Scottish League giants Rangers have announced the signing of Nigeria U20 trainee Ishaka Thompson on a two year deal, which will run till the summer of 2025, OGN reports.

The recently turned 18 year old has been on the radar of the club for about a year after impressing at a youth team tournament where he represented Brooke House Football Academy. He had two separate training times at the club.

He recently played with the B team of the Scottish side at a youth tournament in Morocco after which a decision on signing him was reached and today, it was officially announced.

Ishaka trained with the Ladan Bosso bronze winning U20 team for three weeks at their camp in Abuja but failed to make the team for the U20 Africa Cup of Nations, where they picked a ticket to be at the U20 World Cup.

There is still no confirmation on if he will be considered for the tournament which will now be held in Argentina, however his chances would have brightened up with this move to the Scottish side. He will start with the B team from where his progress will be monitored for promotion to the first team.

The invitation of the top scorer in the Europa League Victor Boniface to the Super Eagles for the AFCON Qualifiers , which was said to have been received without a return tickets has been proved as false.

It was widely reported that , the 22 year old who is the joint top scorer in the UEFA Europa League with Manchester United Marcus Rashford on five goals snubbed an invitation to the Nigerian team.

The report said he was asked to buy his ticket and will be reimbursed by the Nigeria Football Federation, when he shows up for the games which would have been his first in the colours of the senior national team of Nigeria.

Boniface took to Twitter to deny the report that he was called up for the games against Guinea Bissau in Abuja and Bissau respectively. 24 hours later the Nigeria Football Federation have now added their voice to the issue.

“By way of clarification, Victor Boniface was not invited for the Super Eagles’ AFCON Qualifiers against Guinea Bissau. He was on the provisional list but didn’t make the final list, and therefore was not sent a flight ticket”, the official Twitter handle of the Federation posted.

It means his situation is the same as that of Lorient’s midfielder Innocent Bonke, whose call up was announced by his Ligue 1 side but we were made to understand that he was on the provisional 34 man list for the games. He missed out when it was trimmed to 20 in the days leading to the game.

Mohammed Mowiz

The future of the coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Jose Peseiro has dominated discussions in the wake of the team’s uninspiring performances in back to back AFCON qualifiers games against Guinea Bissau.

Nigeria lost 0-1 to Guinea Bissau but won away 1-0 in the reverse tie to reclaim top spot but their performance in both games was far from convincing leading to calls for the coach to be cut loose when his contract expires in June.

With the NFF still owing the Portuguese four months of unpaid wages, not ten as widely reported and a clause saying he can only be sacked if he fails to win the next AFCON, a decision appears not to be imminent on his future.

Reacting to his unsettled future, former Nigeria U17, U20 and also Chelsea youth teamer Emma Sarki said even though the coach looks out of his depth, he is still better than any other indigenous coach being talked about his possible replacement.

” The problem with most indigenous coaches is that football has left them behind. We see how the U23 crashed out of the race to be at next months U23 AFCON. Look at our teams in the CAF tournaments under indigenous coaches. Peseiro to me over any indigenous coach unless we want to continue recycling those who failed the team”,he rounded up saying.

Mohammed Mowiz

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