International Football
YOBO’S 100TH CAP RUINED BY WORLD CUP’S 41ST OWN-GOAL
BY KUNLE SOLAJA
On the 20th anniversary of the last match played by Stephen Keshi when Nigeria beat Greece 2-0 on 30 June 1994, another Nigerian skipper, Joseph Yobo also formally ended his international career Iin 2014.
The stage was also at the World Cup and the opposition remarkably was European team, France. The simile did not end there. Both matches ended 2-0 with last getting in after the 90th minute.
Daniel Amokachi who was Nigeria’s assistant coach when the Super Eagles faced France at Brazil 2014 scored Nigeria’s goal against Greece.
He watched from the bench as Yobo put in the second goal for France almost the same minute Amokachi scored the second goal for Nigeria 20 years earlier.
So, on the day Yobo became the first Nigerian to have 100 caps, the celebration was cut short, not just by Nigeria’s elimination, but by the fact that it was his own goal that sealed the victory for France that was already leading 1-0.
Under pressure from French substitute forward, Antoine Griezmann, Yobo diverted the ball past Vincent Enyeama in goal.
It was the 41st own goal in World Cup history after that of Mexico’s Manuel Rosas in a 3-0 loss to Chile in 1930.
Yobo’s unfortunate goal was also the fourth at Brazil 2014 and turned to be the skipper’s last kick for Nigeria in an international match. It also meant that France is the only team in whose favour two own goals had been scored in the same tournament.
Earlier, France had benefitted from Noel Valladares’ own goal in a 3-0 win over Honduras at the group stage of Brazil 2014. It was also the first World Cup goal to be awarded using the goal-line technology.
Yobo had just played his 10th World Cup match for Nigeria, surpassing the nine appearances by Austin Jay Jay Okocha in three editions of 1994, 1998 and 2002.
Only three other Nigerian players had featured in three editions of the World Cup. They are Okocha, Nwankwo Kanu and Vincent Enyeama
“After playing in three World Cup competitions, what else remains for me?” Yobo asked after the loss to France in Brasilia.
“I have to leave when the ovation is loudest. I have attained 100 matches for Nigeria”, he said, pointing out that he graduated to the team at age 20 and therefore needed to leave the stage for the younger ones.
He thanked his colleagues in the national team for the cooperation that they gave him while he was in charge.
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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