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Forget Senegal 2016 ticket, Le Roy tells Nigeria
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…Rates Dream Team high
From OBED MPIEGBULAM, Port Harcourt
Jubilant Congo coach, Claude Leroy said he hope that his wards can end the Nigeria’s dream for a place at the eight team tournament later in the year in Senegal going by the latter’s 2-1 in Port-Harcourt on Sunday.
“We never contemplated about beating the Nigerian team at home because we are still dreaming to be like Dream Team of Nigeria. On Sunday we lost 2-1 but it was the Nigerian team that created a lot of chances. They were better but 2-1 loss is not too bad for my players,” said the veteran Frenchman.
For the Frenchman, the slim loss was only an assurance that the job was half done for his side and believed that victory at home was assured.
For his Nigerian counterpart, Samson Siasia, there were reasons to be optimistic since his charges had shown overtime that they are good travelers, following recent victories away when they dispatched off Gabon (4-1) and Zambia (2-0) in Libreville and Lusaka respectively to seal qualification for the African Games Brazzaville 2015.
“We got carried away (after scoring two goals) instead of concentrating on the match. These are the areas we are going to look at (before the second leg). This team is still young. We have a lot of things to put in place. There is a lot of work to do before the second leg in Congo but I’m comfortable with the score line today,” Siasia observed.
Nigeria managed a 2-1 win over Congo on Sunday in front of a partisan capacity crowd in Port Harcourt in their third round first leg clash of the African U-23 Championship Senegal 2015 qualifiers.
The encounter could have ended in a convincing win for the hosts after overwhelming the Red Devils in the first half, but the curtain raiser only came on 48 minutes through Junior Ajayi after Congo goalkeeper, Christoffer Mafoumbi failed to hold on to an acute-angled shot by Godwin Saviour.
Ajayi doubled the lead six minutes later, when he powered home with a brilliant header off a cross from Daniel Etor.
However, Moise Nkonkou’s goal in the 66th minute when he rammed home a rebound from Nigeria’s goalkeeper Emmanuel Daniel meant there is still very much to play for in the second leg in Pointe Noire in a fortnight.
The second legs will take place in a fortnight with winners qualifying for the final tournament of the African U-23 Championship scheduled for 28 November to 12 December in Senegal, where the top three teams will represent Africa at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, and the fourth placed team facing an Asian side in a playoff.
[/b]
sunnewsonline.com/new/forget-senegal-2016-ticket-le-roy-tells-nigeria/

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Le Roy Optimistic Of Qualifying For CAF U-23
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By Peter Edema - Lagos
Congo U-23 coach, Claude Le Roy, is optimistic of qualifying for the CAF U-23 Championship, which also serves as the qualifiers for the Rio Olympics football event, after a narrow 2-1 loss to Nigeria U-23 team on Sunday in Port Harcourt.


Claude Le Roy

The encounter could have ended in a convincing win for the hosts after overwhelming the Red Devils in the first half but the curtain raiser only came on 48 minutes through Junior Ajayi after Congo goalkeeper Christoffer Mafoumbi failed to hold on to an acute-angled shot by Godwin Saviour. Ajayi doubled the lead six minutes later when he powered home with a brilliant header off a cross from Daniel Etor.
However, Moise Nkonkou’s goal in the 66th minute when he rammed home a rebound from Nigeria’s goalkeeper Emmanuel Daniel means there is still very much to play for in the second leg in Pointe Noire in a fortnight.
Le Roy is hopeful that his wards can end the Nigeria’s dream for a place at the eight team tournament later in the year, even as he agreed that they were lucky to lose 2-1.
“Today (on Sunday we lost to Nigeria) and I think we were lucky to lose only 2-1.
“We never contemplated about beating the Nigerian team at home because we are still dreaming to be like Dream Team of Nigeria.
“Today (Sunday) we lost 2-1 but it was the Nigerian team that created a lot of chances. They were better but 2-1 loss is not too bad for my players,” said the veteran Frenchman.
“Nigeria created a lot of chances and they have a lot of super players,” Leroy added.
“We did not play at our normal level on Sunday. However, most of my young players are coming from small clubs in Brazzaville while others play in Academies.
“We missed some of our important players who played against Ghana (in the previous round of qualifying,” he said.
Leroy concluded by declaring the Nigeria team superiors to both Ghana’s U23s and his Congo side.
“Nigeria is better than the Ghanaian team we beat in the last round. Nigeria is also a little bit better than us.
“After we lost 2-1 to Ghana (in the first leg of the last round), we knew we had to win 2-0 (in the second leg) or win on penalties.
“Now we know we have to beat Nigeria 1-0 to qualify and we will do our best to achieve that,” he said.
The second leg will take place in a fortnight at the Stade Municipal, Pointe-Noire with winner qualifying for the final tournament of the African U-23 Championship scheduled for 28 November to 12 December in Senegal, where the top three teams will represent Africa at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, and the fourth placed team facing an Asian side in a playoff.
[/b]
dailyindependentnig.com/2015/07/le-roy-optimistic-qualifying-caf-u-23/

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FG approves fund for AAG
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From ROMANUS UGWU, Abuja
Itis hope rising for the Team Nigeria participating in the All Africa Games (AAG), following the disclosure by the National Sports Commission (NSC) that the Federal Government has approved the release of funds for the participation of the Nigerian athletes scheduled for the September in Brazzaville, Congo.
The Director General of NSC, Alhassan Yakmut, who made the disclosure during a chat with journalists at the Indoor sports hall of the Abuja National Stadium, after inspecting the facilities and training of Nigerian wrestlers and weightlifters preparing for the games, however, said the details of the approval would be officially communicated to the sports commission today.
Although the NSC DG could not disclose the exact budget the commission forwarded to the Presidency, he however, promised to account to Nigerians every kobo collected from government, assuring that the commission under his reign would make accountability its watchword in line with the transparency mantra of the current government.
While urging the athletes to be focused, as the commission had prioritize their welfare in its list of expenses for the Games, he, however, warned the commission will employ the full weight of the law on any athlete that tested positive to banned substance.
Promising that with him at the head, the era of Nigerian athletes begging after retirement was over, he revealed the commission had reversed the trend of hotel beds earning more than the allowances given to the athletes by ensuring that the athletes hostel became operational.
“I understand the Presidency has approved our budget for the funding of the All Africa Games. We were told that the details would be communicated to the commission officially on Tuesday and as soon as they communicate the details of the approved budget, we will not hesitate to make it public because we intend to run a very transparent administration
“By the time we finish computing all that we have done in the last three months, we are going to release details of how much we have spent on each item in our preparations for the games, including the federations because they are beginning to feel the public funding scheme, which they have received so far, especially the ones that are preparing for the All Africa Games,” he noted.
Warning the athletes against doping, the DG, who compelled them to take oath of commitment to abstain from drug said: “The era of using drug is gone. I want to here and now tell you that we will not encourage that. We will not hesitate to apply the full weight of the law on anyone involved in doping.”
The NSC boss, who equally disclosed that Nigeria would be participating in 19 sports Nigeria has comparative advantage, said that it had also put swimming and gymnastics on standby as it would be ready to register them as soon as it discovers any extra ordinary performance that could give the country a medal from its athletes.
[/b]
sunnewsonline.com/new/fg-approves-fund-for-aag/

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Nigeria v Congo U-23 Africa qualifier: Wike splashes dollars on Dream Team
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[img]http://sunnewsonline.com/new/nigeria-v-congo-u-23-africa-qualifier-wike-splashes-dollars-on-dream-team/[/img]

• Extends team’s stay in Port Harcourt
By Emma Njoku
Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State yesterday handed the sum of $60,000 to the Dream Team following the team’s 2-1 victory over Congo in an African U-23 Championship qualifying game played on Sunday at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium.
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) confirmed this much on its website, thenff.com yesterday.
The Governor had promised the players the sum of $30,000 for every goal and $100,000 for a 3-0 win. Addressing the players and officials at a reception hosted for the team, Governor Wike expressed joy that the Samson Siasia-tutored team played one of the best football matches he had seen in years.
“You guys made Nigerians proud with the way you played against the Congolese; you showed that the future of Nigeria football is bright and that the NFF is on the right path in putting the country’s football on the world map. All I can tell you guys is that if the Congolese can score a goal here, you can do more than that in Congo in the return leg. I am proud of you and so is the generality of Nigerians.”
Governor Wike appealed to the NFF to bring more matches including those of the Super Eagles to Port Harcourt, stressing Rivers State’s readiness to put the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium to full use as the edifice is one of the best in the country.
The Governor then disclosed that in a bid to ensure that the team gets all the support and prepares without distraction to excel in Congo in the return leg, he would be extending their stay in the Port Harcourt by another week.
NFF’s 1st Vice President, Barr. Seyi Akinwunmi, on behalf of the leadership of the Federation, thanked Governor Wike for the massive support he gave the team, including mobilizing over 40,000 spectators to cheer the Dream Team to victory at the stadium.
He expressed delight that the Dream Team won the first competitive game played at the new stadium, which is a sign of good things to come.
Also in attendance at the party were; the NFF’s 2nd Vice President, Shehu Dikko, NFF Executive Committee members Barr. Chris Green and Alhaji Ibrahim Gusau as well as the Deputy General Secretary, Dr. Emmanuel Ikpeme.
[/b]
sunnewsonline.com/new/nigeria-v-congo-u-23-africa-qualifier-wike-splashes-dollars-on-dream-team/

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2015 CAF U23 Championship Qualifiers Nigeria U23 Etor Daniel Essien
How Dream Team fared vs Congo
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Godwin Saviour, a more skilful version of Amokachi, heads for goal for the Dream Team against Congo

AfricanFootball.com reviews the individual performances of Nigeria against Congo in a CAF U23 Championship qualifier in Port Harcourt Sunday.
Dream Team dominated this clash, but poor marksmanship meant they could not kill off this tie before the return leg match in Pointe-Noire.
Daniel Emmanuel 6
The Rangers shot stopper did not have much to do on the day, but pulled off a point-blank save before Congo put away the rebound in the 66thminute for their precious away goal.
Sodiq Atanda 6
The right fullback helped out in the attack as the defence was not really tested by visiting Congo. The big test will be in Pointe-Noire.
Stanley Amuzie 7
The Italy-based defender impressed at leftback. He showed he is a skillful player with a great left foot and was brilliant when he joined the attack.
Segun Oduduwa 6
The Nath Boys of Lagos central defender was confident on the ball, adventurous when going forward. His shot off a free kick on 32 minutes was on its way to goal before it was blocked for a corner by the Congo goalkeeper.
Erhun Obanor 6
He held the defence together and brought to bear his wealth of experience having also featured for the country’s CHAN team.
Azubuike Okechukwu 7
It was a master-class display by the skipper. He showed great composure when on the ball. He also won the ball in the midfield and delivered some passes to get the team going. He tried an audacious attempt at goal from the centre circle in the 34thminute.
Etebor Oghenekaro 7
The Warri Wolves star provided the creative juice for the Dream Team. He also put in a decent shift of winning the ball in the middle of the park.
Usman Mohammed 7
Another good day in the office for the FC Taraba skipper. He was a calming influence in the midfield and he also back tracked to the defence.
Etor Daniel 7
The most decisive player in the team’s attack, he used his speed and lethal left foot to great effect. He gave the assist for the second goal and he would have scored himself but for wayward shooting.
Junior Ajayi 8
Man of the match despite missing a handful of sitters. He scored the two goals that won Nigeria the match and kept the Congo defence on their toes for the 70 minutes he was on the pitch. With more self-belief he would have helped himself to more goals on the day.
Godwin Saviour 7
This more skillful version of Daniel ‘The Bull’ Amokachi again showed great engine as he covered every blade of grass on the pitch. He drew several fouls in dangerous areas and the goalkeeper failed to hold on to his angled shot for Ajayi to open scoring.
Musa Yahaya 4
Struggled to find his feet when he replaced Etor in the 68thminute, possibly he has yet to fully jel with the team after coming through from the U20s.
Taiwo Awoniyi 4
He was surprising left on the bench, but for the 20 minutes he came on for goal scorer, he failed to convince. He will need to do a lot more after what he did with the Flying Eagles.
Umar Aminu
The Turkey-based forward only had seven minutes on the pitch, not enough to rate his performance.
[/b]
africanfootball.com/news/551476/How-Dream-Team-fared-vs-Congo

Ihenacho just gave a nice assist to sterling

Was Junior Ajayi part of the squad that beat Zambia 2-1 in Lusaka?

Me see him as more adventurous and more imposing than Taiwo Awoniyi.

Ihenacho just scored now for Man City..

Xlad:
Ihenacho just scored now for Man City..

Balling!!!

One goal and one assist for City....I really want to curse Manu and Nduka out right now, but all in due time

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Iheanacho and Sterling score for Manchester City against Roma
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The Nigerian youngster provided the assist for his team mate as they took an early lead against Roma before scoring in the second half in the International Champions Cup
By Lolade Adewuyi

Nacho (m)
Kelechi Iheanacho provided an early assist for Manchester City’s £49m striker Raheem Sterling before scoring in the second half to kick off their International Champions Cup game against Roma in Melbourne on a high note.
The young Nigerian laid a well-placed pass in front of the Englishman who made no mistake in finishing past Roma goalkeeper Morgan de Sanctis in the third minute.
However, the Italians pulled back five minutes later as Miralem Pjanic profited from a Gervinho pass.
Iheanacho also saw a header saved by de Sanctis before the first half ended 1-1.
In the second half, he scored to increase City's lead to 2-1 after Roma defender Ashley Cole overhit a pass which fell into his path and he wasted no time before hitting into the top of the net.
Iheanacho was substituted in the the 73rd minute and he was replaced by Enes Unal.
Coach Manuel Pelegrini has stated that Iheanacho has a bright future with the club as the youngster continues to hope for a first team place in a star-studded City squad.
[/b]
m.goal.com/x/en-ng/news/13766322

safarigirl:
One goal and one assist for City....I really want to curse Manu and Nduka out right now, but all in due time

No need to curse them. They should and are ashamed of themselves right now wherever they are. I have come to agree with what I realized long time ago, that some of our Coaches don't even know how best to use most of our players.

PELLEGRINI: "I think that the big positive was to see two young players like Garcia & Kelechi – they had very good performances."

LeeCodeman:
MANU GARBA & UGBADE!!!!!

Ah...my mind has cursed you already. I will not talk anything.

nacho is proving his doubters wrong. Those shouting he is too small, he has not been playing top football pls is AS ROMA a grade team. Let us learn to appreciate our own.The thing wey de behind Manu n Ugbade's actions for that competition will soon come to limelight-though t hurts...

I believe Sterling is going to be good for Iheanacho and vice versa

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Nigeria: Under-23's Face Tough Battle in Pointe-Noire - Siasia
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By Augustine Akhilomen
Lagos — Aftermath of U-23's 2-1 victory over Congo in the Port Harcourt on Sunday, coach Samson Siasia has admitted that the team faces a tough task of overcoming the Red Devils in the return leg at Pointe-Noire.
A second half brace from Junior Ajayi had put the team in a comfortable lead before Congo's Nkoukou Miose pulled a goal back to give the Red Devils a chance of qualifying for the tournament.
However, Siasia said that the team must be at its best against Congo in the return leg.
"The second leg will be tougher I can assure you of that," he said.
"We have to improve on our performance on the day because we have to do better in Congo.
"The good thing now is that we have seen them play and we know what to expect so we will be ready but I am confident we will get the required result," he added.
Siasia is optimistic of qualifying despite the slim 2-1 victory, blamed the outcome on overconfidence.
He confidence stems from the team excelle nt away records. The Nigeria U-23 defeated 4-1 Gabon in Libreville and also beat Zambia 2-0 in Lusaka to qualify for the African Games football event holding in Brazzaville 2015.
"We were carried away (after scoring two goals) instead of concentrating on the match. These are the areas we are going to look at (before the second leg). This team is still young. We have a lot of things to put in place. There is a lot of work to do before the second leg in Congo but I'm comfortable with the score line today," Siasia observed.
[/b]
allafrica.com/stories/201507210746.html

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Nigeria: Amiesimaka Lauds Siasia, Team
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Former Green Eagles winger, Adokiye Amiesimaka, has lauded Coach Samson Siasia and the team despite the slim 2-1 defeat of Congo in the first leg last round qualifiers for the CAF U-23 championship, which also serves as qualifiers for the Rio Olympics football event.
Amiesimaka in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) praised Siasia for assembling a formidable and quality team.
"Although the score line was in favour of Nigeria, it did not reflect the dominance of the team. But it was win, a deserved win," he said, adding that the performance of the team was very commendable.
"I saw in the players a sense of professionalism that is rare to find in our teams, at least in the recent times.
"Commitment to a cause, one could see from the beginning of the game till the end that they played with a sense of purpose.
"I am making this point to encourage them to continue in that spirit," Amiesimaka said.
Meanwhile, Siasia, says the players were not distracted by financial promises made to them prior to qualifier.
"These boys were not here for the money. They wanted to make sure Nigerians are happy with what we are doing so that we could qualify for the Olympics," Siasia said at the post-match press conference.
The coach then commended the partisan crowd for the support they provided for his team during the game.
"We won but we did not get the number of goals we wanted to score (before kickoff).
"All the same, scoring two goals is not easy.
"When we go to (Pointe-Noire for the second leg), they will be the ones coming out to try to score against us.
"The bottom line is that we have won and we just have to celebrate this win and focus on the next game.
"We created a lot of chances we were supposed to take advantage of in the first half but we did not. That's football.
"They created probably just two chances all game and scored one goal," he said.
NAN
[/b]
allafrica.com/stories/201507210743.html

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Iheanacho praises Sterling, hopes to break into Manchester City first team[/size]
The Nigerian provided an assist for debutant Raheem Sterling before scoring one against Roma and is hopeful he can break into the Citizens’ main side based on his hard work
By Lolade Adewuyi

Kelechi Iheanachohopes to break into the Manchester Cityfirst team this season after providing an assist and scoring another in Tuesday’s penalty shootout victory over Romain Melbourne.
The Citizens opened scoring after Iheanacho sent debutant Raheem Sterling through on goal with a well-placed pass early in the third minute before he scored in the 51st minute when Ashley Cole misplaced a back pass.
However, Miralem Pjanic and Adem Ljajic both scored either side of the City goals to end the game 2-2 before the former English champions won 5-4 on penalties.
Speaking on his hopes for the new 2015-16 season, Iheanacho insisted he is in a good position to finally make his senior team debut.
“I hope to play because I've been training hard, working hard with them during the pre-season. So I hope to break into the first-team,” he said.
The 18-year-old was also full of praise for his team mate who just made a big money move to City.
“[Sterling's] a very good player and I feel very honoured playing with him. He's a very good player, intelligent and skilful and quite strong,” Iheanacho offered praise.
City coach Manuel Pelegrini also had a good thing to say about the impact of the Nigerian forward, one of two young players who started the game.
“Well I think that the big positive from this game was to play two very young players in Kelechi Iheanacho and Manu Garcia. I thought they both had a very good performance today,” Pelegrini said.
[/b]
m.goal.com/x/en-ng/news/13782722

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Siasia invites Sokari, 4 others for Congo - Kingsley Sokari handed Nigeria U23 call up
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The Flying Eagles midfielder has been invited to the Dream Team VI camp ahead of next week's African U23 Championship qualifier against Congo
By Shina Oludare

Nigeria U23 gaffer has asked five players to join his team ahead of the return leg of the African U23 Championship final qualifying fixture against Congo in Pointe Noire.
The players are Esperance new signing Kingsley Sokari, Semiu Liadi (Warri Wolves), Aminu Umar (Osmanlıspor), Abdullahi Shehu (Qadsia SC) and Ndifreke Effiong (Abia Warriors).
Claude LeRoy’s side will be hoping to qualify for the tournament at the expense of Nigeria despite losing the first leg 2-1 in Port Harcourt.
According to Siasia, the invited players were called upon to solidify the team ahead of the battle in Pointe Noire on August 2.
The home -based professionals are expected to report to camp with immediate effect while the foreign based professionals are expected in camp by this weekend.
[/b]
m.goal.com/x/en-ng/news/13795622

terzurum5:
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Siasia invites Sokari, 4 others for Congo - Kingsley Sokari handed Nigeria U23 call up
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The Flying Eagles midfielder has been invited to the Dream Team VI camp ahead of next week's African U23 Championship qualifier against Congo
By Shina Oludare

Nigeria U23 gaffer has asked five players to join his team ahead of the return leg of the African U23 Championship final qualifying fixture against Congo in Pointe Noire.
The players are Esperance new signing Kingsley Sokari, Semiu Liadi (Warri Wolves), Aminu Umar (Osmanlıspor), Abdullahi Shehu (Qadsia SC) and Ndifreke Effiong (Abia Warriors).
Claude LeRoy’s side will be hoping to qualify for the tournament at the expense of Nigeria despite losing the first leg 2-1 in Port Harcourt.
According to Siasia, the invited players were called upon to solidify the team ahead of the battle in Pointe Noire on August 2.
The home -based professionals are expected to report to camp with immediate effect while the foreign based professionals are expected in camp by this weekend.
[/b]
m.goal.com/x/en-ng/news/13795622

What différence will these new players make? Are they better than d ones previousely in camp? When i saw 5 new inclusions i was expecting to see more experienced and exposed players like: Aaron Samuel, Kenneth Omeruo, Kingsley Madu, Kennedy Otigba, Imoh Ezekiel. But no na another bunch of novices.