Sports

Super Eagles’ Ademola Lookman Nominated For 2024 Ballon d’Or (Full List)

Published

7 days ago

September 5, 2024

Super Eagles of Nigeria forward, Ademola Lookman, has been nominated for the 2024 men’s Ballon d’Or award.

In the list announced by France Football Magazine on Wednesday, the 26-year-old Atalanta of Italy player was shortlisted alongside 29 players for the coveted award.

He is the only African player in the list. Eight-time winner and current holder Lionel Messi is not listed for this years’s award as well as five-time winner Cristiano Ronaldo.

Lookman was in scintillating form as Atalanta won its first-ever European trophy last season, with the Nigerian scoring a hat-trick in the Europa League final against Bayer Leverkusen.

He scored scored 17 goals and made 11 assists in all for Atalanta last season.

The former Everton player was also instrumental in the Super Eagles run to the final of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cote d’Ivoire early this year.

He scored two goals as the Nigerian team finished as runners up in the competition after losing 2-1 to the hosts in the final.

This year’s Ballon d’Or list is dominated by players from the Spanish national team which won the Euro 2024 in the summer and the Real Madrid team that won the UEFA Champions League.

Some notable names on the list include Jude Bellingham, Vini Junior, Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe.

See Men’s list of nominees

Jude Bellingham
Hakan Çalhanoğlu
Dani Carvajal
Martin Ødegaard
Dani Olmo
Cole Palmer
Rúben Dias
Declan Rice
Artem Dovbyk
Rodri
Phil Foden
Antonio Rüdiger
Alejandro Grimaldo
Bukayo Saka
Erling Haaland
William Saliba
Mats Hummels
Federico Valverde
Harry Kane
Vinícius Jr.
Toni Kroos
Vitinha
Ademola Lookman
Nico Williams
Emiliano Martínez
Florian Wirtz
Lautaro Martínez
Kylian Mbappé
Granit Xhaka
Lamine Yamal

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Sports

AFCON 2025 Qualifier: Super Eagles unlucky in draw against Rwanda – Dele-Bashiru

Published

10 hours ago

September 11, 2024

The Pledge

Fisayo Dele-Bashiru has said the Super Eagles deserved more from Tuesday’s 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying clash against the Amavubi of Rwanda.

The Super Eagles were held to a 0-0 draw in the encounter played at the Amahoro Stadium, Kigali.

The scoreline would have been different had the Super Eagles converted some of the chances that came their way in the game.

Ademola Lookman, Victor Boniface, Moses Simon and Victor Osimhen all missed good scoring opportunities for the three-time African champions.

Dele-Bashiru however stated that it’s a good thing they didn’t lose the game.

“I think we played well, it was going to be difficult, playing away . They have their fans cheering them. Of course there is a lot circumstances to consider too,” the Lazio midfielder said after the game.

“The problem is that we couldn’t convert our chances, we created a lot chances to win the game. We have take positive that we didn’t concede.

“This result will definitely boost our chances of qualifying for the AFCON. It is not the result we wanted but definitely not a bad one.”

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Sports

Rwanda Coach Announces Retirement Plans After Draw With Super Eagles

Published

10 hours ago

September 11, 2024

The Pledge

Amavubi of Rwanda head coach, Torsten Spittler has announced plans to quit coaching when his contract expires in November.

The German took charge of the Amavubi in November 2023.

There are no talks of extending his stay yet, leaving his future on Amavubi touchline up in the air.

“After my contract ends in November, I’ll be heading into retirement,” Spittler jokingly said at a press conference after his side’s 0-0 draw with Nigeria on Tuesday.

The Amavubi have improved significantly since he took charge of the team.

The East Africans currently top their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying group ahead of powerhouses South Africa and Nigeria

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Headline

AFCON 2025 qualifier: Super Eagles Hold Rwanda In Goalless Draw

Published

23 hours ago

September 10, 2024

The Pledge

Nigeria failed to defeat Rwanda in a 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier played in Kigali on Tuesday.

The match ended goalless between both countries.

However, the Super Eagles will feel aggrieved as they had what looked like a legitimate goal ruled out in the first half.

Victor Boniface’s header from a throw-in fell to Ademola Lookman who put the ball the net.

But the referee ruled it out.

Both sides saw their goalkeepers make fine saves to maintain the stalemate.

Nigeria lead Group D with four points, while Rwanda are in second spot with two points.