Lionel Messi, Erling Haaland and Super Eagles forward Victor Osimhen will headline a 13-man shortlist for the Best FIFA Men’s Player Award 2023.

The Nigerian international, who has scored a total of 31 goals to help
clinch the Serie A title and reached the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League last season, was the only African player on the list of nominees for 2023 FIFA Men’s player award released on Thursday by the world soccer governing body.

The list is dominated by Manchester City FC’s 2022-23 treble-winning squad, while coach Pep Guardiola was also nominated for The Best FIFA Men’s Coach alongside four of his peers.

Osimhen has established himself as one of Europe’s deadliest marksmen and his outstanding goal-scoring statistics have not gone unnoticed to the eyes of Europe’s wealthiest clubs, with the likes of Manchester United, Bayern, and Chelsea all expressing an interest in acquiring his services in the near future.

Haaland’s Man City team-mates Julián Álvarez, Kevin De Bruyne, İlkay Gündoğan and Bernardo Silva joined him on the shortlist for impressive contributions to Pep Guardiola-treble-winning squad.

Kylian Mbappé also makes the list as well as Marcelo Brozović, Rodrigo, Hernández Cascante, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Declan Rice of Arsenal.

Performances at the record-breaking FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023 were reflected in the Best FIFA Women’s Player nominees. Adidas Golden Ball winner Aitana Bonmatí leads a quartet of Spanish nominees. Four players from tournament runners-up England and a trio of Matildas – who were a victory away from reaching the final on home soil – are also part of a 16-player shortlist.

[Leadership]

Barcelona were dealt a blow on Thursday when the Spanish champions’ spending limit for the season was cut to 270 million euros ($290 million) by La Liga.

The Spanish top flight has strict spending controls that prevent clubs from continuing to overspend on player wages and transfers.

Barcelona’s previous limit was 649 million euros ($697 million), a figure inflated by the sale of future television rights income among a series of financial “levers” the club pulled.

The Catalans’ current level of salary expenditure is around 400 million euros ($429 million) per Spanish reports.

The punishment for exceeding the limit is being put under the division’s spending cap, in which Barcelona will only be allowed to use around 50 percent of income to improve their squad, until they make cuts to fall under the new limit.

The current situation means it is unlikely Barcelona will conduct significant transfer business in January, with further cuts needed if they are to be in a position to reinforce next summer.

This is despite the departures of Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba, Ousmane Dembele and several other players.

Goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen signed a new deal with the club in August until 2028, which allowed Barcelona to register new signings including loanees Joao Cancelo and Joao Felix.

“We have to thank him for restructuring his contract because it has allowed other players to register,” said club president Joan Laporta on Thursday.

La Liga president Javier Tebas said he did not know when Barcelona’s financial situation would return to normal.

“It depends on Barca and their business strategy,” Tebas told a news conference Thursday.

“Maybe they sell a great player and will take a giant step forward. We don’t know if they will.

“The whole medium and long-term strategy is set by the club, we don’t set it for them.”

Nigeria’s Super Falcons forward Desire Ugochi Oparanozie has announced her retirement from football for both country and club at the age of 29.

Oparanozie was included in the squad that represented Nigeria at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup which started in July and ended in August.

In a post on Wednesday, on her X account, formerly Twitter, she wrote, “To my fans, family, and friends, thank you for the show of love and support over the years. It’s time to take a bow, as I believe there’s no better time than now. I’m officially announcing my retirement from professional football for both club and country.

“To every team and coach I have played for, to every mate I’ve played alongside, and to every opponent I have played against, thank you all for being part of this incredible journey. Thank you football, thank you Nigeria.”

Oparanozie had a successful career in the Chinese Women’s Super League and represented Nigeria’s national team on different occasions.

She started at Bayelsa Queens and later played for Delta Queens and Düvenciler Lisesispor.

In 2012, Oparanozie transferred to Rossiyanka in the Russian Women’s Football Championship. She had a successful stint there, playing in the UEFA Women’s Champions League and scoring a goal. After that, she moved to VfL Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga for the 2013-14 season.

Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen has stated that he is looking forward to winning the 2023 CAF Player of the Year.

Osimhen has been one of the best players from the continent in the last year. 

The 24-year-old scored 31 goals in 39 appearances for Napoli last season and broke George Weah and Samuel Eto’o’s goals record in the Serie A. He also helped the Partenopeans to their first Scudetto in 33 years and their first-ever quarterfinal finish in the UEFA Champions League.

With his achievements in the last year, the Super Eagles striker is a frontrunner to become the first Nigerian to win CAF Player of the Year Award in the last 24 years. 

Osimhen also has serious competition from the likes of Yassine Bounou and Achraf Hakimi, but he just looks clear of the rest.

Ahead of the awards, which will hold on December 11, Osimhen has stated that he is looking forward to wearing the crown of the best player on the continent.

“It means a lot, a whole lot to me,” Osimhen told Pulse.

“I remember in 2015, when I won the (CAF) Youth Player of the Year (award), you know, I saw the winner (Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang) walk up to the podium to receive it (the CAF POTY award).

“Since then, for me, it became a dream to try to be there and win something as prestigious as that.

“I think now I have a huge opportunity to actualise this dream. I’m really looking forward to it, and hopefully, it comes home.”

The last time a Nigerian won the CAF Player of the Year Award was in 1999, but Osimhen would be looking to put an end to that wait.

[Leadership]

Jose Peseiro the Super Eagles head coach,  has stated reasons behind his decision to accept a short-term contract with the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF).

Recall that Peseiro’s previous contract expired at the end of June.

There was a lot of back and forth before the Portuguese gaffer accepted a pay cut and a short term deal that will expire after the AFCON in 2024.

The 63-year-old’s contract is subject to renewal if the Super Eagles finish well at 2024 AFCON.

The Portuguese stated that the desire to win the AFCON was the main reason behind his decision.

“Me and my staff did everything in order to stay here to train these players and reach the big goal – win the AFCON title,” Peseiro told Brila FM.

The Super Eagles have won the AFCON title three times in the past.

[Newsguru]

Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes provided three assists and scored once to inspire Portugal to victory against Luxembourg in a 9-0 thriller and maintained their perfect start to their Euro 2024 Group J qualifying campaign.

Despite missing Cristiano Ronaldo through suspension, Portugal produced a dominant display at Estadio Algarve with Fernandes producing a hat-trick of assists before scoring a late goal himself in the nation’s biggest international victory to date.

Goncalo Inacio opened the scoring after 12 minutes and a brace from Paris St-Germain forward Goncalo Ramos soon had the home side in complete control.

Inacio headed in a fourth in first-half stoppage time from another pin-point delivery by Fernandes.

Skysports.com reports that Roberto Martinez’s side did not let up and, just before the hour, Fernandes found Liverpool forward Diogo Jota, who raced clear to fire home a fifth.

Ricardo Horta added a sixth with 20 minutes left before Jota slotted in again. Fernandes then capped his fine individual display with a well-taken goal late on and Joao Felix completed the rout to make it six wins from six.

Slovakia remain five points behind Portugal after they made a fast start to beat Liechtenstein 3-0 in Bratislava with goals from David Hancko, Ondrej Duda and Robert Mak inside the first six minutes.

Alfred Finnbogason scored in stoppage-time to give Iceland a 1-0 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina in Reykjavik.

Croatia moved top of Group D on goal difference after a 1-0 win in Armenia, where an early strike from Andrej Kramaric proved enough for all three points.

[Leadership]

Real Madrid are ready to commit £200million to sign Kylian Mbappe without negotiating with Paris Saint-Germain, according to SPORT.

Both clubs did not hold talks this summer despite Mbappe being frozen out by the Ligue 1 champions.

The 24-year-old has since returned to the first team and has scored five goals in his first three matches of the season.

Although there are speculations Mbappe could agree a new contract with PSG, it is believed Real Madrid intend to reach a pre-contract agreement with the player in January.

This will mean the France captain joins them for nothing when his PSG deal expires on June 30.

Real didn’t like PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi rejecting their approaches out of hand, even offers approaching £172m.

Instead, Real have decided to set aside around £200m for Mbappe in the form of wages and a signing-on fee.

[DailyPost]

For more than a week, President Bola Tinubu, Nigeria’s chief foreign policy officer has been on a diplomatic offensive to New Delhi, on the sidelines of the G20 Summit hosted by India, and from Bharat, as that country is otherwise known, he has had a quick diplomatic stop-over in United Arab Emirates (UAE). Next week, he goes off to New York, United States for the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). When Tinubu returns to Nigeria, before he goes off to New York, his handlers would have more than enough to crow about and a lot of chest-beating to do. I imagine that following the ruling in his favour by the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal, on Wednesday, September 6, we can legitimately expect a loud and heavy display of triumphalism, sycophancy, self-congratulation and advertisements by Tinubu/APC supporters for whom modesty is a strange word, but the more sober ones among them would probably point to how Tinubu seems to be succeeding on the foreign policy front.

In less than 100 days in office, he was elected Chairman of ECOWAS, and has had to lead the charge in managing the Niger coup crisis, even if roughly, in June, he also attended a France-Africa summit in Paris, an African Union summit in Nairobi in July, and now he has gone to India, and the United Arab Emirates. Beyond the assertion of political, and diplomatic influence, and a claw at legitimacy in a local “emilokan” style, whether you like it or not, big photo ops on the world stage, big opportunity to showcase Nigeria and the new administration, the main narrative has been that President Tinubu has been attracting investment to the country. In India, the total pledge by Indian investors was put at $14 billion. It is this drive for investment that connects President Tinubu’s foreign excursions as covert text, and it was the same also in the UAE. But I keep adding the caveat that pledges would not translate into anything, beyond the ink on the Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) that Nigeria signs here and there, if these pledges do not yield concrete outcomes. Nigeria is very good at signing documents and taking photos. Our Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials are very good at organizing ceremonies for any President who likes to stage shows; in any case, the current “City Boy, Eko For Show” President would jump at any opportunity to hug the limelight. But ceremonies and photo-ops would take Nigeria nowhere. Nigerians need follow-ups. We need a Foreign Ministry and Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment (MITI) that can turn pledges into opportunities.

We need to be reminded that domestic policy drives foreign policy. Investors are not in the business of charity. The gulf between them and the Red Cross is the widest in the world. They are interested in profit and opportunities. For the pledges that have been made to be redeemable, President Tinubu must meet the existing and prospective investors half-way, by keeping his part of the bargain to wit: his promise that Nigeria would provide very good returns on investments, that is ROI, the bottom line in the age of capitalism. Investors want to minimize risk. Nigeria is a risk-laden investment destination. Investors cannot repatriate their funds. The country’s foreign exchange regime is unpredictable. The country’s CBN Governor has been suspended. He is in detention. The interim CBN Governor is exactly not in a position to make far-reaching decisions, so the CBN is busy experimenting with monetary policies. Professor Pat Utomi once wrote a successful book titled “Managing Uncertainty: Competition and Strategy in Emerging Economies”, (Ibadan: Spectrum Books, 1998, 465 pp). If Nigeria’s economy was walking with the aid of walking sticks at the time Utomi wrote that book, its fortunes are now so uncertain, the economy having suffered multiple strokes, it is now in a wheel-chair. This is what Tinubu has inherited, and what he must do something about beyond all these high-profile photo opportunities around the globe.

His recent diplomatic shuttle has however provided one bright indicator that should not be ignored, and that is the outcome of his trip to the United Arab Emirates. It is one achievement that we can touch and perhaps feel. It will be recalled that the Presidency informed us that the purpose of the Abu Dhabi stop-over was to get the United Arab Emirates to lift the visa ban on Nigerians and to ensure that Emirates Airlines, the kingdom’s airliner lifts its suspension of flights to Nigeria. The third shopping item in the basket was to hunt for investments in agriculture, defence and other areas. By yesterday evening, we had been told that after meetings with Sheik Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, and the Emir of Abu Dhabi, President Tinubu was able to secure the lifting of visa ban on Nigerians, and the immediate restoration of flight activity to Nigeria by Emirates Airlines without “any immediate payment by the Nigerian government.” Kudos. Kudos. Kudos. This achievement is all the more remarkable because Tinubu has just scored victory where his predecessor in office failed. What has happened is a teachable moment in leadership and diplomacy.

A bit of the background is necessary. In 2021, the Emirates airlines and the UAE had insisted on administering rapid antigen tests on Nigerians visiting the UAE which resulted in a diplomatic row. Subsequently, Emirates Airlines also raised questions about its inability to repatriate funds from Nigeria. Further, on October 18, 2022, the UAE banned nationals from about 20 African countries from entering its major city, Dubai, Nigeria inclusive alongside other countries like Benin Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Uganda, Burundi, Sierra Leone, Sudan and Burkina Faso. As the drama unfolded, in February 2023, President Muhammadu Buhari, Tinubu’s predecessor placed a phone call to Sheikh Zayed Al Nahyan of the UAE to condole with him on the death of his mother -in-law and he used the opportunity to bring up the matter of the blanket visa ban on Nigerians intending to travel to the UAE. The major revelation of that bilateral move was that many Nigerians go to the UAE illegally and in flagrant violation of the laws of the Kingdom. Buhari at the time, also asked for a resumption of the suspended operations of the Emirates Airlines. This is where Tinubu has now gained victory. Etihad and Emirates Airlines can now resume flight schedules in and out of Nigeria. Many Nigerians for whom Dubai is a favourite trade, tourism and medical destination are now jubilant. Dubai is an attractive destination because of leadership and vision. Nigerians are rushing to Dubai and hustling for visas to the UAE because their own country has not met their expectations. For the benefit of those who would start touting Tinubu’ s UAE mission as a big deal, they need to be cautioned that there are other sides to the story especially with regard to the aviation sector.

Where is Nigeria’s strategic interest in the aviation sector in this matter under review? Has the interest of Nigeria’s aviation sector been served? When Tinubu assumed office, there have, indeed, been some activities in the aviation sector. One, he changed the nomenclature of the Ministry from Ministry of Aviation to Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development. Two, he appointed Festus Keyamo as Minister. Three, Keyamo visited the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos and on the spur of the moment, he shut down the old international terminal at the airport and ordered a move to the new terminal to allow for renovations. Many stakeholders in the aviation sector have complained that they were not consulted. In fact, they were ignored after a fashion. The effect of that is the on-going nightmare at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos. Travellers arriving at the airport have to be bus-driven from the old terminal to the new terminal. It is the same bus that is used to ferry people, that is also used to move luggage. Immigration processes are slow. It could take up to four hours before persons can go through immigration to the luggage point to the exit. This is a clear case of acting before thinking! Similarly, it is doubtful if anyone made the effort to consult with industry stakeholders before reaching agreements with the UAE.

In 2022, airline operators of Nigeria, the AON, objected strongly to protests by foreign airlines, including Emirates, that they had not been able to repatriate $464 million of their revenue out of Nigeria in line with the Bilateral Service Agreement (BASA). The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) at the time announced the release of $265 million to foreign airlines through special FX intervention. Nigerian airline operators protested. They objected to foreign airlines being given preferential treatment when local airlines were suffering. Till date, Nigerian local airline operators are still protesting. Nigeria has an obligation to look out for their interest. Foreign airlines enjoy flight frequencies that are not available to Nigerian airlines under BASA. Nigeria is a big market. Even with the economic hardship today, flights in and out of Nigeria are still fully booked, and yet Nigerian airlines are short-changed. No serious-minded country does that. Every day, Virgin Atlantic and British Airways make humongous amounts of money on the Nigerian route. No Nigerian airline is on the London route. No Nigerian airline is allowed to enjoy full BASA rights in the UAE. The Central Bank of Nigeria was talking about special FX intervention for foreign airlines, but the same CBN is sitting on about $14 billion belonging to Air Peace. At the 2023 NBA Conference in Abuja, the Chairman of Air Peace, Allen Onyema brought up the matter.

What has been done to other local airlines is worse, indeed a criminal act of economic sabotage. Take what the Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) has done to Arik Air. Established in October 2006, by Sir Arumemi Ikhide-Johnson, formerly of GT, Arik soon became the dominant airline within the Nigerian aerospace creating jobs and building opportunities for Nigerians. At the height of its glory, Arik Air had flights to London, Madrid, Atlanta, Miami, Birmingham, Johannesburg, Dubai, and the Caribbeans. By 2012, it had transported over 10 million passengers. In February 2017, the airline was taken over by AMCON and handed over to receiver-managers on grounds that have become subjects of contention in courts of law. AMCON and the receiver-managers claimed that there were debts running into about N24 billion to be recovered, but six years later under their watch, they have turned Arik Air into a shadow of its former self, killing the dream that created it. What really happened was that in 2010, the CBN announced a sudden change of policy whereby foreign loans with local guarantees hitherto treated as off balance sheet were arbitrarily converted to on balance sheet local loans. This was done without negotiation or consultation with Arik Air. All efforts to secure an amicable settlement between the shareholders and AMCON have so far failed. The story of Arik Air is similar to that of Aero Contractors, also under the grips of AMCON.

It is worth stressing that AMCON was established in July 2010 to help Nigerian banks address the challenge of non-performing loans and thereby ensure stability within the financial system, and hence prevent a descent into crisis. It was given a lifespan of 10 years. The Act was further amended in 2015, 2019 and 2021. More than 10 years after its creation, AMCON has proven to be worse than the problem it was meant to correct. It has accumulated more debt than the same companies it was meant to rejuvenate. Its receiver-managers have not made any significance difference as seen in the gross mismanagement of the two examples already cited. What has been writ large is the resort to name-calling, ethnic politics, and persecution by an agency of government established with more ennobling expectations. AMCON was meant to revive and re-engineer businesses. Rather it kills them. Its disposal of assets has been more controversial than transparent. The agency may well claim achievements in other aspects of its operations: oil and gas, finance, general commerce, capital market and manufacturing, our argument is that at first blush, its intervention in the aviation sector has been catastrophic.

It is for this reason that we urge President Tinubu focusing on the aviation sector and aerospace development to take a closer and critical look at AMCON and the interest of stakeholders in that industry - from the plight of domestic airlines under receivership and allegations of prejudice and mistreatment, to the structure of the Federal Aviation Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), security matters, and the state of Nigeria’s airports. Besides, AMCON has lived far beyond its sunset clause, and yet it has not truly served its purpose. It is tied down by litigation. The various amendments to the Enabling Act have not made any difference. One of the more pressing matters for the Tinubu administration is to investigate AMCON and its relevance and impact or non-impact so far, and seek to ensure that those who have been wounded by the politicization of the special purpose vehicle get justice.

This would mean taking the aviation sector beyond the routine measure of airport renovation, and vacuous rhetoric, something which every new Aviation Minister embarks upon under the guise of bringing our international airports up to an international standard. Contracts would be awarded. Equipment would be procured. Tapes would be cut. Six months down the line, the newly refurbished toilets would be shut down due to lack of proper maintenance. The luggage carousel will stop working, along with the air conditioning and other facilities. The roof of the newly touched up building could even start leaking. Enough of the window-dressing. There are more fundamental issues to be addressed, the full extent could only emerge in national interest through due consultation with industry stakeholders, at the heart of which is the security of investments and the certainty of policy.

Nigeria’s Super Eagles ended their 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign on an impressive note with Victor Osimhen scoring  hat-trick in a 6-0 demolition Sao Tome and Principe at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium on Sunday night.

The Super Eagles applied pressure from the get go and played most of their football in advanced positions up the pitch.

Nigeria were awarded a couple of corners inside the first five minutes of the game but failed to make the most of their opportunities.

Nigeria continued to dominate play as the 10th minute rolled on and pinned Sao Tome back during the opening exchanges of the game.

With Sao Tome buckling under the pressure, Nigeria took the lead in the 13th minute as Osimhen scored his eighth goal of their qualifying campaign.

The game reached a tacky period around the 20th minute mark, with neither side progressing in the final third, but the Super Eagles managed to double their lead in the 27th minute as Ademola Lookman added his name to the scoresheet.

After a passing move on the edge of the Sao Tome area, Lookman made way inside the box before letting off a shot that beat the opposition goalkeeper at his near post.

Taiwo Awoniyi and Samuel Chukwueze completed the rout.

Sports Development Minister John Owan Enoh, who was among the spectators at the Stadium, congratulated the Nigerian team for rewarding the support of Nigerians with a good performance, while charging the team to bring home the AFCON trophy next year.

“On the behalf of all Nigerians, I congratulate the Super Eagles for making the country proud with such an incredible performance. While this wraps up our qualification gracefully, I want to charge the team to go out against all odds in Ivory Coast next year. We want the AFCON trophy to land in Nigeria and all hands will be on deck to make this happen,” he stated.

“The ministry will work round the clock to ensure the team gets the best preparation possible, in our quest to bring glory to Nigeria. Our players have displayed commitment to the national colours and I hope that the renewed sense of patriotism remains in place to catalyze the team at the AFCON.”

The Super Eagles bagged 15 points from six games to secure top spot in Group A. Lagos-born Victor Osimhen grabbed a hat trick to become Nigeria’s fourth all-time highest goalscorer with 20 goals.

[Leadership]