13022020

Vanguard, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2020 —45
NFF appoints Yobo as Eagles’
assistant coach
•To replace Amapakabo
The Nigeria Football Federation
has appointed former Super
Eagles’ defender and captain
Joseph Yobo as assistant coach of the
team. He replaces Imama Amapakabo
in the three –time African champions’
technical crew.
Yobo, who played for the Nigeria U20
boys - Flying Eagles – during the FIFA
World Youth Championship (now known
as FIFA U20 World Cup) in 1999, won
his first cap for the the senior team in an
Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match
away to Zambia in Chingola in April
2001, and played in three FIFA World
Cup finals in 2002, 2010 and 2014.
The attack –minded defender also
played in six Africa Cup of Nations finals
in 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2013,
capping it with leading the Super Eagles
to their third continental title in South
Africa in 2013. He played a total of 100
matches for Nigeria at senior level.
A thoroughbred and dedicated
professional who played his club football
in five countries, including sterling
appearances for Olympique Marseille
in the French top flight, Fenerbahce in
Turkey and Everton FC in the English
Premiership, Joseph Yobo scored several
crucial goals for the Super Eagles in
important qualifying matches for the
FIFA World Cup and the Africa Cup of
Nations. He was also among the scorers
when the Eagles
thrashed South Africa’s
Bafana Bafana 4-0 in a
group phase match in
Tunisia 16 years ago.
Born Joseph Michael
Yobo on 6th September
1980, the flamboyant
stopper also played club
football in Belgium with
Standard Liege, Tenerife
in Spain and Norwich
City in England, having
started out with
Michellin-Harcourt in
Rivers State in 1996.
Rohr: Omeruo, Osimhen, Ndidi
will be available for Sierra Leone
•Omeruo •Osimhen •Ndidi
Coach Gernot Rohr is
confident of his key
players’ availability for next
month’s 2021 Africa Cup of
Nations qualifying fixtures
against Sierra Leone.
Over the weekend, some Nigeria
internationals were stretched off
while in action for their respective
clubs in Europe, including Kenneth
Omeruo in Leganes’ La Liga defeat
while Lille forward Victor Osimhen
and Nantes’ Moses Simon were
withdrawn after scoring a goal each
in Ligue 1.
The Super Eagles are
scheduled to play Sierra Leone
at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium
on March 23 followed by a
reverse fixture in Freetown eight
days later, and Rohr has
provided an update on his
players’ injuries.
“I’m very confident that our
injured players will come back
soon. There is only one big injury
which is Uzoho because he is out
for several months but the other
ones like Osimhen will be okay
very soon and is already better.
Omeruo has only a knock on the
head, Kalu whom I saw, is
already nursing a comeback this
weekend,” he told Aoi Football.
“For Moses Simon, we have to
wait to know the extent and for
Ndidi, he is resting very well and
will be fit very soon and then we
have a little injury for Etebo but
it’s not a big one, and he couldn’t
play over the weekend.”
Nigeria sit at the summit of
Group L’s qualifying group for
the 2021 Afcon, with six points
after two matches while the
Leone Stars are rooted at the
bottom with a point after the same
number of matches.
•Yobo
No going back on Edo 2020
National Sports Festival –Dare
Minister of youth and
sports Development
Mr. Sunday Dare has
cleared all doubts on the state
of readiness of the Samuel
Ogbemudia Stadium to host the
20th edition of the National
Sports Festival billed to kickoff
on 20th March in Benin City.
Speaking after an on the spot
assessment visit to the Samuel
Ogbemudia Sports Complex in
Benin, he declared “I am
impressed with what I have seen
at the Samuel Ogbemudia
Sports Complex, it shows clearly
that consistent work has been
going on here.
“There has been huge
commitment on the part of his
Excellency Governor Godwin
Obaseki and his Deputy Mr .
Philip Shaibu to ensure that this
place is completed in a record
time.
I have seen progress and I can
say this stadium is about 85% or
90% ready for the National Sports
Festiva” he declared.
Governor Obaseki also reassured
that the stadium will be ready by
the first week of March.
It would be recalled that the last
edition of the National Sports
Festival was held in Abuja, with
Delta State emerging as the overall
winner.
We’ve no money to bury coach Toblow, widow
cries out
•Toblow
Widow of late renowned
athletics coach, Tobias
Igwe cried out yesterday that his
family has been left in the lurch
as the March 5, 2020 burial date
is fast approaching.
According to Jane Igwe, the
family has not received any form
of assistance from any quarter
adding that coach Toblow
continues to suffer after he died
on December 18, 2019.
“His burial is fast approaching;
it’s three weeks from now and we
haven’t got any money to give him
a befitting burial.
“He was owed a lot of money by
the Abia State government,
despite all our efforts to make
them pay us something, at least
ATTF lists fields for Olympic Qualifiers
Being the final opportunity for
African players to be part of
the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in
Japan, the African Table Tennis
Federation (ATTF) has released the
list of players that will compete in
the singles and mixed doubles
qualification event scheduled for
February 27 to 29 in Tunisia.
Eight players made up of four
men and four women in singles
including one mixed doubles pair
will qualify for Tokyo 2020
Olympic Games in Tunisia.
Already, Egypt as African
champions in men and women
team event has picked the African
sole slot in team event while two
men and two women from the
Egyptian team will feature in the
singles event of Tokyo 2020.
Nigeria’s duo of Segun Toriola
and Olufunke Oshonaike will be
eyeing history as Toriola will be
TORIOLA
aiming for eighth Olympics
appearance as the first African
athlete while Oshonaike will be
targeting seventh outing as the
first African female player.
Each national association is
expected to present two players
each in the singles event of men
and women and one team in the
mixed doubles event
•Dare
for us to bury him, nothing has
been forthcoming,” said Mrs. Igwe.
It was gathered that attempts by
some concerned sports officials to
raise money for the burial of the
coach and upkeep of the family did
not materialise.
“We are only appealing to the
government and the sports ministry
to come to our aid. Toblow has done
a lot for athletics in Nigeria and he
doesn’t deserve to go down like
this,” Mrs. Igwe added.
Oliseh backs Ndidi for
Man City move
Former Nigeria manager
Sunday Oliseh says
Wilfred Ndidi needs to
complete a move away from
Leicester City, who he has
branded ‘average’.
And he says he is surprised
that no other club has come in
for the Nigeria midfielder as he
backs him for a move to
Manchester City.
Ndidi, signed from Genk in
2017, has become crucial to
City’s midfielder over the past
few years.
The defensive-midfielder has
made 26 appearances in all
competitions this season as
City chase a return to the
Champions League.
He is currently struggling
with a knee injury and City boss
Brendan Rodgers is hoping he
Edo sports
festival: Owan
West takes the
lead as
competitions
hot up
Owan West Local
Government Area, the
domain of former
Chairman of the Lagos state
chapter of the Sports Writers
Association of Nigeria, SWAN,
Hon. Frank Ilaboya has taken the
lead at the ongoing 3rd Edo Sports
Festival after winning the first gold
medal in shot put before going
ahead to rake in seven more gold
and one silver in cycling.
The council also picked gold in
Pole Vault and four more in other
events to be in front of the rest 17
participating Local government in
Edo games with a total of 13 gold,
3 silver and 1 bronze medals to stay
atop the medal table as at
Wednesday afternoon.
The elated Council Chairman,
Hon Ilaboya, in an interview said
that the best is yet to come.
“First, I want to congratulate the
athletes and their officials for
starting on a high note. I feel excited
that Team Owan West is doing well,
we just have to maintain the
momentum and remain focused till
the Games are over.
“It is too early to celebrate as
more events are still on the cards
and we have spoken to the team not
to lose focus till the final day.
“We must keep our eyes on the
ball as we compete fairly in all the
events we entered for. We hope to
continue our winning streak in these
events. The good thing is that we
have carefully selected the events
we entered for;the events that will
give us the medals we need to win.
“We are expecting medal haul in
swimming, kick-boxing, chess and
gymnastics. So, we have high hopes
of doing well at the end of the day,”
Hon Ilaboya, enthused.
The sports loving Owan West
council boss disclosed that there is
a reward from his council for their
victorious athletes apart from the
prizes announced by the state
government.
will be fit to face Wolves.
Ndidi has won plaudits for
his performances at the base
of City’s midfield, with
Arsenal linked with a move for
the 23-year-old in December.
“The point is that in the past
three or four years, maybe five,
he has been the best
midfielder we have,” Oliseh
said.
“And he has not just been the
best we needed to run with,
he has been the best we have.
“When you see him doing
what he’s doing in a club that
is average; with all due
respect, like Leicester, imagine
what Ndidi will do if he was
playing at Manchester City.
“He is the man that is not so
tall like me, but look at the
heart, he has a big heart.”