International Football
Falcons, Banyana in titanic battle on Aisha Buhari Cup final day
The top two teams in women’s football on the African continent at the moment, Nigeria and South Africa, will face off in what is a potentially-explosive battle on the final day of hostilities in the maiden edition of Aisha Buhari Invitational Women’s Tournament at Mobolaji Johnson Arena on Tuesday evening.
The big game will kick off at 4pm.
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State is expected to lead the political circle that would include other big-name players to the closing ceremony, while Nigeria’s FIFA Council Member Amaju Melvin Pinnick will lead football’s upper crust. FIFA Secretary General, Mrs Fatma Samoura, FIFA Council Member Aisha Johansen, CAF Executive Committee Member Kanizat Ibrahim and FIFA’s Head of Women Football, Sarah Bareman will also be in the executive box, alongside the full complement of NFF Executive Committee Members and Management.
The Super Falcons, nine-time champions of Africa, narrowly edged the Banyana on penalties in the final of the 2018 Women AFCON in Ghana, after both teams could not be separated in regulation and extra time.
On the opening day of the tournament on Wednesday, the Super Falcons defeated the Female Eagles of Mali 2-0, both goals coming off substitute Gift Monday late in the second half.
Banyana Banyana were truly dominant and impressive in their 3-0 demolition of Ghana’s Black Queens on Friday.
A total of eight goals have now been scored in the tournament. Only Nigeria’s Gift Monday has scored more than one goal.
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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