Nigeria Football Weekly

In this episode, I touch on the breaking news of Finidi George being named Head Coach of the Super Eagles

I then reviewed the eventful weekend that various Nigerian players had with a number of them playing major roles in their teams’ performances, especially Ademola Lookman and the returning Paul Onuachu. 

I rounded off the episode previewing the games for the upcoming weekend fixtures to look out for involving Nigerian footballers and other updates concerning the national team.

In this episode, I reviewed the eventful weekend that different Nigerian players had across Europe with a number of them playing major roles in their teams’ performances including Lookman who assisted two goals in Atalanta's 2-1 win over Monza to keep them in the hunt for a UCL spot.

Cyriel Dessers scored twice as Rangers beat Hearts 2-0 to book a spot in the Scottish Cup Final while Chidera Ejuke scored the winner for Royal Antwerp in their 1-0 win over Cercle Brugge in Belgium.

Wilfred Ndidi scored the opener as Leicester marched on towards automatic promotion to the Premier League; beating West Brom 2-1 on Saturday

I rounded off the episode previewing the games for the upcoming weekend fixtures to look out for involving Nigerian footballers

I rounded off the episode previewing the games for the upcoming weekend fixtures to look out for involving Nigerian footballers

Quite a number of Super Eagles players were outstanding over the past two weeks of club football including Raphael Onyedika, Victor Osimhen & Frank Onyeka to name a few

Additionally, the first major league champions in the top 5 leagues have been crowned as Victor Boniface and Nathan Tella are now Bundesliga champions with Bayer Leverkusen after their 5-0 thrashing of Werder Bremen on Sunday

I rounded off the episode previewing the games for the upcoming weekend fixtures to look out for involving Nigerian footballers and other updates concerning the national team.

The Super Eagles players returned to club action this weekend and many of them came back in good form.

I rounded off the episode previewing the games for the upcoming weekend fixtures to look out for involving Nigerian footballers and other updates concerning the national team.

In this episode, I discuss the Super Eagles’ friendly games against Ghana and Mali and give my opinions in detail on the first two games after AFCON handled by interim coach Finidi George

I rounded off the episode previewing the games for the upcoming weekend fixtures to look out for involving Nigerian footballers

In this episode, I discuss the latest Super Eagles squad called up for the friendly games against Ghana & Mali by the NFF including giving my anticipated XI + prediction for the Ghana game. 

I rounded off the episode reviewing the weekend’s action across Europe involving Nigerian players including Terem Moffi’s brace for Nice in their 3-1 win over Lens over the weekend

In this episode, I reviewed Osimhen’s midweek hat trick & assist in Napoli’s 6-1 rout of Sassuolo on Wednesday before he won the pen in Napoli’s 2-1 win over Juventus on Sunday, which he missed but Raspadori scored the rebound!

Chidera Ejuke was back in form registering a goal & assist in Royal Antwerp’s 3-0 win over St. Truiden over the weekend. 

Joe Aribo scored the winner for Southampton in their 4-3 win over Birmingham City while Terem Moffi, Ademola Lookman & Bright Osayi-Samuel all registered goals for their club sides over the past week too

In Nigeria news, Jose Peseiro announced his departure from the head coach job of the Super Eagles while the Super Falcons will be in action in April against South Africa to book a spot at the Paris Olympics this summer

Iwobi and Bassey scored the goals for Fulham that earned them a win against Man United at Old Trafford. Calvin Bassey opened the scoring in the 65th minute and Manchester United had to start chasing the equalizer till the end of the game, Harry Maguire found the equalizer in the 89th minute, but Alex Iwobi and Fulham had other plans. Substitute, Adama Traore set up Alex Iwobi in the 7th minute of stoppage time and Alex Iwobi made no mistakes when he cut in and slotted the ball into the left-hand side of the net. It was lovely to see two Nigerians win such a big game for their team

Taiwo Awoniyi assisted Niakhate’s first half goal. He was taken off at half time and will be assessed as he really hasn’t returned to full fitness. 

Emmanuel Dennis scored Watford’s only goal in their loss at home to Huddersfield. Dennis put his team up in the 55th minute, but goals in the 70th and 83rd minute from Danny Ward won the 3 points for Huddersfield and leaves Watford 11th in the EFL Championship 

Victor Osimhen returned to the starting lineup for Napoli in their UCL round of 16 home game against Barcelona. Robert Lewandowski put the visitors ahead in the 60th minute before Osimhen pulled on back for Napoli in the 75th minute to earn a draw before heading to Barcelona for the return leg on March 12.  Away at Cagliari, Osimhen put his team up in the 65th minute and Napoli seemed to be on their way to a victory that would have moved the team up to 8th, but Zito Luvumbo scored a 96th-minute equalizer for both teams to share a point.

Cyriel Dessers scored two goals against Hearts in Rangers home game against Hearts. Rangers won the game 5-0. Dessers continues his wonderful season in which he now has 16 goals and 5 assists in all competitions. Could be catching the attention of some clubs in the top 5 leagues.

Ebenezer Akinsanmiro (19) made his Inter Milan debut in their away game against Lecce in which they won 4-0. Inter remain 1st on the table. Akinsanmiro had previously played for Remo Stars and Inter’s U-19 team. 

The Super Falcons defeated the indomitable Lionesses of Cameroon 1-0 in the Moshood Abiola national stadium in Abuja. Esther Okoronkwo scored Nigeria’s only goal in the 2024 Olympics qualifying match and the team will face the winners of the South Africa vs Tanzania game which will be played tomorrow. Their next match will be in April against South Africa

Other performances to note:
Moses Simon got the assist for Nantes’ only goal in their 1-0 win against Lorient. Nantes now 12th in the league from 16th

Yira Collins Sor scored Genk’s only goal against in their 1-0 win against Chaleroi

The Super Eagles have done it and are through to the final of the continent’s showpiece event AFCON after a tense Semi-final against South Africa which we won 4-2 on penalties after it finished 1-1 AET!  This game literally had everything and I recap the eventful semi-final which was Nigeria’s 3rd semi-final win in the competition since the millennium!

I then previewed the big one! The Africa Cup of Nations final against the hosts Cote d’Ivoire who we beat 1-0 during the group stage and we’ll be facing them on Sunday in Abidjan!

The Super Eagles are into the Semi final of the Africa Cup of Nations after an effective & one-sided 1-0 win over the Antelopes of Angola in the quarter-final on Friday. Ademola Lookman was once again the difference maker and I reviewed the game in detail and the other quarter-final clashes

I then previewed our eagerly anticipated Semi-final tie against South Africa taking place on Wednesday 6pm Nigerian time. I spoke on the history of the tie, anticipated XIs of both teams & my anticipated score prediction for this glamour fixture

I rounded up the podcast with my predictions for the other semi-final taking place!

Wow wow wow! I reviewed our dominant 2-0 win over our rivals Cameroon in the round of 16 in detail before providing updates on all the other round of 16 ties!

I then previewed our eagerly anticipated Quarter Final tie against Angola taking place on Friday 6pm Nigerian time. I spoke on the history of the tie, anticipated XIs of both teams & my anticipated score prediction

I rounded up the podcast with my predictions for the other quarter final ties taking place!

In this episode, I reviewed our final group game, which ended in a 1-0 win over Guinea-Bissau and touched on all the other games that took place in Matchday 3

I then previewed our mouth-watering Round of 16 clash against our biggest rivals on the continent - Cameroon taking place on Saturday 9pm Nigerian time. I spoke on the history of the tie, anticipated XIs of both teams & my anticipated score prediction

I rounded up the podcast with my predictions for the other round of 16 ties taking place!

In this episode, I reviewed our stunning 1-0 win over the hosts Ivory Coast  yesterday in Abidjan!  I spoke on the tactical tweak & the best performances from our players including Aina, Lookman & Bassey!

Additionally, I previewed our final group game taking place on Monday against Guinea-Bissau who have lost both of their games so far before rounding up by touching on all the other games happening in the tournament over the coming days & the ones that have just taken place

In this episode, I reviewed our AFCON opener against Equatorial Guinea which ended in a disappointing 1-1 draw this past Sunday although on a positive note Victor Osimhen did score his first ever AFCON goal!

Additionally, I previewed our 2nd game taking place on Thursday against the hosts Ivory Coast and I also touched on all the other games happening in the tournament

Episode 69: Super Eagles 2023 Africa Cup of Nations Preview!

In this episode, I previewed the upcoming Africa Cup Of Nations, which gets underway in Ivory Coast on Saturday with Nigeria drawn in Group A alongside the hosts Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea & Guinea-Bissau. Our first game takes place on Sunday January 14th against Equatorial Guinea 

I ran through how the teams in Group A qualified while also previewing the Equatorial Guinea game in detail including my anticipated starting XI for the game

Finally, I discussed my expectations for the other groups and the tournament in general including who I expect to win & finish as the tournament’s top goalscorer

Zaidu Sanusi came off the bench to score his 1st ever Champions League goal as FC Porto brushed aside Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 on Tuesday night!

Prior to that in Italy, Ademola Lookman scored his 2nd Serie A goal of the season, which was the winner as Atalanta beat Fiorentina 1-0 to stay 2nd in the league

In the Premier League, Alex Iwobi bagged his 3rd assist of the season for Everton as they came from behind to beat Southampton 2-1 away with Joe Aribo netting the solitary goal for the Saints, which was his 2nd of the league campaign

Chidera Ejuke bagged his 3rd consecutive assist in the Bundesliga in Hertha Berlin’s 1-1 draw against Kevin Akpoguma’s Hoffenheim over the weekend at home as he put on yet another impressive performance

In Belgium, Paul Onuachu finally scored his 1st league goal of the season for 2nd placed Genk, who beat KV Oostende away over the weekend

We also saw Peter Olayinka get on the scoresheet for Slavia Prague in their 3-0 win over Slovan Liberec while Chidozie Awaziem scored the winner for Hadjuk Split in their 1-0 win over HNK Rijeka

In international news, the Super Eagles lost 2-1 to Algeria over the international break with Terem Moffi getting on the scoresheet resulting in Nigeria dropping in the World Rankings from 31st to 32nd earlier today while the Super Falcons lost 2-0 to Japan earlier today

The NFF have voted in a new president Ibrahim Gusau who will take over from Amaju Pinnick and the NFF also announced a friendly match in November against Costa Rica taking place in the USA

I then rounded off the podcast with the Ones To Watch over the weekend

The NFF announced the Super Eagles squad list for the friendly against Algeria taking place on Tuesday September 27th in Oran as part of the launch of the new Olympic Stadium in Algeria. I went through the list talking about the first time call ups, returnees & baffling snubs from the list.

Additionally, I previewed the game against Algeria including an anticipated starting XI based on Jose Peseiro’s previous tactics in our AFCON qualifying games against Sierra Leone & Sao Tome

Nike also released the new Nigeria home kit and I expect us to debut the home kit in the friendly on Tuesday

I also ran through the club performances of our Super Eagles players over the weekend including Terem Moffi, Victor Boniface & Alex Iwobi who have all continued their excellent form with superb performances over the weekend for their respective club sides

Chidera Ejuke bagged his first goal contribution in the Bundesliga with an assist in Hertha Berlin’s 2-2 draw against Bayer Leverkusen over the weekend at home & looked generally lively for his new club

In Portugal, Saviour Godwin continued his great start to life in the Portuguese top-flight with a goal in Casa Pia’s 3-2 win away to Pacos Ferreira leading to the newly promoted side impressively occupying 6th spot in the Primeira Liga after 6 games so far

In France, Moses Simon scored a consolation goal in Nantes 3-2 loss away to Terem Moffi’s Lorient side, who are currently occupying the 4th spot in Ligue 1 after an impressive start to the season helped by Moffi’s 5 goals in 7 games so far this season

In the Champions League, Raphael Onyedika played 90 minutes and looked very assured in the middle of the park during Club Brugge’s 4-0 win over Zaidu Sanusi’s Porto on Tuesday night with the Belgian side securing maximum points from their first 2 games in this season’s group stage and I fully expect Onyedika to receive his maiden call up to the Super Eagles later this week

Calvin Bassey also put in yet another good performance in the Champions League for Ajax as they narrowly lost 2-1 to Liverpool at Anfield on Tuesday night

In international news, I anticipate the release of the Super Eagles squad list for the Algeria friendly over the coming days & I also ran through the Ones to Watch over the next few days in Europe & the respective leagues

Calvin Bassey’s reputation continues to grow massively as he’s been in excellent form for Ajax, initially starring & getting an assist in their 4-0 win league over Cambur over the weekend before making his UEFA Champions League debut on Tuesday against his former team Rangers. He went on to get another clean sheet & assist as Ajax ran out comfortable 4-0 winners on the night! He is easily the present & future of the national team’s defence and he needs to be a certain starter at left centre-back going forward ideally alongside Kevin Akpoguma of Hoffenheim who has also started the new season well.

In France, Terem Moffi continued his excellent start to the season by netting his 5th Ligue 1 goal in 6 games on Wednesday as Lorient beat Lyon 3-1 at home to move up to 5th position on the table. He is arguably the most in-form Nigerian striker in Europe right now and looks well on course to surpass the 14 league goals he scored for Lorient in the 20/21 league season

In Spain, Umar Sadiq scored his 3rd La Liga goal in 4 games this season while making his debut for new club Real Sociedad in their 1-1 draw against Atletico Madrid over the weekend & he could be in for a monumental season if he can maintain his form. Samuel Chukwueze is also back in form after notching a goal & assist in the UEFA Conference league 4-3 win for Villarreal against Lech Poznan on Thursday night

In Italy, Ademola Lookman starred for top of the table Atalanta and notched an assist in 2-0 win away to Monza on Monday night while in England, Kelechi Iheanacho scored his 1st Premier League goal of the season as Leicester continued their poor start to the season with a 5-2 loss away to Brighton on Sunday with Wilfred Ndidi having a game to forget at centre back as he gave away a penalty.

In transfer news, Super Eagles captain made the move from Fatih Karagumruk to Sivasspor and made his debut off the bench on Thursday in their 1-1 UEFA Conference league draw against Peter Olayinka’s Slavia Prague with Peter also scoring his team’s sole goal of the game

I finished the podcast with a run through of the Ones To Watch over the weekend

In France, Terem Moffi seems to have regained his 20/21 season form as he bagged a brace over the weekend in Lorient’s 2-1 win at home against Clermont Foot before scoring another 2 goals on Wednesday night in a 5-2 loss away to Lens leaving him as the 4th top scorer in Ligue 1 so far with Lorient sitting comfortably in 7th place. Moses Simon was also on target over the weekend in Nantes 3-1 home win over Toulouse before he unfortunately suffered an injury that should keep him out for two weeks

In Spain, Umar Sadiq scored his 2nd La Liga goal in Almeria’s 2-1 win over Sevilla before he completed a transfer to Real Sociedad on Wednesday night where he will replace Alexander Isak as their man striker after the Swede moved to Newcastle in the Premier League

In Belgium, Victor Boniface opened his account for Union St Gilloise in a 2-1 win over Anderlecht over the weekend before grabbing an assist in their 4-2 loss on Wednesday against Alhassan Yusuf’s Royal Antwerp who currently top the table.

In the Premier League, Alex Iwobi continues to put in impressive performances despite Everton’s struggles and he grabbed an assist on Tuesday night in Everton’s 1-1 draw away to Leeds United.

In transfer news, highly rated Nigerian midfielder Raphael Onyedika completed a move to Belgian giants Club Brugge and is in line to make his debut tonight against Cercle Brugge and he could also make his Champions League debut on Wednesday when they take on Bayer Leverkusen at home

I finished the podcast with a run through of the Ones To Watch over the weekend

In Italy, Victor Osimhen continued his excellent start to the Serie A season with his 2nd goal in as many games for Napoli in their 4-0 thrashing of newly promoted Monza on Sunday, which has taken them to the top of Serie A after two games.

In Spain, Umar Sadiq scored his 1st ever La Liga goal on Monday night in Almeria’s 1-1 draw away to Elche while in Portugal, Saviour Godwin scored his 1st goal in the Portuguese top flight for Casa Pia in their 2-0 win over Boavista on Sunday afternoon

In the Czech Republic, Moses Usor scored a brace for Slavia Prague over the weekend & he’s looking like a real superstar in the making while Chidozie Awaziem opened his account in Croatia for Hadjuk Split in their 2-0 over Lokomotiva Zagreb on Sunday

I also ran through the Ones To Watch fixtures happening over the coming week involving Super Eagles players across the top leagues in Europe including Akikunmi Amoo & Paul Mukairu’s FC Copenhagen who take a slender 2-1 lead against Trabzonspor into the Champions League 2nd leg qualifier on Wednesday night, which gives them a chance to join Victor Osimhen, Calvin Bassey & Zaidu Sanusi as Nigeria’s representatives in this season’s Champions League group stage

It’s been a great weekend of football for Super Eagles players with a number of our players putting in excellent performances for their respective club sides!

In Italy, Victor Osimhen got his Serie A campaign off to an excellent start for Napoli bagging a goal & assist on Monday night in their 5-2 thrashing of Verona while Ademola Lookman scored on his debut for Atalanta in a 2-0 win over Sampdoria. David Okereke also continued his excellent start to life as a Cremonese player scoring on his league debut in a 3-2 loss away to Fiorentina where he started alongside fellow new signing Cyriel Dessers

In the Premier League, Taiwo Awoniyi scored his 1st Premier League goal & Nottingham Forest’s 1st goal in the division since 1999 in their 1-0 win over West Ham on Sunday while Joe Aribo scored his 1st Premier League goal in Southampton’s 2-2 draw at home against Leeds United on Saturday.

In Ligue 1, Moses Simon opened his account for the season in a 1-1 draw for Nantes against Lille on Friday night while Henry Onyekuru scored his 2nd goal in as many games for Adama Demirspor in their 3-0 win over Adama Demirspor in Turkey

I also ran through the fixtures happening over the coming week involving Super Eagles players across the top leagues in Europe including the ones to watch

First weekend of Premier League football is in the bank! Serie A + La Liga return this weekend

Ademola Lookman has completed his permanent transfer to Atalanta & Cyriel Dessers has been signed by Cremonese taking the Nigerian contingent in Serie A to 9 players as at today

David Okereke & Isaac Success both scored goals for their Cremonese & Udinese respectively over the weekend in the Italian Cup 1st round while in Turkey Henry Onyekuru got his career for Adama Demirspor off to a great start with a goal on his league debut

I also ran through the fixtures happening over the coming week involving Super Eagles players across the top leagues in Europe including the ones to watch

Football is back! I previewed the new upcoming football season starting with all the major transfers involving Nigerian players in Europe so far before touching on the top players to watch this season across the top leagues

I also gave my predictions for the Premier League season including the winner, top 4, teams to be relegated, player of the season, top scorer and the team of the season

Cyriel Dessers continued his hot start to the season with a brace for Genk over the weekend to take his tally to 3 from his opening 2 games in the Belgian top flight

I also ran through the fixtures happening over the coming week involving Super Eagles players across the top leagues in Europe including the ones to watch

The Nigeria Football Federation announced the appointment of Jose Peseiro on a 1 year deal on Sunday with the Portuguese manager expected to charge of the upcoming friendlies against Mexico & Canada as well as the AFCON qualifiers against Sierra Leone & Mauritius. Finidi George has also been appointed as the 1st assistant of the national team with Salisu Yusuf appointed the 2nd Assistant, as well as Head Coach of the CHAN & U23 Teams. Usman Abdallah will be the 3rd Assistant while Eboboritse Uwejamomere will be the Match Analyst & Ike Shorunmu will be the Goalkeepers’ Trainer.

I also ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the past week including Taiwo Awoniyi scoring a brace on the last day of the Bundesliga season in Union Berlin’s 3-2 win over Bochum to reach 15 league goals & 20 goals in all competitions to cap off a very impressive season in Germany as his side finished 5th to qualify for the Europa League

In Italy, Victor Osimhen scored his 14th league goal of the season for Napoli in their 3-0 win over Genoa over the weekend. David Okereke also scored his 7th Serie A goal of the season for Venezia in their 1-1 draw away to Roma as their relegation was confirmed.

In the Netherlands, Cyriel Dessers scored his 21st goal of the season in all competitions as Feyenoord ended the Eredivisie season in 3rd place after losing 2-1 to Twente at home with all focus now on the UEFA Conference league final against Jose Mourinho’s Roma while in Turkey, Anthony Nwakaeme was on the scoresheet yet again for Champions Trabzonspor in their 2-1 win at home vs Altay to reach 12 league goals for the season in addition to his 10 assists.

In European football news, Asisat Oshoala will be competing in the UEFA Women’s Champions League final this Saturday for Barcelona against Lyon & she ended her league campaign as the league’s top scorer with 20 strikes, which is super impressive considering her spells on the sideline during the season.

Also Rangers Joe Aribo, Calvin Bassey & Leon Balogun will contest the Europa League final against Eintracht Frankfurt this Wednesday in Seville with the chance to secure both a prestigious trophy and Champions League football for next season if they win the final.

I then rounded up with the Ones to Watch over this week

The Nigeria Football Federation announced the Super Eagles squad list for the friendly games taking place in the USA against Mexico at the AT&T stadium in Texas on Sunday May 29th and against Ecuador on Friday June 3rd taking place at the Red Bull Arena in New Jersey including a recall for Cyriel Dessers & a first call up for Royal Antwerp’s Alhassan Yusuf. The NFF also called up 8 home based players but surprisingly excluded the Bundesliga pair of Taiwo Awoniyi & Kevin Akpoguma although we anticipate a separate list to be released in the next fortnight for the AFCON qualifiers against Sierra Leone on June 9th and Sao Tome on June 13th.

I also ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the past week including Zaidu Sanusi having the best day of his career scoring the winning goal in stoppage time for Porto away to Benfica over the weekend to clinch the Portuguese league title in style!

In France, Moses Simon’s Nantes won their first trophy in 21 years by beating Nice in the French Cup final!

In European football news, Rangers Joe Aribo, Calvin Bassey & Leon Balogun will contest the Europa League final against Eintracht Frankfurt after dramatically beating Leipzig on Thursday 3-1 at home in the semi-final 2nd leg at Ibrox after losing the 1st leg 1-0 and they now have a chance to secure both a prestigious trophy and Champions League football for next season if they win the final.

Feyenoord & Cyriel Dessers will also be competing in a European final for the UEFA Conference league against Jose Mourinho’s Roma after beating Marseille 3-2 on aggregate following a 0-0 draw at the Stade Velodrome in Marseille on Thursday! He then followed that up with a brace in Sunday in a 2-2 draw at home against 2nd place PSV Eindhoven

In international news, the NFF have been ordered by FIFA to pay Gernot Rohr the final sum of his contract (reportedly $377,879.46) which was terminated early late last year prior to the January Africa Cup of Nations

I then rounded up with the Ones to Watch over this week

I ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the past week including Moses Simon playing a stellar role for Nantes by scoring a brace in their 2-2 draw away to Lens in Ligue 1 as they continue to prepare for their French Cup final taking place next week against Nice. Terem Moffi on the other hand scored a magnificent solo goal for Lorient in their 2-1 loss at home to Reims and it was his 9th league goal of the season

In Italy, Victor Osimhen was back at it scoring his 13th Serie A goal of the season while also registering an assist in Napoli’s dominant 6-1 win over Sassuolo as they officially booked their place in next season’s UEFA Champions League

In England, Kelechi Iheanacho scored a consolation goal for Leicester City in their 3-1 loss away to Tottenham on Sunday and they’ll be in action on Thursday in the UEFA Conference League semi-final 2nd leg against Roma. In the other semi-final, Cyriel Dessers was on the scoresheet for Feyenoord as they won the 1st leg 3-2 at home against Marseille and he’s officially the competition’s top scorer.

In Turkey, Anthony Nwakaeme’s Trabzonspor are officially champions for the first time in 38 years with the Nigerian forward playing a stellar role with 11 goals and 10 assists in 27 appearances this season and we’ll be seeing them in the UEFA Champions league next season!

In international news, the NFF have been fined by FIFA for the crowd trouble following the Super Eagles World Cup qualifier loss to Ghana and the Super Eagles will have to play our 1st AFCON 2023 qualifier at home against Sierra Leone without any fans. The Super Falcons have been drawn into Group C for the AWCON kicking off in July against South Africa, Botswana & Burundi and they’ll need to finish as one of the top 4 teams to book a place in next year’s women’s World Cup taking place in Australia & New Zealand

I rounded up with the Ones to Watch over this week which features a good number of our players in key European semi-finals. The Rangers trio of Joe Aribo, Leon Balogun & Calvin Bassey (who was named young player of the season for the club) will be in action on Thursday in the Europa League semi-final 2nd leg at home to RB Leipzig with both a trophy and a place in the Champions League at stake for the winner.

In the UEFA Conference League, Kelechi Iheanacho & Ademola Lookman’s Leicester will face off against Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma in the semi-final 2nd leg on Thursday in Rome while Cyriel Dessers will be in action in the other semi-final for Feyenoord who play Marseille away in the 2nd leg

I ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the past week including Moses Simon playing a stellar role for Nantes in their 5-3 win over Bordeaux in Ligue 1 as they continue to prepare for their French Cup final taking place in just under a fortnight

In Italy, Isaac Success continues to settle in nicely in Serie A at Udinese and he bagged his 2nd league goal & 7th assist of the season over the weekend in a 2-2 draw away to Bologna

In Russia, Chidera Ejuke scored the winner for CSKA Moscow in their 1-0 win over city rivals Dinamo Moscow after coming on as a sub

In international news, the Super Eagles will kick-off AFCON 2023 qualifying at home against Sierra Leone giving the team a chance to avenge the embarrassing 4-4 draw from 2020 before facing off against Sao Tome or Mauritius away with both games likely to take place between June 3rd to 14th following the conclusion of Nigeria’s friendlies against Mexico & Ecuador

I rounded up with the Ones to Watch over this week which features a good number of our players in key European semi-finals. Samuel Chukwueze & Villarreal head to Anfield to face Liverpool on Wednesday in the UEFA Champions League semi-final while the Rangers trio of Joe Aribo, Leon Balogun & Calvin Bassey (who was named young player of the season for the club) will be in action on Thursday in the Europa League semi-final away to RB Leipzig with both a trophy and a place in the Champions League at stake for the winner.

In the UEFA Conference League, Kelechi Iheanacho & Ademola Lookman’s Leicester will face off against Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma in the semi-final on Thursday while Cyriel Dessers will be in action in the other semi-final for Feyenoord who play Marseille at home in the 1st leg

I ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the past week including Taiwo Awoniyi scoring his 13th Bundesliga goal of the season in a 2-0 win over Entraicht Frankfurt this weekend

In England, Emmanuel Dennis scored his 10th Premier League goal of the season for Watford in their 2-1 loss at home to Brentford, which makes for an intriguing summer with Watford likely to be relegated so Dennis may be on the move to continue playing in the Premier League

In the Netherlands, Cyriel Dessers hot form continues with him reaching 13 goals for the season for Feyenoord after his brace in their UEFA Conference League 3-1 win over Peter Olayinka’s Slavia Prague to set up a semi-final showdown against Marseille

In Spain, Samuel Chukwueze scored the winning goal for Villarreal in their Champions League quarter final clash against Bayern setting up a tasty semi-final tie against Liverpool with the first leg taking place at Anfield on Tuesday

In international news, the Super Eagles have been drawn into Group A for the Africa Cup of Nations 2023 qualifiers where we will face Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau and either Sao Tome or Mauritius with the 1st set of qualifiers taking place in June

Additionally, the NFF have announced two friendlies for the national team against Mexico taking place on May 29th and against Ecuador which takes place on June 2nd

I also rounded up with the Ones to Watch over the coming week

I reviewed the 1st leg on the episode which took place on Friday March 25th at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi with both teams settling for a 0-0 draw before previewing the crucial 2nd leg taking place tonight at 6pm in Abuja including predicting our anticipated starting XI & the key questions ahead of the crunch tie

The international window is here again as the final spots for the 2022 World Cup get finalised over the next fortnight with Nigeria vying for a place against our West African rivals Ghana. I previewed the 1st leg on the episode which takes place on Friday March 25th at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi including predicting our anticipated starting XI & the key questions ahead of the crunch tie

Key midfielder Wilfred Ndidi will be missing from the tie after sustaining a knee injury in Leicester’s 2nd leg UEFA Conference leg Round of 16 tie against Rennes on Thursday and he’s been replaced in the squad by Lorient midfielder Innocent Bonke

I also ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues including Victor Osimhen scoring consecutive braces for Napoli over the past fortnight in respective 2-1 wins over Verona away & Udinese at home to take his league tally to 11 for the season while keeping Napoli firmly in the title race with 9 games to go

In England, Alex Iwobi scored a last minute winner on Thursday for Everton in their crucial 1-0 win over Newcastle to keep them out of the relegation zone while Cyriel Dessers has continued his excellent form in Netherlands with 4 goals and 2 assists in his past 5 games for Feyenoord

In Denmark, Akinkunmi Amoo scored his 1st goal for FC Copenhagen in his 1st start for the league leaders in a 1-0 win over FC Nordsjaelland over the weekend to move 21 points clear at the top of the table

The NFF announced the squad list for our crucial World Cup qualifying double-header against Ghana including recalls for our superstar Victor Osimhen with Emmanuel Dennis, Leon Balogun, Abdullahi Shehu, Peter Etebo, Odion Ighalo & Calvin Bassey also being recalled to the squad after the Africa Cup of Nations. Akinkunmi Amoo & Ademola Lookman also received their 1st ever call-ups to the Super Eagles

I also ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the past week including Moses Simon scoring the penalty in a 4-2 penalties win after a 2-2 draw against Monaco to take Nantes into the French Cup final !

In Turkey, Anthony Nwakaeme continued his excellent form for Trabzonspor by scoring his 10th league goal of the season to open the scoring in Trabzonspor’s 1-1 draw against Fenerbahce as they maintained their grip on top spot. He now has 20 goal involvements for the season with 11 goals scored in all competitions & 9 assists.

In the Premier League, Kelechi Iheanacho came off the bench to assist Harvey Barnes in Leicester’s 1-0 win over Leeds over the weekend

In France, Terem Moffi was also on the scoresheet for Lorient in their 4-1 loss at home against Lyon in Ligue 1 while Cyriel Dessers came off the bench to score the equaliser for Feyenoord in their 1-1 draw at home to Groningen in the Dutch Eredivisie

I also rounded up with the Ones to Watch over the coming week

I ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the past week including Taiwo Awoniyi becoming the 1st Nigerian to hit double figures this season for goals in the top 5 European leagues with his 10th of the season in Union Berlin’s 3-1 win over Mainz

In Belgium, Paul Onuachu notched his 16th league goal of the season in Genk’s 2-0 win over KV Kortrijik while Anthony Nwakaeme continued his excellent form for Trabzonspor by scoring a last-minute penalty for Trabzonspor in a 3-2 win over Kayserispor to take them 17 points clear at the top of the Turkish Super Lig. Ahmed Musa was also on the scoresheet this weekend, scoring the winner for Fatih Karagümrük away against Istanbul Basaksehir

In Italy, David Okereke scored his 6th Serie A goal of the season in a 3-1 loss away to Verona while Sadiq Umar continues to push Almeria towards automatic promotion back to La Liga with yet another goal on Friday in a 3-1 win over Fuenlabrada in Spain

In international news, the Super Falcons qualified for the Africa Women’s Cup of Nations after beating Ivory Coast 1-0 in Abidjan (3-0 on aggregate) and will head to the tournament later this year as one of the favourites to claim the title

I also rounded up with the Ones to Watch over the coming week

I ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the past week including Emmanuel Dennis scoring his 9th league goal of the season to give Watford a 1-0 win over Aston Villa on Saturday, which was a much needed boost to their hopes of staying in the Premier League

In Italy, Victor Osimhen scored his 7th league goal of the season for Napoli on Monday night after coming off the bench to rescue a point away to Cagliari while Moses Simon was in excellent form yet again; bagging an assist for Nantes in Ligue 1 as they brushed aside league leaders PSG 3-1 on Saturday night

In Scotland, Joe Aribo was back on the scoresheet for Rangers as he helped them secure a point away to Dundee United on Sunday while Anthony Nwakaeme continued his excellent form for Trabzonspor with a brace over the weekend as they thrashed Alanyaspor 4-0 to maintain their firm grip at the top of the Turkish Super Lig. In Czech Republic, Peter Olayinka also scored the winner for Slavia Prague in their league victory over Bohemians 1905 on Sunday

In international news, the Super Falcons beat Ivory Coast 2-0 in Abuja on Friday courtesy of a Ifeoma Onumonu brace to put the team firmly in the driving seat to qualify for the Africa Women’s Cup of Nations where they’ll compete for the title and for a place in next summer’s women’s World Cup taking place in Australia. The 2nd leg takes place on Wednesday in Abidjan

I also rounded up with the upcoming European fixtures in the Champions League & Europa League as well as the Ones to Watch over the coming week

I ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the past week including Moses Simon scoring his 3rd league goal of the season with a brilliant free-kick to win their Ligue 1 encounter against Reims over the weekend moving Nantes up to 9th place.

In Spain, Asisat Oshoala scored 3 goals in Barcelona’s two previous games (9-1 win over Real Sociedad & 3-0 win over Athletic Bilbao) which keeps her as the top goalscorer in La Liga with 19 league goals while in Belgium, Paul Onuachu scored his 14th league goal of the season as Genk cruised to a 2-0 win over Standard Liege on Sunday although they still find themselves in 8th place. Also Super Eagles number 1 Maduka Okoye kept a much needed clean sheet for Sparta Rotterdam in their 1-0 win over Willem II in the Netherlands

The Nigeria Football Federation also confirmed the eligibility switch of Leicester City’s Ademola Lookman to Nigeria, which was announced a couple days ago and he will be available for selection in our crunch World Cup qualifier games against Ghana. Additionally, the Super Falcons face Ivory Coast this week in a two-legged tie for a place at both AFCON & the Women’s World Cup with the 1st leg taking place this Friday in Nigeria

I rounded up with the upcoming European fixtures in the Champions League & Europa League as well as the Gameweek 26 Premier League games to come this weekend + the Ones to Watch

I ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the past week including Victor Osimhen scoring the opener in Napoli’s 2-0 win over Ebuehi & Okereke’s Venezia. It was his 1st start in Serie A since he fractured his cheekbone on November 21st against Inter Milan at the San Siro and the win moved Napoli within a point of Inter Milan in the title race with both teams set to face each other on Saturday in Naples.

Kelechi Iheanacho was also on the scoresheet for Leicester as they crashed out of the FA Cup after losing 4-1 away to Nottingham Forest while in Belgium, fit-again Paul Onuachu got an assist in Genk’s 2-0 win over Zulte Waregem

The Nigeria Football Federation also announced earlier today that Augustin Eguavoen will remain in charge of the Super Eagles for our crucial World Cup qualification double header against Ghana with Super Eagles legend Emmanuel Amuneke also drafted in to become his primary Assistant Coach

Finally, Senegal were crowned Champions of Africa on Sunday after beating Egypt 4-2 on penalties following a 0-0 draw with Sadio Mane scoring the winning penalty to bring Senegal their 1st ever continental title

I also previewed the upcoming fixtures happening over the coming week and weekend

Nigeria’s AFCON journey is unfortunately over after we lost 1-0 in our Round of 16 tie against Tunisia courtesy of a 47th minute goal by Youssef Msakni who’s shot got parried into the net by Maduka Okoye. Nigeria fielded the same starting XI we started the tournament with but it just wasn’t meant to be especially after substitute Alex Iwobi got sent off in the 66th minute

We’ll see what happens with the coaching situation ahead of our Nigeria’s next game, which would be the crucial World Cup qualifier against our arch rivals Ghana

I also briefly touched on the other Round of 16 ties, which have all been concluded with Burkina Faso, Tunisia, Gambia, Cameroon, Morocco, Senegal, Egypt & Equatorial Guinea all moving on to the Quarter-Finals

Nigeria fielded a line up with 8 changes against Guinea-Bissau to round up the group stage, winning 2-0 courtesy of goals from Umar Sadiq and on-field captain William Troost-Ekong to claim maximum points so far. Moses Simon also had another incredible game after coming on as a substitute culminating in him and Troost-Ekong being named in the XI of the group stages.

As a result of finishing 1st, Nigeria will play Tunisia in the Round of 16 on Sunday night in Garoua after the Carthage Eagles lost 1-0 to Gambia to finish 3rd in Group F in a game where they missed their 3rd consecutive penalty at the tournament.

I previewed the game in detail on the podcast as I expect Augustine Eguavoen to retain the starting XI who played against Egypt & Sudan for the crucial fixture

Also, earlier today, the draw for the World Cup qualification playoff round took place with Nigeria drawn against our close rivals Ghana for a place at the world’s greatest sporting event taking place in Qatar later this year.

It’ll be the first competitive fixture between both countries since the 2010 AFCON semi final and I fancy our chances of coming through the tie. The first leg will be played in Ghana on Wednesday March 23rd before the return leg in Nigeria on Saturday March 26th or Sunday March 27th

Nigeria fielded an unchanged line up as we impressively beat Sudan 3-1 to seal our progression to the Round of 16 as group winners on Saturday night

Samuel Chukwueze opened the scoring early in the 1st half after a fine cut back from Moses Simon before Taiwo Awoniyi scored his 1st goal for the Super Eagles to double our lead just before half time.

Moses Simon then capped off his man of the match performance with the 3rd goal of the game just after halftime although Ola Aina conceded a sloppy penalty, which Sudan converted to make the scoreline a bit more respectable for themselves

In the other group game, Egypt beat Guinea-Bissau 1-0 courtesy of a Mo Salah goal but Nigeria have sealed top spot due to our superior head to head record over the Egyptians

I also previewed our final group game against Guinea-Bissau taking place on Wednesday at 8pm in Garoua, which is where the Super Eagles will also play our Round of 16 tie before rounding up with an update on the other groups at AFCON 2021

Kelechi Iheanacho scored a banger for the Super Eagles in our very impressive 1-0 win over Egypt on Tuesday in Garoua to send us top of Group D after the 1st round of matches. It’s safe to say the team exceeded all expectations considering what we had seen under Gernot Rohr and it was probably the best performance from Nigeria in a good 2/3 years especially considering the opponent.

Coupled with the goalless draw between Sudan & Guinea-Bissau, the result puts Nigeria firmly in the driving seat to top the group and a win on Saturday against Sudan will guarantee our qualification to the knockout stages and could see us clinch top spot in the group if Egypt & Guinea-Bissau draw or we’ll need just a solitary point from our final group game to do so.

I also previewed the Sudan game and touched on the results from the other groups after Match-day 1

In this episode, I previewed the upcoming Africa Cup Of Nations, which gets underway in Cameroon tomorrow with Nigeria drawn in Group D to face Egypt, Sudan & Guinea-Bissau and also playing our opening game of the tournament on Tuesday against Mo Salah’s Egypt.

I ran through how the teams in Group D qualified while also previewing the Egypt game in detail including my anticipated starting XI for the game

Finally, I discussed my expectations for the other groups and the tournament in general including who I expect to win & finish as the tournament’s top goalscorer

I ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the past week including Samuel Chukwueze scoring in back to back games for Villarreal initially in a 7-1 Copa Del Rey win on Wednesday before rounding up the scoring in their 3-1 win over Real Sociedad in La Liga on Saturday.

In Germany, Kevin Akpoguma scored a last minute equaliser for Hoffenheim at home against Gladbach to maintain their impressive start to the season as they sit in 5th place and look likely to challenge for a UCL spot this season.

In Portugal, Zaidu Sanusi scored his 1st goal of the season for Porto in their 4-0 thrashing of Vizela on Sunday night to stay top of the Portuguese league. In Belgium, we saw Paul Onuachu score in back to back league games against Charleroi and Royal Antwerp although he unfortunately had to come off the pitch with a suspected hamstring injury and he’s unlikely to be fit for the Africa Cup of Nations

I also previewed the upcoming fixtures happening over the coming week and weekend

On Sunday, the Nigeria Football Federation confirmed the termination of Gernot Rohr’s contract as Super Eagles manager after over 5 years with former Super Eagles player & coach Augustine Eguavoen appointed as Interim manager ahead of AFCON taking place in January

Additionally, I ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the past week including Emmanuel Dennis continuing his great goalscoring form with his 7th Premier League goal of the season on Friday as Watford lost 2-1 away to Brentford after Troost-Ekong conceded a last minute penalty & Moses Simon also scored a spectacular last minute winner for Nantes in their 3-2 win over Lens on Friday in Ligue 1

In Scotland, Joe Aribo scored a superb volley for Rangers in their 2-0 win away to Hearts over the weekend while to take his tally to 6 league goals for the season including 4 goals in his past 5 games & he’s arguably the best player in Scotland on current form.

In Italy, Isaac Success was on the scoresheet on Tuesday night in a 4-0 win for Udinese in the Coppa Italia while over in Germany, Kevin Akpoguma’s Hoffenheim are currently sitting in one of the Champions League qualification places after winning back to back league games against Eintracht Frankfurt & Freiburg

I also previewed the upcoming fixtures happening over the coming week and weekend

I ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the weekend and midweek including Emmanuel Dennis continuing his great goalscoring form against Leicester City and Chelsea. Despite the losses, he has now accumulated 12 goal involvements in 13 appearances in the Premier League this season

In La Liga, Samuel Chukwueze scored his 1st league goal of the season for Villarreal in a 3-1 home loss to Barcelona & he also scored in their midweek 8-0 win in the Copa Del Rey

In Scotland, Joe Aribo scored a superb goal for Rangers in their 3-1 win away to Livingston over the weekend while Cyriel Dessers scored his 6th & 7th goal of the season for Feyenoord in the UEFA Conference League last Thursday to continue his good start to the season

I also previewed the upcoming fixtures happening over the weekend

I ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the weekend including Emmanuel Dennis getting a goal & 2 assists in Watford’s exceptional 4-1 win against Manchester United culminating in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s inevitable sacking.

In the Bundesliga, Taiwo Awoniyi continued his fantastic start to the season scoring his 8th league goal of the campaign in Union Berlin’s 2-0 win over city rivals Hertha Berlin

In Italy, David Okereke scored the winner for Venezia in a 1-0 away against Bologna on Sunday while Victor Osimhen unfortunately suffered a fractured eye socket & cheekbone in Napoli’s 3-2 loss away to Inter Milan on Sunday night and is forecasted to be out until the end of December and he’ll be facing a race against time to be fit for the Africa Cup of Nations

In international news, Gernot Rohr’s job seems to be hanging in the balance with news that he’s been rumoured to have been asked to quit the national team job and the NFF have apparently been taking applications for alternatives

I also previewed the upcoming fixtures happening over the coming week

Nigeria drew 1-1 at home against Cape Verde on Tuesday to seal top spot in Group C and qualify for the final playoffs round of the CAF World Cup qualifiers as one of the seeded nations due to being one of the top 5 ranked teams from the 10 teams that have qualified for the playoffs.

Victor Osimhen scored Nigeria’s goal in the 1st minute to take his WCQ qualification tally to 4 goals and he’s now scored 10 goals in just 19 caps so far in his career

I also touch on the rumours regarding Gernot Rohr’s position as the Super Eagles manager before rounding off the podcast with the preview of the weekend games involving our Nigerian stars in Europe

Nigeria beat the Lone Stars of Liberia 2-0 on Saturday in Tangier Morocco courtesy of two penalties dispatched by Victor Osimhen and Ahmed Musa setting up a final game showdown against Cape Verde taking place in Lagos on Tuesday at 5pm with the Super Eagles needing a win or draw to book our place in the final playoff round of qualifiers, which will take place in March 2022.

With the international break now upon us, I previewed the Super Eagles upcoming game against the Lone Stars of Liberia taking place on Saturday in Tangier, Morocco as a win will leave Nigeria needing just a solitary point to win the group and qualify for the final round of the CAF World Cup qualifiers

In other news, Watford announced the signing of Super Eagles no.1 goalkeeper Maduka Okoye on a 5 and a half year contract although he will remain on loan at Sparta Rotterdam until the end of the season.

In Italy, David Okereke scored the winner as Venezia beat Roma 3-2 at home on Sunday with a superb finish for his 3rd league goal of the season while Cyriel Dessers continued his excellent form scoring the winner for Feyenoord on Thursday against Union Berlin as well as yet another last minute winner in a 1-0 victory over the weekend against AZ Alkmaar

In Scotland, Joe Aribo was in excellent form for Rangers as he bagged a goal & an assist in their 4-2 win over Ross County on Sunday while Alhassan Yusuf scored his 1st goal for Royal Antwerp in their 2-0 win over Anderlecht in Belgium

The Super Eagles squad list was announced for our final two group stage matches of the World Cup Qualifiers against Liberia & Cape Verde including a baffling recall to the national team for Odion Ighalo after his international retirement following the 2019 AFCON.

Wilfred Ndidi, Alex Iwobi & Samuel Chukwueze all return to the national team after missing the last qualifiers due to injury while Zaidu Sanusi has been recalled to the national team following an improvement in form at FC Porto

In other news, Isaac Success scored his 1st Serie A goal for Udinese last week in a 1-1 home draw against Verona while Cyriel Dessers scored a last minute winner for Feyenoord over the weekend against Maduka Okoye’s Sparta Rotterdam

In Turkey, Anthony Nwakaeme scored the winner for Trabzonspor to maintain 1st position in the Turkish SuperLig over the weekend

CAF also confirmed the expansion of squad lists for AFCON from 23 to 28 as a result of the effects of the pandemic & I also previewed the upcoming fixtures happening ahead of the weekend

I ran through how our Super Eagles players performed in the top European leagues over the weekend including Emmanuel Dennis getting a goal & 2 assists in Watford’s exceptional 5-2 win over Alex Iwobi’s Everton at Goodison Park to hand Claudio Ranieri his firs win as Watford’s manager.

In the Bundesliga, Taiwo Awoniyi continued his fantastic start to the season scoring his 7th league goal of the campaign in Union Berlin’s 1-1 draw away to Stuttgart while also scoring in the UEFA Conference League on Thursday in a 3-1 loss away to Feyenoord. Chidera Ejuke also continued his excellent form scoring yet again in CSKA Moscow’s 3-1 win against Sovetov Samara to go 3rd in the Russian League

In Italy, Victor Osimhen scored his 4th goal in the Europa League so far as Napoli beat Legia Warsaw 3-0 and David Okereke also got on the scoresheet in Venezia’s 3-1 loss away to Sassuolo

Samuel Chukwueze also scored his 1st Champions League goal on his Champions League debut in Villarreal’s impressive 4-1 win away against Young Boys while Akinkunmi Amoo continued his great form for Hammarby in the Swedish top flight with a last minute winner as they beat Ostersunds 4-3 at home

In international news, the Super Falcons beat Ghana 2-1 on aggregate to progress to the final round of qualifying for the AWCON where they’ll face the Ivory Coast while NFF president Amaju Pinnick also confirmed that Leicester’s Ademola Lookman was in the process of switching allegiance from England to Nigeria, which is positive news for our squad depth

I also previewed the upcoming fixtures happening over the coming week