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ORIENTAL DERBY AS ENYIMBA, RANGERS FACE OFF IN NPFL SUPER SIX OPENER

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Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) is on the last bend and it will be ushered in by a big oriental derby between two former league champions Enyimba and Rangers International in Lagos on Tuesday.

As announced on the final day of last season, the tournament is a round rubbing format that will see all the teams play each other to determine the clubs that’ll fly the country’s flag in the CAF Champions League competition next year.

2015 champions Enyimba and 2016 winners Rangers were the first names out of the pot during a mini draw ceremony for the season-ending championship held at the Head Office of the League Management Company (LMC), Osun Crescent, Maitama in Abuja on Tuesday afternoon.

Rangers finished top of Group A during the regular season while Enyimba were seven points behind in third and both sides will be joined by four more teams (Lobi Stars, Akwa United, Kano Pillars and FC Ifeanyiubah) in the playoff designed to determine three of the four Nigerian representatives to CAF Inter-club competitions next season as well as the eventual league winners.

The tournament will last for eight days; starting on Tuesday 4th June and ending on June 12 at the Agege Stadium, nicknamed the Soccer Temple in Lagos; a neutral venue for all participating teams.

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Three matches will hold on each match day with one day of rest observed in between each of the five match days. Games will commence each day at 3pm in the afternoon with the last match to be held at 7pm.

Enyimba and Rangers will kickoff at 3pm on Tuesday afternoon before Lobi Stars face FC Ifeanyiubah at 5pm. The opening day schedule will be concluded with a third meeting of the season between Kano Pillars and Akwa United.

The top two teams at the end of the mini-league format will qualify to represent Nigeria in the 2019/2020 CAF Champions League while the third placed team will join this season’s AITEO Cup winners in the Confederation Cup next term.

FULL FIXTURES

Tuesday June 4:

  • 3PM: Enyimba FC vs Rangers International 
  • 5PM: FC Ifeanyiubah vs Lobi Stars
  • 7PM: Kano Pillars vs Akwa United

Thursday June 6:

  • 3PM: Akwa United vs FC Ifeanyiubah 
  • 5PM: Rangers Int’l vs Lobi Stars
  • 7PM: Kano Pillars vs Enyimba

Saturday June 8:

  • 3PM: Kano Pillars vs FC Ifeanyiubah 
  • 5PM: Lobi Stars vs Enyimba
  • 7PM: Akwa United vs Rangers Int’l

Monday June 10:

  • 3PM: Rangers Int’l vs Kano Pillars
  • 5PM: Akwa United vs Lobi Stars
  • 7PM: Enyimba Int’l vs FC Ifeanyiubah 

Wednesday June 12:

  • 3PM: FC Ifeanyiubah vs Rangers Int’l
  • 5PM: Enyimba vs Akwa United
  • 7PM: Lobi Stars vs Kano Pillars

Kunle Solaja is the author of landmark books on sports and journalism as well as being a multiple award-winning journalist and editor of long standing. He is easily Nigeria’s foremost soccer diarist and Africa's most capped FIFA World Cup journalist, having attended all FIFA World Cup finals from Italia ’90 to Qatar 2022. He was honoured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup by FIFA and AIPS.

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