Football

Nigeria’s Super Eagles: In Search of Glory

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By Adeola Aderounmu

The Super Eagles are looking for glory. How far will they get at the Nation’s Cup in South Africa? The team left a big question mark on his ability to win the glory it seeks.

With 2 seconds to the end of the game, Nigeria conceded a goal to the Burkinabes. The time was 93 minutes and 58 seconds when the ball rested in the net behind Vincent Enyeama.

When it was about 30 seconds left, Nigeria won possession and launched an attacked. That is good for football to try to score even when you are one man down and in the dying minutes. But since the recovery rate was slow and the defense line a little bit complacent, Nigeria paid dearly for the mis-adventure. It was 1-1 with the last kick of the game.

If the Super Eagles miss glory at this tournament, Keshi should be ready for all the criticisms that will come his way. It sound unfair but that is the way the stories go.

First he had said that African coaches are better and one hopes that a team with an African coach wins this tournament. One way to do that is to first beat Zambia on Friday.

Second, history shows that a team that leaves his best players out of tournaments don’t usually go far. For footballing reasons there are none to show why Osaze Peter Odemwingwe should not be in South Africa. He is arguably Nigeria’s best striker and a very committed player for that matter.

For personal reasons, I mean because of personal differences Keshi left Osaze out of the team and the player was almost crying on the social networks to drive home his own points.

One hopes that Uche stops firing the balls into the crowds and into the net when Nigeria meets Zambia and then Ethiopia.

Experiences are gathered through participation, so there is absolutely nothing wrong with going to the tournament with more than 15 new players in the national team.

Football is the hope of Nigeria, a country under siege from militants, kidnappers, very bad government and terrorists. This game provides, always, a temporary reprieve from the sorrows that plagued the biggest black nation on earth.

For some short periods Nigerians usually lay their differences aside to support the National teams at different competitions.

Sports glory helps to unite Nigeria albeit for a while.

Unfortunately the dismal performances of the teams and the non-qualification for the 2011 Edition are a continuous reminder of everything wrong with Nigeria. From a personal point of view, my hopes in Nigeria as a country are totally gone!

I think following the game is as a result of the sentiments left in me, not emotions. I don’t really care who wins in SA.

When I think of the disconnection between the corrupt government and the Nigerian masses, no amount of football glory can becloud my judgment of how sad the situation is back in Nigeria.

However I will leave that aside and wish Nigerians all the joy they can get from this tournament while it lasts.
Nigeria meets a boastful Zambia team on Friday in what will be a likely decider for which of the two teams that may go home early in the tournament.

I wish Stephen Keshi all the best in his endeavours and for the Nigerian lads-especially the home based players-sweating it out as their government officials continue to loot the treasury I hope they find fame and glory even after the tournamen.

I think no matter what happens many of them will be grateful to Keshi, for the exposure and for the hopes of brighter footballing careers.

Now England Knows who Zlatan Ibrahimovic is

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By Adeola Aderounmu

England has always played down the Zlatan Phenomenon but after today the 14th of November 2012 I am sure that England will always remember Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

It was a friendly match but the historical facts will stand the test of time.

Zlatan became the first man to score a goal in the newly opened Friends Arena in Stockholm. England went up 2-1 before the break.

In the last 15 minutes Zlatan scored 3 more goals to wrap up the games for Sweden.

The last goal will go down in football history as one of the most beautiful goals ever scored.

Joe Hart thought he headed the ball to safety but Zlatan did a bicycle kick that will probably never be repeated by him or anyone else and through one moment of projectile magic put the ball behind the net. Joe Hart did not make it back to his goal mark before the ball went in. There was a defender, was that Cahill that thought he was standing right to put away the ball.

The projectile and range of the ball was magnificent and Zlatan made history not just scoring the first goal but all the 4 goals against England.

Some records and achievements will stand this test of time. Hate him or like him, Zlatan is a living legend.

The Miracle of Berlin: Germany 4: Sweden 4

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By Adeola Aderounmu

I watched in disbelief as Sweden overtuned a 4 goal deficit and nearly snatched victory in Berlin on the 16th of October 2012.

The Germans were 3 goals up after 30 minutes with 2 goals from Klose and one from Per Mertasacker.

In the 56th minute Ozil got the 4th goal and appeared to have “sealed” the game for the Germans.

The turning point came for the Swedes when Zlatan perfectly utilised a cross from Kim Källström. Zlatan headed beyond the German goalkeeper to orchestrate one of the biggest and most inprobable comebacks in football history.

With 35 minutes to go, Sweden scored 3 goals. The last goal was scored in the 93rd minute by Rasmus Elm.

In between, Lustig and Elmander had scored one a piece and Sana missed an open net. Otherwise Sweden would have won the game.

It must have been the worst night for German football but a sweet night for Swedish football.

Nigeria thrash Liberia 6-1, Shame in Dakar…

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By Adeola Aderounmu

Nigeria will return to the African Cup of Nations in 2013 in style. After playing a 2-2 draw in Liberia, the Super Eagles triumphed in Calabar.

The Chelsea duo of Mikel Obi and Victor Moses were among the goals scorers on the day the Super Eagles went on rampage and decided to teach some football lessons to their opponents.

Congratulations to the Super Eagles of Nigeria. I hope you will do well at the Nations Cup.

Meanwhile Senegal crashed out and disgracefully too. Ivory Coast were 2 goals up when the Senegalese fans disrupted the game. The players were protected by the police and the game was abandoned. Some people were injured by objects thrown around the pitch.

I hope CAF will come down heavily on the Senegalese. A 4-5 year ban wouldn’t be a bad idea.

Football is part of sports. A game of football is not a war.

Liverpool’s Martin Skrtel and the gamble pass to Tevez

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By Adeola Aderounmu

I have many friends who played/are still playing professional football around the world. Just yesterday the 25th August one of them came visiting. He left the game a few years ago but we still always talk about the days he played and his short spel as a Super Eagle player.

One of the topics we touched yesterday was how the game remains unpopular in China despite all the big players that have been going there from time to time. He too played in China. We agreed that the factors could be many and some unknown to us. He also mentioned that there is apathy because many Chinese believes that the outcomes of football games are fixed or gambled.

He said after he left China one of the people arrested was the central defender in his former team. He said looking back, the pieces fell in place. He had wondered then how a reliable defender could be making serious errors during the games. But at that time he thought well, it could happen in football. But he knows better now-that his defender was selling the games!

When you look at the commitment and the goal scored by Skrtel against Manchester City you will be convinced that he made a serious mistake when he gave a pass to Tevez instead of his own goalkeeper.

I would really like to see the replay of that error of judgment again. The times I had seen it, what I saw is a player who gave a pass to Tevez probably because that is where he wanted the pass to be. I may be totally wrong-I am just a blogger afterall!

But I did not see a pass going to the goalkeeper who was in his yard or zone.

I did not see what I could call a reliable defender who looked up and gave a pass. He was looking at his feet and the ball before he gave a pass.

I am not making any accusation here. But at the same time I am tired of football outcomes that look like “arranged” or “make believe”.

I am also tired of the Italian approach where everything looks normal and real at the surface only for cans of worms to be opened at the end of the season or few years later. Do Italian fans still believe in their football?

I don’t want to wake up 10 years from now and read about the confession of a Liverpool player who sold a match while the fans and spectators where losing their nerves and draining their adrenalin.

It looks like a real mistake to many people and to others it is so silly that would remove the adjectives “experienced” or “reliable” when describing such a defender.

Whatever it was-genuine error or silly back pass, or arranged match-fixing- football, gambling, fixing and controversies will always go together. That’s just the way several businesses are.