₦airaland Forum

ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.

Siena:
It was obvious from the onset she was bumped off, though more to do with the fact she may have been pregnant, and carrying the child of a moslim. She was also planning to marry Al Fayed.

You do know this is a tabloid right??

sage:
Its really sad because in Nigeria we are always emotional about everything. We wonder why our country is upside down but when you have a populace that acts more on emotions than on rationale thats what you get

That is where the problem lies. When leaders make decisions based on emotions (especially anger) then you know you are in trouble.

omo, where is james posey when you need him? He is the one that was supposed to be guarding Kobe like last time now the job has to fall on Pierce.

There is one important group of people on nairaland that is being ignored and overlooked. . .

The Schizos - People with Multiple personality disorders and hence have accounts that mimic either The Ethnicists or The Faithfuls or The Fanatics or The Elites or The Ignorants or The Realists or The Grazers or The Idiots

Yes oooooooo.

chrisical:
That was a blinder from Rodallega

yep, but did you see the maicon goal or the neymar goal at 74? my oh my.

shilling:
I've always thought it was pretty obvious. . . obviously not to some people - this is new.

My oh my, Nigerians looooooooove conspiracy theories.

sage:
E be like say some people need anger management classes or maybe they just need to head to the village and wash their head of their bad luck!

You see why i don't get into this kind of arguements. Nigerians don't know how to argue without getting personal. It seems that we can't keep our emotions under control which is so sad.

12large:
awest african teams might lack creative midfilders, but certainly not nigeria. we have
stanley okoro,haruna lukman,rabiu ibrahim and emmanuel ekpo all these midfilders are skillfull ball jugglers except lukman, so nigeria is not lacking in that department the problem for us is that we have a useless coach that always believe in old players. imagine how better nigeria would have been if kanu and utaka was dropped for okoro and ibrahim

Jugglers?!?!?! since when did juggling have anything to do with creativity. What about creating something out of nothing like Ronaldinho? Haven't you watched Wesley Sneijder play? or Francesc Fabregas are these guys "jugglers"?. If you want to go back in time, why not watch Zidane and how he is able to split defenses with his pass.

Football is not all about dribbling or else Denilson would have been the greatest player ever.

I also like the fact that it highlighted the fact that Africa has never had a great winger.

Very very interesting article.

West African nations continue to struggle to find skillful playmakers

Two decades ago, the general characterization of African football was that it was too undisciplined. Africa could produce great, powerful forwards and skillful midfielders, but it was let down by defensive inadequacies. The stereotype has proved hard to shift, but if it was ever true, African football left it far behind a long time ago.

The powerful forwards still exist, and they have been joined by great driving holding midfielders and defenders. In North Africa, there are skillful creators -- Egypt has Mohamed Aboutrika and Mohamed Barakat; Algeria has Karim Ziani; Morocco's Adel Taraabt shows great promise -- but in West Africa there is nothing. Even Ivory Coast, with its so-called "golden generation" of players, has lacked real flair.

A key figure in the French club Marseille of the early '90s was the Ghanaian Abedi Pele, a creator who won the man of the match award in the 1993 Champions League final. At the Cup of Nations in 1996, the Ghana side featured him and Ni'i Lamptey, a young and clever deep-lying forward whom Brazil's Pele hailed as the closest thing he had seen to himself. Lamptey's career was ruined by injury and personal tragedy, Abedi Pele retired aged 36 in 2000, and the wait goes on for a player of their type to emerge again.

Abedi Pele blames the pace of the modern game. "If you look at Kaka, he is technically very good, maybe the same talent as [Nigeria's Jay-Jay] Okocha," he said. "But if you look at Okocha, he didn't counterattack. He didn't run very fast. Kaka is somebody who takes the ball on the run. It's a different style of football.

"I would say the more efficient way today is like the Brazilians are playing. They slow the game from the defense, and when they get to the midfield they start passing it very fast. And when the ball gets to Kaka or Robinho, the speed comes from there. Today is a different kind of football."

Which is true, but that doesn't explain why terrific creative players continue to be produced in South America and Europe while the African flow has dried up.

The Nigeria side that won gold at the 1996 Olympics and impressed at the 1994 and 1998 World Cups was a gloriously attacking, inventive team that, with Kanu and Okocha, featured not one but two players who in another age might have been out-and-out playmakers. Okocha retired two years ago at 35, while Kanu struggles on as a 33-year-old who looks a lot older (whatever the truth of the speculation over his "real" age, the fact is that over the past year he has played a full game just three times, two of them in the final month of the season when Portsmouth's financial situation meant it couldn't even fill its bench). There is nobody beyond Kanu, and such is the dearth of creativity in Nigerian football that there was even semi-serious talk of Okocha's coming out of retirement for one last shot at the World Cup this summer.

Okocha suggests the issue is one of evolution, that African football, by trying to introduce the rigor of the European game, has come to overlook some of the things that elevated it in the first place.

"I see that African football is heading away from flair and more toward the team," he said. "Football has changed over the years and there aren't really any playmakers anymore. It's more about tactical work. I see African countries playing more like European ones. That's the only way to become competitive. It's a pity it's at the expense of flair, because fans want to enjoy their money and see good football. If you could combine the flair with goals it would be great."

Again, the obvious rejoinder is that other areas of the world seem to manage the balance.

Perhaps the issue is simply evolutionary, but Tom Vernon, Manchester United's scout in Africa, who runs an academy in the hills above the Ghanaian capital Accra, suggests the problem is partly economic. Given the lack of money available in domestic West African football, a natural stage in any player's career is to move -- as soon as possible -- to a European club. That dynamic of player development is different in Africa than elsewhere. Although most top South American players end up in Europe at some stage, it is possible to have a perfectly good career without leaving, and the players who do move tend to do so later, when they are fully formed, than West African players.

European clubs, Vernon says, have become fixated on a particular type of player -- what he calls "the Papa Bouba Diop template." They have seen the success of the likes of Diop, Michael Essien and Mahamadou Diarra and instinctively look for similarly forceful holding players. That sort of talent moves to Europe early and gets the best coaching, making him most likely to develop into a top player.

Exacerbating the problem is the lack of width in the West African game -- has there ever been a great West African winger? -- something Vernon attributes to the conditions in which most children there learn the game.

"They have a pitch maybe 20 or 30 yards long, and set up two stones a couple of feet apart at either end, often with gutters or ditches marking the boundaries at the sides," he said. "So it's a tiny area. The game becomes all about receiving the ball, turning and driving through the middle."

And so the Papa Bouba Diop template is perpetuated, and Nigeria ends up fielding a central midfield of Yusuf Ayila, Dickson Etuhu and Mikel John Obi, not because it particularly wants to play defensively, but because it has nobody else.

What is needed to break the pattern is an outstanding creative player who will persuade European clubs that it is worth investing beyond the preconception. It is a terrible burden to place on a 21-year-old, but there are signs that Udinese forward Kwadwo Asamoah, who impressed for Ghana as it won the U-20 World Cup last year and then again in the Cup of Nations in January, could be Abedi Pele's heir. Ghana and West Africa need him to be; they need at least part of the old stereotype to become true again.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/soccer/world-cup-2010/writers/jonathan_wilson/05/29/africa.playmakers/index.html#ixzz0peys0XFv

STILLWATER,
WHERE DO YOU LIVE?? I KNOW SOMEONE WHO LIVES IN A STILLWATER?

ELOSELA,
OMO, YOU TRY OOO . You grew up in Milwall of all places.

These are the same people who wouldn't let us participate.

The thing keeps mutating and its getting harder and harder for drugs to fight it.

The Oba, witnesses said, was whisked off by a team of policemen in a patrol vehicle. He was said to have fallen into a ditch in an attempt to escape from the mob, his cap reportedly fell off his head.

HILLARIOUS

1. DR Congo

“Wiping out football corruption in the Congo is impossible,” revealed Nazaire Diabinda, director of the Institute for the Deaf in DR Congo capital Brazzaville, after discovering that deaf and dumb teenagers, working as turnstile operators for $4 a game, were selling tickets at discounted rates to unscrupulous touts. Back in 2005, it had been estimated that half the income taken at turnstiles ( £100,000 every weekend) was being stolen. League secretary Badji Mombu claimed the deaf and dumb teenagers were “incorruptible,” but now inventive touts, having mastered sign language, convey to the turnstile operators that they will be rewarded if they sell tickets to them on the cheap. Gate receipts have now tumbled by 30%.

he he he.

Rodallegaaaaaaaa.

[quote author=Sean-Lewis link=topic=454081.msg6127856#msg6127856 date=1275375755]Cesc fabregas goal against tottenham was great! But what about C fabregas goal against A C milan on CL 2008?[/quote]Now i know why students fail in school, una no dey read instructions?? It is the 101 goals of the 2009/10 season not 2008 geez?

[quote author=tpia. link=topic=452846.msg6127510#msg6127510 date=1275368799]that was[b] your[/b] experience.

dont generalize since not everyone shares it.

i dont know where you come from where they worship light people. Plz share.

as far as i know, naijas (especially yorubas) can abuse anyone or anything if they feel like it. Fanta face came from somewhere. Does that sound like a compliment to you.[/quote]Stop being in denial. Nobody may "worship light people" but people ridicule the really dark folks so stop lying and pretending jare.

sage:
Well you should never generalize. You might be surprised but I lived in the South for some years and I met wonderful people. It was a nice white southern family that first came to my aid when i got here. They helped me to settle down and welcomed me like family.

There is another African guy that I schooled with in one of the cities in the south. This guy black pass night sef. Infact the guy black sotey im dey almost invisible. He met a white chick and got introduced to her family. To my surprise the family welcomed him with open arms, treated him like their son and he spent all his december holidays with them. The girls dad was a top man for one of the electronic firms and helped him secure high paying summer internships. I think he is engaged to her now.

Funny thing is the same Kenyan guy would get rejected by a lot of Naija families from marrying their daughter just because he is of a different nationality and ethnicity.

I grew up in Aba. I witnessed so many helpless Hausas/Fulanis dragged out and massacared in front of me. Hacked to death and some burnt alive. Helpless men, women and children who did nothing wrong but belong to the "wrong" ethnic group. The hoodlooms that killied them on a friday would usually end up going to church on sunday to worship "God"

A lot of people in Aba who are otherwise good people cheered on the wanton cold-blodded murder of innocent people. Others gave a silent nod of approval to what they saw as justified killings in retribution for killings of Igbos in the North. I still get chills whenever I remember it.

There is discrimination in every part of the world an their are good and bad people in every society.

Only a fool expects everybody to like him everyday and everwhere. Some people are gonna dislike you be it in Naija or overseas. U dont let that deter you from pursuing your dreams


N/B: I actually hate all this artificial divisions like labeling people "white", "black" etc that seprates people based on "race" but thats a discussion for another day

omo, you are sooooooooooooo right. Southerners are the nicest people in America by faaaaaar. Its tradition for a southerner (people from the deep south) to treat a stranger like they've known them forever which can at times be misleading. BECAUSE A SOUTHERNER OF THE OPPOSITE SEX TREATS YOU SOOOOO WELL NO MEAN SAY SHE LIKE YOU OOOOOOOO, NA JUST THERE WAY (learn that from experience )

By the way, you are so right about what southerners did to the Northerners in the reprisal killings in the late 90's and early 2000's, i remember that when i was going back to boarding school, we couldn't go because we had to go through Aba back then and boy was it awful.

No. 38 is ridiculous.

omo, has anyone gone through the entire list yet?

mbulela:
According to Warren Buffet, "the best way to become a millionaire ,start as a billionaire and buy an airline".

Thank goodness for that quote. I have never understood why Nigerians have ever been interested in airlines, they don't make money, not only in yanki but in lots of other places.

Alxmyr:
Another worthless discussion.
Waste of thread,

WHY IS IT A WASTED THREAD? BECAUSE YOU WANT TO CHOP MONEY RIGHT.

its absolutely true, for example Ronaldinho is black in their eyes. the whiter you are ,the better it is even though more than 50% of the population is non white. most brazilians wouldnt be open about it but the blacker you are , the less important you are.
most people living in favelas are blacks so people will automatically think that you are from there and since most people living in favelas are poor and uneducated therefore you can imagine how hard the struggle is.t

this is why i always have to walk around with a passport, to vouch (in their eyes) for my worthiness, because to most brazilians, blacks are just uneducated good for nothing thug/criminals.

it was a vicious circle because people didnt hire coloured for "top"jobs and therefore there was more blacks doing crime. you can even see it in the modelling industry there, not a lot of black topmodels,but they will tell you that its just because they dont "appeal"to the masses. what a joke!

thanks to LULA, things are changing and now there is affirmative actions to make sure that there is a quota of blacks that are hired in gov, places, schools, universities etc. . . . . . . . . also the same program have a set amount places for students with good grade from poor background to attend top universities(favelas) .

By the way, don't we make fun of our darker brothers in naija by calling them "dudulabi" or "duduyemi".

its absolutely true, for example Ronaldinho is black in their eyes. the whiter you are ,the better it is even though more than 50% of the population is non white. most brazilians wouldnt be open about it but the blacker you are , the less important you are.
most people living in favelas are blacks so people will automatically think that you are from there and since most people living in favelas are poor and uneducated therefore you can imagine how hard the struggle is.t

this is why i always have to walk around with a passport, to vouch (in their eyes) for my worthiness, because to most brazilians, blacks are just uneducated good for nothing thug/criminals.

it was a vicious circle because people didnt hire coloured for "top"jobs and therefore there was more blacks doing crime. you can even see it in the modelling industry there, not a lot of black topmodels,but they will tell you that its just because they dont "appeal"to the masses. what a joke!

thanks to LULA, things are changing and now there is affirmative actions to make sure that there is a quota of blacks that are hired in gov, places, schools, universities etc. . . . . . . . . also the same program have a set amount places for students with good grade from poor background to attend top universities(favelas) .

Omo, thank the lord that i grew up in Nigeria where i developed my identity and never cared about skin shade.

Elosela,
Omo, you try o , you grew up in Millwall.

Phil too lucky jare.

This is excellent, i think my home state should remerge with Ondo state also. IN FACT WHILE THEY ARE AT IT, NIGERIA SHOULD ONLY HAVE 6 STATES LIKE THE DAYS OF OLD WITH EACH LGA BEING SELF SUFFICIENT.

If Lakers lose this time around, Phil jackson might quit just like he did last time.

omo, when would my home state start issuing bonds so that i can buy? abi them no sabi wetin bonds be? so so sad that everybody keeps waiting for federal govt allocation instead of seeking independence from the federal republic.