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Poland 2019: Flying Eagles Go For Three Points Against Qatar

Published

6 years ago

May 23, 2019

Poland 2019: Flying Eagles Go For Three Points Against Qatar

The Nigeria Flying Eagles captain Ikouwem Udoh Utin has assured that the two –time runners up Nigeria will go all out for the three points when they take to the pitch of the 15,300 –capacity Tychy Stadium against Qatar in the opening match of Group D of the 2019 FIFA U20 World Cup finals on Friday (Friday) evening.

Utin said at the team’s Vienna House Hotel in Katowice on Thursday. The team will leave their hotel in Katowice for the short drive to Tychy on Friday.

Friday’s game kicks off at 5pm Nigeria time. The second match of Group D, between Ukraine and USA, will begin at 7.30pm Nigeria time.

According to him, it is a big match for us, as every other match in this competition. We know the importance of picking up the three points in our first match, which is why we are determined to go all out.

“Taking the first three points will help us plan our approach better for the remaining matches in the group phase, and also boost our confidence,”

Coach Paul Aigbogun and his assistants have somewhat calibrated a new ensemble, leaving out half of the squad members from the Africa U20 Cup of Nations in Niger Republic in February, where the team earned the ticket to Poland, and infusing a number of exciting talent in midfield and attacking realms.

While the choice for the number one shirt is between Detan Ogundare and Olawale Oremade (who was custodian in Niger), Valentine Ozornwafor and Igoh Ogbu are likely to keep their spots in central defence. Captain Ikouwem Utin would be at left back while Jamil Muhammad could be at right back.

In the midfield, much attention will be on the England –based duo Nnamdi Ofoborh and Ayotomiwa Dele-Bashiru, as well as AC Perugia of Italy’s former junior international Kingsley Michael. In this sector also are home –based professionals Effiom Maxwell and Aniekeme Okon, who are rapid raiders on their day.

Dele-Bashiru, of England champions Manchester City has already been tipped by world football –ruling body, FIFA, as one of the players from whom much is expected in Poland.

At the fore, Nigeria has a cosmopolitan flavour with England –based Chinonso Emeka, Norway –based Jerome Adams, Czech Republic –based Tijani Muhammed, Sweden –based Henry Offia and home –based Success Makanjuola vying for available spots.

Aigbogun told thenff.com on Thursday that the group is aware of the pedigree of Nigeria at the FIFA U20 World Cup and cannot afford to under-perform.

“We have a tough history to match. Silver medals on two occasions and bronze medals once, and a number of quarter final appearances. That’s why we must start very well, by taking the points against Qatar and then march on with confidence and self assurance.

“We are flying the flag of nearly 200 million Nigerians, as well as that of the African continent. We have put a lot of work into building a squad that will make Nigeria and Africa proud.”

Nigeria has a number of exciting moments at the FIFA U20 World Cup to her name.

The old Soviet Union won the first edition of the FIFA U20 World Cup (then known as FIFA World Youth Championship) in Tunisia in 1977. Six years later, Tarila Okoronwanta’s first half goal condemned old Soviet Union to defeat in Monterrey, Mexico in Nigeria’s first –ever match at the competition.

In 1985, Monday Odiaka scored after only 14 seconds against Canada in a group phase match, which remains a record. At the same tournament, reserve goalkeeper Christian Obi thwarted host nation Soviet Union in the penalty shoot-out of the third place match to hand the bronze medals to Nigeria.

Four years later, Christopher Ohenhen’s bullet-like free kick that gave Nigeria a 2-1 win over host nation Saudi Arabia was the competition’s 500^th goal. Few days later, midfielder Christopher Nwosu’s blistering run and shot in the last minute earned a 1-1 draw with old Czechoslovakia in the final group phase match and took Nigeria to the knock –out stage.

In the quarter finals, the Flying Eagles came back from 0-4 down to defeat the same old Soviet Union after penalty shoot-out.

In 2005, in The Netherlands, Chinedu Obasi’s television goal unsettled Argentina in the final in Utrecht, but two penalty kicks by Lionel Messi gave the South Americans victory.

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ELECTING A POPE: THE BURDEN OF MAKING CHOICES

Published

4 days ago

May 11, 2025

The Gleamer

By Olubunmi Mayaki

“Habemus papam!” which in the English Language means, “We have a Pope.” was pronounced by Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, a French Catholic prelate, His Eminence, Cardinal Dominique Mamberti from the iconic loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican City on Thursday 8 May 2025 after white smoke billowed from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel. Those Latin words proclaimed to a tensed global audience the result of the election of a new Supreme Pontiff after the death of Jorge Mario Bergoglio (Pope Francis) on 21 April 2025 at the age of 88 years.

The Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, Cardinal Robert Prevost (Pope Leo XIV) emerged as primus inter pares (first among equals) from the cardinals after undergoing detailed election rituals, which have been the process of selecting the head of the 2000-year-old Catholic Church for centuries.

A papal conclave, the process by which a new Pope is selected, was held consisting of one hundred and thirty-three (133) College of Cardinals, drawn from different parts of the world converged at St. Peter’s Basilica for a public mass before heading to the Sistine Chapel to cast their votes to elect the 267th Pope. During the mass, part of the choir renditions reminded voters to remember their last day when they would stand before God in judgment to render their stewardship on earth, which is to prevent them from rigging the voting process. At the behest of the senior cardinal deacon, voting formalities were read to the electors, which included- oath-taking- “I call as my witness Christ the Lord, who will be my judge, that my vote is given to the one whom I believe should be elected according to God”. Other processes are banning phones, jamming calls, forbidding speaking or contacting any of the candidates, voting rounds, spiritual pauses etc.

Looking at the voting process, one should be curious about how an election to pick a leader for a religious body could be so systematic and attract such global attention. It is a sharp contrast to elections where political leaders are chosen. Even in the so-called advanced democracies, we have seen electoral flaws and a dearth of political leaders. States are finding it difficult to pick genuine statesmen, giving rise to hegemonic leaders. These political imperia ums are emerging and stoking crises in their domain. Fallouts of elections are no longer favourable due to unpopular candidates forced on citizens.

Africa, as a case study, shows that no matter the rules put in place by the continent’s leaders, our election processes have been fraught with rigging, corruption and waste. In most cases, the leaders who set the rules are the violators of the same process. Governments conspire with electoral bodies to truncate election processes at will. Such political brigandage has destroyed the progress of the continent.

Closing this view, I hope that African leaders will take a cue from the Catholic Church’s election process to reinvigorate and rejig the continent’s faltering political process for the good of its people. Better still; political scholars from the continent can study the Catholic model. The common features of elections in most parts of Africa, especially sub-Saharan Africa, are riddled with vote rigging, violence, human rights abuse, repression, barbarism, crises, untold hardship, and sometimes, outright war. This is the bane of Africa’s development.

The burden of making good political choices should ordinarily rest on citizens. However, politicians have hijacked this process for selfish reasons. It has given birth to bad leaders. If we fail to get it right, what we see is what we get. That is the story of the world politics!

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