Nigeria international forward Moses Simon is expected to be in action later today when Nantes take on 4th division French side JA Drancy in the French Cup later today , OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Simon was expected to be given a rest by coach Antoine Kombouaré but the coach who is underfire following an underwhelming season so far is open to using his best players tonight, which includes the Nigeria international.

The coach is looking to bolster the confidence of the team with the game, and he sees Simon who has a goal and assist in their last two games as key to their dreams of using the game to boost their confidence with a huge win.

Kombouaré as a matter of fact believes the 29 year old Nigerian carries a fear factor, which naturally gives his team an edge, and that is why he always have him in his starting lineup for games.

This season he has four goals and five assists in 14 league games. A remarkable tally for a team that is struggling in the lower rung of the table, and battling not to be drawn into another relegation fight.

Former Nigeria international defender Efe Ambrose says the former coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Jose Peseiro should largely share the blame for the team’s poor position in the qualifiers for the 2026 world cup, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Nigeria are currently 5th in their six team group for the qualifiers, four points behind league leaders Rwanda who will be their next opponent when the qualifiers resumes in March next year.

Super Eagles are still searching for their first win in the series after four games as they presently have three draws and a loss. Ambrose who was a part of the 2013 AFCON winning team says the poor start is largely to be blamed for their position in their group.

” They started with a game at home against Lesotho and an away game to Zimbabwe , with all due respect those are the kind of games you expect the Super Eagles to win comfortably and set the tone for the rest of the qualifiers. Those two draws in their opening games brought about the pressure in their last two games”, Ambrose told OwnGoalNigeria.com in an exclusive chat.

” After those games they played against South Africa and Benin Republic two teams who can easily pass among the strongest in the group. Imagine building momentum in those two games before playing them?

” I really think you can’t excuse their poor start which started under Jose Peseiro. It’s a painful truth but we have to say it correctly. However I hope they make it to the world cup because I can’t imagine Nigeria missing out on two straight world cups”.

Super Eagles fans favourite Victor Moses has turned his back on any chance of returning to the team to help their bid to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, OwnGoalNigeria.com can exclusively reveal.

Moses joined English Championship side Luton from Russian side Spartak Moscow on a free transfer following the expiration of his deal. He has since stamped his feet in the starting lineup of Luton who are aiming for an instant return to the English Premier League following relegation last season.

The former Chelsea Star was among the long list of players and former players of the Nigerian team who sent their message of congratulations to Ademola Lookman, after he was crowned the Africa Player Of the Year, succeeding his international teammate Victor Osimhen.

He has however made it clear that he has no intention of adding to his 38 caps for the senior national team of Nigeria, follow his decision to quit international football after the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

” That chapter is closed and there is no going back on that. It’s about club football and a plan for a happy retirement”, a source who is close to the 34 year old told OwnGoalNigeria.com.

” In life and football especially you have to know when to leave and Moses did that already after playing at two World Cups. He is still supporting the team and will no doubt be rooting for them to make it to the 2026 World Cup”.

The most successful team and also the current defending champions of the top division league in Czech Republic Sparta Praha have completed the signing of 21 year old Nigerian defender Emmanuel Uchenna from fellow top division side Banik Ostrava, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

His signing by the 38 times winner of the Czech League was announced by the sporting director of the team Tomáš Rosický , who revealed that they beat other teams to the services of the defender who has played less than a year in the top flight league in Czech Republic.

“I am very happy that we can welcome Emmanuel to Sparta. There was a lot of interest in his services from other clubs, but he chose us because he sees the best space for his further development in our environment. He is a young, talented player with excellent prospects for further growth. He has the attributes that we are looking for in players for stopper positions,” the Arsenal legend said.

He will officially join the team in the January transfer window. A remarkable rise for the Ikorodu City trainee, who also had a stint with Moravian-Silesian Football League ( Third division in Czech) at the beginning of his contract in 2023. After a stint in Vítkovice, he also played for Hlučín.

At Sparta he will be united with another Nigerian in Victor Olatunji. He spoke about his delight at joining the Czech Republic giants, and why he picked them as the next step in his career.

“Going to Sparta is the best possible decision, I have no doubts at all. As soon as my agent told me about the club’s interest, I didn’t hesitate,” said our new signing after signing the contract. “I always try to do my best and help the team. My faith in God also drives me in my career”, he explained.

One time Super Eagles invitee Gift Orban is close to agreeing a move to German side Hoffenheim from French Ligue 1 side Lyon, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Orban joined Lyon one year ago from Belgium side Gent but has failed to match his tally of 32 goals in 52 games that prompted his signing. He has scored only 5 goals in 21 games since his move to the French side one year ago.

This season he has played in just five games in all competitions, three in Ligue 1 and two in the Europa League with just two goals so far, making his move away from the team in the January transfer window a must if he bids to get back to his best form.

Discussions is said to be advanced with his representative and all parties involved to make the move happen when the transfer window opens in January.

Talks about a mutual termination of his deal or a permanent deal was discussed but the German side are pushing for to a loan deal with the option of signing him permanently at the end of the season based on certain clauses, which is about his goals and appearance during the loan deal.

It has not been a vintage career for the 22 year l who was invited to the camp of the senior national team of Nigeria two years ago. His move to Lyon cost 20 million euros. Gent will also receive 20% of any profits that Lyon will potentially generate when selling him.

Head coach of French Ligue 1 side PSG Luis Enrique has told top striker Randal Kolo Muani that he is free to leave the team in the January transfer window, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Signed from German side Eintracht Frankfurt for £77 million, the 26 year old haven’t lived up to his price tag forcing the coach to take a decision on his immediate future as early as the January transfer window.

He was widely expected to depart the team in the summer, but they decided to give him another chance to redeem himself at the club which sadly he failed to utilize, and has now been told he has no future with the Ligue 1 champions.

His imminent exit will clear the path for the team to sign Nigeria international striker Victor Osimhen, who they couldn’t sign due to the presence of the Frenchman. Osimhen is now in Galatasary on loan from Napoli but he isn’t expected to be signed permanently at the end of the season.

Napoli are keen to let him leave and PSG will likely be his next stop as they will be able to match Napoli’s demand of over €60m as his transfer fee, and his wages which is said to be in excess of €10m a year.

As the senior national team of Nigeria get set to resume their campaign in the 2026 world cup qualifiers, a note of warning has been sounded to the coach who will be at the helm, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Austine Eguavoen who handled the team all through the qualifiers for the AFCON will return to his main role as the technical director of the Nigeria Football Federation ( NFF), with a foreign coach expected to be engaged.

Like we exclusively reported the NFF has already set the wheel in motion for the appointment of a new coach by opening talks with prospective sponsors for the payment of the wages of the coach, who is expected to be in place next year.

The coach has been warned to ditched Bayer Leverkusen forward Victor Boniface as an alternative for team’s top striker Victor Osimhen by a former fan favourite of the team in Celestine Babayaro.

Babayaro said with the Super Eagles spot in the world cup qualifiers group having a player like Boniface, who haven’t shown enough commitment in the Nigerian shirt could likely backfire in the event of Osimhen picking up a knock.

” I (Babayaro) haven’t watched the team in a while but from what I can deduce there is the need for an alternative to Osimhen, and it can’t be Boniface. Over time Boniface has failed to prove himself as someone who is serious when playing for the team”, he told OwnGoalNigeria.com.

” Whoever leads the team when the qualifiers resumes will have to look for an alternative to Osimhen who as we have seen can be trusted to be available for all games. That alternative can’t be someone who is not serious like Boniface”.

The name Lewis-Skelly has been on the lips of lots of fans of English Premier League side Arsenal after his performance in their last two consecutive games in the UEFA Champions League and the English Premier League, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Lewis-Skelly started in the 3-0 win over Monaco on Wednesday and kept his spot at left back in the 0-0 draw at home against Everton. In both games the 18 year old held his own despite playing in a makeshift role as opposed to his main position as a midfielder.

A graduate form the club’s academy his rise to the top was aided by a piece of advice he got via his mother from Nigeria international midfielder Alex Iwobi, who also rose through the ranks at Arsenal.

“I met his mum three months ago in Dagenham and she was like: ‘I want my son to do well’ and I just gave some advice,” Iwobi recalled.

“I just said to his mum, ‘Be patient because his time will come’. Make sure he’s ready because if he’s constantly training with the first team like how I was, that will make him a better player.”

Iwobi then went on to explain the importance of steering away from a possible loan transfer, expressing the value of training with the first team.

“A lot of players like to go on loan and play men’s football early which I understand. But when you’re training with some of the best players in the world at Arsenal, you naturally get ready by seeing how they work every day.

“For the youngsters there, that’s the best education to grow as a player.”

All players of the senior national team of Nigeria, coaches, members of the back room and former coach Jose Peseiro have publicly sent their message of congratulations to Atalanta forward Ademola Lookman after he was announced as the Africa Player Of The Year, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

He dethroned his teammate Victor Osimhen to lift the prestigious award making it back to back wins for Nigeria, after a 24 year wait to win the title which ended last year when Osimhen claimed the honour.

Osimhen has however not congratulated Lookman publicly, and when he was called out by some of his followers on social media, he confirmed that he spoke with Lookman privately on his feat around 23:49 Turkish time.

However as at the time of this report he hasn’t officially congratulated his teammate despite the fact that he has been very active on social media. An act that has become an issue of discussion on a lot of social media platforms.

His decision not to congratulate Lookman openly wasn’t made public by the on loan Napoli forward , who was also voted in the CAF Best XI during the course of the event on Monday in Morocco.

Italian Serie A side Atalanta have resigned to the reality that their Nigerian forward Ademola Lookman will leave the club in the summer, OwnGoalNigeria.com understands.

The recently crowned Africa Player Of The Year is keen on a return to the English Premier League where he had his career breakthrough, and has already informed Atalanta who have promised to let him leave in the summer.

Atalanta will discuss his exit with potential suitors next summer unlike during the last transfer window where he was blocked from joining French Ligue 1 giants PSG. It is believed that the Ligue 1 side won’t be in the running for his signing at the end of the season.

According to Sky Sports Italia, the representatives of three English teams in Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea have already contacted the camp of the Nigerian who could cost in excess of €50m.

German giants Bayern Munich are also in the running for his signing with Vincent Kompany looking for a left sided forward as the duo of Leroy Sane and Kingsley Coman are having contractual issues at the club.

The potential transfer of Lookman in the summer is key for Atalanta as they aim to make them most of his splendid year at the club to get a sizeable amount as his transfer fee.