Breaking News : Obi Mikel Appointed Nigeria Captain As Musa Steps Down

Chelsea star John Obi Mikel,28, has been appointed as the new captain of the Super Eagles with immediate effect.

The former skipper, CSKA Moscow frontman Ahmed Musa, made the announcement at a press briefing on Thursday afternoon.

Musa was appointed captain of the Nigeria squad by ex-coach Sunday Oliseh in October 2015 after the former Juventus midfielder fell out will Lille netminder Vincent Enyeama.

In his first words after the announcement, Mikel said : “Thanks to Musa and the team. It will be a new Super Eagles with a new approach.”

Obi Mikel is the most senior player in the current Super Eagles squad, having made his debut 11 years ago when he was introduced in the second half of the friendly against Libya.

NFF  Reveals Arsenal Midfielder Iwobi Is Set To Make Competitive Debut Against Egypt

The Nigeria Football Federation has revealed that Arsenal attacking midfielder Alex Iwobi is not in danger of missing the African Cup of Nations qualifying match against Egypt.

The former England youth-teamer did not participate in training with the Nigeria squad on Tuesday morning and the initial reports that emanated from Abuja suggested that he was either carrying a knock or suffering from food poisoning.

The NFF posted on its official Twitter page that Iwobi is suffering from traveler’s flu but he is well and set to play against Egypt.

And based on the pronouncement by the Federation, the 19-year-old can no longer represent England internationally if he is given a run out against the North Africans.

WATFORD TO SIGN UCHE,SUCCESS IN THE SUMMER

English premiership modest club, Watford FC are exploring ways to sign ex-Nigeria U20 international Uche Agbo from Granada in the summer.

Uche’s teammate at the Andalusian outfit, Isaac Success, is in the final round of talks with Hornets suits regarding a transfer and the central midfielder could follow his pal to The Vic in the coming months.

Watford higher-ups are scheduled to fly to Spain before the first week of April to conclude negotiations with their sister club and representatives of the former Enyimba star.

Uche officially joined Udinese in 2014 following a successful trial but has been on the books of Granada for the last two years.

The 20-year-old is tied to the Estadio Nuevo Los Cármenes outfit until the summer of 2018.

FANS AGOG AS MIKEL, OTHERS TRAIN IN KADUNA.

Hundreds of fans mobbed Eagles stars Mikel Obi, Ahmed Musa and Efe Ambrose after Tuesday evening training at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium in Kaduna.

Chelsea star Mikel was also mobbed by fans when the team trained in Abuja earlier in the day.

Celtic defender Ambrose is returning to the city where he was born and where he went on to captain the city’s biggest club, Kaduna United.

The fans wanted to touch the players they often watch in action with their European clubs on television and also take pictures and selfies with them.

There was an appreciable number of fans at the first training in Kaduna, the northern Nigerian town where Nigeria will host Egypt on Friday in a crucial AFCON qualifier with a reverse clash in Alexandria four days later.

The 20,000-capacity Ahmadu Bello Stadium is expected to be jammed on Friday with the highest gate fee being 1,000 Naira, which is less than $3.

NIGERIA PLAYERS UPDATE....

 The Super Eagles central midfielder Onazi Ogenyi watched proceedings from the bench as Lazio lost 3-0 to Czech Republic side Sparta Prague in Rome.

Former Flying Eagles striker Kehinde Fatai came off the bench in the 83rd minute. It was his 14th appearance in Europe for Sparta Prague since joining the club in summer of 2015.

Bayer Leverkusen teenage striker Ufumwen Osawe was not considered for selection as the Germans were held to a goalless draw by Villarreal, who progressed to the last eight.

It was a bad night indeed for players with Nigerian heritage, with Imoh Ezekiel and Stefano Okaka crashing out of the competition, with Anderlecht after losing 4-1 on aggregate to Ukrainian powerhouse Shakhtar Donetsk at Constant Vanden Stock.

Ezekiel partnered Okaka in the attack of the Belgians and was replaced in the 73rd minute.

Over to Old Trafford, Jordon Ibe was an unused substitute as Liverpool were forced to a 1-1 draw by Manchester United. Teammate Sheyi Ojo was not selected in the 18-man squad. The Anfield side are through to the last eight.

Switzerland youth international Manuel Akanji is still recovering from injury and missed FC Basel’s 3-0 loss to holders Sevilla at Estadio R. Sanchez Pizjuan.

After losing the first leg in Germany, Tottenham Hotspur were beaten 2-1 at White Hart Lane by Borussia Dortmund. England midfielder

Dele Alli started and played 70 minutes of the tie, while Josh Onomah was introduced in the 74th minute.

Igho Kingsely

Alex Iwobi Makes First - Ever Start For Arsenal In Champions League

Nigeria international Alex Iwobi will make his first-ever Champions League start for Arsenal in the Round of 16, second round tie against Barcelona at the Nou Camp on Wednesday night, starting from 2045 hours.

The 19-year-old has been handed a spot in attacking midfield alongside Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez.

Iwobi has never started a game in the Premier League but was included in the starting XI by manager Arsene Wenger for Cup games against Sunderland, Burnley, Hull City and Sheffield Wednesday.

The offensive all-rounder was given a run out against Bayern Munich, lasting only six minutes on the pitch in the 5-1 loss suffered by the Gunners in the group stage.

Arsenal: Ospina, Bellerin, Gabriel, Koscielny, Monreal, Flamini, Elneny, Iwobi, özil, Sanchez, Welbeck.
Subs: Macey, Mertesacker, Gibbs, Coquelin, Campbell, Walcott, Giroud.

Barcelona: Ter Stegen, Alves, Mascherano, Mathieu, Alba, Busquets, Iniesta, Rakitic, Messi, Neymar, Suarez.
Subs: Bravo, Arda, Bartra, Munir, Sergi Roberto, Aleix Vidal, Vermaelen.

France hijack Mali target N’Golo Kanté

France coach Didier Deschamps will hand a maiden international call-up to Leicester City midfielder N’Golo Kanté, L’Equipe unveiled this Wednesday.

Highly rated in the English Premier League since joining the Foxes on a four-year contract from SM Caen last summer, Kanté has been instrumental in Leicester’s meteoric rise this season with his tireless work rate.

And his consistent performances for his club did not go unnoticed by the former France international, who will unveil his squad on Thursday as they are preparing for their UEFA EURO 2016 with friendlies against Netherlands and Russia.

The move is a major blow to Kanté’s country of origin Mali, who were desperate to land the 24-year-old in the Eagles’ nest.

We start off at Villa Park. Tottenham Hotspur dragged Aston Villa deeper into relegation trouble with a 2-0 win. England midfielder Dele Alli started and played 87 minutes of the contest.

Both Josh Onomah (Tottenham Hotspur) and Gabby Agbonlahor (Aston Villa) did not make the squad.

Jerry Mbakogu was an unused substitute as Carpi won for only the fifth time this season, beating Frosinone 2-1 at the Stadio Alberto Braglia.

Elsewhere, Super Eagles vice-skipper Eddy Onazi was a handed a rare start as Lazio defeated Atalanta 2-0 at the Stadio Olimpico . He was replaced in the 81st minute.

Still in the Italian Serie A, Torino midfielder Joel Obi watched proceedings from the bench as his side surrendered a two-goal lead to lose 3-2 to Genoa at Stadio Comunale Luigi Ferraris.

Defender Leon Balogun played the entirety of Mainz 05’s 2-0 loss to Borussia Dortmund. He has appeared 18 times in the Bundesliga this season, lasting the distance in the last nine matches.

ADO Den Haag right-back Tyronne Ebuehi worked a ninety-minute shift in defense in his team’s 2-2 draw with FC Utrecht in the Eredivisie.

Stefano Okaka scored in the sixth minute of Anderlecht’s 3-0 rout of Kortrijk, who were without Michael Olaitan. The Italy international went the distance while teammate Imoh Ezekiel was an unused sub.

Nigeria international winger Moses Simon played 85 minutes of Gent’s 1-1 draw against Sporting Charleroi. He was yellow-carded in the 74th minute.

Still in the Juplier Pro League, Flying Eagles defender Wilfred Ndidi was substituted in the 87th minute as Genk thrashed KV Oostende 4-1 at the Cristal Arena. He was booked five minutes from time.

KV Oostende number 17 Joseph Akpala watched proceedings from the bench, while teammate Saviour Godwin did not make the squad.

Super Eagles midfielder Izunna Uzochukwu played only 14 minutes of OB Odense’s 3-1 win against FC Nordsjaelland.

Brown Ideye passed a late fitness test and assisted the champions Olympiakos beat Panathinaikos 3-1 in the derby. The striker ended a two-month goal drought in the league after he hit target in the 89th minute.

Abdul Ajagun came off the bench in the 46th minute as Levadiakos suffered a 3-0 loss at the hands of Levadiakos.

In the Austrian Bundesliga, Bright Edomwonyi rescued a point for Sturm Graz in their 1-1 draw with Austria Vienna. Bright, who played the full game, equalized for the homers in the 86th minute.

Olarenwaju Kayode was yellow-carded in the 71st minute, then was substituted four minutes later. The Austria Vienna star still has 11 goals in the league.

Sylvester Igboun was not involved in FC Ufa’s 2-0 loss to Lokomotiv Moscow in the Russian Premier League. New signing for the Railway men Henty Ezekiel worked a ninety-minute shift in attack.

In the Ukrainian top-flight, there was no debut for new Stal Dniprodzerzhynsk signing Akeem Latifu . He was an unused sub as his team lost 1-0 to Volyn.

Kingsley Madu played the entirety of Trencin’s 3-1 victory against Zemplin Michalovce. Teammate Aliko Bala was on the bench for this one.

Tunde Adeniji watched from the bench as Levski Sofia beat Pirin Blagoevgrad 3-1 in the Bulgarian top division.

WENGER HAILS IWOBI
Arsenal Manager hails Nigeria international Alex Iwobi ahead of Tuesday night’s FA Cup replay against Hull City at the KC Stadium.

The 19-year-old has fallen down the pecking order in recent matches but is in line to feature against the Tigers, with Coquelin suspended due to his red card against Tottenham Hotspur last weekend.

“What I see in [Iwobi] is a creative player who has a high work-rate and a good team spirit,” Wenger said to arsenal.com/ “I think he’s a player who develops very well because he has a big passion for the game and he can score goals as well. “He can play on the flanks, he can play through the middle, he’s a very interesting player.”

Of the 10 appearances Iwobi has made for the Gunners first team in the ongoing campaign, five were in Cup competitions.

The striker has started every single game in the FA Cup but failed to last the distance in each of them.

SIASIA AXED THREE PLAYERS

Super Eagles interim coach Samson Siasia has dropped three players from the roster announced to face Egypt in the African Cup of Nations qualifiers.

Usman Mohammed, Stanley Dimgba and Segun Oduduwa were called up to train with the Dream Team VI but arrived late to the camp of the Nigeria U23s without authorization.

“We cannot have those three in camp anymore. This is very serious business, and only serious –minded persons can be involved,” said Samson Siasia.

“They reported late to the camp of the U-23 team, so they cannot be tolerated in the camp of the senior team.

 “I have said it over the past few days that mentality would count big among the traits we are looking for in the players to feature against Egypt.”
   
As a result of the exclusion of the trio, it means only 19 home-based players will train with the Super Eagles before the arrival of the professionals based abroad as from Sunday, March 20.