African athletes around the world have been on a tear lately, with one spectacular showing after the other, none moreso than the Nigerians. From the MMA to soccer, good and bad, there has been so much to unpack. An encouraging sign for African sports, Nigerian athletes are positioning themselves as the brand ambassadors of the continent, and are well worth any Bet9ja bonus you might be in line for.
Starting with the bad, Turkish club Akhisarspor, fell victim to fraud, when a recently signed Nigerian player turned out to be anything but. The team, no stranger to Nigerian talent, haven signed players like Peter Nsima and Raheem Lawal, were convinced they had their next gem from the Super Eagles, only to find out that the Nigerian Football Federation had no records of 20-year old Martins Chisom. Surely this will put a dent in the team’s relationship with Nigerian academies and teams.
In this week’s roundup in Europe, Kelechi Iheancho is hitting his stride with Leicester and will be the man to watch out for in their last five games of the season as the Foxes push for a Champions League berth. In blistering form of late, the Nigerian is showing all his talent and will no doubt be on the radar of his parent club Manchester City, with Sergio Aguero set to make an exit in the off-season. Meanwhile, Victor Oshimen has not been able to find the form that earned him a mega transfer to Napoli. After getting derailed by COVID-19, the striker is still getting back to his best, with Napoli battling for Champions League football once again.
In the CAF Confederations Cup, Enyimba FC needed some dramatic late goal from Cyril Olisema to book their place in the next round in thrilling fashion. Bottom of the group before kick-off, the team known popularly as the People’s Elephant, started the game with intensity and purpose. Orlando Pirates had no strong response for the pressure but held their own until the 95th minute, when à cross from Anayo Iwuala was swept into the net by Olisema. The goal clinched the victory and shot Enyimba to the top of the group and into the next phase. Their next opponent will be any among Cameroon’s Coton Sport de Garoua, Tunisia’s Cs Sfaxien, or Pyramids from Egypt.
The biggest news, however, was the win of UFC fighter and champion Kamaru Usman, over challenger, Jorge Masvidal.
The Nigerian Nightmare was his devastating best in the night, taking down his opponent with a vicious knockout in the second round.
Masvidal was having his second shot at Usman’s title, and was more determined than ever to get the job done. Usman, fresh off a defence against Gilbert Burns, was the more composed of the two, but did want to put the Masvidal challenge down for good. The fight was a fitting main event for UFC 261, and Usman had another African champion, Ngannou in his corner. Ngannourecently became UFC heavyweight champion and hails from Cameroon.
