his charges understand that they must take it one match at a time as they aspire for glory, with Cup holders Senegal (who head Group C), hosts Egypt (who head Group A) and four-time winners Ghana (in Group C) also in the hunt for honours. Four-time champions Egypt (winners in 1981, 1991, 2003 and 2013) already pocketed three points from their opening match against South Africa on Sunday, while Zambia and Sierra Leone fought themselves to a scoreless draw. Ghana have their work cut out in Group C, where they must negotiate survival with title-holders Senegal, a Central African Republic side that eliminated Cameroon, and the nifty Democratic Republic of Congo. Nigeria must beware of the host nation, even though the Flying Eagles pipped the Egyptians 1-0 in a group phase match in Cairo two years ago. The only Final matches Nigeria have lost since the competition transformed from home-and-away format to a tournament were against host nations – against Ghana in Accra in 1999 and against Congo in Brazzaville eight years later. On the reverse, Nigeria defeated hosts Senegal in the Final in 2015. Ghana were champions in 1993, 1999 (as hosts), 2009 (when they won in Rwanda) and 2021. Cameroon, who are not in Egypt, won their only title when Nigeria hosted the competition in 1995. After Thursday’s shootout with the Junior Carthage Eagles, the seven-time champions will be up against 1997 hosts and winners Morocco, also at the 30 June Stadium. Zubairu is excited that his boys are riding on immense psychological wavelengths after a 2-1 defeat of host nation Egypt in a friendly match at the Cairo International Stadium on Tuesday – barely 48 hours after the delegation landed in Cairo. “That result has provided a good impetus for us as we prepare to face the Tunisians – another North African opposition. You need a result like that when you’re preparing for a competition like this. It does not mean that we will rest on our oars; it only serves to give us much-needed confidence and ginger us to face our challenges better. “We will go for the maximum points against the Tunisians and then take it one step at a time as we forge ahead.” Kparobo Arierhi, who scored three goals at the WAFU B U20 Championship and netted the first goal against Egypt on Tuesday, Germany-based Precious Benjamin and home-boys Clinton Jephta and Divine Oliseh are the key foremen that Zubairu will be hoping to deliver against each and every opposition. Tunisia did not originally qualify for these finals, but sneaked through after original hosts Cote d’Ivoire pulled the rug on the Confederation of African Football with only weeks to the opening match. All four semi-finalists at the tournament will qualify to fly Africa’s flag at this year’s FIFA U20 World Cup finals in Chile, 27th September – 19th October. 24 FLYING EAGLES AT EGYPT 2025: Goalkeepers: Ifeanyi Ebenezer Harcourt (Sporting Lagos); Rufai Abubakar (Mavlon FC); Soliu Ajia Yakub (FK Novi Pazar, Serbia) Defenders: Adamu Maigari (El-Kanemi Warriors); Odinaka Okoro (Sporting Lagos); Daniel Bameyi (Bayelsa United); Emmanuel Chukwu (TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, Germany); Chigozie Michael Ihejiofor (Katsina United) Midfielders: Caleb Ochedikwu (NK Uljanik Pula, Croatia); Israel Isaac Ayuma (NK Istra, Croatia); Simon Cletus (Mavlon FC); Sulaiman Alabi Jojo (El-Kanemi Warriors); Auwal Ibrahim (Akwa United); Shafiu Adamu Duguri (Wikki Tourists) Forwards: Precious Benjamin (TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, Germany); Ezekiel Anthony Kpangu (Inspire FC); Divine Oliseh (Forster Academy); Clinton Jephta (Enyimba FC); Bidemi Amole (Real Sapphire FC); Tahir Maigana (Wireless FC); Theophilus Mendos Rickson (Niger Tornadoes); Kparobo Nathaniel Arierhi (Lillestrom SK, Norway); Matthew Kingsley (Kings FC); Yushau Armiyau (Katsina United) GROUP A: Egypt, South Africa, Sierra Leone, Zambia, Tanzania GROUP B: Nigeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Kenya GROUP C: Senegal, Central African Republic, DR Congo, Ghana

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Morocco 2025: Flamingos Set to Grab World Cup Ticket in Blida

Fola Badmus14 mins

Nigeria’s U17 girls, Flamingos, are firm and ready to pick the ticket for the country’s eighth appearance at the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup, despite the predictably-cold atmosphere of the Stade Mustapha Tchaker in Blida (outside Algiers), on Friday night. Friday’s encounter against their Algerian counterparts is the final leg of a final qualifying round fixture, with the Flamingos, bronze-medallists from the 2022 finals in India and quarter-finalists from the last edition in the Dominican Republic, holding on to a 4-0 first-leg advantage. The Federation Algerienne de Football (FAF) has scheduled the match to kick off at 8pm, at a time that the winds will begin to blow in stronger from the Mediterranean Sea. However, the Flamingos, who arrived in Algiers in the early hours of Wednesday aboard a Turkish Airline flight from Istanbul, are highly inspired by the imminence of another FIFA World Cup ticket as well as further financial windfall from the Nigeria Football Federation and billionaire business mogul Kunle Soname. Soname gifted the young players and their officials the sum of N4million (one million naira for every goal) following their commanding win over the North Africans at the Remo Stars Stadium on Saturday, while the NFF gave out the sum of N2million (five hundred thousand naira for every goal). President of NFF, Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau and Hon. Soname have both confirmed that the same financial incentives are in place for the second leg in Blida on Friday. “Our objective is clear – to win the FIFA World Cup ticket. That is the big motivation. Yet, we have been further incentivized by the monetary rewards. My girls will go all out on Friday night,” Head Coach Bankole Olowookere said. Olowookere, who led the Flamingos to their last two World Cup ventures, will most likely rely on first-leg two-goal heroine Queen Joseph, lone-goal scorer Zainab Raji and Kaosarat Olanrewaju to start at the fore, with Shakirat Moshood, Muinat Rotimi and Philomena Isaiah supplying the passes from the midfield. Goalkeeper and captain Christiana Uzoma and defenders Azeezat Oduntan, Hannah Ibrahim, Christiana Sunday and Jumai Adebayo are also likely to start. The Confederation of African Football has selected Cameroonian official Marie Noelle Etong to be the referee, with her compatriots Marcelle Teikeu and Innocentia Ntangti as assistant referee 1 and fourth official respectively, while Chadian Ngarassoum Victorine will be assistant referee 2. Oumou Souleymane Kane from Mauritania will be commissioner and Sabelo Maphosa-Sibindi from Zimbabwe will be in the role of referee assessor.

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Int’l Friendly: Flying Eagles Edge Young Pharaohs in Cairo

Fola Badmus02 mins

Nigeria’s U20 boys, Flying Eagles, on Tuesday defeated their Egyptian counterparts, Young Pharaohs 2-1 in a pre-Africa U20 Cup of Nations friendly at the Cairo International Stadium. Kparobo Arierhi, who scored three goals as Nigeria successfully defended her WAFU B U20 Championship title in Lome in October (including a brace in the final that dashed Ghana’s hopes), scored Nigeria’s first in the 10th minute of the encounter after a good pass from Bidemi Amole. The Young Pharaohs pulled one back in the 65th minute through Ahmed Kaabaka, but a dominant Nigeria side shot into the lead again with seven minutes left on the clock after Precious Benjamin made no mistake from the spot, following a foul on Divine Oliseh in the hosts’ eighteen-yard box. Seven-time African champions Nigeria achieved the morale-boosting victory less than 48 hours after arriving in the Egyptian capital for the 17th Africa U20 Cup of Nations, which gets underway on Sunday. The Flying Eagles’ first match is against Tunisia on Thursday next week, before further games against Morocco and Kenya in Group B. On their part, hosts Egypt, who head Group A, will take on South Africa on Sunday, before further games against Sierra Leone on 30th April, Zambia on 3rd May and Tanzania on 9th May.

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