Nigerian Football
Erico Recommends Ejide and Enyeama to Rohr’s Goalkeepers
BY BOLAJI OKUNOLA
With the apparent dearth of goalkeeping talents in Gernot Rohr’s assembly of Super Eagles, a former national goalkeeper who was also the Super Eagles’ goalkeeper trainer under coaches’ Johannes Bonfrere and the late Amodu Shaibu, Joseph Erico, has urged Daniel Akpeyi and others to go and learn from their predecessors.
In fact, the trio of Amodu Shaibu, Stephen Keshi and Joseph Erico qualified Nigeria for the 2002 World Cup.
He specifically told Sports Village Square that Vincent Enyeama and Austin Ejide are goalkeepers that the latest call-ups should consult for tips on how to excel.
“All national team goal stoppers are good. The only thing I notice in them is the inability of learning more after learning from goal keeper trainer.
“Keepers lose confident and focus based on lack of advice from previous ones. Nigeria is blessed with fantastic goal keepers. I will be very glad if they can go for advice from previous goal keepers like Enyeama, Ejide and a host of others.
“Goal keeping is a high tasking job. A mistake by a goalkeeper can be very costly. We see what other players were unable to see based on the fact that we are watching from the back. Most people blame goal keepers for any cheep goal but fail to blame other players who woeful performance.
“Advice from ex internationals will help them enough in acquiring more confidence. I also noticed that most goal keepers get better during their old age. This is due to past experience they gather from the previous and experienced ones.”
“I am only urging them to go for more quit training because it will help them a lot in acquiring confident. Once a goal keeper fumbles during a national team match, it will go a long way before regaining his or her fans confident.”
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
After two matches last March in which Nigeria Super Eagles won one and lost the other, the Nigeria Football Federation Finidi George has been judged as the right man for the vacant Super Eagles job.
He thus become the 41st person to occupy the position since the adhoc engagement of John Finch, former Fulham winger in 1949. According to a press release by the NFF, the board of the federation on Monday approved the recommendation of its technical development committee to appoint Finidi George as Head Coach of the Super Eagles.
George who belong to the Nigeria Golden Generation of Super Eagles of 1994 spent 20 months as assistant to José Santos Peseiro.
In his baptism as an interim national coach, his squad edged Ghana 2-1, ending an 18-year winless streak against the Black Stars, but then lost 0-2 to Mali in the second game. The loss to Mali was the first time Nigeria had been beaten by Mali since 1972.
As a national team player, George is best known as the player whose goal qualified Nigeria for the World Cup for the first time ever.
It was a goal scored against Algeria on 8 October 1993 – incidentally it was the 44th anniversary of Nigeria’s maiden international match played against Sierra Leone in 1949.
Finidi played 60 times for Nigeria and was Nigeria’s 40th scoring debutant when he came as a substitute in a 7-1 defeat of Burkina Faso on 27 July 1991.
He is a winner with the Super Eagles at the 1994 Africa Cup of Nation and featured at the World Cup at the USA ‘94 and France ’98.
Incidentally, his major task now is to qualify Nigeria to another World Cup in the USA and two other nations. The match is 35 days away from this Monday.
Enugu Rangers on Sunday beat Plateau United 2-0 to hold on at the top of the Nigeria Premier League. They extended their point haul to 57, two points ahead of their Oriental brothers, Enyimba who also beat Katsina United 1-0 to keep the chase for the title very hot.
Initial second placed team, Remo Stars dropped to the third position but still in contention for either the title, but at worse a continental ticket for next season.
Following Shooting Stars 2-0 defeat of Sunshine Stars in a South West derby, the top four positions of the are now held by the South East and South West as the league gets into its closing stage.
While Rangers and Enyimba are first and second at the moment, Remo Stars, though with an outstanding home game are third while their fellow westerners, Shooting Stars are fourth.
The weekend’s results:
Rivers United 2-0 Katsina United
Remo Stars 3-0 Niger Tornadoes
Doma United 0-0 Kwara United
Bendel Insurance 1-0 Heartland
Enugu Rangers 2-0 Plateau United
Shooting Stars 2-0 Sunshine Stars
Akwa United 3-0 Kano Pillars
Enyimba 1-0 Katsina United
Gombe United 3-2 Lobi Stars
Sporting Lagos 4-2 Abia Warriors
Remo Stars on Friday inch closer to achieving their first ever title in the Nigeria elite division league after beating visiting Niger Tornadoes 3-0 to move second on the log and just a point behind league leaders, Enugu Rangers.
Remo Stars are now with 53 points and still have an outstanding home game to play.
Friday’s win which comes on the eve of the proprietor’s birthday has put the team back into contention for the title.
They have progressively become prominent in the Nigerian premier league having placed third two seasons ago and second last season.
Top finish this season will confirm their progression and also a third consecutive continental outing.
Top scorer, Sikiru Alimi launched them of victory path as his 28th minute penalty kick heralded their return to high scoring ways.
It has been a while since they scored high in the league. Barely three minutes later, Sikiru, a contender for the top scorer award increased the tally to two.
Ahmed Akinyele completed the route in the 75th minute.
Finidi George becomes Nigeria’s 41st national coach
Further CAF Sanctions await USM Alger and Algerian Football Federation
What a twist of fate! Before now, Morocco and Algeria were allies
SUPER EAGLES TO FACE ENGLAND IN PRE-WORLD CUP FRIENDLY
Apart from Okwaraji, Nigeria’s Other Field-Related Obituaries
Grudgingly, Eto’o accepts new Cameroon coach Brys, but fails to attend ceremony
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