International Football
SANUSI, NFF GENERAL SECRETARY, HAILS OLYMPIC EAGLES AS NATIONAL TEAMS’ IMPRESSIVE STREAK CONTINUES
The Nigeria Football Federation has praised the performance of the U23 National Team, Olympic Eagles, in qualifying for the 3rd Africa U23 Cup of Nations after a 5-0 mauling of their Sudanese counterparts, just as it noted the impressive streak of the National Teams in qualifying for major competitions.
NFF General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi, said on Thursday that the Federation was elated at the performance of the U23 boys, not only for the high score win, but also for the steel, savvy and smoothness with which the performance was delivered.
“The 5-0 victory was very sweet, but what made it sweeter was the way it was delivered. And from that game and from the delivery of the Super Eagles in the friendly with Ukraine later that night which ended 2-2, we can confidently say that the future of the Nigeria senior team is bright.
“We had a very young team out there in Ukraine as a result of the forced withdrawal of some of the old breed, yet they delivered a heartwarming performance that everyone was proud of.”
Sanusi noted that the qualification of the U23 boys for the Olympics qualifying tournament in Egypt meant that none of the National Teams had failed to qualify for a major tournament in the past 18 months.
“The last Nigeria team to fail to qualify for a major competition was the U17 girls, when they lost to Cameroon on the away goal rule in January 2018, in the final qualifying round for the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup.
“Since then, the Super Eagles have played at the FIFA World Cup in Russia; the Falconets have played at the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in France; the Golden Eaglets have won the WAFU Cup in Niger Republic; the Super Falcons have played at and won the Women AFCON in Ghana and; the Supersand Eagles have qualified for the FIFA Beach World Cup from the African finals in Egypt.
“The Flying Eagles have qualified for the FIFA U20 World Cup and played at the finals in Poland; the Golden Eaglets have qualified for the FIFA U17 World Cup taking place in Brazil later this year and; the Super Eagles have played at the biggest –ever AFCON and came back home with the bronze medals.”
The NFF scribe assured that the Football House is alive to its responsibilities and will ensure that the teams keep shining and bringing honour to the country.
“Apart from the U23 AFCON in Egypt, we have the FIFA U17 World Cup in Brazil; the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in Paraguay and; the WAFU Nations Cup in Senegal. We also have the 2021 AFCON qualifiers and the CHAN 2020 qualifiers, and the Super Falcons are in the race for the ticket to next year’s Olympics women’s football tournament.
“We have all these matches and championships in focus. Our objective is to ensure quality preparation for each of the teams involved in order that they will be good ambassadors of our nation both on and off the pitches in all these programmes.”
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Federation has noted that the Chief Coach of the Super Eagles, Salisu Yusuf has now fully served the one –year suspension clamped on him last year.
The Federation thanked Coach Imama Amapakabo for his sterling efforts while in charge of the U23 National Team in the absence of the suspended Yusuf, and for eventually seeing to the team’s qualification for the U23 AFCON.
International Football
Former Brazil coach Tite taking break to take care of mental, physical health
Former Brazil coach Tite said he is taking an indefinite career break in order to take care of his mental and physical health.
The 63-year-old, who led Brazil to the 2019 Copa America title, was hospitalised due to a heart issue last August. He was sacked by Flamengo the following month and had most recently been linked with the Corinthians job.
“I realised that there are times when you have to understand that, as a human being, I can be vulnerable and admitting that will certainly make me stronger,” Tite said in a statement posted on his son Matheus Bachi’s Instagram on Tuesday.
“I’m passionate about what I do and I’ll continue to be so, but after talking to my family and observing the signals my body was giving off, I decided that the best thing to do now is to take a break from my career to look after myself for as long as it takes.
“As has become public, there was a conversation in progress with Corinthians, but it will have to be paralysed by a difficult but necessary decision.”
Tite, who stepped down as Brazil coach after their quarter-final exit from the 2022 World Cup, has previously coached a string of Brazilian sides including Gremio, Atletico Mineiro and Palmeiras.
-Reuters
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Brazil have sacked head coach Dorival Jr, the country’s football confederation (CBF) said on Friday after the five-time world champions were thrashed 4-1 away to fierce rivals Argentina in a humiliating qualifying loss in Buenos Aires.
The 62-year-old was appointed in January 2024 after the team spent a year under two caretaker coaches as the Brazilian FA were unable to lure Italian Carlo Ancelotti from Real Madrid.
“The Brazilian Football Confederation informs that coach Dorival Jr is no longer in charge of the Brazilian national team,” the confederation said in a statement.
“The management thanks (Dorival) and wishes him success in continuing his career … the CBF will work to find his replacement,” it added.
Dorival was handed the job after his success with Flamengo in 2022 where he won the Copa Libertadores and Brazilian Cup, a trophy he lifted again the next year with Sao Paulo.
However, he never seemed to get to grips with the national team job and failed to earn the trust of Brazil’s demanding fans after winning only seven of his 16 games in charge.
Sources told Reuters the CBF was not confident in Dorival’s work, considering there had been little to no progress since a lacklustre Copa America campaign when Brazil were knocked out in the quarter-finals by Uruguay last year.
Still, the CBF was willing to wait and see until the 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Ecuador and Paraguay in June to reassess the situation following the end of the European season and the Club World Cup in the U.S. in June and July.
But after Brazil slumped to their heaviest-ever loss in a qualifier when they were thrashed by Argentina this week, CBF president Ednaldo Rodrigues decided to pull the trigger.
IDEAL CANDIDATE
Sources told Reuters Ancelotti was still the ideal candidate but he is under contract with Real until July 2026 and there is no indication he would leave the European and Spanish champions.
Brazilian media have reported that Al Hilal’s Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus is the favourite to replace Dorival.
Brazil have been in unfamiliar territory for over two years since crashing out of the 2022 World Cup against Croatia on penalties in the quarter-finals, a heartbreaking elimination that led to the exit of long-time manager Tite.
Their humbling defeat in Buenos Aires was the latest of a series of negative records Brazil have set under caretakers Ramon Menezes and Fernando Diniz and with Dorival in charge. They had never conceded four goals in a World Cup qualifier.
Brazil are in the midst of their worst-ever World Cup qualifying campaign. They are fourth in the South American standings with 21 points, a point above sixth-placed Colombia who currently occupy the final direct qualifying berth.
Never have Brazil lost so many games, conceded so many goals or set so many negative records in the qualifying competition. They have lost five of their 14 games and conceded 16 goals.
Brazil’s 1-0 defeat by Argentina in the Maracana late in 2023 was their first-ever qualifying loss on home soil.
They also lost to Colombia for the first time, saw the end of their unbeaten run against Uruguay stretching back over two decades and were defeated by Morocco and Senegal, having never previously lost to an African nation.
-Reuters
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International Football
England’s German manager Tuchel will not sing the English anthem in his first game
England manager Thomas Tuchel said he would have to “earn the right” to sing the national anthem, God Save the King, after announcing his 26-man squad on Friday ahead of the team’s World Cup qualifiers.
Tuchel, who was appointed as Gareth Southgate’s successor in October and named his first squad to face Albania and Latvia this month, said he would not sing the anthem in his first games in charge.
“It means a lot to me, I can assure you, but I can feel that because it is so meaningful and it is so emotional and it is so powerful, the national anthem, that I have to earn my right to sing it,” the 51-year-old German told a news conference.
Former caretaker manager Lee Carsley was criticised last year for not singing the anthem during his tenure.
However, Tuchel added that while he is proud to be in charge of the team and knows the words to the anthem, he plans to earn the right with results.
“Maybe I have to dive more into the culture and earn my right from you, from the players, from the supporters, so everyone feels like ‘he should sing it now, he’s one of our own, he’s the English manager, he should sing it’,” he said.
-Reuters
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