BRAZIL 2014: NIGERIA VS IRAN

And a lot of excitement in the air today as our Super Eagles  battle Iran today; lots of excitement! Our hopes are on them; we are hoping and praying they play a very good game and earn enough points to make it to the quarter final, semi final and the very last match of the World Cup. After their success in the Nations Cup; we are confident the Super Eagles will make us proud today. PHCN (Power Holding Company)  has been acting more  badly lately but people on my street rushed around buying fuel for their generators... like they would miss this match of all matches! We wait impatiently for the Super Eagles to come out...


And here they come, looking smart in their green jerseys (of course) and the Iranian players in their white, green with a touch of red. The Iranian anthem is played first, followed by our anthem- and played so well; our players looking solemn and nervous at the same time. Best of luck Eagles- fly high and make us proud!!!
The teams gather separately for a prayer, the starting whistle and off they go.

A near shot for Nigeria but it's swiftly saved by Iran's keeper. From the bench we see the Coach and former Super Eagle,  Stephen Keshi (I'm yet to see that guy actually smile, he's SO uptight all the time). The Iranians are rather good when it comes to defense but we all hope the Super Eagles will get past them and earn as many goals as possible. Mikel attempts to score but collides with the keeper- that won't do at all. He better be careful not to get the dreaded cards.
Azeez almost scored but is defended and  Onazi went down but recovered eventually and ran back into the field. Victor Moses skillfully dribbled past the Iranians but his kick went a tad too high.
Free kick for Iran, went one way- phew! Our hopes are especially on  Mikel, Moses and Musa.
Seriously, the Iranians gave a good defense, their keeper Haghighi more so!
One man down! Oboabona got injured and taken away on a stretcher; oh no...

23 mins and we are yet to score.

Oboabona, recovered and  hurried back- yay. Our Eagles are tough as they come. But he eventually was replaced by our defender,  Joseph Yobo.
We get a free kick! But alas, the Iran keeper was simply too good at saving and caught it on time... yowza!
Still fantastic attempt by Musa.
Ha, but we're good at defense too, a header almost made it in the net but Nigeria's keeper Enyeama  immediately stopped it, like the commentator said- a terrific save.
We continued to battle with the Iranians who were obviously making sure we don't score with their  firm defense, several attempts blocked.

4 mins left before second half...

Another attempt but the Iranians just wouldn't let up, stubbornly defending yet again.


And the whistle is blown to signal the end of the first half. A rather disappointing first half sorry to say.

Hope Keshi didn't  scold them too harshly.



Second Half...

The Eagles and the Iranian team file out for the second half and both teams again huddle to pray before they begin.

Emenike goes for a goal but got blocked... again! Azeez shot a corner kick, again defended.
Victor Moses is replaced by Shola Ameobi and I hope to God that will turn out to be a good judgement call.
How the Eagles will get past the defense I don't know- Azeez  has the corner kick and Haghighi grabbed the ball fast.

YAWN, YAWN, YAWN!

Yet another sub call from Nigeria, Azeez for Ozaze.

Shola Ameobi almost got us one, SO close!
Nigeria stoutly defended back, if we don't get a goal thanks to their blocking them they have to get past the Eagles too!
This was proving to be a poor first outing for Nigeria, very and we expected far more than this. I can't wait to see the Facebook comments... less than 15 mins left and still no goal on either side.

2 minutes extra time and the Iranians stubbornly maintained their obstacle stance.
GAME OVER and we are NOT happy!

BRAZIL 2014: ENGLAND VS ITALY

This match was definitely going to be A CLASH OF TWO TITANS; England vs Italy- two huge football nations with very skilled football teams. Like the match between Spain and Holland; this is definitely going to be a very volatile battle but then again what does one expect when countries like England and Italy meet on the field... a battle among several of Europe's greatest players. I honestly couldn't wait to see how this match would play out, it's going to be really exciting. And I will openly say; while I love the Italians, I'm rooting for the English players to win- they are very, very good. The excitement in the air here is catching as we wait for the Brits and the Italians to come out...


And they filed  out, the Italians in blue and the Brits in white (each player even cuter than the next) and the national anthems are performed and recited. The viewers wait in anticipation for the starting whistle.

And the match began! Within minutes Italy goes for a goal and immediately defended... the Brits are definitely determined not to  make it easy for them. Neither would the Italians... England's Sterling goes for a goal and it was sharply saved. Another near goal for England but again saved by the keeper, Sirigu ( hope I got the spelling right). The Italians pass the ball, trying to keep it away from the Brits and go for the first goal. Almost got near the net but I think pressure got them a tad distracted. The Italians however were determined to keep the ball away from the Brits.
10 mins already and a goal was yet in sight. A clean save by the English goal keeper and yet another 'almost goal' for Italy.
The two titans kept  battling; who on earth would score first???  Keepers from both sides cleanly saved the ball.

Free kick to England...

Another save from the English goal keeper and it's already 18 mins in the game as the fans impatiently wait for the goal. Sterling tried again but was swiftly  blocked by De Rossi.
England almost got a goal by Danny Welbeck but no... Andrea Barzagli was there and immediately defended. And that was so close!
Still no goal.  De Rossi tripped over a Brit and narrowly escaped a yellow card.
Moments later Italy gets its first corner kick... and at last a GOAL from Claudio Marchisio ... (grrr....!)
But oh joy... Daniel Sturridge scored for England few minutes later, YAY... 1-1!!! Talk about an immediate equalizer! But it looked like one of their guys on the bench got injured somehow as he was taken away on a stretcher. Wonder what could have happened.
Moving on...
Over the net went the ball as Italy tried for another goal. 2 more minutes added...

England's keeper Hart saved twice, by the skin of his teeth I might add.

And the whistle was born, end of First Half.


SECOND HALF...

The fans at the stadium waited for the titans to come out and continue the battle; I was confident England would end up owning the game.

The whistle blown and on they went. Good save by Sirigu as England tried for a second goal.
An unexpected 'header goal' from Balotelli, making the score 2-1. (Grrr again...) COME ON ENGLAND!

England tried to equalize but the ball whizzed past the net. Pressure being felt no doubt. And again SO CLOSE by Sturridge! Gerrad takes a corner kick, and another very close attempt!
Italy's Verratti got substituted for Thiago Motta. England desperate to equalize; Sterling especially.

Danny Welbeck got  replaced by Ross Barkley.  Rooney almost made a second goal for England, but missed!

Several minutes later, a corner kick for England but it's saved fast. Come on guys...
Manoeuvring and passes...

Another corner kick for England and a sub for Italy. Kick and header, doesn't go in- attempt, whizzed past the net.

Sub: Balotelli for Ciro Immobile (They're  kidding me, that's a real name? )

The Brits keep at it and over goes Sturridge as he's collided with. Free kick! Alas, cleanly saved... this Italian keeper is very good I admit! However, I refused to give up  on the Brits.

And another sub call from Italy (yah, rub it in!) Antonio Candreva for Marco Parolo.

And from England, Sturridge- and limping poor chap- went and in came Adam Lallana.

83 mins, which meant 7 mins left; the England fans are shown and they didn't look pleased.
Free kick awarded to England after De Rossi collided with Lallana but over the net went the ball again when Gerrard took the shot. England's not having a good day.

Not much time left...

Sterling made an attempt but blocked by Italy's defense.

2 more minutes added.
Oh no... another collide and Sterling got a yellow card!

Free kick for Italy but bounced off the bar. Phew...

Final whistle and the match is over.

Italy 2, England 1.
Did NOT see that coming. But all the same, congratulations to the Italians.

BRAZIL 2014: CHILE VS AUSTRALIA

The anthems of both countries are played and recited; the boys from Down Under ready to do battle with the Chileans. Not exactly familiar with either teams' technique and I don't exactly have a favorite between them so the main thing was to see how this match would play out.

Alexis Sanchez scored Chile's first goal about 11 minutes in the game. Very good start. And then another goal for Chile almost immediately by Valdivia and the crowd goes wild with excitement at that excellent start- two great goals. Almost a third via a free kick given to Chile due to a colliding mishap. Very early in the game it's 2-0. The Down Under boys better sharpen up; they may be intimidated by Chile's early goals but there's still enough time to equalize. 30 mins in the game right now.
Valdivia almost earned Chile it's third goal. Come on Australia, don't go out like that! Mena almost got a shot and it was defended.
And finally a goal for Australia from Tim Cahill. Ha, now they're cooking, 2-1 and ten minutes before the whistle for the end of the first half. So far the first African ref I've seen since the game started- Noumandiez Doue (from Cote d'Ivoire)  has not been getting any lip from any of the players, a good sign.
4 minutes before the end of First Half... will the Down Under boys equalize before then?
A yellow card for Cahill and then a free kick for Chile, no goal. Half Time.

Exciting game, Chile surprised everyone with their early goals but Australia just managed to get one as well. The second half is going to be thrilling, whether Chile would get more goals or Australia would equalize- the world is waiting.

Second Half...
The players are back in the field. More determination on both sides. Down Under called for a sub; Franjic was replaced by McGowan. Later on Australia tries for a goal but as it was off side, was not allowed by the ref. The Down Under boys try their hardest to equalise but Chile kept thwarting them via defence.
Australia gets another yellow card, this time its Mile Jedinak; another sub call from Chile- Vidal replaced by Felipe Gutiererrez.  The atmosphere is more tense as the teams continue to battle hard across the pitch. To be honest, my eyelids were getting heavy and I had to firmly shake my head to keep awake to see the match to the end. Missed just details  but recovered in time to see Australia refused a penalty; it just wasn't their day at all, especially with the scores being 2-1 against them.
And then a goal towards the end of the game for Chile by Beausejour ; making it 3-1!
The whistle is blown and the game is over. Chile's the winner. I didn't root for either team but 3-1 was quite more than I expected. Good game.

BRAZIL 2014: SPAIN VS HOLLAND

Within 27 minutes in the game, Spain got an early lead via an awarded penalty kick taken by Xabi Alonso. Two near goals for Holland as they struggled to equalize; Holland's Blind probably would have scored if not for that rather clumsy move of his. The whole time I nursed the hope this was not going to be another snooze fest. But it looked like the team owning the game was Spain and not surprising- they won the Cup in South Africa 2010. Vrij  was given a yellow card for colliding with a one , the first Dutch player given than earlier on was Jonathan Guzman. Then a very very close goal for Spain but no, the ball went the wrong way!

Yay... then a sudden ' header goal' for Holland.. .the much wanted equalizer! yes, very good and by Persie; the Dutch captain to the delight of the Dutch coach and their supporters who immediately raised the roof as they heartily cheered on the Dutch team on their much deserved goal. This match was certainly a lot more exciting than the previous one. With this equalizer, Holland will be more motivated in the second half.
(By the way, my apologies if my post seems less detailed and uneven, I'm a writer but sports reporter I am not, what I'm doing right now is simply winging it).
Personally, I'm rooting for Holland, mostly because the Technical Adviser we had during TUNISIA '94( WHICH by the way we won)  and  USA '94 is from Holland, our beloved Clemens Westerhof. Call me sentimental or biased but I would like his country to have a shot at winning today's match.


Now for the Second Half...

Yuck, it was raining again; poor chaps... how they could play under that shower, I can hardly imagine. The Dutch keeper prevented a potential goal taken by Iniesta and then a sudden second goal for Holland from Robben! Yay... I knew they had it in them, I just knew it!
Diego Costa almost came to blows with the ref when one of the Dutch players collided with him and got a bit of a blow to the head. Luckily the ref was able to talk him down and the offending player , Bruno Indi narrowly escaped being given a yellow card.  Apparently Costa had a bit of a hot temper so the guy had better watch himself.
Holland almost got a third goal and SO close but the ball hit the top of the goal post but still, a very good attempt. Now, the Dutch owns the game; 2-1 but the previous World Cup winner WILL NOT go out like that, oh no- not with the way they were playing.
And then a sub call by Holland; Jonathan Guzman for Wijnaldum and double sub by Spain; hot head Diego Costa replaced by Fernando Torres and Xabi Alonso replaced by Pedro.

And yet another GOAL for Holland!!! 3-1, thanks to Vrij; and how funny, like Neymar he was given a yellow card and then got the chance to redeem himself. Well done!

Yellow card for Casillas.

And alas for Spain, an off side goal and  a foul from Persie, ending him a yellow card. I felt bad for the Spanish guys but Holland truly owned the game now. And they proved it more so... by a fourth goal by the same guy who just got a yellow card... Persie  , 4-1!!
 Man, unless Spain can come up with a new strategy before the final whistle, Holland is going to win the game. Ramos took the free kick awarded to Spain but no goal again.
Vrij is replaced by Veltman and  why the sub when they are already  leading, I honestly don't know.
Sub by Spain as well , Da Silva replaced by Fabregas. Persie was replaced by Lens and the game continued...
FIFTH GOAL by Robben!!!! Oh my God and I was afraid initially this would be a snooze fest, snooze fest nothing... this is by far more exciting than yesterday's! Oh my...

Five  minutes left before the final whistle and the Spanish players on the bench with their coach were clearly not happy at all.
Robben twice attempted a sixth goal but the Spanish keeper valiantly saved it, after all 5-1 was already more than  bad enough! Lens almost makes it but no go and close chance for Spain but alas no, poor Torres.
And the game is over... congratulations Holland!

BRAZIL 2014: MEXICO VS CAMEROON

First a quick recap of yesterday’s match,

To say the least, yesterday’s match was really volatile. Who would’ve predicted that a match that started badly for Brazil would actually end up a victory for them, 3-1 on the first day of the tournament! Of course Brazil’s football squad has always been a team to contend with and after that mistake from Marcelo Vieira- the “own goal” which gave Croatia its first goal- there was definitely no way they were going to let it get them down. The man of the hour was Neymar; after getting a yellow card, he made up for it by equalizing and then shooting a second goal, via a penalty kick and then an unexpected third from Oscar seconds before the final whistle. Poor Croatia!

Today, Nigeria’s neighbour Cameroon went against the Mexico’s squad and I can’t wait to see how the Lions are going to battle those guys. Mexico has a very  good reputation on the field but Cameroon’s Lions are known to be very fierce and stubborn. I still remember Nigeria-Ghana 2000 where they ruined our hopes at the final match and took home the trophy. Poor Sunday Oliseh sobbed in his jersey and I felt like bawling myself at the pitiful sight.

Anyhow... let’s see how they perform today. Cameroon of course would be  rooted for by us, they are after all our neighbours and them winning maybe be a good omen for us. On the 16^th, we’re going to go against Iran- and we need all the prayers and positive vibes we can get.

Today’s match was a snooze fest, compared to yesterday’s. First off the Mexican team recited their national anthem, followed by the Lions; solemn determination on their faces and no doubt praying for victory.

The starting whistle and the match began. The rainy weather didn’t deter the players’ performance- actually both teams played as fiercely as I expected. From what I saw, Cameroon’s Benjamin and Enoh are players to contend with especially as well as Mexico’s Giovanni dos Santos.

Speaking of Santos, he scored but the goal wasn’t counted as it was offside. Bad...

The game goes on and the fierce determination is in every one of those players, despite the pouring rain; Cameroon was stubborn as always but Mexico more so- determined to own the game with their clever manoeuvres and passes while the Lions were determined not to let them. But still, not exactly exciting like yesterday’s first half. An offside goal from Cameroon, much to their frustration and a near one quickly defended by the Mexican guys. By the way, kudos to both teams for being able to play in the rain!

A corner kick for Cameroon, taken by MBia and another near goal but the Mexicans defend! Ah, the Lions maybe stubborn but the hombres meant business! Mexico’s Moreno was especially fierce.

23 minutes and still no goal. Cameroon’s Song got kicked- by accident- by Mexico’s Vaquez so he narrowly dodged a yellow card. And just when I was giving a yawn, a goal from Giovanni dos Santos but no... no.. the ref ruled it to be offside and no doubt Santos and the rest of the team were pissed off! It was bad enough running about in the rain and they get such nonsense thrust at them!

Lord but this match was boring compared to yesterday’s; the players couldn’t help it of course because of the rain but we viewers needed more action than this.

Corner kick given Mexico though it seemed it was supposed to be a penalty; what’s with this hard hearted ref?

Before we knew it, it was half time and it’s 0-0.

Second Half...

Cameroon called for a sub; Djeugoue for Nounkeu and both teams looked more determined as they parry each other over the ball. Mexico’s Moreno is given a yellow card(careful chap) and Cameroon given a free kick, taken by Assou- Ekotto... no goal but so close. Moments later...

GOAL!!! 1 for Mexico , shot by their Peralta. Cameroon’s E’to had a little mishap when he collided with another player. Mexico in turn called for a sub, Guardado for Fabian. And to my surprise, moments later, the man of the hour, Peralta was replaced by Hernandez- why that sudden move I can’t imagine. Giovanni especially stood out with the way he manoeuvred his way across the fields and came close to a second goal but the Lions got him good.

And just after yet another sub by Mexico, the final whistle was blown.

Mexico 1, Cameroon 0. Snooze fest but competitive at the same time. 

BRAZIL 2014: BRAZIL VS CROATIA

Today is the first match of the 20th FIFA World Cup,  Brazil 2014; between Brazil and Croatia. No doubt in the stadium and in many homes across the world, the air is electrifying; no doubt a lot of supporters for Brazil- a country known for its football reputation. But we must not underestimate other countries mind... back in France '98, the world was stunned when France beat Brazil in the final match and in South Africa 2010, the country was beaten by the Netherlands in the Quarter Finals.
Today, the first goal in the tournament was for Croatia; 11 minutes in the game by Brazilian player Marcelo Vieira, (jersey #6) and no doubt he's going to get a lot of chewing out by his mates and their coach later on for allowing that mishap to happen.
Neymar da Silva Santos Jr (Jersey #10) got a a yellow card but then unexpectedly redeemed himself by making the score 1-1. One would call that a miracle, the last thing any player hopes to get throughout the tournament is the dreaded yellow or red card!
A mishap from a Croatia player (knocking Neymar over) earned Brazil a free kick but alas, over the goal post it went- to the great relief of the Croatia boys no doubt! The game is aggressive from both sides; after all it's the first match- who doesn't want to make a first impression?

I felt rather sorry for Marcelo; not exactly a good performance on his part on the very first day- scoring a goal for the opposing team!  But thanks to Neywmar, they were able to equalise so let's see what's going to happen in the second half!


SECOND HALF...


And they kick off, the air even more tense, no doubt. Another free kick for Brazil but nothing. Brazil for sure wants to live up to its huge reputation of owning a match but like I said earlier, they must learn not to underestimate the opposing team, Crotia appears determined to get on top on the first day. And as this this the first day, just anything can happen! Both teams need a second goal before the whistle is blown...
Croatia called for a sub and Mateo Kovacic (Jersey #20) is replaced by Marcelo Brozovic (Jersey #14). Brazil in turn also called for a substitution- Paulinho (Jersey # 8) for Hernanes (#Jersey #18).


A yellow card for Croatia's Jersey #14 Vedran Corluka , thus a free kick for Brazil again and alas... over the net! And Brazil called for a sub again, Hulk(Jersey #7)  replaced by Bernard (Jersey #20).

 Another mishap and ANOTHER yellow card for Croatia, this time to Lovren( Jersey #6)! Man, these guys are feeling the pressure and this new mishap gives Brazil a penalty!!! Oh dear, Oh dear...
Neymar takes the shot and it goes in to the delight of the Brazilians and the stadium goes wild! Well, Well... what a moment, Brazil 2, Croatia 1!
Minutes later, a near third goal from Neymar and more aggressive playing from both sides... before we know it, 8 minutes remaining. A goal from Croatia is not counted, as it's off-side! Sorry boys.

4 minutes left...

A yellow card for Brazil's Gustavo (Jersey #17) and  Neymar is substituted by Ramires(Jersey #16).

90 seconds...

Another GOAL FOR BRAZIL and more yells from the crowd! 3-1, thanks to Oscar(Jersey #11). Poor Croatia... they tried so hard too.

The final whistle and the match is over.
It's true when they say the first match is always exciting!

Tomorrow, Cameroon vs Mexico

IN MEMORIAM : JUNE 12 AND M.K.O ABIOLA

Politics is  a subject I'm  very reluctant to talk about; much less write about; it's honestly not my thing.  But 21 years today was an important day in the history of Nigeria and to all Nigerians. On the 12th of June, 1993, I was too young to vote but I could sense the excitement in the air even then. It was the era called "Hope '93" and Alhaji M.K.O Abiola was running for President under the Social Democratic Party (S.D.P) against Alhaji Bashir Tofa of the National Republican Convention (N.R.C). People singing the campaign slogans and lining up to vote- a lot of excitement and a time of hope as the election would give the country a new President and mark the end of military rule. And the candidate most rooted for was Alhaji M.K.O Abiola.
But what happened?
 The news reports informing us all that the election was  annulled and the country thrown into confusion. M.K.O Abiola was later imprisoned and died in 1998. By then I was a college student and vividly remember how everyone was thrown into confusion that day, wondering what was going to happen next.
Today marks the 21st anniversary of the election and the country remembers the S.D.P candidate and winner,  M.K.O Abiola. He was the symbol of hope, a philanthropist and a man who promised so much and a lot expected from him. What I think most Nigerians most remember today is how our hopes were dashed by the annulment and HOPE '93 became a dream instead of a reality and more or less an unsettled ghost. But M.K.O Abiola will never be forgotten by us nor the day the first free and fair election since the 1983 coup.

May he continue to rest in peace.