Eagles seek elusive CHAN ticket

By John EGBOKHAN
Tomorrow in Abidjan, the Super Eagles home-based team will attempt to break the jinx that has prevented Nigeria from qualifying for the last two editions of the  African Nations Championship (CHAN), when they confront Cote d’ Ivoire in a second leg final round match at the Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium.

Since the competition, meant for players playing their professional football in Africa, made its debut in 2009, Nigeria, which boast of some of the best talents on the continent, are yet to make the grades, making mockery of the often-touted developmental strides in the local league.



The Democratic Republic of Congo won the maiden edition, courtesy of a 2-0 defeat of the Black Stars of Ghana in Abidjan. In the 2011 edition hosted by Sudan, it was Tunisia’s turn to taste the sweet taste of victory, as they ran away with a 3-0 spanking of the Palancas Negras of Angola in  Merreikh.

Remarkably and sadly too, in those two editions, Nigeria, the most populated country in sub-Sahara Africa, were not there. But today, the Eagles are just a step away from reaching their first CHAN final, set to hold next January in South Africa, the same country, where the Super Eagles won their third Africa Cup of Nations crown in February, after a 19-year wait.

Leading the Eagles quest for a first CHAN ticket is Coach Stephen Keshi, who was at the helm of affairs when Eagles soared to their third AFCON title in Johannesburg.

Keshi, who happens to the first Nigerian to win the Nations Cup crown as a player and coach, takes the Eagles into tomorrow’s duel with the Elephants, with a 4-1 advantage from the first leg.

Despite masterminding the defeat of the Ivorians at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna, Keshi is keeping a calm head as he attempts to see out the Elephants over two legs.

Speaking before their trip to Abidjan, Keshi expressed confidence in his charges’ ability to hold their own against the Ivorians, who he admits would be backed by a partisan crowd at their National Stadium.

“We have the home work. All that is left to do is the hard job on the pitch, which I am confident would turn out in our favour. But our hosts are going to enjoy a lot of support from their home fans”, said Keshi, who is not unfamiliar with life in Abidjan, having started his professional career outside Nigeria from the Ivorian league, when he left New Nigerian Bank to join Stade d’Abidjan in 1985, before moving to Africa Sports, a year later, before going abroad to play for Lokeren of Belgium in the 1876-1987 season.

He will be counting on the experience of Nations Cup winners, Sunday Mba, Godfrey Oboabona and  Chigozie Agim, with support from Solomon Kwambe, Benjamin Francis and Azubuike Egwuekwe.

“We have a good squad, who are hungry to break this jinx of not being able to qualify for the CHAN tournament. It is not going to be easy but we are prepared for whatever the Ivorians would bring”, said Keshi.

Eagles arrive Abidjan, ready for Elephants

The Super Eagles on Thursday afternoon landed safely in Abidjan, the Ivoirien capital ahead of the final leg, CHAN qualifier against host the Elephants scheduled for Saturday in the Ivoirien commercial capital.

The team of 18 playersand officials was led by NFF Vice President, Chief Mike Okeke Umeh and had on board, NFF Head, Technical, Dr Emmanuel Ikpeme, President General of the Nigerian Football and Other Sports Supporters Club, Dr Rauf Ladipo and several other actors in the football fraternity.

[caption id="attachment_358140" align="alignnone" width="412"] Nigeria's national football team players hold the trophy as they celebrate winning the 2013 African Cup of Nations final against Burkina Faso on February 10, 2013 at Soccer City stadium in Johannesburg. AFP PHOTO[/caption]

The Air Afrique flight which conveyed the team from Lagos to Abidjan took about one hour, thirty minutes to land in smooth condition with showers of rain welcoming the team to the city. The flight landed at exactly 10:50 local time, which is 11:50am Nigerian time and was well received by members of the Ivoirien FA.

The bus that took the team to its hotel in the heart of the city took about 30minutes to reach its destination at Ibis Hotel. The team promptly checked in and took its lunch immediately. The Eagles will have its first training session at 3:30pm local time which is 4:30 Nigerian time to coincide with the time the game will be played on Saturday.

On Arrival, Skipper of the side, Chigozie Agbim, sounded a note of warning to his teammates when he said that the good reception should not be translated to mean that vthe Elephents have given up. “We are wary and I have told my mates to take the game very serious because in football anything can happen. But we know we are here to pick the CHAN ticket and no team can stop us at this time”.

Nigeria to end CHAN misery

JOHANNESBURG  (AFP) - Nigeria are set to end five years of African Nations Championship (CHAN) failure by reaching the finals for the first time this weekend.

Ousted by Ghana and minnows Niger in previous qualifying competitions, the 'Super Eagles' defend a 4-1 lead away to Ivory Coast Saturday.

[caption id="attachment_399805" align="alignnone" width="412"] Mikel celebrates his goal with teammates[/caption]

While coach Stephen Keshi preaches caution, it would be the biggest shock of the six-year Championship for home-based stars if they fail to make the 2014 finals in South Africa.

"We cannot afford to take our feet off the pedal because we won the first match," said the coach who led the full senior team to the Africa Cup of Nations title in Soweto last February.

"The Ivorians are a very good side and we must prepare thoroughly for the second leg or face the prospect of losing out on Nations Championship qualification again."

While the first-leg score three weeks ago suggests a lop-sided game, the Ivorians had two players red carded when trailing 3-1 in Kaduna.

Keshi admitted to Nigerian reporters that he was concerned that his team could score only once when they had a two-man numerical advantage.

The policy of giving local stars exposure at the highest level -- eight were among the Confederations Cup squad in Brazil during June -- gives Nigeria a powerful CHAN line-up.

Midfielder Sunday Mba, the Cup of Nations final match-winner against Burkina Faso, bagged a brace against the Ivorians with Gambo Mohammed and Ifeanyi Benjamin also on target.

Goalkeeper Chigozie Agbim, defenders Godfrey Oboabona, Azubike Egwuekwe and Solomon Kwambe and midfielder Emeka Eze are others from the Confederations Cup in the CHAN squad.

An Ivory Coast senior squad heavily reliant on foreign-based talent means only goalkeeper Badra Ali Sangare from the Cup of Nations squad is available for the CHAN qualifier.

Ethiopia are another country hoping to make the Nations Championship finals for the first time, although they are less favourably placed than Nigeria having defeated Rwanda only 1-0 in Addis Ababa.

Sewnet Bishaw, who took the Cup of Nations team to the finals last January after a 31-year absence, is confident of completing the task in Kigali.

"I promise that we will beat Rwanda in their backyard -- I do not foresee any serious problems having watched them in the first encounter," he boasted.

Only three of the 23-strong Cup of Nations squad are based abroad, leaving Bishaw with a wealth of experience to call on, including midfield dribbler Shimelis Bekele.

A 1-0 victory in Tanzania through a goal from defender Denis Iguma has placed Uganda in pole position to reach a second consecutive Nations Championship tournament.

But the 'Cranes' have often fallen at the final hurdle in various qualifying tournaments and Serb coach Milutin 'Micho' Sredojevic remains wary of his east African neighbours.

"We got only the passports for South Africa by winning the first leg -- now we need to collect the visas by winning the return match in Kampala," he said.

Uganda will lack both first-leg strikers with Tony Odour sidelined by a pulled muscle and Patrick Edema in Portugal for trials with a third-tier club.

There are seven second-leg fixtures with final places up for grabs and Mali are well placed having beaten Guinea 3-1 at home, as are Sudan after forcing a 1-1 draw in Burundi.

But Burkina Faso and 2009 champions Democratic Republic of Congo face tough tasks against Niger and Congo Brazzaville respectively having built just one-goal home leads.

There are also four first-leg fixtures with Cameroon belatedly hosting Gabon after the lifting this week of a FIFA ban on the country for state interference.

Southern region fixtures between Botswana and Zambia, Mozambique and Namibia and Mauritius and Zimbabwe complete the 11-match schedule.

Eagles depart for Abidjan Thursday

The Super Eagles of Nigeria are expected to jet out for Abidjan on Thursday through the Murtala Mohammed International Airport in Lagos, team scribe, Dayo Enebi Achor has confirmed.

The Eagles will be taking on the Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire on Saturday in the return leg of the African Nations Championship, CHAN. The Eagles have a 4-1 advantage from the first leg played in Kaduna penultimate Saturday.

“All logistics have been perfected by the NFF leadership, he said, adding, “hopefully, by Thursday the team should be off to Abidjan to complete the process of qualifying for the first time for CHAN after two near misses”, he said.

[caption id="attachment_404858" align="alignnone" width="412"] Ready for Abidjan Showdown … [/caption]

Meanwhile, the team will from today alter their training schedule to evening time to coincide with the time the CHAN qualifier final round qualifier game will be played on Saturday in Abidjan, Head Coach Stephen Keshi has directed.

The players were given a free day yesterday after a hectic training session on Saturday morning that lasted for over two hours with the technical crew saying the training was necessary to keep the players in top shape ahead of the return to training today in the evening.

Saturday’s training session which was watched by NFF Technical Director, Dr Emmanuel Ikpeme and the popular All Stars Club of Abuja, was a delight to watch as the coaches sought to instill discipline in the team ahead of the game in Abidjan.

Meanwhile, the team will take on the Pastor Chinedu and Dr Oby Ezekwesili inspired, ‘The Everlasting Arms Parish ‘(TEAP) FC in a test game on Tuesday evening at the Goal Project site in Abuja. The last time both sides met last year, the Super Eagles laboured to a slim 1-0 win, in a game that was described as one of the best test matches for the team by Coach Stephen Keshi.

Team Coordinator, Emmanuel Atta, said he expects another testy tie from the opposition after last week’s 1-0 win over FC Abuja in another test game. “We expect a tight game but we are talking of the national team and we expect nothing other than victory”, he said.