Football Nigeria -- Eagles Etcetera

The Nigerian national team played its first international against Sierra Leone in Freetown on October 8, 1949 on its way back home from a tour of the United Kingdom. The records below run from that game in Freetown until date. INDIVIDUAL Top Goalscorer (All time) 1.  Rashidi Yekini  37 2.  Segun Odegbami  24 3.  Yakubu Aiyegbeni  21 4.  Ikechukwu Uche 19 5.  Obafemi Martins 18 Top Scorer (per game: Minimum 10 games) 1.  Elkanah Onyeali  0.79 2.  Thompson Usiyan  0.60 3.  Rashidi Yekini   0.58 4.  Sunday Oyarekhua  0.55 5.  Segun Odegbami 0.50 Players with Multiple Scores in a game 1.  Joseph Aghoghovia  4 v Thailand  Oct. 3, 1968 1.  Elkanah Onyeali   4  v Dahomey (Benin Rep.)  Nov. 28, 1959 1.  Rashidi Yekini   4  v Burkina Faso  July 27, 1991 4.  Jude Ighalo 3 v Libya Oct. 13, 2018* *Ighalo is the latest of numerous pla...

Kyiv - Nigeria plays against Ukraine in Kyiv during the FIFA International Match week. Already, Nigeria will miss several top names including Wilfred Ndidi and Kenneth Omeruo. Added to that list are thew retirees skipper Mikel Obi and Jude Ighalo. Indeed, the Kyiv international is already looking like a rebuilding phase for Nigeria. But while fans are expecting the debut of the likes of Aribo, Okoye, and Josh Maja; the other story is Ahmed Musa's march towards a major national team record. Nigeria's Ahmed Musa, at 27 years old, is headed towards a record number of international appearances for Nigeria's senior national team. He has 90 appearances already and is just 10 games away from matching Joseph Yobo at second place with 100 appearances. He needs 12 games to go ahead of Vincent Enyeama who has, currently, the most appearances at 101. See Table 1 below: Musa should be at almost 100 games by late 2020 and will surely be the record holder if he r...

There is no disputing the pedigree of Nigeria's 1994 national team that was ranked No.5 in the world, won the Cup for African Nations (AFCON), and reached the last 16 at the World Cup. Clearly, no Nigerian team has come close before and since then. Although, there are those who may argue that the 2013 team comes close but certainly not in the minds of a great number of Nigerian teams that witnessed that 1994 team. But having stated the above, it is arguable whether that 1994 team can be classified as Africa's best squad ever in spite of its lofty No. 5 ranking back then. Some may well argue that the team's failure to overcome Italy at the 1994 World Cup forever condemns the team to a place in the rankings behind the three African teams that have ventured to the last 8 of a World Cup. But should statistics and records be the deciding factors on this issue of Africa's best? Well, lets take a look. The Argument for Quantification For an examination of quantitati...

The AFCON 2019 is over and Nigeria finished in third-place, a position that has become attached to Nigeria's performance at the AFCON across historical times. In spite of the noise surrounding whether Manager Gernot Rohr should stay or leaved, the essence of this blog is not on Manager Rohr but on matters that extend beyond Rohr. But first, let's take another look at the 2019 AFCON. The Issue of "Youngest Squad" and Championship Expectation The idea that Nigeria may have taken the youngest squad to the tournament does not mean that the aspiration was not to win the championship. The reality is that Nigeria is always one of the favorites when it comes to being at the AFCON tournament. Importantly, this Nigerian team, on the average, is actually older than the Nigerian team that won the 1980 AFCON! Thus, being the youngest team does not preclude ability to win a tournament like the AFCON. Chasing Egypt, Cameroon, and Ghana: Is it a Bridge Too Far? Thos...

When CAF announced months ago that the 2019 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) would suddenly include 24 instead of 16 teams, many frowned at the move. There were those who immediately predicted a watered down AFCON, an AFCON where the big guns will destroy the minnows, and several unwatchable games. Yet, by the time the 24-team event ended in Egypt, those doom day forecasts have suddenly disappeared under the pit of dystopia from where it had raised its ugly head. The new reality is that so little differentiates the so-called big guns and the imagined minnows of African football. The difference is simply the narrow margin that determines who has opportunity to win the entire thing and those who struggle to get to that point of opportunity. Why the Gap Has Closed One thing is clear, the narrowed gap between the supposed big guns and the imagined minnows should have been apparent to those who cared to observe in the recent past. The Confederation's diligent move to establish the ...

Egypt -- Odion Ighalo scored his fifth goal to match Rashidi Yekini's Nigerian record set at the 1994 tournament and it was all that was needed for Nigeria to finish third ahead of Tunisia. However, the disappointment of having to appear in this third place game put the damper on the win. Apart from some sparkle early and then late, this game was played under a cloud of inconsequentiality. Although the team rallied to win, it is obvious that a significant number of Nigerians are baying for the Coach to be fired. The Federation has indicated that Coach Rohr will see his contract through December but knowing the fluidity of the Nigerian environment, nothing should be considered certain. This match, in large part, reflects the angst of the Nigerian public. The inability of the Nigerian team to dominate possession over its opponents was , again, evident. In none of Nigeria's four games, after the group phase, has the team controlled possession. Against Tunisia, the story was the ...

Cairo, EGYPT -- Nigeria's quest for a championship crumbled today in Cairo, Egypt as the Super Eagles lost 1-2 to Algeria. Now, Nigeria is left to vie for third-place in the 2019 AFCON against the Tunisians who also lost in the other semi-final. Nigeria was outplayed in this game and the deciding goal deep into injury time reflected much of the play. Nigeria was, again, dominated in terms of ball possession but this time the opponent repeatedly had opportunities which they could not put away. At least on two separate occasions, before the half hour mark, Nigeria was lucky to keep the game at 0-0. Eventually, the ball found its way into Nigeria's net. It came in the 39th minute. Collins had been beaten badly by Mahrez on the right but it appeared that the Nigerian defense was in position to defend Mahrez's cross. Instead, William Ekong deflected the cross beyond his own goalkeeper and into the net.  Nigeria looked revived in the second half with Alex Iwobi becoming ...