Former Wimbledon FC captain John Fashanu says the Nigeria Football Federation should be blamed over Nigeria’s inability to lure Dele Alli to play for the Super Eagles instead of the Three Lions of England.

Dele Alli joined Tottenham Hotspurs two year ago from MK Dons, a team Fashanu has strong links with and the teenager is now proving his worth in his first season at White Hart Lane and now an England international.

Fashanu in a chat with owngoalnigeria.com. revealed he could have been playing for Nigeria as he made contact with the teenager during his loan spell at MK Dons but got zero support from the NFF in trying to woo him.

“I used my connections at the team to get through to him (Alli) and we spoke at length but he request we meet his dad as he was just 17 then and too young to make such a decision” He told owngoalnigeria.

“However when I got through to the NFF as I need travel with them to have talks with his parents,nobody was willing to listen to me as they were back then involved in a power tussle,that was how we lost Alli to England”.

Alli was a key player for England at the last European championship took place in France last year.

Michael James

Super Eagles forward Victor Moses ‎has once again made the team of the week in England following his performance for Chelsea in their 4-2 win over Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-finals of the FA Cup.

Moses was on from start to finish, and put in a man of the match performance which includes winning the vital penalty that helped Chelsea go into the half time break leading 2-1.

His performances as a wingback under Antonio Conte has made him a regular in the team, after years of been out on loan from the club during the coaching spells of various coaches.

The Nigerian is making the team of the year put together by the BBC for the fourth time this season, a sign of how influential and useful he has become for the title favourite.
BBC’s Team of The Week :

(Goalkeepers)
Eldin Jakupovic (Hull City)

(Defenders)
David Luiz (Chelsea)
*Victor Moses (Chelsea)*
Gabriel Paulista (Arsenal)
Nacho Monreal (Arsenal)

(Midfielders)
Christian Eriksen (Tottenham Hotspur)
Willian (Chelsea)
N’Golo Kante (Chelsea)
Dele Alli (Tottenham Hotspur)
Kamil Grosicki (Hull City)

(Attacker)
Christian Benteke (Crystal Palace)

Michael James

‎27 year old Nigerian striker Godwin Mensha has emerged as the top target for most teams in the Middle East following his strong performances for Iranian side Paykan ‎.

The pacy forward who started his career abroad with‎ Spanish side Compostella has grown in leaps and bounds since joining Paykan just before the start of the season in Iran.

So far he has found the back of the net 14 times, with a brace in the last four games he has found the back of the net. His form has no doubt made him the subject of inquiry from top teams around the Middle East.

Mensha has already bettered his last season tally of 10 goals scored for Maltese side Mosta. A feat he achieved from 16 games in his only season at the club he joined from another team in Malta Balzan.

Paykan are aware that he will leave them in the summer for a top team, and they are already shopping for his replacement despite the season still having games to run.

Osas Mahawi

Nigeria Professional Football League side MFM FC missed out on having a share of Wilfred Ndidi big money move from Genk to Leicester City Owngoalnigeria.com can exclusive reveal.

Ndidi joined Leicester City in January from Belgium side Genk in a deal reportedly worth £16M, with his nursery team in Nigeria Nath Boys getting 20% of the amount paid to the Belgians.

However MFM FC could have been the team receiving the money if not for the former General Manager of the team‎ Godwin Enakhena who reportedly vetoed his registration when the team were about to go professional.

” Few years ago, Ndidi lost his relative in the Ikeja bomb blast and moved in to stay with a soldier, who later brought him to MFM FC. He was very young and still very raw but coach Fidelis Ilechukwu liked what he saw in him”, an MFM insider told Owngoalnigeria.com.

” We were on the verge of playing professional football back then, I think in the Nigeria League One ( Third division) but the then General Manager told the coach that he is too young and looks fragile, particularly as he is a central defender.

” Few months later he went to Nath Boys, shone at a Lagos state tournament and earned a call up to the U-17, same year he went to the U-20 World Youth Championship. The rest is history as they say”.
Osas Mahawi

‎Chelsea Nigerian forward Victor Moses had a taste of the commitment of his captain John Terry when he got struck to the floor by a massive throw from the legend.

The incident happened during their last training session during a session involving the use of hands in throwing balls to each other.

Terry’s throw accidentally caught Moses, and sent the Nigerian to the floor after a while. The video of the incident was posted by the captain on his official instagram account.

See Video:

https://twitter.com/cfcnewsapp/status/856448016198316032

Coach of the Super Eagles of Nigeria Gernot Rohr has in conjunction with the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) agreed on playing friendly games with teams above Nigeria in the annual FIFA rankings.

The move was taken to help Nigeria boost their rankings as well, owing to the fact that FIFA uses it as a determinant in most of their decisions especially in seedings for tournaments.

Already Congo Brazzaville have lost out on a chance to play Nigeria in France, during the Eagles planned camping with Rohr settling for Burkina Faso who are ahead of Nigeria in the monthly FIFA rankings.

Burkina Faso are five spot ahead of Nigeria in the last ranking released by FIFA, as they are 35th while the Eagles are 40th. Congo Brazzaville are however ranked 84th.

Nigeria will use the proposed friendly game against Burkina Faso to prepare for their upcoming AFCON 2019 qualifiers against South Africa on the 10th of June in Uyo.

Osas Mahawi

On loan FC Porto midfielder  Fidelis Irhene has sensationally turned down an offer from the club to join them in pre season training ahead of the start of next season.

Irhene was ever present for Portimonense who were yesterday crowned champions of the second division, and subsequently promoted to the top division in Portugal. His form made Porto include him in their pre season plans.

But in an exclusive chat with Owngoalnigeria.com, Irhene said he will only accept a return to the team if he is assured of opportunities with the first team, and not the B team who are in the second division.

” I have been told by FC Porto to join the team in pre season ahead of the start next season, but I want first team assurances, right now they have three players in my position”, Irhene told Owngoalnigeria.com.

” Staying at Portimonense is an option but that has to be sorted out with FC Porto. To be honest with you I have offers from outside Portugal and am seriously considering a few of them. We’ll see what happens in the summer”.

Osas Mahawi

Manager of Arsenal Arsene Wenger has revealed part of the reasons why Alex Iwobi lost his spot in the Arsenal team, following his none involvement in their last three games.

Iwobi’s Uncle Austin Okocha has suggested that the return of senior players played a role in Iwobi’s relegation to the bench, insisting that the 20 year old will get better in the nearest future.

However Arsene Wenger while speaking after his side 2-1 win over Manchester City in the semi-final, narrowed Iwobi’s exclusion alongside some other stars in the team to the new system the team is playing.

Reacting to his decision to stick with the 3-5-2 formation, the manager expressed his happiness with the system but also feels sorry for players like Iwobi, Theo Walcott and others who lost their spot due to the system.

He however suggested that the team will from time to time change their tactical formation based on the opponents they are facing before the season comes to an end in England.

Michael James

Highly rated Nigerian defender Chidozie Awaziem was sent off yesterday for two bookable offences in FC Porto II 1-2 loss to Benfica II.

Awaziem was shown two yellow cards in a space of ten minutes in the 79th and 89th minutes respectively. His 14th caution of the season in 33 games for the B team of Porto, who are playing in the second division.

Last season he played 14 games for the main team but this season, he is yet to make a single appearance for the team, but he has been ever present for the B team.

In the same game, his Nigerian counterpart Musa Yahaya who was sent off two weeks ago, was on for the entire duration of the game, and impressed from his new role as a wingback.

It was only the third time Musa Yahaya has played in the league for Porto B following his transfer from Portimonense in the summer.
Daniel Martins

Alex Iwobi’s uncle Austin Okocha has explained the reason why the forward is no longer commanding a starting spot at Arsenal.

Iwobi has failed to play in any of the Gunners last two games, and was not even listed for action when they lost to Crystal Palace as he was demoted to the U-23s.

Okocha who mentored Iwobi during his formative years revealed, competition for spot in the team following the return of some senior players is the reason for his current absence from the team.

“We can’t forget that this is his first full season in the first team and Arsenal have all their players back now. There’s a lot of competition, so it’s not easy,” he told Sky Sports.

“He has had a good season. It’s not easy to make it through from the academy into the first team at such a big club. He has achieved this and has been phenomenal; I am delighted with what he has achieved so far.

“I think it’s better for him to stay at Arsenal, because the style of play suits him perfectly. It might not be easy for him to go on loan and adapt somewhere else. He needs to stay and fight for his shirt.”

Daniel Martins