Head coach of the Nigeria senior national team Gernot Rohr says, the return of Alex Iwobi and Ogenekaro Etebo will add the much needed goals to the attack of the Super Eagles when they take on Zambia, in a World Cup 2018 qualifiers tie in Ndola.

While Arsenal teen star Iwobi is guarantee to be available, same can’t be said about Etebo, who is currently a huge doubt for the game owing to injuries and work permit issues at his Portuguese side CD Feirense.

Speaking in Abuja, the German coach told newsmen that the duo are high up in his plans for the Zambia tie.

” We have some players, we are counting on to be in the squad, the boy from Arsenal (Iwobi) and the lad (Etebo) who scored four in one game at the Olympics” He said.

” Goals is what we need to triumph over Zambia but we also have to protect our goal, already we have started works on our defence and we will see how far we have come against Zambia”.

The contract of Former Nigeria Under 20 right full back Akeem Latifu has been terminated by Turkish side Alanyaspor, less than three months after the defender joined the team.

Latifu will now be looking to join another club which will take the number of clubs he has played for to four in a space of one year. As he recently terminated his contract with Ukrainian side FC Stal before his move to Turkey.

Before terminating his contract with Stal, he left Norwegian side Aalesund after the expiration of his contract despite the club willingness to extend his contract.

Latifu was signed by the Turkish side on the 28 of June, but he will now leave the team without making a single appearance for the team that also pay the bills of Super Eagles defender Kenneth Omeruo, who is on loan from Chelsea.

26 year old Latifu was a member of the Nigeria Under-20 team to the World Youth Championship in Canada in 2007.

Kelechi Nwakali was on the losing side as his loan side MVV Maastricht crashed out of the KNVB Beker losing 4-5 on penalties to FC Volendam, the Dutch version of what the English call FA Cup.

Maastricht threw away a two goal lead which saw the Cup tie extended into penalty kicks as both sides were tied at 3-3.

Volendam converted all of their spotkick where Maastricht missed one of theirs. The game ended 4-5 with Nwakali slipping his spot kick into the net with style.

Nwakali is well known in Nigeria for his abilities from set pieces. A trait he exhibited during the last U-17 World Cup and even more recently with the U-20s, in a game against Burundi during their ill fated attempt to qualify for next year Africa Youth Championship.

The highly rated 18 year old is on a season long loan from Arsenal, the team he officially joined this summer. A year after winning the Most Valuable Player (MVP) at the Under-17 World Youth Championship.

Highly rated Nigerian teen midfielder Kelechi Nwakali who is on loan to Dutch second division side MVV Masstricht from English Premier League side Arsenal, was a second half substitute as his loan side threw away a two goal lead to draw 3-3 with FC Volendam.

Masstricht took a two goal lead courtesy of Luis Pedro and Thomas Verheijdt in the 20th and 34th minute respectively, and they kept their lead until the half time break only for their host to pull a goal back seven minutes after the restart.

Joeri Schroyen restored Masstricht two goal lead with a goal ten minutes later to takes scores at 3-1. Shortly after the goal Kelechi Nwakali was introduced to help them protect their two goal lead.

However the Nigerian couldn’t stop the rampaging FC Volendam forwards, and they scored two more goals within a space of 8 minutes, thanks too Erik Schouten and Tuyp who completed his brace to rescue a point for his team.

The game was the second for the Nigerian, who was voted the best player at the last Under-17 World Cup in Chile, which Nigeria won much to the admiration of the rest of the world.

As Nigeria continue to foot drag on the list of invited players for Nigeria’s opening World Cup 2018 qualifiers. The Chipolopolo of Zambia have named a strong squad for the game in Ndola, Listing the best legs the country can boast of at the moment.

The 33 man list has 25 locally based players while a total of 8 players based abroad were called up by coach Wedson Nyirenda for the October 9 clash.

The squad:

GOALKEEPERS: Jacob Banda (Zesco United), Kennedy Mwene (Mamelodi Sundowns/South Africa), Rocha Kola (Zanaco)

DEFENDERS: Lawrence Chungu (Power Dynamos), Fackson Kapumbu (Zanaco), Simon Silwimba (Zesco United), Adrian Chama (Green Buffaloes), Kabaso Chongo (T.P Mazembe/DRC), Ziyo Tembo (Zanaco), George Chilufya (Zanaco), Stoppila Sunzu (Lille/France), Billy Mutale (Power Dynamos), Malama Donashano (Nkana)

MIDFIELDERS: Charles Zulu (Zanaco), Fwayo Tembo (Power Dynamos), Kalaba Rainford (T.P Mazembe/DRC), Chota Chama Clatous, John Chin’gandu (Zesco United), Jack Chirwa (Green Buffaloes), Misheck Chaila (Zesco United), Richard Kasonde (Zanaco), Nathan Sinkala (T.P Mazembe/DRC), Rodrick Kabwe (Zanaco), Sautu Spencer (Green Eagles), Mwape Mwelwa (Zesco United), Chisamba Lungu (Ural/Russia)

STRIKERS: Justin Shonga (Nkwazi), Jackson Mwanza (Zesco United), Kalengo Winstone (AC Leopards/DRC), Lewis Macha (Kaizer Chiefs/South Africa), Patson Daka (Power Dynamos), Collins Mbesuma (Highlands Park/South Africa)

Fans of Manchester City have reacted via social media to the ongoing rift between manager Pep Guardiola and Dimitri Seluk, agent to star player Yahaya Toure using Nigerian teen forward Kelechi Iheanacho to mock the agent statement that the coach doesn’t like Africans.

The war of words between the manager and the agent escalated to a whole new height today, when the manager revealed that he won’t play Toure unless he apoligise to him on the comment made by his agent.

Seluk replied Pep by saying he doesn’t hold the manager any apologies. His comments sparked debate on twitter with most of the club fans backing the manager.

They used Guardiola treatment of Iheanacho as a case study that the coach of the table toppers indeed trust and loves Africans.

” Seluk you are right, Pep doesn’t like Africans, Iheanacho is Catalan” a fan wrote.

” Iheanacho is on £85K a week, an upgrade approved by Pep. He doesn’t like Africans. Seluk you are right. Iheanacho is Spanish. A Catalan from test conducted by you” Another wrote.

” Toure and his agent are messing with Pep, while Catalan Nigerian Iheanacho is thriving. He is not Nigerian. He is Catalan. Seluk you are right”. Another fan wrote on twitter.

Former Nigeria U-17 left footed ace Femi Joseph Olatubosun says he is eager to play for the senior national team of Angola, as he believes he is more suited to their culture, ways and management style than he is with Nigeria.

The Pepsi Football Academy graduate has found a new home in Angola, where he is happily married with a son and turned out for Caala in the Angolan top league, before moving to Ayia Napa of Cyprus.

The death of his son made him terminate his contract in Cyprus as he needed to return back to Angola, so as to be close with his family. He presently plays for Academica Petroleos do Lobito in the same country he now calls home since 2009.

25 year old Femi strongly believes that he stands a chance of playing for Angola at senior level, despite representing Nigeria at junior level as they are more professional in the management of their football.

” Am not begging to play for Angola. It has been my dream for a while, it almost happened before I left for Cyprus. Now that am back, am eager to turn out for Angola. It is my home” He told Owngoalnigeria.com.

” A call up to the Angolan team will be a dream come true for me. They are very professional in the way they run their football than Nigeria, it’s painful but I have to say it.

” I know to earn a call up to Angola,one has to be at his best but for Nigeria you necessarily don’t have to be good. Sometimes you have to know somebody, who knows the man in charge. It’s that bad”.

Femi was a member of the late Yemi Tella lead Under-17 team of 2007 but injury ruled him out on the World Cup in South Korea, despite impressing for the team during an 8 Nations Tournament held in same country that hosted the World Cup.

John Obi Mikel has taken a swipe back at captain John Terry who revealed during the course of the week, that the Nigerian sleeps a lot among players of the team.

Mikel who responded to Terry by saying he isn’t the sleepy one in the team has now gone a step further by posting a picture of the Chelsea captain sleeping in the team bus on their way to a team function.

The Nigeria captain who is Chelsea’s current second longest serving player behind the captain, posted the picture on his official twitter handle, tagging the Terry in a picture with David Luiz.

He also commented by the picture by saying ” @DavidLuiz_4 And JT says I’m the sleepy one ” next to a thread of the story where Terry referred to him as the sleepy one.

Chelsea could lose long serving Nigeria midfielder John Obi Mikel in the summer, after the 29 year old open admission about his interest in talks with other clubs in January, with his contract set to run out in the summer.

“I have one year left [on my contract],” Mikel told Goal . “When you have a year left as a football player, you have to start planning and start thinking about what’s going to happen at the end of the season. Yes, there are going to be rumours, yes, there are going to be conversations between clubs.

“When you have a year left, in January, you are allowed to talk to other clubs and sign a pre-contract or have an agreement so, yes, I will talk to other clubs because you never know what is going to happen.”

“I’ve been here for a long, long time. I’ve spent 11 years of my life in this football club, it is my home.

“This season is the last at the club if my contract ends. I am quite relaxed about it, the future looks good.”

However Mikel says he would love to remain at Stamford Bridge if the club propose an offer , that is acceptable by him.

am always open to a new conversation, a negotiation [with Chelsea],” he added. “But if there’s none, the future still looks bright. One day you have to move on. I think my memories here, my achievements here, are something that no one will ever take away from me.