Nigerian Football
2019 AITEO CUP: LAST LAP TO FINAL AS RIVERS UNITED TAKE ON NIGER TORNADOES
BY SAMMY WEJINYA.
Niger Tornadoes will go toe to toe with Rivers United on
Thursday as both clubs seek to reach the 2019 AITEO Cup final.
The semi-final will be decided at the ‘Soccer Temple’, the Agege Stadium, Lagos
and kickoff has been fixed for 3 pm.
Thursday’s contest exemplifies the classic winner-takes-it-all clash as the
victor will very likely have more than bragging rights to show if success is
secured at the Center of Excellence.
The Tornado gathers momentum
Niger Tornadoes had a Nigeria Professional Football League
(NPFL) season to forget.
The Minna club suffered relegation to the second tier of Nigerian football
after finishing in 11th place in Group A of the abridged NPFL season with 21
points from 22 matches.
Redemption was therefore required and the ‘Ikon Allah’ duly trained their
sights on the AITEO Cup and have made important inroads in this year’s
competition.
A routine 3-0 win over unheralded Fasbir FC 3-0 in the round of 64 was followed
by a difficult 1-0 win over Gombe United in the round of 32.
Things then began to get a bit complicated for the Tornadoes club as Cynosure
FC forced them to a 2-2 draw in their round of 16 clash at the Aper Aku
Stadium, Makurdi.
Tornadoes prevailed after a nervy shootout but giant killers, Smart City lay in
wait in the quarter finals.
After a pulsating battle that finished 0-0, Tornadoes squeezed through 5-4 on
penalties to book a date with Rivers United in the last four.
Tornadoes; the style
Tornadoes have a style inherent on building up attacks via quick possession
through the middle with coach Abubakar Bala (the third coach Tornadoes have
hired this season) favoring a 4-3-3 formation.
Bala has managed just two games for Tornadoes (the penalty shootout wins over
Cynosure FC and Smart City FC) this term.
The wins for the Minna club over Fasbir FC and Gombe United in the rounds of 64
and 32 were masterminded by Ahmed Nuhu who was in interim charge for Tornadoes’
first two matches of the competition.
The tactics and personnel of Bala
Bala loves paying attention to detail.
Quiet and unassuming, he has wreaked havoc on many an unsuspecting side with
his harmless mien.
His favoured tactical formation integrates a back four, one defensive
midfielder, three attacking midfielders and three closely placed strikers.
In captain, Aliko Mustapha, Tornadoes have a goalkeeping veteran who will not
be fazed by Thursday’s occasion.
Jubrin Mustapha (RB) and Olayinka Yusuf (LB), Rueben Ogbonnaya (CB) and Lorliam
Gwarza (CB) represent a solid shield for the vastly experienced Aliko and one
of the strongest defences in the country.
The centre halves are strong, stocky and aggressive – quite a handful for many
from the opposition and in midfield, Bala has plenty of young, quick and mobile
midfielders to pick from.
Adetola Ayo shields the back four while the creative juice in the middle is
usually supplied by Dosso Saib and Ahmadu Liman.
Liman and Saib usually venture forward to aid the forward when Tornadoes step
on the accelerator in games.
Bashir Azado is a feared marksman who knows his way to goal and he will be at
the tip of the Tornadoes spear on Thursday while receiving support from the
flanks from Ismaila Sarki (LW) and Mubarak Said (RW).
If things are not going according to script, Bala can always call on important
substitutes like Moses Ugwu, Gyemini Abashiya and Eric Frimpong to deliver the
goods.
Tornadoes can hurt any team but in Rivers United, they know they will be coming
up against their sternest test yet – a force of nature and a side many believe
can go all the way in the competition.
Rivers United – deadly, efficient and pragmatic
The records show that statistically, Rivers United is the
strongest team still left in the competition.
United have not conceded any goals as they stormed into the semis in confident
fashion.
Abiodun Akande, the standout goalkeeper in this year’s competition marshals his
defence like a frenzied General in the heat of battle.
His jaw dropping saves in the round of 32 versus Akwa United in Enugu and Lobi
Stars, in the tight quarter final in Ijebu-Ode will be talked about for many
years to come.
“The objective for me is to keep a clean sheet all through the competition,”
Akande told the club’s official website, www.riversunitedfc.com.ng.
“Our defence led by our captain, Festus Austin is the best in the country and
in Thursday, we will play a very serious game with the aim of reaching the
final,” he said.
The ‘Pride of Rivers’ have long dispelled notions that they are not a high
scoring team.
They had hit nine goals at the round of 16 stage of the competition.
FC Timberloader was the first to feel the might of United as they received a
4-0 hiding in the round of 64 in Lafia.
Then came the ‘Masterclass of Enugu’ where pre-tournament favourites, Akwa
United were dismissed 3-0 in a one-sided round of 32 fixture decided at the
Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium.
Warri Wolves were the next to fall, in the round of 16, as United cruised to a
routine 2-0 win at the Samson Siasia Stadium, Yenagoa.
It was always going to be tough in the semi-final when United faced Nigeria’s
representatives in the 2019 CAF Champions League, Lobi Stars.
Lobi, full of important individuals like Olufemi Kayode, Ebube Duru, Dare Ojo,
Kadiri Samad, Sikiri Alimi and Ezekiel Mbah, was never going to be easy fodder.
The battle between the two sides at the Dipo Dina International Stadium, was
one for the ages and eventually, United – the hungrier of the two sides –
sealed the win with a penalty shootout win where unheralded goalkeeper,
Darlington Ovunda shone like a million stars.
Now, United have one more hurdle to overcome and experienced Technical Manager,
Stanley Eguma says only a serious approach will see the ‘Pride of Rivers’ reach
the final.
“Niger Tornadoes is a very good side and we respect them a lot. We met them
twice in the league and did not lose any of those games but this is a
completely different competition.
“My players know what is at stake and everyone here will give a hundred
percent.
“Having come this far, we will give everything to qualify for the final and I
am very confident we will do it,” he said.
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
They have been knocking since Season 2021-2022 when they finished third on the log.
In the following season, they were just a goal short of becoming the Nigerian champions.
Last season, they finished second again. But now, the door has finally opened, and on the club owner’s birthday!
Remo Stars have emerged as the Nigeria Premier Football League champions, even with three matches to spare! After a hard fought battle, they beat Niger Tornadoes 1-0 to attain an unassailable 10-point lead which confer the Nigerian championship to them.
The trailing team, Rivers United can only close the gap with nine points if they win all the remaining three matches and if Remo Stars fail to win theirs.
What a turnaround for a team that had twice been relegated in the past eight years. Perseverance, good planning and good structure have seen them taste the good wine.
What a feat! They become the first Nigerian champion to have come from a small town, the previously sleepy urban village of Ikenne.
Tension all the way!
And so, records come tumbling down. Ikenne is not just known for the production of eminent politicians and jurists, it is staking a claim to be the new destination of not just football, but sports generally.
A large proportion of the events of the 22nd National Sports Festival will be held in the ‘little’ town, which has become the smallest town to produce a Nigerian champion.
Roll out the drums in the 33 towns and settlements that make up Remo. Let the voices sing all over Ogun State, which is producing its first Nigeria League winners since the state was created on February 3, 1976.
Let the celebration start all over the federation as a model club with proper structure has finally emerged as Nigeria’s champions!
History still beckons to them. With nine more points obtainable from their remaining three matches, Remo Stars can still exceed the 77-point mark established by the current worthy runners-up, Rivers United, who in the 2021-22 season set a record of 77 points in a season since the 20-team format was institutionalised 21 years ago.
Remo Stars still have more records to assail. Their 1-0 defeat of Niger Tornadoes is their 21st win this season. They need two more wins to equal the 23 established by Port Harcourt sides, Dolphins in 2009/2010 and Rivers United in the 2021/22 season.
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BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
“Let the music play; Make the voices sing; Start the celebration; Drums may roll out” is part of the lyrics of the famous song, ‘Barcelona’, composed and sung by Freddie Mercury along with Montserrat Caballé. It was originally to be the theme song for Barcelona 92, but for the demise of Mercury months earlier.
The recording of the song was played over a travelogue of Barcelona at the start of the international broadcast of the opening ceremony of the 1992 Summer Olympics.
The lyrics fit appropriately for Kunle Soname, as he turns 59 this Sunday, a day his club, Remo Stars, may emerge Nigerian champion. If that happens, he becomes the first man to be so blessed, as no other club owner has won major laurels on their birthdays.
A win by his club, Remo Stars, not only confer the Nigerian championship to the club, Soname will become the first sole proprietor to win the Nigerian league since that of Oscar Udoji’s Udoji United in 1996.
Still blazing on records, Soname’s club will become the first in Ogun State to win the Nigerian lead league and the first South West champions of Nigeria since 1998 when Shooting Stars won the Nigerian League.
Quiet, self-effacing, Soname is an Ikenne-born businessman who works silently, but efficiently like a brand-new air conditioner.
His ValueJet had been the career of the national team since 2023.
He has made a success in virtually all endeavours, and is well known for his cheerful disposition, humility and generosity.
On Friday, the Nigerian U17-Women’s team clinched a ticket to the World Cup, great thanks to this gentleman who not only quietly motivated the team financially, he hosted their home matches.
Yet he would not voice out the financial gestures, which only came out through secondary sources of the NFF.
Never since the days of Bashorun MKO Abiola has a man been known to run three football clubs.
Abiola had the famous Abiola Babes, Concord FC and also the ITT football club in Lagos.
Soname’s Remo Stars are getting beyond the blue skies. His Beyond Limits Football Academy has become a model that even CAF is quietly studying.
The club has become the launchpad into a professional football career for many Nigerian youngsters who are now flourishing in European and American leagues.
Soname’s third club, the Remo Stars Ladies, has qualified for the Super 6 of the NWFL. That they are still in the President Federation Cup points to the fact of a possible double title this season.
Soname is a game-changer whose support is not limited to football.
Since 2022, his Bet9ja outfit, which is easily the most popular in the gaming business, has been sponsoring the Southeast Bet9ja Foundation Badminton Championship, where close to 100 players have been featured.
Miracle Ufuasia of Enugu State collects her trophy and medal from Obiageli Solaja, the Africa Women in Badminton Award Winner, 2019.
The championship brought up budding badminton players, some of whom later made marks even at the Paris 2024 Paralympics.
In an era where private ownership of football clubs is becoming a high-risk venture, Soname raised the bar with his Remo Stars, which has become a model football club in Nigeria.
Equipped with its own all-covered stadium, the club boasts of easily the best turf in Nigeria.
Those marvelling at the current Remo Stars Stadium will be swept off their feet as Soname is not done yet. A bigger arena is in the offing.
When he piloted Remo Stars to the international level, featuring in the 2022/23 CAF Confederation Cup, it was a landmark.
That was the first time in more than 30 years in Nigeria that a one-man-owned football club featured in a continental competition.
His club structure features a football academy, which is the nursery ground for Nigeria’s football stars. The 1998 Africa Footballer of the Year, Victor Ikpeba, was full of awe when he made a tour of the facilities of the academy where players of Beyond Limits are housed at two per room.
“Oh, I wish these were available in my formative years, the sky would have been my limit”, Ikpeba remarked to Sports Village Square.
The father of Super Eagles’ player Ola Aina, Femi Aina, was pleasantly surprised when he visited the Remo Stars facilities last year.
On getting inside, he exclaimed, saying he never imagined such a facility could exist in Nigeria, let alone his own small town of Ikenne.
This is comparable to what I am used to at the Chelsea academy in London, said Mr. Aina, who also remarked that he never knew there could still be another rich man, outside MKO Abiola in Nigeria, who has tremendous passion for football.
Olufemi Aina (c), father of Ola Aina, is thrilled at what Kunle Soname put up in Ikenne.
“I thought it was only the late MKO Abiola that has the capability of putting together a facility of this nature.
“This man, (Soname), earns my maximum respect.”, said Mr. Aina, who at that point had never met the Remo Stars proprietor.
“I am used to sports facilities, having been the one taking Ola to different academies when he was a teenager. “This place reminds me of Chelsea facilities.”
In the block were a gym, clinic, indoor swimming pool, hydrotherapy chamber, boardrooms and a clinic.
The next point of call was the restaurant being used by the pupils at the Beyond Limits Football Academy. The aroma and ambience were breathtaking. On the walls were messages of inspiration to the pupils and footballers.
The matron later informed Mr. Aina of the daily routine of the players and the level of discipline they are exposed to.
He met some of them at the common room where they were playing computer games. Mr. Aina introduced himself and told them of the tremendous privileges the players are enjoying and admonished them to make the best of the opportunity.
The residential buildings at Kunle Soname’s outfit have 56 rooms for junior and senior players, accommodating 112 footballers.
It has five semi-detached blocks of 10 units, two-bedroom coaches’ accommodation, a restaurant for players and officials, as well as an administrative block comprising offices, a conference room, a training classroom and reception.
The block is equipped with a panoramic lift to the first floor, which is the table tennis centre. A twin basketball court has been added as Soname’s facilities will be the epicentre of next month’s National Sports Festival. It will be the first time facilities owned by one man will play a prominent role in the 52-year-old sports fiesta.
Others are the sports centre block of the Remo Stars Stadium facility, comprising a gym, clinic, swimming pool, hydrotherapy chamber and a 30-room hotel with panoramic lift.
Also at the model arena is a tournament pitch with a 10,000-capacity covered pavilion, three training pitches, 2,000 capacity car parks and a good internal road.
Soname is possibly the only Nigerian who runs four clubs. Three are in Nigeria – Remo Stars, Remo Stars Ladies and Beyond Limits. He is also the owner of Portugal’s Clube Desportivo Feirense, which is commonly known as CD Feirense.
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BY KUNLE SOLAJA
The Nigerian Premier Football League (NPFL) gets to its climax this weekend, especially on Sunday, when the title could be won and one of the other two tickets for the continental competition could be confirmed.
Also, one or two other teams may get their visas to the lower league.
Remo Stars will become the Nigerian champions if they win their home match against Niger Tornadoes in their fortress in Ikenne.
History seems about to repeat itself. It was Niger Tornadoes that Remo Stars beat on 17 July 2022 to get their first ever continental ticket to feature in the following season’s CAF Confederation Cup.
This Sunday, Niger Tornadoes may again be Remo Stars’ launchpad into the league title. What a season it has been for the club that has led the Nigerian league for the longest duration.
They were leaders into Christmas 2024. They were leaders at the end of 2024 and leaders into 2025 as they became the first club to have a double after beating Akwa United home and away.
No team won more away matches than Remo Stars this season. They won five matches away from home. At home, they won 15 of their 17 matches, making Ikenne a fortress. Only Rivers United and Katsina United, who drew their matches, escaped defeat in Ikenne.
With 20 wins, no team has won more matches this season than Remo Stars.
With the title almost decided, and the runners-up awaiting confirmation, the battle zone is the contest for the third place where seven teams are in contest.
The most ferocious of the battle will be that of the surprise team of the season, Ikorodu City and rejuvenated Abia Warriors.
They occupy third and fourth positions respectively. Yet at the onset of the season, those positions looked unlikely. Ikorodu City were the punching bag for the other teams, losing home and away and got their first league point only after five matches.
Today, the continental door is invitingly open to them. What about Abia Warriors, who began the season with a 2-0 home loss to Remo Stars?
They looked like going for their pound of flesh when they suddenly went two goals up against Remo Stars in Ikenne. But Remo Stars fought gamely back to snatch a nervy 3-2 win.
Abia Warriors will be hosting the initial top three runners, Shooting Stars who suddenly slumped in fortunes. But a win by the Ibadan team may reignite their continental aspirations.
Also jostling for a possible top-three finish are the quartet of Bendel Insurance, Kano Pillars, Enugu Rangers and Enyimba.
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