Ex-West Ham boss Lopetegui Named Qatar Manager

Julen Lopetegui has been appointed head coach of the Qatar national team, almost four months after being sacked by West Ham. The 58-year-old Spaniard’s deal runs until 2027 and takes in the ongoing qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup. Qatar, who participated at the last World Cup as hosts, failed to secure a spot for next year’s finals in the initial qualification stage but can still progress with further rounds being played. Lopetegui has previously worked in international football as Spain manager. He took over in 2016 but was sacked two days before the 2018 World Cup after being appointed Real Madrid manager. His tenure in Madrid ended after four and a half months, after which he took charge of Sevilla and won the Europa League. He moved to Wolves in November 2022 but left the following summer. He was named West Ham manager at the start of the current season but was sacked and replaced by Graham Potter after six months, having recorded only six league wins.

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South Sudan national team stranded in Libya

South Sudan national team otherwise known as Bright Star are stranded at the empty Benina International Airport in Benghazi, Libya. South Sudanese were stranded upon arrival for their match against Sudan in the World Cup Qualifier. The South Sudan Football Association reported that the players’ passports were confiscated and they were ordered to exit on Sunday at 4:30pm. The Bright Star are hoping to put the 2026 FIFA World Cup back on track on Tuesday after drawing two and losing three matches in the last five games. They are bottom placed with two points while the host, Sudan leads the group with 11 points.

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NFF dismisses Libya’s poor treatment claims, insists Libya caused own problems

The Nigeria Football Federation has rejected claims of poor treatment on arrival in Nigeria by the captain of the Libya senior men national team, Faisal Al-Badri. NFF insists the Libyan Football Federation created chaos for its own team, the Mediterranean Knights. NFF’s Assistant Director (Protocol), Mr. Emmanuel Ayanbunmi said the Libya Federation only informed the NFF that its team was landing in Port Harcourt, and not Uyo, only three hours to the team’s arrival on Tuesday. “I spoke to the General Secretary of LFF, at length, on Monday, 7th October and he never hinted that his team would be arriving on Tuesday (the following day). He only said he would get back to me but he never did. On Monday evening, someone sent as an advance party by the LFF called me and said his team would be arriving on Tuesday by noon. We made all arrangements to receive the team in Uyo on arrival. “It was only an hour after the team was airborne that he told me the delegation would be landing in Port Harcourt. That disrupted so many things, but we still raced on hurdles to get approval from federal authorities to allow their plane to fly them to Uyo once they concluded immigration formalities in Port Harcourt. Apparently, that would have meant additional cost to the LFF from the charter company, and they didn’t want that, so they preferred to travel from Port Harcourt to Uyo by road.” Ayanbunmi added that the Libyan delegation jettisoned road transportation arrangements made for them by the NFF and instead hired buses on their own. “If they travelled on buses that were not air-conditioned, that had nothing to do with the NFF as they hired their own buses. We provided security for them, with men and vehicles in front and behind their buses, so we are unmoved about their complaints and threats.”     

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