Sports
Nwankwo Kanu U-19 Inter-State Soccer Championship Organised to Expose Talents – Kanu
Amina Samuel, Kaduna
Nigeria’s ex-international and Enyimba International Football Club chairman, Nwankwo Kanu, has said that the maiden edition of the Nwankwo Kanu U-19 Inter-State Soccer Championship was organized to unearth talented young players.
He made this statement while fielding questions from sports writers at the closing ceremony of the Kanu U-19 Inter-State Soccer Championship, contested between Campos FC and Apex Crane FC on Thursday, July 5, 2024.
Kanu explained that several clubs were present to scout for players, emphasizing the mutual benefits for both young talents and the clubs.
“At Enyimba, we have a partnership with a Norwegian club to develop talent,” he revealed.
He added, “This is the first edition, and we intend to sustain it. I believe the next edition will be even better.
We used to create many good programs for Nigerian youth in the past, but now most young people are more interested in video games. With this championship, I’ve watched several games, and people are impressed by the players’ abilities.”
Kanu commended the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) for its role in sports development and assured Enyimba’s commitment to building a strong relationship with the sporting press. He encouraged other football clubs to partner with SWAN to advance the sport.
“Such partnerships are common in other parts of the world, and we should replicate this here,” he stressed.
In a post-match interview, SWAN President Isaiah Benjamin praised the players’ brilliant performance in the final. He called on other former internationals to emulate Kanu’s initiative in sponsoring such competitions.
Benjamin described the novelty match as successful and reiterated SWAN’s commitment to holding sports administrators accountable.
Campos FC defeated Apex Crane FC 3-0 in the final of the Nwankwo Kanu U-19 Inter-State Soccer Championship. Earlier, Team Legend, composed of ex-Enyimba and international stars, triumphed over Team SWAN 2-0 in a novelty match at Enyimba International FC.
Nigerian Afrobeats singer Davido has claimed that he started his life in a one-room apartment in a public compound, known locally as a face-me-I-face-you.
The singer made the claim on a song titled CFMF, off his fifth studio album, 5ive, which was released on Friday.
He claimed that he is now living a flamboyant life due to Jesus’s divine intervention.
“Take a step and walk into my life…
Started all the way from face me I face you
Face me I face you
And now, I am living real large all thanks to Jesu
All thanks to Jesu oh,” he sings.
His claim has been met with a groundswell of doubts, especially on social media, as the singer is known to be the son of billionaire businessman Deji Adeleke.
This is not the first time Davido has attempted to paint a grass-to-grace story in his music.
On his debut 2011 single, Back When, Davido claimed many ladies rejected his advances when he had no money but began chasing him after he achieved fame and success.
The song didn’t achieve much commercial success, partly due to the doubts that greeted his claims of humble beginnings, as he was known to be from a wealthy background.
Davido finally gained widespread prominence after the release of his 2012 breakthrough single, Dami Duro, where he embraced his wealthy background and boasted that he was unstoppable as the son of a rich man.
Nigeria’s popular stand-up comedian, Oluwaseyitan Lawrence Aletile, aka Seyi Law, has vowed never to support the presidential ambition of former Labour Party, LP, candidate, Peter Obi.
Seyi Law said he would never support Obi’s presidential ambition due to his failure to call the Obidient movement to order.
In an interview on the Teju Babyface podcast, Seyi Law recalled how Obidients attacked his wife and children because he supported President Bola Tinubu.
He lamented that Obi has refused to admit that Obidients attacked those who did not support him.
According to Seyi Law: “I don’t feel down at all because when you talk too much, I swear for you. One of the good things that God has done for me is that my anger doesn’t last long.
“Personal anger for me doesn’t last long. The only place it lasts long is when you leave me and attack my children, mother, and wife.
“The moment you cross that boundary from me to my children, mother, and wife — there is no forgiveness.
“That is why there is nothing on earth that Peter Obi can do that will make me support him. They (Obidients) attacked my children and my wife.
“As long as Peter Obi will not call them to order and he keeps denying that they are doing that, he will never get my support.
“Let Peter Obi wear the garment of Jesus Christ today — he will never get my support. Hate or love me, my personal way of life is between me and God.
“Any organization that does not support free thinking is a cult.”
Inter Miami superstar, Lionel Messi, has admitted that he desired to return to Barcelona, but it did not eventually work out.
Messi was keen to return to the LaLiga giants after the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The 38-year-old, who won the tournament with Argentina, eventually left Paris Saint-Germain as a free agent for the Major League Soccer, MLS.
“I had the intention of returning to Barcelona and being able to go back to a place I always wanted to be, but it wasn’t possible again,” Messi told Simplemente Fútbol.
“After that, it (deciding on a new club) became a family decision. The fact that we won the World Cup also had a big impact.
“I was clear that I didn’t want to be at another team in Europe, I didn’t want to go to any of them.
Messi wasat Barca for 17 seasons, winning a total of 35 trophies, including ten (10) Laliga titles and four (4) Champions League titles.
At Inter Miami, he has lifted two trophies – the 2023 Leagues Cup and the 2024 MLS Supporters’ Shield.