International Football
Super Eagles are in Oran, where they once inflicted biggest defeat on Algeria
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
Two former African champions, Algeria and Nigeria who failed to make it to the 2022 World Cup are facing each other tonight as part of their rebuilding process.
In continuation of In continuation of tradition, www.sportsvillagesquare.com presents key points of interest.
- The biggest away defeat Nigeria ever inflicted on Algeria was in Oran, the venue of tonight’s match. In the desperate bid to make it to Germany 2006, the Super-charged Super Eagles beat Algeria 5-2 in Oran. It was the first time the team had defeated Algeria on their home soil.
- When both teams met at the semi finals of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, it was Nigeria’s 92nd match in the competition’s history and the seventh semi final match the Super Eagles played in the 63-year old competition.
- Algeria on the other side played their 73rd Africa Cup of Nations’ match.
- Nigeria’s national team won its first Africa Cup of Nations’ title by beating Algeria 3-0 in 1980.
- Ten years later, Algeria won their first Africa Cup of Nations by beating Nigeria 1-0 in 1990.
- In qualifying for the World Cup for the first time, Algeria used Nigeria as the stepping stone in October 1981.
- Nigeria responded by also qualifying for the World Cup for the first time in October 1993, using Algeria as the stepping stone.
- Nigeria’s Super Eagles’ unbeaten run of 34 matches in the World Cup qualifying series was technically broken by Algeria in November 2017 when FIFA reversed the on-field result of 1-1 to a 0-3 draw by Nigeria following Super Eagles’ fielding of Shehu Abdullahi who on account of yellow cards in preceding matches was ineligible. Otherwise, Nigeria’s unbeaten run could have been 35. The figure 34 however still remains the longest in Africa. Nigeria last lost a World Cup qualifying match in Luanda on June 20, 2004 when Angola had a 1-0 win in the race to Germany 2006. Nigeria’s record is the second longest unbeaten run globally after that of Spain’s 59. Nigeria’s 34 unbeaten run is even four ahead that of 2014 World Cup winners, Germany.
- Both Algeria and Nigeria were the last two African teams standing at the Brazil 2014 World Cup.
- Both teams lost to European sides on the same day at the Brazil 2014 Round of 16 encounters. Nigeria lost 0-2 to France; Algeria lost 1-2 to Germany. If the two African teams had won their respective Round of 16 matches, they would have clashed in the quarter finals, thus an African team could had gotten to the semi finals. It would have also been the first time two African teams clashed at the World Cup.
- When both teams met in Uyo in November 2016, it was Nigeria’s milestone of 100th World Cup qualifying match and 50th home game.
- Former Nigeria’s strongman of defence, Bright Omokaro, got his nickname of “Ten-Ten” when he hacked down an Algerian player who could neither return to the field nor be substituted and that evened the line-up after Nigeria’s Ademola Adeshina had been red-carded during a semi final clash of the two teams at Maroc ‘88. Maverick Nigerian radio commentator, the late Ernest Okonkwo screamed: “Omokaro has made it ten-ten.” From then, ‘Ten-Ten’ became the nickname of the hard tackling defender.
- Austin ‘Jay Jay’ Okocha scored the first of his 16 international goals for Nigeria when he converted free kick against Algeria in a 13 July 1993 World Cup qualifying match in Lagos which Nigeria won 4-1.
- Austin Okocha’s brother, Emma Okocha’s only goal for Nigeria was scored against Algeria in the opening match of the 1990 Africa Cup of Nations in Algiers. Nigeria lost 5-1.
ALGERIA – NIGERIA: HEAD-TO-HEAD
P W D L F A
Algeria 22 10 3 9 29 28
Nigeria 22 9 3 10 28 29
- 10 Jan.1973 (2AAG) Nigeria 2-2 Algeria
- 28 Mar.1978 (3AAG)Algeria 1-0 Nigeria
- 22 Mar. 1980 (Afcon) Nigeria 3-0 Algeria
- 10 Oct. 1981 (WCq)Nigeria 0-2 Algeria
- 30 Oct. 1981 (WCq)Algeria 2-1 Nigeria
- 10 Mar. 1982 (Afcon) Algeria 2-1 Nigeria
- 11 Mar. 1984 (Afcon) Algeria 0-0 Nigeria
- 15 Jan. 1988 (Oq) Algeria 1-0 Nigeria
- 30 Jan. 1988 (Oq) Nigeria 2-0 Algeria
- 23 Mar.1988 (Afcon) Algeria 1-1 Nigeria *(8 -9 penalty shoot-out)
- 2 Mar. 1990 (Afcon) Algeria 5-1 Nigeria
- 16 Mar. 1990 (Afcon) Algeria 1-0 Nigeria
- 13 July 1993 (WCq) Nigeria 4-1 Algeria
- 8 Oct. 1993 (WCq) Algeria 1-1 Nigeria
- 21 Jan. 2002 (Afcon) Algeria 0-1 Nigeria
- 3 Jul. 2004 (WCq) Nigeria 1-0 Algeria
- 8 Sep. 2005 (WCq) Algeria 2-5 Nigeria
- 30 Jan.2010 (Afcon) Algeria 0-1 Nigeria
- 12 Nov.2016 (WCq) Nigeria 3-1 Algeria
- 10 Nov. 2017 (WCq) Algeria 3-0 Nigeria * actual scores 1-1. Match awarded against Nigeria for fielding ineligible player)
- 14 Jul. 2019 (Afcon) Algeria 2-1 Nigeria
- 9. Oct. 2020 (F) Algeria 1-0 Nigeria
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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International Football
Players’ union, FIFPRO, wants 20-minute halftimes, more cooling breaks amid extreme heat
Global players’ union FIFPRO is exploring whether extending halftime to 20 minutes and introducing more frequent cooling breaks could better protect players from extreme heat.
Nine of the 16 host cities for the 2026 World Cup face conditions considered “extreme risk” for heat-related illness.
Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Guadalajara, Houston, Kansas City, Miami, Monterrey and Philadelphia are expected to face dangerous levels of heat and humidity, posing player safety concerns and fuelling calls for mandatory cooling aids or schedule changes.
FIFPRO’s heat risk assessments are based on wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT), a measure combining temperature, humidity, solar radiation and wind speed to estimate how environmental conditions affect the body’s ability to cool itself.
Under FIFPRO guidelines, a WBGT reading above 28 degrees Celsius indicates conditions in which matches should be postponed or rescheduled to protect players’ health.
By comparison, world soccer governing body FIFA’s own guidelines set the extreme risk threshold higher, at 32 degrees Celsius WBGT – but even by that standard, six of the nine cities are still projected to exceed safe limits.
Major League Soccer in the U.S. has a threshold of 29 degrees Celsius WBGT.
“Cooling breaks at the 30th minute and 75th minutes are quite traditional, but from a physiological point of view it does not make sense,” said Vincent Gouttebarge, FIFPRO’s Medical Director.
“Even if you ingest more than 200 millilitres of fluid, you already cannot take it all. So I would definitely like to see some project where we look at the efficacy of perhaps more frequent but shorter cooling breaks – every 15 minutes, rather than only one during each half.”
LONGER HALFTIMES
Gouttebarge also questioned whether the traditional 15-minute halftime interval is sufficient when matches are played in extreme heat.
“You can imagine that halftime of 15 minutes might not be enough in order to decrease the core temperature,” he said.
“It could be a halftime of 20 minutes which would be significant. That has been shown in the laboratory and FIFPRO, together with the national union in Portugal in August, we are going to test this kind of mitigation strategy.”
The urgency of stronger heat protocols became clear at this month’s Club World Cup where two matches — Benfica-Bayern Munich in Charlotte and Chelsea-Esperance in Philadelphia exceeded the WBGT threshold FIFPRO considers unsafe.
“According to our position, those games should have been postponed later that day or rescheduled,” Gouttebarge said.
FIFPRO officials acknowledged that FIFA has responded constructively during the tournament by lowering thresholds for mandatory cooling breaks and improving pitch-side hydration, but stressed that proactive planning is critical.
“FIFA have been quite responsive once the tournament was under way,” said Alex Phillips, FIFPRO General Secretary.
“They have actually modified how they’ve been dealing with heat during the matches based on FIFPRO’s input, which is credit to the work of the team. Obviously, it would have been better if that happened in advance, but it’s better that they have adapted.”
FIFPRO warned that the risks highlighted at the Club World Cup are a preview of what players could face at the expanded 2026 World Cup.
“This is not just affecting the Club World Cup, but also future tournaments either in the U.S. or elsewhere in the world,” said Alexander Bielefeld, FIFPRO Director of Policy & Strategic Relations.
“We need a better balance between commercial interests and the health and safety of players,” he added, referring to earlier kick-off times to accommodate European television audiences.
-Reuters
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Former Manchester United and England midfielder Paul Ince has been charged with drink-driving, police said on Monday.
Ince, who earned 53 caps for England and won two Premier League titles during his six years at United, has been released on bail and will appear in court on July 18.
“The incident involved a black Range Rover which had collided with the central reservation barrier. Officers attended the scene and arrested a 57-year-old man,” the Cheshire police said in a statement.
“Paul Ince, of Quarry Road, Neston, has since been charged with drink-driving.”
Reuters has contacted Ince’s representative for comment.
After retiring as a player, Ince led Milton Keynes Dons to a League Two title in 2007-08. He most recently managed Reading during 2022-23.
-Reuters
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