˜ ͺ˜ ͺ ˾ T H I S D AY
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THURSDAYSPORTS
Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com 0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY
WORLD CUP 2018…
JUNE 14 TO JULY 15
NFF Leadership Tussle: FIFA’s Hammer Eminent, Says Keyamo The counsel to the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Festus Keyamo (SAN), yesterday said Nigeria was at the risk of a FIFA ban following the latest developments in the NFF. A Jos court failed to deliver judgement on the case between the embattled NFF President Amaju Pinnick and his challenger, Chris Giwa. The four year-old case was expected to be resolved at the Federal High Court in Jos, Plateau State on Tuesday but it was adjourned to September 25. Pinnick has been the NFF president since 2014 but a Supreme Court ruling two weeks ago gave Giwa the mandate, and he has since assumed office. Justice Musa Kurta, the presiding judge in the case between Yahaya Adama and Aminu Maigari, had, on June 5, given an ex-parte order granted Giwa and others, pending the determination of an application challenging the jurisdiction of the court to hear the case. Instead of finally resolving the case, drama ensued on Tuesday as both sets of lawyers failed to agree on certain processes and Justice Kurye adjourned to September 25, as he noted that the court was on vacation. Keyamo told NAN in an interview that an imminent ban loomed for Nigerian football if the right steps were not taken by the parties involved. “The grave implication of the adjournment and failure to resolve this case is that Giwa will continue to claim leadership of the NFF in defiance of his lack of recognition by FIFA and the global body could ban the country. “The only NFF recognised by FIFA is the one headed by Pinnick, who is also the Vice-president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF). “I have pointed out to the court that the FIFA hammer is eminent. Let us not pretend that this is not happening. “This is not for myself, Pinnick or Giwa but for the future of our country. It is for the future of our children who earn a daily living from football. “The loss and catastrophe will be so colossal that even our local league will be affected. So, I am just sounding a note of caution to everyone involved that the earlier we dispose of this, the
Pinnick better,” he said. He noted that FIFA had already reacted in a letter written to NFF, stressing that the world football governing body did not mince words in the letter. “It clearly stated that what is happening in Nigeria is seen as an interference in the affairs of football because the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) had decisively given its verdict on this matter. “Giwa and Co. lost in CAS and were given a worldwide
Dalung ban and as such FIFA noted in the last paragraph of the letter that if the case was not rescinded, it could lead to severe sanctions on Nigerian football,” he said. On the issue of the appearance of a new counsel, Samuel Shankyula, who announced that he now defends Maigari and Ahmadu with an affidavit deposed to the effect, the senior advocate said: “We are going to confer with our clients with regards to the latest developments in the case.
“The new counsel showed up from nowhere because he did not contact us previously. We were not informed by Maigari and Ahmadu of any development in this matter. “We had previously defended Maigari and Ahmadu from the court in Jos to the Court of Appeal, all the way to the Supreme Court and back to the court in Jos and they did not raise any objection. “All of a sudden because of
certain intrigues in the football family, they appeared in court on Tuesday to say they were no longer willing that we represent them. “It also clear that the new lawyer in question has taken sides with Giwa… so, these are all the intrigues going on,” he said. Keyamo has been defending the trio of Maigari, Ahmadu and Plateau State Football Association as well as the 36 states and the
FCT associations until the latest development. In his reaction, Giwa noted that there were no issues with regards to who the legitimate president of NFF was, adding that he was fully in charge of the Nigeria football house as things stood. “Most importantly is the fact that the new counsel to the case clearly admitted that the election that produced Pinnick was marred by some
Courtois Blasts France Victory as ‘Shame for Football’ Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois said his team’s defeat by France in the World Cup semifinals on Tuesday was a “shame for football”, criticising Didier Deschamps’s side for a defensive style of play. Centre-back Samuel Umtiti’s 51stminute header from a corner gave France a 1-0 win, as they defended deep to close it out and reach a third World Cup final. “It was a frustrating match. France didn’t play at all, they defended with 11 players within 40 metres of their goal,” Chelsea goalkeeper Courtois told Belgian TV channel RTBF. “They played on the counter-
attack with (Kylian) Mbappe, who is very quick. That’s their right. They know when an opponent plays very deep, that’s where we have problems. “The frustration is there because we didn’t lose to a team who are better than us, we lost to a team who play nothing, just defend. “Against Uruguay (in the quarterfinals) they scored with a free-kick and a goalkeeping error. Today, a corner. It’s a shame for football that Belgium didn’t win today.” France, the 1998 champions, will face either England or Croatia in Sunday’s final at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium.
Volunteers Are the Heart and Soul of Russia 2018, Says FIFA Scribe The official FIFA World Cup song is ringing out of the speakers, the ceiling is bedecked with the flags of all 32 competing nations and alongside there is a poster with information on score-line predictions for the first of the two semi-finals, between Belgium and France. The Volunteer Centre at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow is a happy, welcoming place full of laughter, impromptu dancing and table tennis matches – and on Media Day, it even has VIP guests. FIFA Secretary, General Fatma Samoura, along with FIFA legends Michel Salgado and Julio Baptista, came to visit the helpers and express their enormous gratitude for all that they have been doing. “You are the heart and soul of this World Cup. You are the ones who have enabled this tournament to become a reality,” the General Secretary said, to thunderous applause from all present. 17,040 volunteers are working at the FIFA World Cup all across Russia in 20 different capacities. They were selected from a record
Keyamo
number of candidates – no fewer than 176,870 in total! The volunteers come from a variety of different backgrounds and include the captain of an oil tanker, a former footballer and even a world champion dragon boat racer. What unites them is a love of football and the willingness to show a real sense of commitment over a number of weeks. Thirty-six per cent of volunteers are men, 64 per cent women. They include a grandmother and her grandson, couples and indeed entire families. 93 per cent of them come from Russia while seven per cent came specially from 112 different countries just to take part. One such person is Hiba from Morocco. “It is an incredible experience to be part of this tournament and to come into contact with people from all around the world,” she says with a huge smile on her face. “We’re one big family.” It is a family that Samoura, Salgado and Baptista were delighted to spend some time with, playing table football with the volunteers, listening to excited
stories of the tournament to date and even showcasing their dancing skills during a flash mob.
Umtiti, Les Bleus’s Latest Hero France have so many potential match-winners at their disposal that every one of their matches at the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia has ended with a different hero. Taking his turn to step into the limelight against Belgium on Tuesday night was Samuel Umtiti, whose flashing header powered Les Bleus into the Final. The man of the moment was still high on emotion when he stepped off the pitch: “I’m not going to get much sleep tonight,” he said. “It’s going to be hard
to nod off. But I don’t need to anyway; I’m not tired. I don’t care.” France’s win recalled their 1998 semi-final triumph against Croatia, when another defender was the hero of the hour: Lilian Thuram. “I hope it’s a sign,” smiled the Number 5, before adding: “It is different, though. Let’s take one thing at a time. We need to rest up for Sunday now.” Umtiti’s winner came just minutes after his misguided clearance gave Romelu Lukaku a clear-cut opportunity to give
Some of the volunteers of Russia 2018 World Cup finals, happy to have delivered the tournament
Belgium the lead. Asked if such mistakes can impact on a player’s performance, he said: “No, not in my case anyway. When you’re a footballer, you know that a thousand different things can happen in a match. As soon as one thing’s gone, you have to move on to the next, no matter whether you got it right or made a mistake.” Just as in their quarter-final defeat of Uruguay, it was Antoine Griezmann’s dead-ball skills that set Les Bleus on the way to victory. The striker has been involved in 13 of their last 20 tournament goals. As the Barcelona centre-half explained, a lot of effort has gone into making that stat happen: “We work on a lot of set-pieces with Antoine, and my job is to run in front of the defenders and go to the near post. He hit a fantastic corner, I got round (Marouane) Fellaini and buried it.” “Yes, the aim was to hit the front post with Piochy (Paul Pogba) in front and Sam (Umtiti) coming in behind,” said Griezmann. “I can’t remember in the end if Paul was in front, but Sam was definitely there.” Still unbeaten at Russia 2018, Les Bleus continue to impress with their all-round firepower, which seems to grow with every passing game. Their hope now is that they can be equally clinical in their next outing, the most important one of all.