The president of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) isn’t happy with the comment made by the top striker of the senior national team of Nigeria Victor Osimhen on the issue of the non payment of bonuses of the Nigerian women team, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Osimhen delved into the controversial issue that has been the major talking point in the build up to the women’s world cup and resurfaced strongly after the exit in the round of 16 following a penalty shoot out loss to England.

“Pay them @thenff”, he posted on Instagram joining calls from around the world in calling for the Nigerian girls to be paid their wages, which has been left unpaid since 2021.

” I can tell you at the NFF no one cares about what Odion Ighalo or Victor Anichebe said, they are former players and can speak unlike Osimhen. He has a very good relationship with the president Ibrahim Musa Gusau, so close that he invited him to Italy when Napoli lifted the league title”, a source at the NFF told OwnGoalNigeria.com.

” Gusau felt betrayed because with a simple phone call he would have explained to him about the entire saga. It didn’t start with Gusau, it has been there since 2001. A player like Osimhen should not jump on the back of anything he sees on social media rather ask questions or stay out. He crossed the line on this one”.

On what possible action that could be takes against the forward, he said it’s a father and son relationship thing hence it will be sorted between themselves.” They will sort it out like father and son. I really don’t think it has gotten to the extent of punishment”, he rounded up saying.

Ade Emmanuel

One of the most noticeable change in the Leicester City set up is the decision of the new coach of the team Enzo Maresca to play Nigeria international midfielder Wilfred Ndidi in a new role, higher up the pitch than his previous role just in front of the defence, OwnGoalNigeroa.comreports.

Maresca experimented the idea in all of their pre season games and not many thought he will take it into the new season especially with the future of Ndidi uncertain with just one year left in his deal at the club.

The manager who took over the team following their relegation from the English Premier League has gone about the task of helping them gain promotion back to the English top flight, by leading them to a win in their first championship game against Coventry.

Ndidi played higher up the pitch in an advanced number 8 role tasked with making box to box run making him more of a goal threat to the opposition than a barrier to his team conceding. He struggled in the role but on Wednesday against Burton in the League Cup he showed better understanding with a goal.

While Ndidi is getting used to a new role, it has worked out well with his teammates at club and national level Kelechi Iheanacho. The new style of the team’s attack suits his skillet better than team’s talisman Jamie Vardy.

In the two games this season, Iheanacho who has a goal and and assist against Burton in the League Cup has been on the pitch for the period they have scored all four goals this season. An impact recognized by the manager.

“Very good. Even against Coventry, he was inside in the second half and he was very good. He helped us a lot against Coventry to come back in the game”, he said of the forward whose future is the same as that of Ndidi and cloud yet leave before the close of the transfer window.

“We have three strikers with different skills, Vardy is one of the best inside the box. Kele probably gives us something different. And also Pato (Daka). All of them, they are very good”.

It’s only a matter of time before he decides to bin the fan’s favorite for Iheanacho who is perfectly suited to his idea of having a striker, who holds up the ball and bring others into play. Something that isn’t the strength of Vardy, who likes to run off the shoulder of the last man.

Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman

When newly promoted English Premier League side Luton square up against Brighton in their first game of the season in the English Premier League, a Nigerian Chidozie Ogbene will be hoping to complete one of the most amazing journey in football, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Born in Enugu State in Nigeria to a family of medical professionals, the initial plan was for the 26 year old winger to follow the family line, that helped them migrate from Enugu to Lagos before finally finding a home in Ireland. Nursing made it happen for his family.

“Both my parents are nurses. Dad is still practising in CUH in Cork.” Elder brother Uche Ogbene recently joined the family business. “I was expected to be a doctor but that didn’t work out as planned”, he told The Irish Times.

“Yeah, I always wanted to follow the medical side. I went to a further educational college in Cork to study sports injuries to understand ‘why do I get injured?’ I didn’t go to university but I think we are all interested in human anatomy in the family.“

While in Nigeria, he didn’t quite have any interest of becoming a football hence can barely recall any memory of if he really played football before his family relocated to Ireland, where he vividly remember how he started off by playing street football.

“I just remember running around with cousins in the street. Back then I didn’t play a lot of football, just watched my brothers play in a sandy field. I never had interest really. It was when I moved to Ireland and started playing street football with my neighbours, that’s when I took it up.”

Despite his desire to be a professional footballer he had a strong leading that he will he a very good Gaelic football player. Gaelic is a form of football, it is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch.

The objective of the sport is to score by kicking or punching the ball into the other team’s goal or between two upright posts above the goal and over a crossbar 2.5 metres (8 ft 2 in) above the ground.

“I always wanted to be a professional footballer, but I had a God-given talent with Gaelic football,” the Luton winger told Sky Sports.

“I’d been juggling both sports, I had to make the call to my coaches. I had the attributes required to play Gaelic football at a high level, but it was a decision I had to make for my own dreams”.

He held on to that dream until 2015, when he made what can now be described as the most important phone call of his football career till date while at league of Ireland side Cork City.

“I played against a mate of mine who was at Limerick and I text him to ask for the manager’s number so I could have a three-day trial,” he says. “Cork City were a very strong team at the time and I didn’t really see a position for me in terms of game time. At that age, I just wanted to learn men’s football.

At Limerick he was spotted by Brentford and handed a three year deal, but he didn’t have the best of time adapting to the demands of English football leading to a loan move to Exeter in League two, a move that shaped his understanding of the game.

At the end of the season he moved to Rotherham, where he put his lighting pace, strength and dribbling ability to use and it led to his first call up to the senior national team of Ireland. A move that made him the first African born player to represent the the country.

With four goals from 15 caps one would have thought that he has put behind his Nigerian roots but that isn’t the case as he still speaks the native dialect Igbo when around his family and says the Nigerian culture will forever leave with him.

“My parents always pushed me to make sure I improved my English, they always wanted to hear it, but they also want us to remember where we come from, and the culture is something we take huge pride in. I’d come home from school and would switch to Igbo. My girlfriend Sandra used to come around and she would be looking at me, ‘I hope you are not talking negative about me!’, he said.

“Our household is quite Nigerian dominant. That is just something in our DNA. That is something that my parents and brothers and sisters take huge pride in and hopefully we pass it on to our kids; to share the cultural differences of being Irish and Nigerian because it is important to know where you come from”.

From wanting to be a medical doctor to having dreams of playing Gaelic football, Ogbebe is itching to get into the mix for Luton in their first top flight game since 1992, after playing a huge role in helping them beat Conventry in the promotion play off to seal a spot in the English Premier League.

Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman

Dutch giants Ajax Amsterdam have entered into transfer talks with Middlesbrough over the signing of Chuba Akpom, who finished as the top scorer in the English Championship with 28 goals in 40 games, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Akpom was one of the success stories of the Championship side last season as they failed to secure promotion to the English Premier League losing out in the promotion play off, but the 28 year old did enough to catch the attention of the top teams in Europe.

Linked with newly promoted English Premier League side Sheffield Wednesday and also French Ligue 1 side Lens. Dutch media De Telegraaf is however reporting that talks have already started with Boro over his acquisition.

They said the idea is to have him provide competition to Brian Brobbey in the attack of the team. His potential signing is being pushed by the new sporting director of the club Sven Mislintat, who knew the soon to be Nigeria international from his days at Arsenal.

Mislintat believe the forward will give them options in attack, a sentiment shared by the coach of the senior national team of Nigeria who has his eyes on the forward and will likely hand him his first call up, when he is able to secure a Nigerian passport.

He already has his international switch process approved by FIFA giving him the freedom to switch from England, where was a youth international at various levels to Nigeria.

Daniel Martins

Italian Serie A champions Napoli will begin the defence of their league crown next weekend, when they take on Frosinone in their first game of the new season, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

They have been shaping up with a series of test games during the course of their pre-season training in readiness for the start of the season, they will take on Cyprus side Apollon in their final warm up game.

The games have afforded fringe players and those of the youth team a chance to impress the new manager of the team Rudi Garcia, and one of such players is left full back Nosa Edward Obarentin.

Born in Italy to parents of Nigerian descent, the 20 year old who hasn’t been capped by any of the above mentioned countries at any level has taken his chance to impress the manager, with a string of fine performances following his elevation from the B team.

He joined Napoli from the U19 of AC Milan last year, and he hasn’t looked out of place operating as a centre back of left full back raking up 33 appearances and finding the back of the net three times.

This season he is tipped with a breakthrough with the first team and he has his eyes on international football, where he is eligible for both Nigeria and Italy.

” My immediate focus is on getting the best out of senior football at club level. When I am able to establish myself then I can now dream of international football, but of course I have always wanted to play for Nigeria and I have come close to joining the youth team. We will see when that time comes”, he said via quotes made available to OGN from a source close to the player.

Daniel Martins

The future of Nigeria U20 winger Joel Ideho has been secured by Dutch side Ado Den Haag following his summer departure from English Premier League side Arsenal, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

20 year old Ideho joined Arsenal three years ago from Dutch giants Ajax but failed to break into the main team with injuries and fitness issues not helping his cause.

He was released at the end of last season making him a free agent. Dutch side Heerenveen had him on trial but decided against offering him a deal, Ado Den Haag in the second division didn’t dither before offering him a three years deal.

A member of the Nigeria U20 team, his lack of possession of a Nigerian passport denied him the chance of making the team to the U20 Africa Cup of Nations. He got one in time for the world cup but picked up an Injury that ruled him out of the tournament, where Nigeria crashed out in the quarter final losing 0-1 to South Korea.

Daniel Martins

Scottish side Rangers got their UEFA Champions League qualifiers off to a flying start with a hard fought 2-1 win over Swiss side Servette in the first leg of the game, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Nigeria international forward Cyriel Dessers, who joined the team in the summer from Italian Serie A side Cremonense scored what ended as the winner for the Scottish side, putting them in a healthy position ahead of the return leg next week.

The goal will also serve a reminder to the coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Jose Peseiro, who hasn’t included the 28 year old in his last four squads despite his only international goal coming in the mangers’s second game in charge of the team.

Speaking on the goal, he said it will give him the confidence to score more in the colours of his new team and possibly help them progress to the next round of the qualifiers.

He told RangersTV: “That moment was unbelievable. Of course, you dream of scoring at Ibrox in front of this crowd, and to feel the emotion it’s amazing and it is an amazing feeling.

“I am happy that it was an important goal that we got the win out of.

“This will keep us on our toes for next week – it will be a hard game , but I think that is good and I think we need that.

“We are still growing as a team so this will be a new step we have to make.

“In European qualifiers, you don’t get anything for free so we will have to fight for it and we know it will be a tough game, but we will be ready for it.”

Damian Waziri

The transfer of Nigeria international defender Chidozie Awaziem to French Ligue 1 side Nantes has been put on hold owing to a dispute over his wages at Portuguese side Boavista, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.

Boavista reportedly agreed a fee of €1.4m for his permanent transfer to Nantes but the move is now being delayed with Awaziem insisting on claiming wages he is owed by the Portuguese side.

The Nigerian who spent last season on loan to Croatian side Hajduk Split is keen on sealing a return to Nantes, where he spent the 2017/2018 season on loan during his days at FC Porto. He is their top pick as the replacement for Andrei Girotto in central defence.

Awaziem might decide to take the case to FIFA and likey get a judgement on 16th of June paving the way for him to join Nantes on an already agreed four years deal. He could yet get to leave for free if FIFA rules in his favor.

His camp are claiming that he hasn’t been paid for a period of time that is long enough for his contracted to be terminated, hence making his a free player but that argument is strongly refuted by the club.

According to L’equipe Nantes are playing the waiting game hoping for a quick resolution to the impasse to allow the 26 year old Nigeria international to join them for the Ligue 1 season.

Ade Emmanuel

English Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur will step up their pursuit of a replacement for the captain of their team Harry Kane after reaching an agreement for his transfer to Bayern Munich, OwnGoalNigeria.comreports.

Reports from informed sources has it that the English side have accepted a bid of over a €100m for the 30 year old captain of the English national team. It is now up to the player to decide on making the move.

However the club are not leaving any stone unturned and they have identified players who will potentially take up his spot, if he decided to make the move. Among their targets is Nigerian striker Gift Orban.

As first reported by OGN, exploratory talks have been held with his representatives about a move to the English side,  a move centered on the future of the captain of the team who is now likely to leave.

22 year old Orban last night scored a hattrick for Gent in their 5-0 win over Polish side Pogoń Szczecin in the Europa Conference League qualifiers. His stock has dramatically risen since his move to Belgium from second division Norwegian side Stabæk in January.

He ended last season with 20 goals in 22 games, a form which has now made him the bride of most European teams making Gent to slap a €30m fee on him. French Ligue 1 side Lille, the early favourite for his signing failed with a bid of around €20m.

Spurs will have little or no problem in meeting up with his valuation, which will likely skyrocket if he continues his blistering form and as expected get to make his bow at senior international level for Nigeria.

Daniel Martins

A senior international of the senior national team of Nigeria has joined the long list of players who have moved to oil rich Saudi Arabia from European teams in the ongoing transfer window, OwnGoalNigeria.comreports.

The Saudi Arabia league has become the new heaven for footballers in this transfer window with players picking move to the Gulf nation ahead of remaining in Europe.

A huge cash injection into the league by the government of the country is largely responsible for the exodus and 16 caps Nigeria international forward Henry Onyekuru has joined the train from Turkish side Adana Demirspor.

Onyekuru touched down in Saudi Arabia today for his medicals With top division side Al-Feiha with a fee of around €5m reportedly agreed as his transfer fee. He is leaving the Turkish side just two months after his loan deal from Olympiacos for last season was made permanent.

Last season he found the back of the net eight times in 30 games in all competitions. A tally he will be keen on improving on when his move to Al-Feiha becomes official.

Daniel Martins