International Football
Nigeria’s Eyes on Cameroon as Festival of Champions Begins
BY KUNLE SOLAJA
Nigeria’s Super Eagles’ manager, Gernot Rohr, is likely to draw a lesson or two from what South Africa’s Stuart Baxter did to get good result when Bafana Bafana beat Nigeria 2-0 at home last Saturday.
The big lesson is not to employ a ‘shot-in-dark’ approach to preparation to important assignments. He must have learnt that it is very important to gather credible intelligent reports on opposing teams.
Even before getting to physically meet his players for the first time, Baxter consulted another coach in South Africa, Gavin Hunt of Bidvest Wits for information on his players and engaged a Manchester United scout to help monitor Super Eagles’ training and matches in France.
The result speaks very loud on the essence of monitoring and intelligence gathering. The same South Africa that mauled Nigeria in Uyo could not beat an equally home losing side, Zambia when both met in a friendly later in the week.
The opportunity to monitor Nigeria’s next important opposition comes now that the FIFA Confederation Cup begins in Russia on Saturday.
It is a ‘Festival of Champions’ as six continental cup winners gather along with current World Cup holders and next World Cup hosts. Cameroon, Nigeria’s next World Cup qualifying opponents, as champions of Africa flies the continental flag.
They play in Group B and will meet Chile on Sunday at 7pm Nigerian time at Spartak Stadium in Moscow. The match comes up a little over 24 hours after hosts, Russia, would have met Oceania champions, New Zealand at Saint Petersburg Stadium in Saint Petersburg.
It is at the Saint Petersburg Stadium that Cameroon will be facing Australia, the Oceania-based Asian Football Federation champions.
Cameroon’s last group match will be next Sunday at the Fisht Stadium, Sochi against the native country of Gernot Rohr, Germany.
The Cameroonians who arrived Russia two days ago are featuring in the Confederation Cup after those of 2001 and 2003. They got to the final match of the latter, even though they had to cope with the tragedy of losing a player, Vivian Foe who slumped and died on the pitch on the road to the final match.
Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.
The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.
This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.
The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.
Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.
As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.
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