International Football
Super Eagles suffer another blow in the midfield as Ndidi is ruled out of World Cup qualifiers
Ahead of the next four World Cup qualifying matches in October and November, Nigeria has suffered another blow in the midfield.
After the loss of Oghenekaro Etebo owing to injury, the same fate has befallen Leicester City defensive midfielder, Wilfred Ndidi, who according to information from his club, is ruled out for up to four or five weeks.
The 24-year-old Super Eagle missed the Foxes’ 2-2 Premier League draw against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park Stadium on Sunday because of a hamstring injury he suffered a week before in the 2-2 draw with Burnley which also ruled him out of Nigeria’s World Cup qualifier against Central African Republic on Thursday in Lagos.
Though he was suspended for the team’s Europa League trip to face Legia Warsaw in Poland where they lost 1-0, Ndidi could not have featured in the game owing to the injury.
Rodgers has confirmed the injury situation after receiving the results of the scan for the player, who had featured for 31 straight matches in all competitions since February before sustaining the injury against Burnley.
“He did it in the (Burnley) game, which was unfortunate. It could be four to five weeks, so we’ll see how that goes,” Rodgers told BBC Radio Leicester as quoted by Leicestershire Live.
Ahead of the game against Legia Warsaw, Rodgers highlighted the importance of Ndidi and he admitted it was “impossible” for them to find another player to do the job of the former Genk star.
“It’s impossible to find what we have in Wilf,” Rodgers said. “We have good players, but specifically the job he does in breaking up the play and defending in the box, he’s irreplaceable, but we have lots of good players.
“You have to find a way. Earlier on in the season, we brought [Boubakary] Soumare into the squad because he gives us that physicality. Wilf’s a fabulous player and hopefully, he’ll be okay for the weekend.”
The injury setback means Ndidi will miss home matches against Manchester United and Arsenal as well as the Europa League matches against Spartak Moscow.
Ndidi, who had already been left out of the Nigeria squad for the 2022 Fifa World Cup qualifiers against the Central African Republic, is now a huge doubt for the next qualifiers scheduled for November.
Apart from the international break in November, Ndidi could also miss top-flight matches against promoted side Brentford and Leeds United.
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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