FOOTBALL MADE IN NAIJA INCLUDING NIGERIA FOOTBALL IN BRIEF 2012

Its Monday yet again, and this time the final day of the year 2012, Soccer4life is proud to share this last day of 2012 with you, bringing you the best stories making Headline in Nigeria and we shall also provide you with some major event that took place in Nigeria Football this 2012.
Chelsea midfielder John Mikel Obi will join up with the rest of the Nigeria as squad as scheduled, according to his agent John Shittu.

The midfielder is currently recovering from a minor knock but Shittu says there is no question of the Chelsea star turning up late.
"He has a minor injury, which he is recovering from, but he will be in Portugal by January 5. He has not made any request to report late."
Only one player is expected to report a day behind schedule, and that is Ike Uche, according to Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi

“No, we have no discussion to let some players stay with their club sides beyond January 5 and the rules are very clear, if any player fails to make the date and without permission we will apply the rules.
"Apart from Ikechukwu Uche, who has been given till January 6 to arrive in the camp, because of the concession his club in Spain gives to the Super Eagles, especially regarding the Catalonia friendly, all other players are expected in the Faro camp of the national team by January 5," Keshi said.


Although Obafemi Martins was not called up by coach Stephen Keshi, the diminutive striker has been given a chance to feature in the 'Nations Cup'.
Martins has been invited to feature in a local mock ‘Nations Cup’ tournament which took place at Ajegunle on (Friday) 28th Dec 2012.
 The tournament, which has has been dubbed a 'homecoming', will feature several foreign-based Nigerian footballers who will take on their home-based counterparts.
 Other notable players expected to feature in the competition include Brown Ideye and Odion Ighalo.
 Lawrence Alabra, the director of the competition, which was held at Apapa Navy Training Ground in Ajegunle, Lagos, told The Punch that many of the invited foreign pros began their careers at the competition.

Leon Osman has heaped praise on Nigeria's Victor Anichebe, saying the striker’s current form could prevent the club from making reinforcements in the January transfer window.

“Of course he could save the manager some money in January. That would be great for the manager I’m sure,” Osman said of Anichebe.
“He was a real handful for West Ham. He put himself about and was just a physical as they were. He surprised them with how strong he was and held the ball up well for us at times.
“If we can keep him fit he’s a great weapon to use whether it’s from the start of the game or coming off the bench.”
After shaking off injury, Anichebe made a goalscoring return in Everton's 2-1 win over West Ham and even started in the 'Toffees' Boxing Day victory over Wigan, providing the assist for Osman's opener.
Anichebe has scored four goals in 10 games for Everton this season.

NFF President Aminu Maigari wants all lingering issues in the Nigeria Premier League resolved ‘quickly and conclusively’ before the commencement of the 2012/13 League season.

The NPL has been dogged by sponsorship disputes, in-fighting, allegations of corruption and mismanagement.
The problems led to crisis which resulted in the removal of the executive committee and the constitution of an interim Premier League Management Committee.
Inaugurating that committee on Thursday in Abuja, Maigari directed the members to ensure that all outstanding issues are resolved before the new season kicks off.
“For avoidance of doubt, this is a national assignment of no mean significance,” he says. “The management of the top tier of the domestic league of any country has serious consequences for that nation’s football.
“None of the national teams can be said to have been composed without players from the domestic league, and even those who play overseas start from the home front.
“Certainly, each member of the 2012/13 Premier League Management Committee has been carefully chosen, based on quality of experience, broad-mindedness, capacity, proven ability, painstaking virtues, love of the game and diligence and dedication.
“Importantly, let me add that whatever issues have to sorted out must be done in line with rules and regulations, equity and good conscience. The nation is bigger than any single individual or corporate body, and it is the interest of the nation that we are talking about here.”
Committee chairman Nduka Irabor said it was an honour to be called to serve the nation, and pledged that the members would do their utmost best to redress all issues hindering the development of the Premier League.
2012/13 PREMIER LEAGUE MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE
Hon. Nduka Irabor (Chairman)
Hon. Sabo Babayaro (Vice Chairman)
Mallam Salisu Abubakar (Member)
Mrs Modele Sarafa-Yusuf (Member)
Mr. Mike Enahoro (Member)
Mr. Kunle Elebute (Member)
Mr. Shehu Dikko (Member)
Amb. Nwankwo Kanu (Member)
Barr. Ifeanyi Dike (Member)
Barr. Seyi Akinwunmi (Member)
Hon. Abubakar Nuhu Dan Buran (Member)
Mr. Mike Idoko (Member)
Mr. Tunji Babalola (Secretary)

Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi is prepared to overlook six months wages owed to him by the NFF as he readies his squad for the African Nations Cup.

Keshi is reportedly owed around N30 million, being six months wages, but the coach refuses to make an issue of it.
"Not that I don’t need money but the nation takes precedence, money will come at the right time but let’s work first and we will get our dues," Super Ragles media officer Ben Alaiya quotes Keshi as musing philosophically.
According to Alaiya, Keshi says he "understands the financial position of the federation and does not have any salary dispute with the Aminu Maigari led board.
"In fact the board and by extension the Sports Ministry have been very supportive since I became the national coach about a year ago."

Kanu named in NPL's interim board
A 13-man interim committee has been set-up to oversee the management of the Nigeria Premier League pending when elections are organized next year.

The committee which was approved at the NFF congress on December 13 in Port Harcourt to fill the void left by the ousted of Victor Baribote led board, is to be headed by Nduka Irabor.
Other notable members include former Super Eagles captain Nwankwo Kanu, NPL secretary-general Tunji Babalola, Mike Idoko, Mallam Salisu Abubakar, Mrs Modele Sarafa-Yusuf, Sabo Babayaro, Mike Enahoro, Kunle Elebute, Shehu Dikko, Seyi Akinwunmi, Ifeanyi Dike and Abubakar Nuhu Dan Buran.
The committee has been charged with the responsibilities of putting logistics in place for the commencement of the league next month, reviewing of all contractual obligations of the NPL including sponsorships and TV rights, developing new standards to improve welfare of players and developing new strategies to drive the league towards profitability.
The committee is also expected to review existing rules and regulations governing the conduct of election into the NPL board.
Now that the committee has been set-up, it is expected that a kickoff date for the commencement of the new season will soon be announced.

The Nigeria Football and Other Sports Supporters Club is making arrangements to promote the Nigeria Premier League and lure fans back to the stadiums.

This disclosure was made by the President-General of the club Rafiu Ladipo to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
“We have innovations which we want to introduce to our Premier League, to attract fans to our stadia and encourage our players to work for victory. But I do not want to let it out now for it not to be stolen, but by the time we do it, you will see that our stadia will be packed full at each match,” he said.
He however stated that he was not discouraging fans from following foreign leagues.
“We will encourage Nigerians to watch Nigerian games just as we will not discourage them from watching European leagues either,” he said.
The Nigeria Premier League is billed to kick-off in January next year, however an official date is yet to be fixed.

NIGERIAN FOOTBALL IN BRIEF FOR 2012

Falconets come close again

The U17 female national team, the Flamingoes, again represented Africa at the FIFA U17 World Cup in Azerbaijan.

The young ladies did their best, but crashed out in the quarterfinal, losing 5-3 to France through a penalty shootout after the game ended in a stalemate.

The U20 female national team featured at the FIFA U20 World Cup, which was staged by Japan.

Falconets, who made history by becoming the first African team to reach a World Cup final two years ago in Germany, did well to again reach the semi-final, but failed to grab a medal after they lost the third-place game to hosts Japan 2-1.

A good number of the squad led by Desire Oparanozie are now very much a part of the Super Falcons.

But this past year will go down as the worst in the history of the once-all-conquering Falcons as they failed in all the major competitions.

Falcons failed to win a medal at the Africa Women’s Championship for the first time in history at Equatorial Guinea 2012. That was the first time they will lose two games at the AWC.

The once invincible Falcons equally failed to qualify for 2012 Olympic football event losing the ticket to Cameroon.


Eagles back at AFCON as Eaglets soar highest
Three teams in this category of National teams gave Nigerians something to cheer as they recorded good results.

Flying Eagles enjoyed a good run in the qualifying series for the 2013 Africa Youth championship (AYC), where they are expected to defend the trophy they won in South Africa in 2011.

They eliminated Tanzania and a very good South African team to reach the final tournament in Morocco next March.

The country’s U17s, the Golden Eaglets, also put smiles on the faces of Nigerians with resounding victories on their way to qualifying for the African Junior Championship in Morocco in April.

It is the first time the Eaglets will qualify for the tournament after they failed to do so in 2007 and 2009.

The Super Eagles, under new coach Stephen Keshi, performed well in the year in review as they qualified for the 2013 AFCON after failing to reach the 2012 edition.

Besides making up for the failure to feature at the 2012 Nations Cup, Keshi also gave several of the players in the Nigeria Premier League (NPL) a chance to fight for a place in his team.

While the likes of Chelsea new boy Victor Moses, Shola Ameobi of Newcastle, Spain-based Nosa Igiebor and Bright Dike, who plays his football in the United States of America, have brought fresh competition to the team.

Under Keshi, the Eagles won six, lost two and drew six matches in 2012.

Sunshine Stars shine brightest
Four clubs represented Nigeria in the CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup with only Sunshine Stars reaching the last four in the more prestigious Champions League.

Champions Dolphin failed to go beyond the qualifying rounds of the Champions League, while Sunshine surprised many to reach the semi-final of the competition in their first attempt at the competition. The Akure club would lose 4-3 on aggregate to eventual winners Al Ahly of Egypt.

In the Confederation Cup, Warri Wolves and Heartland could not qualify for the group stage despite great expectations.

NPL: More action in board room than the pitch
The past league champions Kano Pillars were eventually decided in the boardroom after Ocean Boys were expelled from the league for failing to honour a minimum number of matches.

And the leadership tussle at the NPL took a dramatic turn when the Victor Baribote-led executive committee was ousted by the clubs for non-performance.

Baribote has since sought redress in court, challenging his impeachment.

In place of the owner of newly promoted Nembe City, an interim management committee led by Nduka Irabor was appointed by the NFF to reposition the league.

Heartland successfully defended their Federation Cup and will again fly the country’s flag in the 2013 Confederation Cup.


Goodbye to King of Goals Nigeria was thrown into mourning following the death of the country’s most prolific scorer at international level Rashidi Yekini after a brief illness.

The 1994 and 1998 World Cup star has lived a reclusive life since he hung up his boots in the early 2000s.

He was aged 48.

Former Shooting Stars skipper Sam Ojebode would also give up the ghost.
Henry Ihelewere also died in action for his Romanian club in August.

Another Nigerian player, Austin Ndife, also suffered a heart attack while in action in Nepal.

Former Eagles skipper Victor Oduah also breathed his last this year.