SPORTS
ABS Regain Professional Status, Unveil New Technical Adviser
Abubakar Bukola Saraki (ABS) Ilorin FC have regained promotion to the Nigeria National League (NNL) after relegation at the end of the 2022/2023 season.
The team’s Director of Football, Alloy Chukwuemeka, disclosed this on Saturday in Ilorin while unveiling a new coach, Umar Kwasau, as the Technical Adviser for the club.
Chukwuemeka revealed that the club had also secured the slot of DMD FC of Maiduguri to maintain their NNL status.
The director of football said that the decision of the owners of the club to bring back the team to professional status is to satisfy the yearnings of the teeming the fans.
He said the fans were worried that a big club like ABS FC with its status in the nation’s football circle should not be playing in the amateur league.
He assured the supporters that the team would galvanise all the available resources and support from the owners to ensure that the team gains promotion to the NPFL.
“We have a mandate to not only sustain the professional status of the club, but to galvanize all available resources and strategies to gain promotion to the elite league, the NPFL,” he said.
Chukwuemeka charged the newly appointed technical adviser to work efficiently and ensure that the mandate of promotion is achieved.
Responding, Kwasau said the mandate is achievable, even as he called for the support of the football stakeholders to succeed in his assignment, adding that Kwara remains his second home.(NAN)
SPORTS
Results of Match Day 2 Fixtures in 2024/2025 NPFL
Following are the results of Match Day 1 fixtures in the 2024/2025 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL), played on Sunday and dates of the remaining fixtures:
Akwa United FC 1-1 Abia Warriors FC
Bayelsa United FC 1-1 Kano Pillars FC
Katsina United FC 1-1 Bendel Insurance FC
Niger Tornadoes FC 0-0 Nasarawa United FC
Shooting Stars FC 1-1 Plateau United FC
El Kanemi Warriors Vs Kwara United FC (postponed )
The following Match Day two fixtures
Would be played on Sept.
25:Ikorodu City FC Vs Enugu Rangers international FC
Enyimba international FC Vs Lobi stars FC .
(NAN)SPORTS
Match Day 1 Remaining Results in 2024/2025 NPFL
Following are the results of remaining Match Day one fixtures played on Sunday in the 2024/2025 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL)Heartland FC 1-3 Enyimba international FCKwara United FC 1-2 Niger Tornadoes FCBendel Insurance FC 0-0 Rivers United FCPlateau United FC 1-0 Katsina United FCKano Pillars FC 3-0 Ikorodu City FCSunshine Stars FC 3-0 Bayelsa United FCAbia Warriors FC 0-2 Remo Stars FCNasarawa United FC 1-1 Shooting Stars FC.
(NAN)SPORTS
Morocco 2025: Super Eagles can Beat any Team, Eguavoen Boasts
The interim coach of the Super Eagles, Augustine Eguavoen, said his team can beat any team with the quality of players in the team.
Eguavoen stated this after his team spanked the Cheetahs of Benin Republic 4-0 in the 2025 African Cup Of Nations (AFCON) at the Godswill Akpabio stadium, Uyo, Akwa Ibom on Saturday.
“We have quality players to beat any team but we respect team anyway.
Any coach can come in and do the same job with the Super Eagles.“It is a mindset, we have the potential and how you perceived your opponent, given the information about them and then go out and do the job,“he said.
Equavoen attributed the victory to the formation adopted by the technical crew, adding that any formation could be used to ensure that the team was successful.
“We can decide to use any system. It is something we discussed and I slept over it. I know with the caliber of players that we have, we can decide to play any formation.
“Football is about you win, lose and draw, I don’t believe we have a poor result,” he said.
He, however, said that the former Super Eagles coach didn’t do a good job but it has to do with believe, what is at stake and what you want to achieve.
“Psychologically as a group, we are agreed, where we are and where we are going to be. We will definitely achieve it,” Equavoen said.
He commended the performance of the defence , describing it as superb, adding that the team had been training together for one week.
The coach said that asking six players to warm up for the second half was to buy time, adding that there was no need to rush to change.
He said the Cheetahs of Benin Republic were a good team, adding that they came with a good game plan.
Report says that Eguavoen was appointed interim coach after the deal between the Nigeria Football Federation(NFF) and coach Bruno Labbadia failed.
NFF explained in a statement that it failed due to the stringent regulations of German tax authorities.(NAN)