International Football
Egypt U-20 coach confident ahead of Nigeria clash
When the Egypt U-20 team face the Nigeria’s Flying Eagles on Wednesday, a battle of titanic proportion is in the offing.
Both badly need the match for any realistic chance of making it into the quarter finals.
While Egypt had an uninspiring goalless draw with Mozambique, the case was worse for Nigeria which lost 0-1 to Senegal and are therefore confined to the bottom of the Group A.
Anything short of full points occasioned by a win will put their dreams in jeopardy. Egypt mat still survive with another draw and hope to make up in their last game with Senegal.
That may have bouyed the confidence of their coach, Mahmoud Gaber who voiced self-assurance ahead of his side’s anticipated clash against Nigeria at the Cairo stadium on Wednesday.
“We are focusing now on Nigeria clash and will do better than against Mozambique,” Gaber told the pre-match news conference.
‘’Our target is to win tomorrow and we will do our best to achieve the target.”
“Players promised me to win against Nigeria and I am fully confident on my players.”
The Pharaohs will be desperate for win to improve their situation in the Group as they are seeking a place in the next round.
The first two teams in the three groups will advance to the quarter-finals alongside the two best performances of teams who ended third in the different groups.
The first four teams will represent the continent in the upcoming U-20 World Cup set to be played in Indonesia next May.
Egypt last participation in the U-20 World Cup date on 2013 when they were eliminated from the competition’s first round.
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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