The interest from teams in Nigeria U20 star defender Benjamin Fredrick has sparked a reaction from the president of Simoiben Football Academy Mrs Serah Ibukun Simon, OGN can exclusively reveal.

Frederick was one of the stand out players for Nigeria at the U20 Africa Cup of Nations, where the team finished third to secure a spot at the U20 World Cupz which has been shifted to Argentina from Indonesia.

Rated as the sixth best player at the tournament, the soon to be 18 year old is been chased by a host of top teams in Europe including teams like RB Leipzig, Real Sociedad, FC Midtylland, Brondy, Basle, Copenhagen and others.

The club have been bombarded with messages from agent form around the world seeking to represent the centre back and Mrs Serah has now directed them to the player’s agency CAA Base.

” We don’t control that aspect of his career. Offers should be through his agents and not to us. There is a process and we will appreciate if clubs respects that. When he turns 18, we will assess the options before us and take a decision and I can assure you. The development of the player will be our first priority and not monetary gains”, she told OGN.

Italian Serie A side Napoli will be without their top scorer Victor Osimhen, who also doubles as the top scorer in the league when they take on AC Milan in the Serie A this weekend.

The runaway league leaders announced that the Nigerian is suffering from a muscle injury picked up while on international duty with Nigeria and he is expected to be out for the game against Lecce as well.

Osimhen is expected back in the team when they play AC Milan in the first leg of the quarter final of the UEFA Champions League in two weekstime. It has left Napoli who were unwilling to release him for international break furious.

Nigeria needed a win to reclaim the top spot in the group after losing 0-1 in Abuja in the reverse tie and that made Osimhen to risk it all in the game against Guinea Bissau and it has now proved costly for his Serie A side.

Napoli are concerned about Osimhen’s decision to play the entire duration of the game against Guinea Bissau, which Nigeria won 1-0 away in Bissau even when he knew he wasn’t feeling too comfortable. He struggled all through the game and now it’s evidently clear that he played through the pain barrier for the Super Eagles.

His commitment to the course of the senior national team of Nigeria has never been in doubt but his recent act has further cemented his reputation as one player willing to give his all for the senior national team of Nigeria.

Daniel Martins

The head coach of the U20 team of Nigeria Ladan Bosso is leaving no stone unturned in his bid to ensure that only the best players represent Nigeria at the U20 World Cup in May, OGN reports.

Bosso is already in Abuja where he is putting final touches to his provisional list for the tournament expected to be submitted next week ahead of the start of the tournament which will now take place in Argentina.

Fresh from leading his team to a bronze medal finish at the U20 Africa Cup of Nations, which sealed their spot at the World Cup, the coach is keen on fortifying the attack of the team and also adding more depth to the midfield.

Already he has penciled down Arsenal youth team star Joel Ideho, Crystal Palace forward Ademola Ola-Adebomi and also Inter Milan youth team new acquisition Ebenezer Akinsanmiro for a spot in the team.

Ideho won the coach over at their camp in Abuja but as at the time, he doesn’t have a Nigerian passport making him ineligible for the team. Ola-Adebomi was also in the team but Crystal Palace didn’t give him enough time to be assessed by the coaching crew of the team.

Both players have been high flyers this season in the Premier League 2 with Ola-Adebomi having six goals from 14 games this season. Ideho a winger signed from Ajax a year ago has two goals from ten games this season.

Akinsanmiro who was newly signed by Inter Milan has been tracked by Bosso since his performance at the Viareggio youth tournament in Italy and the coach is now open to having him in his team for the tournament.

His inclusion is a necessity with doubts surrounding the return to full fitness of team’s midfield star Daniel Daga. He is expected to be passed fit for the tournament but a credible option is what Bosso sees in Akinsanmiro.

While he is okay with his team in the area of goalkeepers, he is however open to having CD Feirense U19 defender Lekan Oyedele back in the team to provide competition and cover for the likes of Solomon Agbalaka, Benjamin Fredrick, Abel Ogwuche and Daniel Bameyi.

Damian Waziri

The alleged fielding of an over age player by Guinea in the U23 AFCON qualifiers games against Nigeria has left the football family of Guinea in fear as their is a possibility of losing the ticket to be at the U23 Africa Cup of Nations to Nigeria, OGN reports.

Guinea pipped Nigeria to a spot at the U23 Africa Cup of Nations on a 2-0 aggregate score after winning the second leg of the qualifiers played in Morocco, their adopted home ground 2-0. They drew the first leg 0-0 in Abuja.

However, their joy was punctuated when OGN senior editor Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman alerted Nigerians to the discrepancies in the age of the player who scored their second goal in the 2-0 win Fode Camara.

Camara who is captain of the Guinean team plays for top league side Horoya but recent checks indicates that he plays with multiple names and also different ages. For instance he was Sekou Camara when he played against South African side Kaizer Chiefs in the 2021/2022 CAF Champions League.

Three year ago in a game against Enyimba FC of Aba , he also played with a different identity and also age. As at the time of this report only his game of 21 which was edited under a new name qualifies him for this level. His other ages show he is well above the age limit.

” It’s  a concern and a big issue in Guinea as we speak. Of course, Nigeria have a solid case because the records in public domain suggests he altered his age to be eligible for this level. However we are of the opinion that Nigeria won’t follow up. We know because you are also not clean. If it was a team from north Africa, then it would have been different”, a Guinean journalist who first mentioned the issue to OGN said on the condition of anonymity.

” Age cheats is a big issue down here and there are fears that it could cost us the U23 AFCON ticket but it’s Nigeria and I doubt if your FA will even lodge a protest. We all know how you guys aren’t clean as well”, he rounded up saying.

Mohammed Mowiz

The international future of Rennes midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu is one that has dominated discussions for a while since he made his breakthrough to the first team of the Ligue 1 side at the age of 17.

A nephew to former Nigeria U20 and senior international Onyekachi Apam, the 19 year old who is now fully established as a regular fot Ligue 1 side Rennes with 17 league appearances this season is eligible to represent either Nigeria or France at international level.

For now he plays for the French national team at youth level and he appeared not to be keen on switching to Nigeria in the future as he bodily stated in an interview that his dream is to represent France at European tournaments, and possibly win the World Cup.

“Play a European competition every season. I dream of winning a World Cup. I want to be at the highest level possible. Outside of football, I don’t want to change, no matter who I am tomorrow. I want to stay the same and improve my relationship with the Lord”, he replied when asked about his dreams by French media outlet Onze Mundial.

His statement has all but rule out any plans of playing for Nigeria in the immediate with his progress now closely monitored by the selectors of the senior national team of France, even though he face a tough competition for a spot in the middle of the team with the players ahead of him in the same age bracket.

Osas Mahawi

The head coach of the U23 team of Nigeria Salisu Yusuf has reacted to calls for his sack by football loving Nigerians following his failure to qualify the Nigeria U23 team for the U23 Africa Cup of Nations, OGN reports.

Yusuf and his wards were humbled 0-2 away by Guinea even though the game was played on a neutral ground. The Guineans progressed on a 2-0 aggregate win with the first leg of the qualifiers ending 0-0 in Abuja.

Pack filled with half baked professionals and lowly rated players from the Nigeria local football leagues, the team can easily pass as the worst ever U23 team in the history of Nigerian football at that level.

Upon their return to Nigeria, the coach was asked if he thinks he should keep his spot with the national team, where he also doubles as one of the assistants of coach Jose Peseiro, considering that Imama Amapakabo was relieved off the same role after failing with the U23.

” I am a coach, I will always be a coach as far as I am fit to work. I have a definition with the side (U23) but I still have a contract with the Super Eagles as an assistant coach”, he said in a snippet of an interview loaded by Sportsville on their Twitter handle earlier today.

His statement means he could be on the bench for the senior national side of Nigeria, when they take on Sierra Leone in the penultimate games of the qualifiers for the Africa Cup of Nations.

Mohammed Mowiz

The Nigeria U23 football team failed to make it to the U23 Africa Cup of Nations holding next year after losing 0-2 away to Guinea at a neutral ground in Morocco. The loss meant they miss out on a ticket to the AFCON on a 0-2 aggregate score.

Led by Salisu Yusuf and Kennedy Boboye, the duo called up some of the worst players to have ever played for Nigeria at this level and it didn’t just start from the game against Guinea. It is something that started from the first day at their camp in Ibadan.

One of the players who was at the camp of the team when they took on Tanzania was on loan Arsenal midfielder Tim Akinola. He was in the camp of the team before the second leg of the first round tie against Tanzania.

However, he failed to make the team for the game and even left before the day of the match. A situation which one of his representatives said was due to his reluctance to part way with some amount of money demanded from him by the backroom staff of the team.

” I must say none of the coaches approached me directly for money but a part of the backroom team came to me explaining what the coaches are facing in terms of getting paid by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF). He explained that it’s from the little that agents give them that they take home to their family”, he told OGN.

” Back then he said Salisu hasn’t been paid for 18 months and his assistants Boboye hasn’t had a job for almost two years. So anything we can give will go a long way. I didn’t decline but it’s a very sad situation to be in.  I only said at the moment I am not that buoyant financially to help but I will talk to his main representative. I was only there as a guide.

” Two days after he asked me again and this time around he even proposed I ask Tim directly. Which I said no. It was from that day that the coaches started acting funny and he left”, he touched up his explanation on the midfielder who is having a taste of first team football at Chesterfield.

Mohammed Mowiz

The global betting company 1xBet tells about the game of the strongest German teams, who are fighting for the Salad Bowl.

Tournament situation

The German football classic match will be held on April 1, and someone won’t laugh on this day. For the first time since August 2019, Borussia Dortmund occupies the first place in the standings (they couldn’t climb to the top even with Erling Haaland) and will go to Munich to defend their claim to the title. Bayern is only one point behind the leader and will try to prove the situation in March was an unfortunate accident.  

Bayern’s failed experiments

Recently, Bayern fans have noticed more and more experiments of the head coach Julian Nagelsmann. Sometimes the team goes into a match with an overly cautious game plan and then plays total ball control without any noteworthy attempts to breach the rival’s defence. It looks like good car factory parts (hi Audi) have been replaced with ones made in a garage.

Another confirmation was the away match with Bayer. Munich scored first but then lost control of the game and started some panopticon. Occasionally, there was a feeling that it was easier for the Bayern defenders to play against Messi and Mbappe than against the Leverkusen attacking line. And the famous Reds’ discipline has disappeared somewhere – the team fouled twice in the box, received two penalties and unexpectedly realized they were losing the championship.

Bayern remembered they were Bayern only in the last ten minutes of the game, but the Black and Reds goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky heroically saved the victory.

As a result, Bayern management panicked and fired Julian Nagelsmann before the season’s decisive matches. The ex-coach of Borussia Dortmund, PSG and Chelsea, Thomas Tuchel, was appointed instead. This twist looks unexpected but can greatly shake the team at the right time.

Interesting detail: Bayern, with Xabi Alonso, has never lost to Bayer in six matches. The great Spaniard became a coach and beat Bayern on the first try. And Munich this season brought six penalties in their own net. The last time the team behaved so undisciplined was in the 1979-1980 season!

Dortmund can take the title

Borussia was upset that Chelsea and Schalke ended Edin Terzic’s team’s 11-win streak. The Bumblebees’ wrath fell upon Cologne.

The coach remembered the old mistakes in the Champions League battle, refused short passes near his own goal, switched to long throws and got a comfortable victory. The players got almost everything, and the match ended with a tennis score of 6-1.

Dortmund continues to play without a successful forward. It is physically difficult for Haller, and Moukoko does not look too confident after the winter break. However, Borussia still scores (in the last game, the team punished opponents 6 times for the first time this season), and it doesn’t matter if Karim Adeyemi’s speed or Julian Brandt’s back helps them.

Terzic does not try to experiment and lives according to his means. His team includes Jude Bellingham, a maestro playing the piano. The remaining 10 players carry this very piano.

Fight for the championship

Borussia can compete for the title, but what to do with the insidious statistics? This season, Bayern have never lost at home, and it is unlikely something like this appears in their plans for Saturday evening. Jokes aside, we’re in for a real fight. 

Bet on the main Bundesliga match with the reliable bookmaker 1xBet!

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The coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Jose Peseiro has provided an explanation on why the team didn’t play up to expectations in the back to back Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers games against Guinea Bissau.

Nigeria were beaten 0-1 at home by Guinea Bissau but avenged the defeat with the same scoreline away in Bissau yesterday to move back to top of the group and within three points of sealing a spot at next year AFCON.

Super Eagles will be up against Sierra Leone next before rounding up their campaign in the qualifiers at home against Sao Tome and Principe. Peseiro’s job as coach is hanging by the thread with his contract set to expire in June.

With no talks of an extension, the coach seems to be less bothered and he is already looking forward to the next round of games saying the team will play better if they play on a better pitch. He reckoned that the kind of football his team wants to play can only be achieved on a good playing surface, he cited the game against Guinea Bissau in Abuja as case study.

In a video clip posted on a news platform of the Super Eagles, the coach spoke on the turn around result that the Super Eagles obtained in Guinea Bissau on Monday after their dramatic home loss last Friday in Abuja.

The coach remarked that “on Friday, our team was much better than Guinea (Bissau). Today, (Monday) we created many scoring opportunities. Today, the pitch is much better than that of Abuja. Our team played offensive game and created  many opportunities. We should have beaten them 5-1 in the first match (if the pitch were good) and in the second one, 5-0 or even 6-0.  Guinea didn’t create much opportunities.

“Our mistake today  (Monday) was finishing.. But that does happen in football. I am happy, not because of the result, but for the model we are showing everybody… good passes, good ball possession’, he said.

He rounded up his statement with a dig on erstwhile coach Gernot Rohr saying he was sacked for playing a boring brand of football, something he is keen on changing ahead of the start of the Africa Cup of Nations next year.

“We want to be attack oriented and give qualifty football to the fans. The last coach left because he could not do that.

“We want to play beautiful football.  We were good in both matches, but not fantastic finishing

“We will improve. We had just five training sessions  Our philosophy is to attack and attack”, he rounded up saying.

One of the top performer for the senior national team of Nigeria in the back to back AFCON qualifiers games against Guinea Bissau has to be Fenerbahce defender Bright Osayi-Samuel, who only made his debut last year for the team.

Osayi-Samuel was the one bright spot from the game against Guinea Bissau in Abuja which Nigeria lost 0-1 and yesterday when they avenged the loss 1-0 he was again among the top men for the team.

It was his marauding run into the box that led to the penalty when he was hacked as he charged into the box, Moses Simon stepped up and scored what ended as the winning goal of the game. He has done enough in the eyes of AFCON 2013 winner Efe Ambrose to say he should leave the Turkish League.

This season, the 25 year old has been in and out of the team at the Turkish side and according to Ambrose who was the right back the last time Nigeria won the AFCON, he should be looking towards leaving the team.

” I noticed him from the game against Portugal and was looking to see how he will perform against Guinea Bissau and he did extremely well in both legs. No disrespect to the Turkish League but with the way he is playing, he should be at a higher level”, Ambrose told OGN.

” It’s even more surprising that he isn’t a regular at Fenerbahce. The way he combines his job in defence with attacking runs is top top level. I think he has locked that spot down and a move to a top team will do his career a whole lot of good. He is approaching his peak years”, he rounded up saying.

Mohammed Mowiz