Sports
Nigerians Tongue-Lash NFF Over Finidi’s Resignation
Football crazy Nigerians have been venting their spleen on the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) over the resignation of Finidi George from his position as coach of the senior national team, the Super Eagles.
Netizens appear unable to hide their anger that the NFF did nothing to support an indigenous coach, even with tales of dissent from the playing staff beginning to manifest in several quarters.
Football followers, Biztellers can report are wondering if the NFF had extended any form of support to George, in the manner they would have to a foreign coach.
In addition, they’re lamenting that the Board of the NFF threw the Nigerian coach under the bus, when they met with the Minister of Sports, two days ago and were mute on the circumstances that led to the dismal performance of the Super Eagles in the two competitive games under George.
Biztellers gathered that the playing staff reported late to camp, giving the trainer no time to harness his strategy, while the NFF did nothing to reign-in the player or to rally support for the Eagles in the away game against Benin Republic in Cote D’Ivoire.
Their only response being to assure the minister that they would remedy the situation by relegating the newly appointed coach by getting a foreigner to boss him.
A Nigerian football analyst caught the mood of the rampaging netizens, and took to his X handle to berate the attitude of the NFF, claiming that it was all schemed out from the get-go, by averting the demotion clause in his contract.
A visibly angry ‘Mr Nigerian Football’, wrote, “The Nigeria Football Federation ended up outsmarting Finidi George via his contract when they had realized their mistake:
“If the NFF had decided to fire Finidi George ahead of time – they would have to pay him 6 months ahead meaning that would be 80 million Naira.
“But there was nothing in the contract against demotion.
“Finidi was demoted to working with the technical team as the NFF stated they were working on a deal to get a foreign manager to assist him.
“That was going to be embarassing to remain in the same camp and demoted to assistant manager, there was option left. He had to resign to save his image and he did.”
With things as they stand the NFF is still playing games with the position of the Super Eagles Coach, with the President, NFF, Ibrahim Gusau, still claiming ignorance of George’s resignation.
Tottenham Hotspur’s Europa League match against Qarabag has been postponed due to severe travel disruptions in London.
The announcement was made on the club’s official X (formerly Twitter) account on Thursday evening.
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According to the statement, further details regarding the rescheduling of the match are expected to follow.
The post reads, “Kick off for tonight’s fixture has been delayed due to severe travel disruption. Further information to follow.
More to follow………
The draw for the fourth round of the Carabao Cup has revealed a series of thrilling matchups that are sure to capture fans’ attention.
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In a post on Wednesday night, the fixtures, which will see some of the top teams in English football go head-to-head, include:
Brentford vs Sheffield Wednesday
Southampton vs Stoke
Tottenham vs Manchester City
AFC Wimbledon/Newcastle vs Chelsea
Manchester United vs Leicester
Liverpool vs Brighton
Arsenal vs Preston
Aston Villa vs Crystal Palace
These encounters promise high-stakes action as clubs compete for a coveted spot in the quarter-finals of the tournament.
Fans can look forward to a week of intense competition as these teams battle for advancement in one of England’s most prestigious cup competitions.
Though his interest in football remains high, his desire to buy into the English Premiership League (EPL) side, Arsenal Football Club has subsided.
This much, the President and Chief Executive of Dangote Group, Alh Aliko Dangote, shared with Bloomberg at a recent interview in New York.
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According to Dangote, his priority was completing the Dangote Refinery, when the opportunity to purchase the Gunners for a ‘cheap’ $2 billion presented itself.
Dangote told Francine Lacqua, that his desire to own the North London side was in the past, though he would continue to support the highflying EPL side.
He said, “I think that time has passed. The last time when we had this interview, I told you as soon as I finish with the refinery, I am going to try and buy Arsenal.
“But you know everything has gone up and the club too is doing very well. Arsenal is doing extremely well right now. That time, Arsenal wasn’t doing well.
“I think I don’t have that kind of excess liquidity to go and buy a club for $4 billion, so to speak and use it as a promotional something.
“But what I will do is to continually be the biggest fan of Arsenal. I watch their games anytime they are playing. So, I will remain a major supporter of Arsenal but I don’t think it makes sense today to buy Arsenal.”
On if he regretted not buying the football club value was lower, he said, “Actually, I regret not buying it before but you know my money was more needed in completing my project (the Dangote Refinery) than buying Arsenal. I would have bought the club for $2 billion but you know I wouldn’t have been able to finish my project. So, it was either I finish my project or go and buy Arsenal.”
Recall that Dangote had in 2020 disclosed his desire to buy the North London EPL side, after his $20 billion refinery.
With the Dangote Refinery done and functioning, it does appear, though that Africa’s richest man has now rested his ambition to take over at Emirates Stadium, owing to the higher valuation of $4 billion it now attracts.
He set up the Dangote Group — the largest conglomerate in West Africa — in 1981.
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