International Football
Egypt 2023: Peseiro thumbs up Flying Eagles after two rockets see off Mozambique
Super Eagles’ Head Coach José Santos Peseiro said he was impressed after scorching shots from the boots of forwards Samson Lawal and Ibrahim Muhammad gave Nigeria all three points and a deserved quarter-final ticket at the 23rd Africa U20 Cup of Nations in Egypt on Saturday. Mozambique’s Young Mambas were the victims this time.
Buoyed in spirit by the win over host nation Egypt on Wednesday that shipped their campaign back on track, the Flying Eagles played with commendable self-assurance and dominated large swathes of a game played under floodlights at an impressive facility in north-eastern Egypt.
Ayuba Francis had failed to put enough purchase on his strikes in the 6th and 24th minutes on the turf of Suez Canal Authority Stadium in Ismailia, but Lawal, after receiving a pass from the nimble-footed Haliru Sarki, glided past two defenders before releasing a fierce shot that nestled safely in the net, beyond the groping arms of Kimiss Zavala in the 32nd minute.
With five minutes to interval, Muhammad, who ran rings round the Mozambican rearguard a number of times, got into a vantage position for a lofty strike that flew past Zavala and found the top right corner for Nigeria’s second.
In the second half, Nigeria’s safe hands Chijioke Aniagboso was his imperial self as he denied substitute Edson Mucuana from close range in the 55th minute. At the other end, another scorcher from Lawal rocked Zavala but he managed to parry it for a corner kick.
In the 76th minute, substitute Adams Olamilekan failed to find the net after a sweet lay-on by Ahmed Abdullahi, and with three minutes to go, Aniagboso again came up big when Jose Rabelina Zavala thought he was in a position to reduce Mozambique’s deficit.
Victory took the Flying Eagles to six points, and with Senegal pounding host nation Egypt 4-0 in Cairo, to finish top with maximum nine points from three matches, Nigeria finished a comfortable second and will play the winner of Group B (currently being contested by Congo and Uganda) in the quarter-finals on Thursday at the Suez Canal Authority Stadium in Ismailia.
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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