Eagles Watch

Ex-U-23 star, Sadiq scores, provides assist on debut

 

With the 2018 World Cup barely 124 days away, Nigerian players have continued to put themselves in the window for selection for a trip to Russia. Among the players to have improved on their performance in Europe of late is former Paris Saint Germane striker, Bartholomew Ogbeche, who scored his 10th league goal at the weekend. Also on target on his debut for NAC Breda is former U-23 forward and Roma loanee, Sadiq Umar, who also had an assist for new club.
In yet another comprehensive report, the News Editor, ADEBAYO OLODAN scouts the major leagues in Europe and African countries for details on Super Eagles players and prospects.

ENGLAND
Kelechi Iheanacho and Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City) & Tosin Adarabioyo  and Lukas Nmecha (Man City): Ndidi played all 90mins while Iheanacho was introduced in the 62nd min as their club suffered a 5-1 trouncing by Manchester City. While youngster, Nmecha was listed on the victors’ substitutes’ bench, Adarabioyo was not considered for the match.
Alex Iwobi (Arsenal): He was introduced in the 65th min of his team’s 1-0 defeat to Tottenham.
Tammy Abraham (Swansea City): He hopped off the bench with 16 minutes left on the clock as his team secured a 1-0 win over Burnley.
Dennis Adeniran (Everton): He was not in the 18-man squad for his team in their 3-1 defeat of Crystal Palace 3-1 at Goodison Park.

Chelsea to offer Jordan Aina new deal

Chelsea is set to offer talented Nigerian defender, Jordan Aina a new deal ahead of the start of the 2018-2019 season.
Born December 10, 2001, Jordan Aina is expected to sign a fresh two-year deal in the summer and will become a first-year full-time scholar at The Blues.
He would be hoping to follow in the footsteps of his sibling Ola Aina, who signed a scholarship deal at Chelsea in July 2013 before making his professional debut three years later against Bristol Rovers in the League Cup.
Jordan made his debut for England U16s in a 3-1 win over Romania in an international friendly on August 24, 2016.
He has been registered by Chelsea for the knockout rounds of the UEFA Youth League and it is envisaged he will debut for the U18s in the coming months.
It is also a foregone conclusion that the highly-rated midfielder Faustino Anjorin will be among the new scholarship intake next season.
Anjorin was aged 15 when he made his debut for Chelsea’s U18 team, has scored four goals this season and has featured in the UEFA Youth League.

CHAMPIONSHIP

Ola Aina (Hull City): He played all 90 mins as his club won 2-0 at Nottingham Forest.

EFL LEAGUE ONE

Chelsea loanee, Ike Ugbo opens MK Dons account

Chelsea loanee, Ike Ugbo was on target for MK Dons in their 2-1 defeat against Portsmouth in an EFL League One clash on Saturday.
The Chelsea loanee rattled in a right footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner after 21 minutes to gift The Dons the lead at Stadium MK after keeper Luke McGee had denied Kieran Agard.
Ugbo was yet on hand to force McGee into a stunning save, his half-volley which was goal bound beaten away to safety by the goalkeeper.
But the hosts were denied any points from the encounter when Matthew Clarke headed in from close range after getting onto the end of Dion Donohue’s cross to make it 1-1 for Portsmouth before Conor Chaplin found the back of the net in the closing stages to seal the comeback for the visitors.
The goal ensured the 19-year old has scored for the two teams he has represented in England on loan from Chelsea this campaign (Barnsley and MK Dons).
The striker was in action for the entire duration of the game for the hosts who were without Chuks Aneke, who was serving the last game of his suspension.
Ugbo and MK Dons are back in action on Tuesday when they travel to Oldham Atlethic in another league assignment.

GERMANY

Anthony Ujah, Karim Onisiwo and Leon Balogun (Mainz 05): Super Eagles central defender, Balogun played all 90mins and was booked three mins from regulation time when his club lost 4-2 at Hoffeinham. Ujah and Onisiwo were unused substitutes.
Ademola Lookman (RP Leipzig):  The Everton loanee came off the substitutes’ bench in the 79th min of his club’s 2-0 defeat of Augsburg.

HOLLAND

Kingsley Ehizibue (PEC Zwolle) & Cyriel Dessers (FC Utrecht):  Dessers was an unused substitute while Ehizibue lasted 90 mins as Utrecht defeated visitors, Zwolle 2-1.
Tyronne Ebuechi (Ado Den Haag): He played all 90mins of his team’s 1-0 win at home to Vitesse.
Bartholomew Ogbeche (Willem II): He scored his 10th goal of the season as his team secured a 3-0 win against VVV Venlo.
Umar Sadiq (NAC Breda): He came on in the 79th min, scored a goal and provided an assist in his debut match as his new team bashed Heracles 6-1. The AS Roma loanee provided an assist for his side’s 5th goal two mins after coming on and scored two mins later.

TURKEY

Ogenyi Onazi (Trabzonspor): He was not listed as his team drew 0-0 with Genclerbiligi.

SPAIN

Ogenekaro Etebo, Emmanuel Emenike and Imoh Ezekiel (Las Palmas): Etebo played all 90mins while Emenike and Ezekiel were not listed as their club was held to a goalless draw by Athletico Bilbao.
Brown Ideye and Isaac Success (Malaga): Ideye lasted the duration of his club’s 1-0 loss at home to Atletico Madrid while Watford loanee, Success was not considered for the 18-man squad.

Imoh Ezekiel joins Las Palmas
With a statement on their official website, Spanish La Liga side, Las Palmas has announced the signing of Nigeria international, Imoh Ezekiel.
The 24-year-old was a free agent before appending his signature to a seventeen-month deal that will keep him at Las Palmas until June 30, 2019.
Ezekiel is the third Nigerian player signed by Las Palmas in 2018, joining midfielder Oghenekaro Etebo and striker Emmanuel Emenike at the Canary Islands-based club.
He started his career in his homeland with 36 Lion before moving to Europe in 2011 to join Standard Liege, where he was a teammate of Chelsea striker, Michy Batshuayi, then transferred to Al-Arabi in 2014.
Ezekiel re-joined Standard Liege on loan in 2015 before another loan spell at Anderlecht the following season.
The striker’s spell at his last club in Turkey Konyaspor was largely uneventful, having made only two starts for the club.
For the remainder of the 2017-18 season, the Rio Olympics bronze medalist has been handed the number 14 jersey.

BELGIUM

Peter Olayinka (Zulte-Waregem): He lasted 90 mins as his club suffered a 3-1 loss at Genk.
Joseph Akpala (Oostende): He rose from the substitutes’ bench in the 71st min as his team defeated Anderlecht 2- 0.
Abdul Ajagun (Kortrijk): He lasted the duration of his club’s 4-0 thrashing of Royal Antwerp.
Henry Onyekuru voted 2017 Most Promising Player in Belgium
Everton loanee, Henry Onyekuru was at the 64th Golden Shoe Gala voted the 2017 Most Promising Player in Belgium.
Onyekuru, who sustained horrific leg injury in the colours of Anderlecht in December has since returned to the Premier League club(Everton) after the incident.
He won the award ahead of Mechelen’s Hassan Bande and Landry Dimata. The former Aspire Academy player polled 219 votes while Bande and Dimata recorded 162 and 128 votes in that order.
Onyekuru was a revelation playing for KAS Eupen in the Belgian top flight before he was signed by Everton and loaned to Anderlecht last summer.
He scored 22 goals for Eupen last season and has added another nine in 19 Belgian top flight appearances for Anderlecht until the leg break.
A delighted Onyekuru took to his twitter handle at the weekend to celebrate the award; “I’m honoured to receive the Belgium talent of the year award, it has been a great journey so far and there is more to come, I thank the almighty God for His grace.”
Meanwhile, three other Nigerians; Uche Agbo (Standard Liege), Samuel Kalu (Gent) and Taiwo Awoniyi (Royal Mouscron), were also named in the shortlist for the most Promising Player of the 2017 Soulier D’or awards.
Agbo finished 13th in the poll with 25 votes while Kalu and Awoniyi in 17th and 23rd position earned 17 and three votes respectively.
Samuel Kalu, Anderson Esiti and Moses Simon (Gent) & Chuba Akpom (St.Truiden): Kalu was introduced with 21 mins left as Gent defeated St. Truiden 3-0 for whom Arsenal loanee Akpom logged 78 mins of action. Gent duo of Esiti and Simon were not listed as they are yet to fully recover from injury.

SWEDEN

Kalmar keen on CHAN star, Okechukwu Gabriel

Swedish club, Kalmar may add another Nigerian to its squad after signing defenders Gbenga Arokoyo and Chima Akas last month.
The club according to reports is interested in signing Akwa United front man, Gabriel Okechukwu before the close of the Swedish transfer window.
A representative of Kalmar monitored Okechukwu at the recently concluded African Nations Championship in Morocco, where he was one of the outstanding players for the home-based Eagles.
The Swedish club faces an uphill battle in their bid to sign the Super Eagles striker with reports linking him with three-time African champions Raja Casablanca.
Dubbed the Nigerian Van Persie, Okechukwu scored two goals to help the Super Eagles qualify for the final of the African Nations Championship.
The 22-year-old started his career with Water FC and also worn the jerseys of TEAP FC, St. George’s F.C. and FC Karpaty Lviv.

RUSSIA

Aaron Samuel may join Idowu, Ogude at Amkar Perm

Amkar Perm is presently working on a deal to sign CSKA Moscow striker, Aaron Samuel before the close of the winter transfer market on February 22.
The Nigeria international has the blessings of the leadership of the Army Men to travel to Turkey, where Amkar Perm is holding a training camp ahead of the resumption of the Russian Premier League.
Manager of the Red and Blacks, Gadzhi Gadzhiyev, will monitor Samuel when his team face Montenegrin team FK Buducnost Podgorica in a friendly.
In the first half of the season, Samuel started only five matches for CSKA in the Premier League, and two other appearances were made off the bench, and it is thought he is in search of a new team where he can play on a regular basis to improve his chances of a recall to the national team ahead of the 2018 World Cup.
Samuel, on Tuesday scored a hat-trick for CSKA in a friendly mathc against FC Torreviaja.
The striker who has a contract with CSKA Moscow until the summer of 2021, has also worn the jerseys of Guangzhou R&F, Sarpsborg 08 and Vålerenga. Nigeria internationals Brian Idowu and Fegor Ogude play for Amkar Perm.

SOUTH AFRICA

Why we released Victor Obinna – Cape Town City boss

Cape Town City Chairman, John Comitis has given an insight into why the club released former Inter Milan striker, Victor Obinna Nsofor.
According to Comitis, the former Super Eagles forward left the South African club due to family issues.
The former West Ham United and Inter Milan star joined the Citizens at the beginning of the season to much fan-fare.
However, the 30-year-old only scored once in 14 appearances in all competitions for the Premiership title contenders.
“We parted ways with Obinna,” Comitis tells KickOff.com.
“Obinna had a six-months contract plus option to continue and he couldn’t get his family here because of paperwork, and we decided that maybe it’s best to part ways.
“We had a one season to it but it was to be reviewed after six months and he didn’t settle… his wife couldn’t get the visa, and child to come here.”

DO YOU KNOW?
1.    Steve Mounie is the first Huddersfield player to be directly involved in three goals in a league game since Emyr Huws in September 2015 (v Bolton).
2.    All three of Bournemouth’s Junior Stanislas’ goals in the Premier League this season have come away from home, while he’s also netted in consecutive away games in the competition for the first time.
3.    Alex Pritchard has scored his first-ever Premier League goal in his seventh appearance in the competition, spanning three clubs (Tottenham, West Brom and Huddersfield).
4.    Tottenham’s Harry Kane has scored 32 goals in all competitions this season, four more than any other player in Europe’s big five leagues.
5.    Man City’s Sergio Aguero has now scored 4+ goals in a Premier League match on three different occasions, more than any other player in the competition.
6.    Sergio Aguero is the 4th player to score 20+ goals in four consecutive Premier League campaigns – after Alan Shearer, Thierry Henry and Harry Kane.
7.    Since his Werder Bremen debut in August 2012, Man City’s Kevin De Bruyne has provided 77 assists in Europe’s big 5 leagues, more than any other player in that time (Lionel Messi, 76).
8.    Kevin De Bruyne has provided three assists in a single game for the first time in his Manchester City career.
9.    Sergio Aguero has scored in seven consecutive games at the Etihad Stadium in all competitions for the first time in his Manchester City career.
10.    Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy is the first player to ever score against each of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Man City, Man Utd and Spurs in the same Premier League season.
11.    Jamie Vardy has scored in each of his last four Premier League games, his longest streak since his record 11-game run in Leicester City’s title winning season.
12.    Since his Premier League debut in March 2012, Raheem Sterling has been directly involved in 74 goals in the competition (46 goals, 28 assists). Of English players, only Harry Kane (114) and Wayne Rooney (109) have had a hand in more.
13.    Kevin De Bruyne has assisted three goals in his last four Premier League games for Manchester City, as many as his previous 14 combined.
14.    Luka Milivojevic has converted more penalties than any other player in the Premier League this season (5).
15.     Tom Davies has scored his first goal for Everton since 9th April 2017 against Leicester; 307 days ago.
16.    Stoke City’s Xherdan Shaqiri has scored in back-to-back Premier League games for the first time in his career.
17.    Since his debut in January 2012, Gylfi Sigurdsson has scored more goals from outside the box than any other current Premier League player.
18.    Michy Batshuayi had a hand in all 4 Borrussia Dortmund’s goals since he made his debut for Dortmund (3 goals, 1 assist).

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