The 2023 Africa Cup of Nations has less than a month to go as the 24 qualified countries prepare their teams for the tournament in Ivory Coast.

The prestigious tournament has in the past unearthed new talents while also giving others the opportunities to shine with their country.

Victor Boniface - Nigeria

The Super Eagles star has taken the German Bundesliga by storm, winning the Rookie of the Month for every month since the start of the new campaign. Boniface has scored 15 goals across all competitions for the Bundesliga leaders this season.

The skillful and tricky forward is expected to propel the three-time champions to a potential fourth triumph in Ivory Coast as he makes his first appearance at the competition.

Mohammed Kudus - Ghana

The Black Stars of Ghana will rely heavily on the West Ham star following his bright start to life in England. Kudus has been in phenomenal form for the Hammers since joining the club from Ajax. Kudus has scored nine goals across all competitions for the London club.

The Right to Dream Academy was denied a place at the tournament in Cameroon due to injury, but he is expected to make the trip to the Ivory Coast.

Lamine Camara - Senegal

Currently, the best young player on the continent. Camara will be making his first appearance at the Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast. Camara was part of the Senegal team that won the Africa Nations Championship, a competition reserved for playing plying their trade on the continent.

He now plays for French outfit FC Metz. He has made 16 appearances, scored a goal and provided an assist in Ligue 1.

Abdessamad "Abde" Ezzalzouli - Morocco

The former Barcelona player rejected the chance to play at the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon due to club commitment. Ezzalzouli was fighting for a place in the Barcelona team at that time.

However, a year later, he joined the team for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and was also a member of the U23 team that qualified for the Olympic Games in Paris, starring as Morocco won the tournament. He now plays for Real Betis in La Liga.

Patson Daka - Zambia

Patson Daka is the most experienced among the list of players making their debut at AFCON 2023. The Leicester City forward has made 40 appearances for the Chipolopolo and scored 18 goals for his country.

However, the 2012 champions' failure to qualify for the tournament since 2015, has seen the striker fail to make an appearance at the tournament.

Serhou Guirassy - Guinea

The Stuttgart striker only decided to play for the country of his parents in 2022, and has since made 12 appearances and scored three goals, helping Guinea qualify for AFCON 2023.

Guirassy has been in prolific form in the Bundesliga, scoring 16 goals in 13 games, making him one of the most sought-after forwards in Europe. He is expected to lead the West African nation in Ivory Coast.

Carlos Beleba - Cameroon

The Brighton youngster is yet to make an appearance for the Indomitable Lions but his performances for the English club has prompted Rigobert Song to include him in his squad for the Africa Cup of Nations. The defender could make a huge impact for the five-time African champions.

Simon Adingra - Ivory Coast

A teammate of Baleba at Brighton, Adingra is enjoying his debut season in England with the Seagulls. Adingra was Kudus' teammate at the Right to Dream Academy and FC Nordsjaelland. He spent a season on loan at Union Saint-Gilloise, where he played alongside Boniface. The talented forward has scored four goals in 16 Premier League matches this season.

Adingra has made four appearances for the AFCON host and could make his debut at the tournament on home soil.

Jay Jay Okocha is unimpressed with the Super Eagles' efforts

Nigeria runs the risk of missing out on back-to-back FIFA World Cups after a slow start in the 2026 tournament qualifiers which saw them record two consecutive draws.

The Super Eagles lie third in Group C behind Rwanda and South Africa with two points from their opening two games, after consecutive 1-1 draws against Lesotho and Zimbabwe.

Nigeria failed to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and they run the risk of missing out of the 2026 edition. Photo by Carlos Rodrigues.
Source: Getty Images

According to Soccernet, former Super Eagles captain, Jay Jay Okocha has slammed the team, claiming they have been focused on rivalry and underrating other teams in their group.

He acknowledged the Nigerian national team did not get off to a good start and said they were ultimately fortunate that Bafana Bafana lost their second qualifier, per Sunday World.

"I think we are focusing more on the rivalry between South Africa and Nigeria instead of focusing on qualifying. It’s a big surprise that Rwanda is topping the group."

Nigeria, who failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup after being knocked out by Ghana, will face Bafana Bafana on June 3, 2024, when the qualifiers resume after the Africa Cup of Nations.

Former Chelsea and Manchester United manager, Jose Mourinho, in an interview with ObiOne Podcast has revealed why he turned a fine attacking midfielder Mikel Obi into a defensive midfielder.

Known for his long-range pass and silkiness on the ball during the early stage of his career, the former Super Eagles captain saw his role reversed under the Portuguese manager at Stamford Bridge.

Only bettered by Lionel Messi at the 2005 U-20 World Cup in Holland, Mikel finished as the second-best player of the tournament following a fine performance where he helped Nigeria to a second-place finish with his two-goal contributions.

Mikel became one of the most sought-after players immediately after the tournament with the player said to have already signed a deal with Manchester United, who were looking for a midfielder to replace the aging legendary Paul Scholes.

But after some drama, the Nigerian made a switch to the Stamford Bridge in what till today remained one of the most bizarre transfers in the English Premier League.

After his transfer to Chelsea, Mourinho surprisingly converted Mikel to a defensive midfielder.

Unperturbed by the 36-year-old goal contributions, Mourinho revealed his admiration for the Nigerian.

“I liked everything about Mikel. If you go through all the positional [defensive] midfield players that I have had during my career, there are lots of similar things,” Mourinho said on the ObiOne Podcast.

Victor Osimhen and his Napoli teammates have a tough Champions League round of 16 draw as they will take on Barcelona.

The draw for the round of 16 took place on Monday, 18 December 2023.

Barcelona have had the upper hand against Napoli having never lost to the reigning Serie A champions.

In the six encounters between the two teams, Barcelona have won four and drawn two against Napoli.

The last time the two teams clashed was in the Europa League in February 2022 in Italy with Barcelona winning 4-2.

Napoli will host the first leg before traveling to Spain for the second leg.

Another Super Eagles player Umar Sadiq and his Real Sociedad teammates will have their hands full in the round of 16.

The LaLiga club will take on French Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain in the first knockout round.

Meanwhile, Zaidu Sanusi’s FC Porto will take on Premier League heavyweight Arsenal.

Other draws will last season’s finalist Inter Milan take on Atletico Madrid, PSV will battle Borussia Dortmund, Lazio will face Bayern Munich, reigning champions Manchester City will tackle Copenhagen and Leipzig will slug it out with Real Madrid.

The first legs of the round of 16 will be played on 13, 14, 20 and 21 February, and the second legs will be played on 5, 6, 12 and 13 March 2024.

The final of this season’s UEFA Champions League will be played at the Wembley Stadium in London, England.

UEFA Champions League Round of 16 draw:

Porto v Arsenal
Napoli v Barcelona
PSG v Real Sociedad
Inter v Atletico Madrid
PSV v Borussia Dortmund
Lazio v Bayern Munich
Copenhagen v Manchester City
RB Leipzig v Real Madrid

The Ambassador of Côte d’Ivoire to Nigeria, Mr Kalilou Traore, has said that the 2024 African Cup of Nations, AFCON, will create relevant avenue for his country to further strengthen cooperation with Nigeria.

Traore stated this in an interview with newsmen on Sunday in Abuja, sequel to the country’s preparation to host the AFCON tournament from Jan. 14 to Feb. 13, 2024.

He said it has become necessary for the two countries to use the opportunity to further boost diplomatic ties between them.

“The AFCON is also a big occasion for us to deepen cooperation.

“So, we as an Embassy, we are organising with our partners, we are packaging for those who want to participate in Abidjan at AFCON,” he said.

The envoy added that leaders of both countries at levels of Heads of State and Heads of Ministries have mutual relationship, saying: “We have strong agreement, many agreements between Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire government”.

[Leadership]

Arsenal are ready to sign £51million Sporting CP centre-back, Goncalo Inacio for their manager, Mikel Arteta.

Inacio has established himself as a vital player at the heart of Sporting’s defence since making his first-team debut in 2020.

The 22-year-old has been extensively scouted by Arsenal’s Premier League rival Liverpool in recent months.

However, according to Portuguese newspaper A Bola, Arsenal are ‘tightening their siege’ on signing the Portugal international ahead of the Reds.

The report added that the Gunners are already aware of the €60 million (£51.5m) release clause in the player’s deal with Sporting and are prepared to pay the fee for him to switch to Emirates Stadium in the January transfer window.

[DailyPost]

Rebecca Welch to make history as the first female referee of a Premier League game as she has been selected to officiate Fulham’s match against Burnley on December 23, 2023.

Welch became a referee in 2010, juggling the job with her work in the British National Health Service.

She officiated a Football League match between Harrogate and Port Vale in 2021, becoming the first woman to hold the position.

In addition, Welch was the first female official to officiate games in the FA Cup’s third round and the Championship.

She made history last month when she became the first woman to act as fourth official in a Premier League game as part of the team for Fulham’s match against Manchester United.

Welch is also in charge of several high-profile women’s fixtures, including games at the 2023 Women’s World Cup.

Former Manchester United defender, Rio Ferdinand has said Wayne Rooney was his worst ever teammate.

During their tenure at Old Trafford, Ferdinand and Rooney won numerous trophies, including Champions League and Premier League ones. However, Ferdinand has since disclosed that they used to argue a lot while playing.

In the latest episode of BBC podcast, hosted by Rugby League legend Rob Burrow, Ferdinand said: “The worst team-mate I have probably had the most arguments with is Wayne Rooney, to be honest with you.

“Never came to blows, it was on the pitch.

“We never argued in training really, it was just match day, we probably argued once every two or three games, effing and blinding, screaming at each other because I wanted more from him.”

[OpinionNigeria]

SUPER Falcons legend Mercy Akide-Udoh has described her CAF Awards win in 2001 as ‘special’, while charging the Nigerian senior national teams to win their tournaments next year.

The former Nigeria striker won the first-ever African Player of the Year award for women in 2001, setting the stage for the likes of Cynthia Uwak, Perpetua Nkwocha and record six-time winner Asisat Oshoala.

Akide, who won the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title with the Super Falcons in 1998, 2000 and 2002, was in Marrakech, Morocco on Monday to see her compatriots steal the show.

Nigeria swept the big prizes on a glorious night for the country as Victor Osimhen was named Player of the Year, Oshoala Player of the Year (Women), Chiamaka Nnadozie Goalkeeper of the Year (Women) and the Super Falcons National Team of the Year (Women).

“I feel blessed to have been the first woman to win this award back then,” Akide-Udoh said.

“It was very special and I think it was the beginning of recognition for women’s football in Africa.

“I am excited that other Nigerians have done it again and I hope that we will see more of this in future. If anybody had told me that it would take so many years before another Nigerian man would win it again, I don’t think any of us would have believed it, but that’s football and God knows best.

“I am proud of all the winners and I hope that as Nigeria has won so many awards tonight, this will be the start of more success for our football, from the AFCON in January to the women winning their own too and then to the FIFA World Cup.”

Osimhen was the first Nigerian man to win the main award since Kanu’s success 24 years ago and the Napoli striker will be the key man for the Super Eagles as they seek their first Africa Cup of Nations since 2013 at the tournament in Cote d’Ivoire in January and February next year.

[NaijaTimes]