Sports

Oliseh Worst Manager I Played Under — Mikel Obi

Published

4 months ago

January 14, 2024

Chelsea legend, John Mikel Obi has described former Super Eagles head coach Sunday Oliseh as the worst coach he worked with during his career.

Recall Oliseh had a short stint as the Super Eagles head coach after taking over from late Stephen Keshi in 2015.

During his tenure, Oliseh endured a torrid time as he complained of poor treatment from his employers, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF).

One of the major talking points of his seven month career as coach of the Super Eagles was his misunderstanding with Vincent Enyeama, which eventually forced the goalkeeper to quit international football.

Mikel Obi, speaking on his ObiOne podcast, described how Oliseh caused chaos in the Eagles’ camp on his first day.

He said: “I remember the first day he came into the camp. Then we reported to the camp for International duties, then he came straight at me and Vincent Enyeama, the goalkeeper, who also was very powerful back then.

“He came straight at us and Elderson Echiejile, and he said a few things. He said he heard there was a lot of player power with us.

“Then Enyeama was like, ‘What’s wrong with you? Where are you getting all of these from? We are a nice group, and you just come in, and the first thing is to attack us?

“He was like ‘I heard about you guys.’ And then Enyeama stood up and told him he couldn’t say that because we had been here for so many years. They started arguing, and literally, they were going to have a fight.

“He took Enyeama out of the team, and he came at us saying he was going to take us out of the team. He said he was going to take us out of the team; he said he was going to make sure we didn’t play anymore.”

“Enyeama could not take it, and despite my pleas, he left the camp angrily and never came back.”

Mikel Obi also remarked about his competence as a manager, saying he was clueless as a Super Eagles coach.

Obi said, “He (Oliseh) had absolutely no clue of how a manager is. He was a fantastic guy in his playing days, but as a coach, he was very terrible. He had no clue what he was doing.

“The players never understood anything he was doing, and he did not know what he was doing. He was just confused because he just came in and destroyed the team’s togetherness.

“His excuse when he got fired was that the people and FA did voodoo on him not to succeed. He was easily the worst manager I played under.

“He was so bitter with everybody, jealous with everybody, and had no respect for speaking to anybody, whether the physio or anybody,” he added.

Sports

10 Facts About New Super Eagles Coach, Finidi George

Published

2 days ago

April 29, 2024

Editor

The Nigeria Football Federation on Monday announced the appointment of former Super Eagles winger Finidi George as the new head coach of the nation’s senior men’s national team.

The announcement came in a statement, with the NFF Board approving the recommendation of its Technical and Development Committee to hand over the reins to the 52-year-old former Ajax Amsterdam and Real Betis forward.

The new Super Eagles boss’s immediate task will be to guide the team to victory in two crucial 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches against South Africa and the Benin Republic in Uyo and Abidjan, respectively, within the next five weeks.

However, takes a look at 10 things about Finidi George as compiled by The PUNCH.

1.⁠ ⁠Finidi George was born on April 15, 1971, in Port Harcourt, Nigeria.

2.⁠ ⁠⁠He played as a right winger and was known for his pace, accurate crosses, efficient dribbling, and free-kick abilities. He played for three clubs in Nigeria including Calabar Rovers and Sharks of Port Harcourt.

3.⁠ ⁠⁠George had a successful club career with Ajax, winning 8 major titles including the 1995 Champions League.

4.⁠ ⁠⁠He also played for Real Betis in Spain, nearly joining Real Madrid before that move fell through.

5.⁠ ⁠⁠George spent one season with Mallorca and then joined Ipswich Town in the Premier League for £3.1 million in 2002.

6.⁠ ⁠⁠He made his international debut for Nigeria in 1991 and earned 62 caps, appearing at the 1994 and 1998 World Cups.

7.⁠ ⁠⁠George won the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations with Nigeria and helped them reach the round of 16 at the 1994 World Cup.

8.⁠ ⁠⁠At the 1994 World Cup, he scored against Greece and celebrated with a famous ‘urinating dog’ celebration.

9.⁠ ⁠⁠He has 11 brothers, two of whom (Igeniwari and Celestine) were also professional footballers.

10.⁠ ⁠⁠In September 2021, George was appointed head coach of Nigerian club Enyimba F.C. and won the Nigeria Premier League with them in June 2023.

Sports

JUST IN: Finidi George Appointed New Super Eagles Head Coach

Published

2 days ago

April 29, 2024

Editor

The Nigeria Football Federation has appointed former Super Eagles winger Finidi George as the new head coach of the nation’s senior men’s national team.

The announcement came in a statement on Monday, with the NFF Board approving the recommendation of its Technical and Development Committee to hand over the reins to the 52-year-old former Ajax Amsterdam and Real Betis forward.

Finidi George, who spent 20 months as an assistant to the outgoing José Santos Peseiro, had been serving as the interim coach after the Portuguese tactician’s departure following the Super Eagles’ impressive run to the final of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire.

During his interim tenure, George oversaw two friendly matches in Morocco last month, where the team ended an 18-year winless streak against Ghana with a 2-1 victory before suffering a 0-2 loss to Mali.

“George, a member of the so-styled ‘Golden Generation’ that won the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Tunisia and emerged as the second most entertaining team in Nigeria’s debut at the FIFA World Cup finals in USA the same year, won 62 caps for Nigeria, including featuring at the 1994 and 1998 FIFA World Cup finals,” the NFF statement read.

Reflecting on his illustrious playing career, the statement highlighted George’s achievements, which include “gold, silver and bronze medals from the 1992, 1994, 2000 and 2002 AFCON tournaments.”

One of George’s most memorable moments came when he “assisted Rashidi Yekini (of blessed memory) to score Nigeria’s first-ever FIFA World Cup goal against Bulgaria in Dallas, USA on 19th June 1994,” the statement noted.

The NFF statement emphasised that “the matches are must-win encounters, with the Super Eagles lagging behind in third place in Group C of the African campaign behind Rwanda and South Africa.”

Sports

5 Games That Will Decide Who Wins EPL Title

Published

3 days ago

April 28, 2024

Editor

With the run-in to the English Premier League (EPL) title heating up, Manchester City and Arsenal are having a fierce go at each other, not to forget a Liverpool that cannot be totally ruled out of the race just yet.

Currently leading the pack, Arsenal sit atop the Premier League table with 80 points, closely followed by Manchester City with 79 points and a game in hand. Mikel Arteta’s side has been stellar this season, picking up from where they left off last campaign and ensuring that they don’t repeat the mistakes that saw the League title painfully slip off their hands.

Manchester City, on the other hand, are very familiar with this competition, and the odds are right in their favour to go ahead and do what no team has ever done, that is, win the EPL title four consecutive times.

But to do that, they need an impeccable run of results in their remaining four games in the current campaign, and the title will remain at the Etihad.

For Liverpool, it is almost over after managing to pick up a meagre one point from their last three games to leave them gasping for breath in chase of the top two.

Be that as it may, in less than three weeks, the new champions of England will be known, and that event will most likely be decided by these five upcoming games:

Man United vs Arsenal (12 May)
The biggest game Arsenal have left in the current campaign. On this day, Arsenal will make a trip to Old Trafford for a match that could decide whether or not they end the season trophyless.

Arsenal vs Everton (19 May)
Arsenal faithfuls will hope this day will be the day they get to lift the English Premier League at the Emirates after 20 years should Man City falter in their remaining games, and they get a perfect run-in to close the league. However, it will be delusional for Arsenal to expect an easy game against a rejuvenated Everton side who just survived relegation and would want to end the season on a good note.

Fulham vs Man City (11 May)
Fulham can be a potential banana skin to any team, and you want to avoid them especially when you are chasing a very important trophy. Pep Guardiola, however, has them to worry about and engineer his side to get past for a perfect run to the title.

Tottenham vs Man City (14 May)
The outstanding match that gives Manchester City a subtle edge in the standings. This has every sign to be the ‘final’ of the Premier League season, and Manchester City know they have their work cut out going to a tough ground like the Tottenham Stadium to grind out a win against a team desperately chasing a Champions League ticket.

Man City vs West Ham (19 May)
Like Arsenal vs Everton, Man City could lift their fourth consecutive EPL title should they avoid defeat prior and get a win at the Etihad against West Ham in the final day of the Premier League season.