AFCON
Agali Alerts Rohr on Super Eagles’ Mafia
BY BOLAJI OKUNOLA
Victor Agali, the lanky former Super Eagles’ striker who entered record books as the scorer of the milestone Nigeria’s 100th goal in the FIFA World Cup qualifying series has advised technical adviser on bonding in the camp.
Agali’s record was achieved in the January 27, 2001 Super Eagles defeat of Sudan in Port Harcourt.
Sports Village Square, custodian of records and data on Nigerian sports confirms that the historic 100th goal was scored in the 67th minute of the match when Agali doubled Nigeria’s lead in an eventual 3-0 victory.
Nigeria then became the first African side to hit a century of goals in World Cup qualifiers. Agali, the record maker in a telephone interview with Sports Village Square has advised the Super Eagles handler to be wary of possible mafia-like caucuses that often spring out in the squad.
“I urge Rohr to work more on the unity of the team. Players love keeping caucus whenever they are on national team duty.
“I am saying this base on experience. I urge the technical crew to keep close watch on the way some of the upcoming or home based will be treated compared to the big goon’s in the team. Failure to do this will be very dangerous,” remarked the former Germany’s Shalke 04 striker.
Focusing specifically on the twin assignments of qualifying for the Russia 2018 World Cup and Cameroon 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, Agali remarks:
“The immediate matches are crucial for us. They are ‘must win’ matches. The coach has done well by inviting the best legs for the next encounter, but I will be happy seeing him building the team among the young stars who are aiming to make names”.
After commanding victories in the first leg matches of the Africa Cup of Nations, Morocco 2025, qualifiers, Chad, Liberia, and Eswatini find themselves in advantageous positions as they gear up for the return fixtures scheduled for Tuesday.
As the second leg of the preliminary fixtures approach, all eyes will be on these teams as they vie for their coveted spots in the group phase of the qualifiers, with the hopes of making their mark on the continental stage.
Chad emerged victorious with a narrow 1-0 win over Mauritius, joining Liberia and Eswatini in the lead after their impressive triumphs earlier last week.
Liberia secured a 2-0 victory against Djibouti, while Eswatini displayed their dominance with a 3-0 win over Somalia.
The second leg promises to be fiercely contested, particularly for Chad, who will face a challenging encounter against Mauritius on the latter’s home turf.
Coach Kevin Nicaise’s players are keen to defend their slender lead and secure their spot in the next phase of the qualifiers but the trainer admits they have an arduous task.
“We are far from perfect, far from being a top team in the world. We are in the construction phase. There are still things to work on and improve,” coach Nicaise said after their first-leg win.
“It is not overnight that we will be a top team in the world, we are aware of that, however we are working hard with the group and the staff to achieve this goal.”
Meanwhile, Liberia will host Djibouti, aiming to build on their first-leg success and seal their progression to the next round.
Eswatini will host Somalia with confidence, seeking to maintain their winning momentum and secure passage to the next stage of the tournament.
South Sudan and Sao Tome and Principe will also face off in what is expected to be a closely contested encounter, following their goalless draw in the first leg.
With both teams eager for victory, the match promises to be a thrilling battle for supremacy.
-CAF
Liberia and Eswatini took commanding leads in their respective Africa Cup of Nations, Morocco 2025, preliminary round ties after claiming impressive away victories on Wednesday.
Liberia captain Murphy Dorley scored one of two first-half goals as the Lone Stars defeated hosts Djibouti 2-0 in the opening leg in Marrakech.
Mohammed Sangare broke the deadlock from the penalty spot on 23 minutes before Dorley coolly slotted home Sebastian Teclar’s cross 12 minutes later.
Djibouti struggled to lay a glove on their more illustrious opponents as the Lone Star side kept them at bay to take two away goals into next week’s second leg in Monrovia.
Eswatini were also celebrating after demolishing Somalia 3-0 in the Moroccoan city of El Jadida to put one foot in the group stage qualifiers.
Striker Sabelo Ndzinisa was the hero, netting twice either side of Felicio Figuareido’s 40th minute opener for the visitors.
Somalia now face an uphill battle to qualify when they travel to the Mbombela Stadium in the South African city of Nelspruit for the return on March 26th.
The opening leg victories give Liberia and Eswatini a huge advantage heading into the second legs as they target a place in the group stage on the road to next year’s finals in Morocco.
Back from the locker room, Somalia still couldn’t play its game.
Worse, Eswatini widened the gap with Ginindza who scored his double of the evening in the 56th minute. 3-0, the score remained unchanged on the scoreboard until the final whistle.
Victory for Eswatini which will still have to perform in the return leg to ensure its qualification for the qualifiers.
Following last month’s grand closing to the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations held in Cote d’Ivoire where the hosts were crowned champions for the third time, Africa’s biggest competition is now shifting its focus to the 35th edition set to be held in Morocco next year.
A total of 52 Nations will be engaged to compete for a place in the 24-nation competition.
To mark the start of the qualifiers following the draw that was held in Cairo on 20 February 2024, eight lowest ranked nations will compete in the Preliminary Qualifiers starting on Wednesday, 20 March over a two-legged format that will decide the four nations that will join the other 44 African nations to make up the group stages of the qualifiers.
The CAF AFCON Morocco 2025 journey officially gets underway on Wednesday, 20 March with two fixtures as Somalia plays host to Eswatini, while Djibouti faces Liberia.
Two days later, Chad locks horns with Mauritius before Sao Tome and Principe takes on South Sudan.
The return legs will conclude on Tuesday, 26 March with all matches set to take place on the day to officially decide the preliminary phase of the competition.
AFCON Morocco 2025 Preliminary Qualifiers:
First Leg Fixtures:
Wednesday, 20 March
- 18:00 GMT | Somalia – Eswatini
- 22:00 GMT | Djibouti – Liberia
Friday, 22 March
- 18:00 GMT | Chad – Mauritius
- 19:00 GMT | Sao Tome and Principe – South Sudan
Return Leg Fixtures:
Tuesday, 26 March
- 13:00 GMT | Eswatini – Somalia
- 16:00 GMT | Liberia – Djibouti
- 17:00 GMT | South Sudan – Sao Tome and Principe
- 15:00 GMT | Mauritius – Chad
Confederation Cup runs into crisis as Moroccan players of RS Berkane are stranded at Algerian airport following seizure of jerseys and equipment
Man Utd facing huge challenge in FA Cup semi-final, says Ten Hag
New dawn expected as Nigeria sports ministry partners with Yanga Games
SUPER EAGLES TO FACE ENGLAND IN PRE-WORLD CUP FRIENDLY
Apart from Okwaraji, Nigeria’s Other Field-Related Obituaries
Grudgingly, Eto’o accepts new Cameroon coach Brys, but fails to attend ceremony
-
Athletics1 week agoA clash of two citizens as Tobi Amusan and Ofili compete in US tourney today
-
World Cup1 week agoFloored twice in two months, South Africa tremble ahead of treble with Nigeria
-
UEFA Champions League1 week agoAdemola Lookman’s Atalanta humiliate Liverpool at home
-
FUTSAL6 days agoDefending Champions, Morocco thrash Ghana to move to the summit of Group A
-
Olympics5 days agoSuper Falcons’ Paris 2024 fixtures recall Nigeria’s first matches at Olympic Games football event 56 years ago
-
Nigerian Football3 days agoRemo Stars add fuel to the fire as title chase turns East – West battle
-
Premier League1 week agoPremier League to introduce semi-automated offside technology next season
-
Olympics1 week agoSuper Falcons will sharpen their attack before Olympics, says Waldrum