Football Nigeria -- Eagles Etcetera

One of the things that we now know is that the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) does not learn from history nor does it learn from data. One can only hope that NFF’s attitude towards history and data changes, particularly in an era of the much-vaunted “capacity building.” Perhaps, “capacity building” will include NFF building its own capacity to utilize data and plan with data in mind. Following the defeat in Alexandria and Nigeria’s elimination from the Cup for African Nations (CAN), it is important to point to a few things that make a difference in whether or not the Nigerian national team is often successful. An explanation for Nigeria’s biggest successes come from long term planning and sustained work by coaches appointed to lead the full national team. While it is clear that some of the nation’s problem transcends coaching or technical management, there is an aspect of that problem that is attributable to the team’s lack of sustainable technical management. These problems a...

Nigeria's game against Egypt away in Alexandria on tuesday is now all or nothing. The sudden withdrawal of Chad over the weekend, eliminated the chance for a second placed team qualifying for the 2017 Cup of African Nations (CAN) finals from Group G. Nigeria must NOW WIN in Alexandria to reach the CAN finals. Anything but victory, virtually eliminates Nigeria. Surely,  and mathematically, a draw can still get Nigeria through but it means Nigeria must hope Tanzania beats Egypt and that Nigeria wins big against Tanzania. Those possibilities are slim. The surest route, therefore, is a win in Alexandria. Nigeria will miss the service of starting goalkeeper, Carl Ikeme, on Tuesday. He will be one of a few projected regulars absent from this encounter. However, when Nigeria's skipper Mikel Obi walks into Alexandria Tuesday the focus will not be on those absent but on those present and ready to win the game. Mikel is without a win as captain of Nigeria after losing in his first tw...

A 1-1 tie today in Kaduna is a very disappointing result for Nigeria and puts Egypt firmly in the driver’s seat to reach the 2017 Cup for African Nations (CAN). Though Nigeria still has opportunity to finish first and qualify automatically or accumulate enough points to qualify as a second-placed team, those opportunities narrowed significantly today. This was a game in which Nigeria launched wave after wave of attacks and led by an all-important one goal until a poor defensive awareness by Amuzie cost Nigeria the three points. Egypt to be sure had a very good tactical plan and perhaps deserved the tie because in spite of Nigeria’s waves of attack, Egypt was largely successful in limiting Nigeria to few clear opportunities in front of goal. Moreover, Egypt was always dangerous in quick counters as had been anticipated. Even with a goal down, Egypt did not appear ready to attack with all it had. That apparently is reserved for Tuesday’s return in Alexandria. Instead, with a goal do...

Nigeria's qualification for the 2017 Cup for African Nations (CAN) hangs in the balance in two games against Egypt scheduled for Nigeria on March 25 and Cairo, Egypt on March 29. Egypt is currently in the driver's seat with two points in front of Nigeria. The team that finishes first qualifies automatically and the second placed team may well be out of contention even before the last phase of the qualifiers in September. Both teams failed to qualify for the finals of the last competition in 2015 and yet it is a competition where both countries are among a few elite teams over the years (see Graph). That underlines the importance of the two matches against Egypt. ________________________________________________________________________________ Decoding the Graph The graph below is based on 12 points for winning the CAN, 10 for second place, 8 for third, 6 for 4th, 4 for quarter-finalist, and 2 for group elimination. Zero applies to year of non-qualification. _______________...

In recent weeks it has become clear that the real story for Nigeria's football is not about the resignation of the national team coach Sunday Oliseh nor the fact that the country's legislative house announced its intentions to open a hearing on football.  In reality, the story is about the opportunity for Nigeria's football to bid for its independence from government stranglehold. What remains is whether in fact the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF), led by its President Amaju Pinnick, is able to come to that realization and take the "Bull by its horns." I had the opportunity, with several colleagues from the Nigerian Soccer League (NSL) in the Washington, DC Metro, to meet Mr. Pinnick in person a few weeks ago. One thing he said was remarkable. It was that with sponsorship, Nigeria's football can gain its independence from government control. Yet, now he is faced with the opportunity to seek that independence. If he does not know yet, here are just ...

In the last few weeks, the tumult within Nigeria's football was enough to force out Coach Sunday Oliseh and bring back Samson Siasia to a position that he last held in 2011. One of the issues that triggered Oliseh's clash with Nigeria's Football Federation was the issue of a host city for the all important Cup for African Nations (CAN) qualifier against Egypt. While Oliseh preferred Port Harcourt, the NFF decided on Kaduna. There is belief that hosting games in Nigeria's Northern cities, such as Kaduna, has not produced good results for Nigeria's Super Eagles. Most Nigerians would not prefer Port Harcourt either but in relative terms, they will likely select Port Harcourt over Kaduna. Ultimately, Nigerians believe that the best host city is Lagos and that a return to Lagos will be a return to winning home games. But is this really true? Is it just a myth or is there data to support such claims? Answers to those questions are provided here. To be clear, Nigeri...