EAGLES CRASH IN FIFA RANKING!

Nigeria dropped eight spots in the latest FIFA World rankings released on Wednesday.

Samson Siasia’s team were 32nd in the world last month but a period of inactivity has conspired to deny the country of an upward movement in the ranking table and are now 40th on the globe.

Interestingly, the Pharaohs of Egypt who were before now the top ranked African side in 10th position suffered a humiliating crash. The African champions fell 23 places and are now the 33rd best national team in the world.

The Super Eagles garnering 604 points, remain Africa’s 4th best national team behind 2010 World Cup quarter finalists, Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire (26th in the world) and Egypt. Ghana now occupy the 15th position in the world.

Burkina Faso moved one place up to assume the 41st position and 5th in Africa while Cameroun (43rd) Guinea (46th), South Africa (47th), Tunisia (48th) and Algeria (55th) make up Africa’s Top 10 best football national teams according to the latest edition of the FIFA ranking.

World Champions, Spain remained at the summit and followed by World Cup finalists Holland in second place.

Germany, Brazil, Argentina, England Uruguay Portugal, Croatia and Greece lead the pack in the ranking.

New Asian champions, Japan made the Top 20 by virtue of their victory at the Asian Games at the Qatar 2011 Asian Games. They are now ranked 17th in the world.

The next FIFA world ranking will be released on 9th March, exactly one month after the proposed international friendly between Nigeria and Sierra-Leone and 18 days before a 2012 Nations Cup qualifier between the Super Eagles and Ethiopia.

Gambia's U-20 Departs To Tunisia for Camping

Ahead of the forth coming African Youth Championship billed for Libya next month, the Flying Eagles opponent in group B, Gambia will depart for Tunisia on Thursday to intensify their preparations for the 17th edition of the competition.

The team under the guidance of local coach, Lamin Sarr had begun intensive preparatory programme at the Brikama Box Bar Mini Stadium four weeks ago with the home based players. The Baby Scorpions as they are affectionately called are also expected to be joined by the country's foreign based stars from the 15 to 20th February.

“We would be departing for Tunisia at the weekend to Tunisia in the build up to the AYC Championship. The team is in the final phase of the camping and would be ready for their opponents at the championship in Libya,” Sarr told 247naijasport.

It would be recalled that the Baby Scorpions are pooled alongside defending and world champions, Ghana, Cameroun and five time winners of the competition, Nigeria in group B.

FIFA Appoints Falcons Coach As Instructor

Super Falcons Coach, Uche Eucharia has expressed her gladness over her latest appointment as one of the football instructor of the world football governing body, FIFA.

Fifa’s decision to elevate the Head Coach of the country’s women’s national team is based on the ground breaking efforts she has made in developing and promoting the women’s game in the African continent.

Uche, who led the Super Falcons to victory at the last African Women’s Championship in South Africa, has also qualified the Nigerian Women’s team for this year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup in Germany is yet to lose any competitive game though her team scandalously lost 8-0 to Germany in a warm up game last year.

Reacting to the news, the former Super Falcon’s striker said she was humbled and would continue to strive for excellence in her drive to take the women’s game to the next level.

“I am pleased with the development. I thank God for this because when a body as prestigious as FIFA recognizes ones for an award as hallowed as this, it is a pointer that one is on the right path and I will continue to work hard in every sphere of my personal and professional life,” she revealed

Ikechukwu Uche Certified Fit

Real Zaragoza's Nigeria international striker, Ikechukwu Uche has been told he can play football again after undergoing two knee operations by his club doctors.

The 27-year-old former Getafe striker who picked up the injury during his second league match with Spanish Club Real Zaragoza in September 2009 is nearing match fitness having fully recovered from a second operation he underwent in July 2010.

Fondly called The Chief by admirers, Ikechukwu made his international debut for Nigeria's Super Eagles in 2007 and has spent most of his career playing in Spain. He moved to Zaragoza from another Spanish side, Getafe, on a four-year contract worth $4m.

His nagging injury cost Uche a place in the Super Eagles squad for the African Cup of Nations in Angola and the subsequent World Cup in South Africa where the team performed below par. It would be recalled that In only his second match, a 1–4 loss at Sevilla FC, he suffered a severe knee injury, going on to miss seven months.

Uche recovered fully for Zaragoza's 2010–11 pre-season; however, he suffered another knee injury, ruled out for another six months.

NFF Confirm Libya Friendly for F/Eagles

In a bid to ensure adequate preparation for the Flying Eagles ahead of the 2011 CAF African Youth Championship AYC slated for Tripoli, Libya, the Nigerian Football Federation has confirmed that the Flying Eagles will engage in two top friendly games against the North African nation.

Scribe of the Federation, Barrister Musa Amadu said the glasshouse would adopt their plan B after initial plans to play Egypt in a warm up game failed to materialize due to the political unrest there.

“Initially we wanted to expose the team to a two legged friendly games in Egypt but the on-going crisis in that country has knocked out such plans. So alternatively we have concluded plans for the team to travel to Benghazi where they will engage the Libyan junior national team. The team would depart the country on the 10^th and the matches would be played on the 13^th and the 15^th in Benghazi” states Acting General Secretary of the NFF, Barrister Musa Amadu

Court Give Baribote Lifeline

A Federal High Court in Lagos presided over by Justice Okechukwu Okeke, on Wednesday adjourned ruling on the application by Barrister Jiti Ogunye seeking an interlocutory injunction to restrain Nigerian Football Federation, the league board, other defendants and their agents from implementing the verdict of the Prof. Akin Ibidapo-Obe Arbitration Panel report till the 21st of February.

The court also struck out the application by sacked NPL Chairman, Davidson Owumi, to upturn his removal from office by the NFF General Assembly, stating that it lacks merit.

“Owumi cannot file a motion to challenge his removal from office through the back door when he doesn’t have a substantive claim” he said.

Ogunye believes that the order made on September 6, 2010 by Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court in suit No FITC/L/CS/962/10 which annulled the elections into the NFF conducted on the 26th of August last year, is upon the discontinuance of the suit, being impudently disobeyed by the Board and the Congress of the NFF.

“I would not rest on my oars to ensure that football matters don’t rubbish the law profession in the country. The NFF has violated the provision of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the integrity of the Federal High Court and the sanctity of it orders”, he said.

“The rule of law negates the orderly administration of justice in the country and impacts bad laws practices which would adversely affect the faith of clients in the inviolability of the orders of the court,” Ogunye added.

Obikwelu Targets Fresh Heights

Aims to re-enact 2004 Olympic feat

Former 100m and 200m World junior Champion, Francis Obikwelu is keen to re-enact his remarkable sprint feat of 2004 for his Portuguese club, Sporting Clube de Portugal in their forth-coming qualifiers for the finals of the National clubs which will hold from the 4th of March to the 6th in Pombal.

Obikwelu who announced his retirement from competitive athletics after failing to qualify for the 100m finals in the 2008 Beijing Olympics was in great shape as he finished first with a time of 6.69s in the club's first trials in Paris last Saturday.

The 2004 Athens Olympic silver medallist who was voted Waterford Crystal European Male Athlete of the Year for 2006 by the European Athletic Association in an internet poll told a Portuguese website shortly after the race that his slowed pace was as a result of the illness he suffered a forth night ago and would be fully back before the weekend.

"I knew I was in great shape. I was sick two weeks, which made it lowered a bit, but before the week-end I made a good workout, get out of the blocks very well. We are preparing for the outdoor season, thinking of the Daegu World [late August]. The indoor arena is to have fun and help what can I do in the 100 meters. If I am now well out of the blocks, is guaranteed to be able to do 9.95 s or 9.96 s in 100 m”

"Already in 2004 I achieved this and I'm ready this year to beat that European and Olympic silver record. I'm trying to do it again in the finals" he boasted. The qualifiers for the Pombal finals will hold on the 12th and the 13th of this month.