Sports
Flying Eagles of Nigeria Begins Hunt For Maiden World Cup Against Dominican Republic
The Flying Eagles of Nigeria has begun their hunt for a first U-20 World Cup trophy when they face the Dominican Republic in their opening fixture at the 2023 edition of the tournament.
Nigeria have reached the final of the age-grade competition twice – in 1989 and 2005 – and will be aiming to take it a step further when Sunday’s clash begins at the Estadio Malvinas Argentina in Mendoza.
En route to the championship, Nigeria finished third at the Africa U-20 Cup of Nations and are among four teams to represent the continent in the South American nation.
The Africans are favourite against Walter Benítez’s side and know that a win over them will place Nigeria in good stead to qualify from a Group D that includes Brazil and Italy.
Although Nigeria have played 13 times in the competition against their rivals who are making their debut, Coach Ladan Bosso admits that the clash won’t be an easy game. He, however, believes the Pre-Tournament season have infused confidence in the squad.
“As I stated earlier, we are happy with the results from the two friendly matches we played in Buenos Aires,” the NFF quoted him as saying.
“We won one against an Argentina club and then drew with the Colombia U20 team that’s also taking part in this tournament. Those are not bad results.
“More than anything else, what the results have done is give us confidence that we can get the job done. Victory over the Dominican Republic on Sunday will stabilise our winning mentality.
“It is a factor that matters in championships and that is why we are determined to win on Sunday.”
Italy-based Victor Eletu, who later teamed up with the squad, is expected to provide much-needed depth to the Flying Eagles’ side.
Nigeria is likely to parade the Chijioke Aniagbosos in goal with Daniel Bameyi, Abel Ogwuche, Benjamin Frederick, and Solomon Agbalaka at the back.
Ibrahim Muhammad, Samson Lawal, and Jude Sunday are expected to be picked for the fixture.
Time for Nigeria vs Dominican Republic U-20 Match
https://twitter.com/CAF_Online/status/1660317880481722368?s=20
Nigeria’s game against Dominican Republic at the U-20 World Cup 2023 will begin at 7:00 pm (WAT).
After the match, the Flying Eagles’ next tie is against Italy on May 24 before they take on Brazil three days later.
Real Madrid attacker, Vinicius Jr has said that he is at his best right now.
The Brazilian is in the midst of a decent season with Los Blancos, having scored 17 goals and 12 assists in 35 games across competitions.
Nine of those goals and seven assists have come in 20 La Liga outings.
“I’m at my best right now. I had injuries. With so many games you can’t be 100% in all of them,” he told the press ahead Real Madrid clash with Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the Champions League Round of sixteen at Santiago Bernabeu.
The Real beat their neighbours 2-1 to take a slim advantage into the second coming up next week .
“Playing 80 games you can’t always be at your best. You’re not always in your head and you’re not always physically fit.
A lot of players are playing with injuries.
“I think my season is going well. It’s normal that people demand more from me and want more from me.
But now comes the decisive moment of the season and at Madrid we play better at this stage of the season,” he added.
Real Madrid were defeated 2-1 by Real Betis in the La Liga at the weekend.
Everton midfielder, Toni Payne, is excited to be nominated for the English Women’s Super League, WSL, Player of the Month for February.
Payne is one of the five nominees for the award.
It’s the first time the Nigeria international has been nominated for the individual prize.
“It definitely feels good. You know, it’s my first time in the league and the WSL.
I definitely knew it was going to be a struggle in the beginning, but I think I’m finally catching my stride here,” the Nigeria international told the club’s official website.
The 27-year-old registered two assists in three league appearances for Everton in February.
Recall that Payne joined Everton on a free transfer last summer.
Sports
BREAKING: Arsenal route to Champions League final confirmed as Mikel Arteta learns round of 16 opponents
Arsenal will face PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League round of 16, it has been confirmed.
The draw for the last-16 was held in Nyon, Switzerland on Friday, with the Gunners one of eight seeded teams after they finished in the top eight of the league phase.
With the Champion League now using a bracket system, just like in major international tournaments, Arsenal and the 15 other clubs still in the competition now know their possible route to the final, which will be played in Munich on May 31.
Arsenal were drawn on the silver side of the draw and will face PSV in the last-16. The Dutch side knocked Juventus out 4-3 on aggregate in the play-off round so will be a stern test for Mikel Arteta’s Squad.
Elsewhere in the round of 16, Aston Villa were drawn against Club Brugge, Borussia Dortmund were drawn against Lille, Atletico Madrid were drawn against Real Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen were drawn against Bayern Munich, Feyenoord were drawn against Inter, PSG were drawn against Liverpool and Barcelona were drawn against Benfica.
With Arsenal on the silver side of the draw, the Gunners know that they will face one of Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid in the quarter-final, should they progress past PSV. The first leg of the quarter-final would be played at Emirates Stadium. Arsenal’s possible semi-final opponents include one of Liverpool, PSG, Club Brugge or Aston Villa.
As Arsenal were seeded for the draw, they will play at home in the round of 16 second leg. The first legs of the round of 16 will be played on March 4 and March 5, and the second legs will be played on March 11 and March 12.
Each club plays once on a Tuesday and once on a Wednesday.
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