The 352 Annual Review 2017 by 352ng

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Peter Akinnusi Editor-in-chief

Team

Nteoniro Bertram Design/Layout

Zubair Abdulahi Managing Editor

Naseer Na’Allah Assistant Editor

Zubair Abdulahi Social Media

Contributors Abomaye Eniatorudabo Ayoola Kelechi Daniel Beckley Edward Okaro Kemi Yussuf

Tijjani Abdulsalam Tomilola Sadare Tomiwa Yussuf Yahaya Mohammed Zubair Abdulahi

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WHAT HOPES FOR AFRICAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S REPRESENTATIVES? EGYPT MOROCCO

The Pharaohs have won four AFCON trophies since the last time they showed up at the World Cup and there is no better chance to prove to all that they are indeed, no local champions. Egypt would have their hands full from day 1 when they take on Uruguay, with Suarez, Cavani and friends. Egypt, on their day, should better the hosts and their fellow Arabs in their next group games.

By Tijjani Abdulsalam

The Egyptians would have to work out an alternative attacking system that can, to a great extent, do without top marksman, Salah. Should the Liverpool Man be neutralized in any game, as is very possible in a tournament of this magnitude, the entire team stands at risk. Expectations are that Egypt should pull through this group successfully.

With proven top level performers like Mehdi Benatia and Younis Belhanda, and the impressive Hakeem Ziyech, the Lions can indeed cause an upset against either of Spain and Portugal.

On paper, Morocco seems the least favoured African team going to Russia. The Atlas Lions are pitched with Iberian giants-Spain and Portugal, alongside a very stable and steadily improved Iranian team. Morocco first take on Iran, in a match they cannot afford not to win, before ties against Portugal and Spain. While much progress has been made since Mr White Shirt, Herve Renard came on board, the task ahead may just prove too uphill for his newly resuscitated side. Yet again, football is not played on paper. With proven top level

performers like Mehdi Benatia and Younis Belhanda, and the impressive Hakeem Ziyech, the Lions can indeed cause an upset against either of Spain and Portugal. Should the going get tough, as it surely will, the Moroccans can also look to history for inspiration. The Atlas Lions were the first African team to win a World Cup group (incidentally including Portugal) and also to qualify for the second round in 1986. Never underestimate the power of additional inspiration. Expectations? No one would lose any sleep should Morocco fail to progress. WWW.352.COM.NG

NIGERIA

Whatever the secret love affair between the Super Eagles and the Albiceleste no one knows. What we know is that they will continue their bitter-sweet (depending on which side you are on) romance in Russia 2018. Nigeria play Argentina after matches against Croatia and Iceland. Croatia is no stranger to big tournaments and have two of the Worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best midfielders in their ranksLuka Modric and Ivan Rakitic. Iceland have also held their own in Europe over the past few years and finished top of their qualifying group, banishing Croatia to the playoffs. The Super Eagles should fancy their chances against the two Europeans if they play to their strengths

TUNISIA

and with the right attitude. Argentina may present a tougher challenge, but should the Eagles do the needful in their first two matches, the tie may not solely determine their continued stay or exit from Putin-Land. To do this, Rohr and team have until the World Cup to plug glaring loopholes in the goal keeping, left back and central striking positions and also to provide credible back-ups for every other position. Expectations? With those loopholes blocked or at least, well patched by the coaches, this team will be even stronger than they are. They should be able to hustle their way out.

Argentina may present a tougher challenge, but should the Eagles do the needful in their first two matches, the tie may not solely determine their continued stay or exit

2017 Review

Tunisia return to the World Cup stage since Germany 2006. This time, the Carthage Eagles have to negotiate their survival in a group including a renewed England, an outrageously talented Belgium, and new comers Panama. Going by squad quality, pedigree and form, few would bet on the present crop of players led by GK Aymen Mathlouthi and Striker, Yousuf Msakni

causing a shocker against either European giants. It will be a remarkable tournament for the North Africans if they are not already deleted by the time they take on Panama in their last group match. Expectations? Tunisia should get the better of Panama and salvage some pride going back to Tunis. I will be happy to be proven wrong.

SENEGAL

Senegal return to the World Cup 16 years after shocking the world with their remarkable run through the last eight in Korea-Japan. Today, Aliou Cisse, a member of that team, assumes the role of the legendary Bruno Metsu and would want to recreate that piece of history. The West Africans have to overcome a group comprising Poland, Colombia and Japan. Poland and Colombia present tougher tests, while Japan, on paper at least, seems the least worrisome.

That said, the Lions squad have more than decent talent to successfully navigate their way out. Cisse, Tony Sylva and Omar Daf currently manage the National team and were all part of the legendary 2002 squad. Cisseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s crew be able to inspire the current generation of Diafra Sakho, Sadio Mane, Kalidou Coilibaly, Biram Diouf, Idrisa Gueye and co., to a repeat of 2002 or at least, a stage less. Senegal should progress from the group. Anything below that is failure

Citizen Kane: The Rise and Rise of the “Triple Season Wonder”

B Y O L U WA KE M I Y U SSU F A N D AY O O L A KE LECHI 37, 38, 39... It is Harry Kane’s year. Breaking the record for goals scored in a calendar year with a Boxing Day hat trick against Southampton was bound to happen wasn’t it? 39 Premiership goals and 56 for club and country. Wow. He is just 24 and in typically modest fashion has insisted he can’t be compared to Lionel Messi yet despite his manager saying he should. The question to ask is; how did little boy from Walthamstow, London even get here? Was Tottenham Hotspur always his dream club? “Most of my family were Spurs fans and I grew up 15 minutes from the ground. So I was always going to be a Spurs fan.” Ignore those old photos of the chubby lad sporting an Arsenal jersey and a grin then, Kane’s recollection of history might be a wee bit dodgy. Harry was just 2 years old when Allan Shearer scored 36 premier league goals in 1995. Barely an inkling that he would become the player so big that putting a price tag on him could bankrupt a fair number of clubs. His first professional flirtation with the game came when he was 6 at local club, Ridgeway Rovers before joining Arsenal’s youth set up in 2001. Apparently, that was with the sole aim of adding his name to Mr. Arsene Wenger’s unusually long list of elite players he almost had a chance of coaching. At the age of 9 he was released after just one season at Arsenal. He also had a trial at Spurs, albeit an unsuccessful one. He then returned to Ridgeway before joining the Watford academy for a short stint in 2004. A Spurs fan through and through eh? The year 2004 was all about Thierry Henry, on the surface at least. His mind boggling 34 goals in 39 games was the closest anybody had come to matching Shearer’s 36 in the mid-90s. However, while the Frenchman was lighting up the top flight, the boy with an endearing lisp finally found

a home with his favourites at White Hart Lane. Even upon joining the Spurs Academy, his mind was never caught up in pipe dreams of achieving impossible feats. All he wanted was to get better at his craft. He worked tirelessly, improving especially his finishing technique all in a bid to get better every time he struck the ball. At the time, the aim was to emulate childhood hero, Teddy Sheringham whose style he has often mirrored if not bettered. Kane impressed the Spurs hierarchy so much that they gave him a scholarship contract just after he clocked 16, in July 2009.

2012, Kane had scored 9 times trailing that year’s top scorer Lionel Messi by no less than 82 goals. Although Spurs recalled him four months to the end of the spell due to his injury woes, he was again sent to Leicester till the end of the season. At Leicester, often appearing beside one Jamie Vardy, he made 15 appearances, scoring twice before rejoining Spurs in time for the 2013/2014 pre-season.

LOAN SPELLS Goals and indeed game time didn’t always come easy for Harry. After impressing for the Under 18s in the 2009/2010 season - he made 22 appearances and scored 18 goals - the club awarded him with his first professional contract. In January 2011, he was sent out on loan to Leyton Orient where he scored just 5 goals in 18 matches. His first team debut for Spurs was in the Europa League, in a qualification tie against Hearts later that year. A further 6 appearances in the competition only saw him score once and he was loaned out in the next transfer window, this time to Millwall. At The Den, Millwall manager, Kenny Jacket said Kane would “be a good addition” for the club in the second half of the season. After failing to find the net in his first 8 appearances in the Championship, he went on to score 7 times in the final 14 games of the season. That brought his total 7 goals in 22 league games and 9 goals in 27 overall matches. That was enough to gain him the recognition of Millwall’s Young Player of the Year at the end of the season. In the 2012/2013 season, he was back at Spurs. Young Kane trained with the first team during pre-season, scoring a hattrick against Southend United in a friendly and then made his Premier League debut in an away loss to Newcastle. Another loan spell was soon to follow, this time away from London at Norwich City where he was so ravaged by injuries that he played only twice for the Canaries without a single goal. At the end of

The Hurrikane Lands at Spurs Harry Kane didn’t get a single Premier League start for Spurs till April 2014. He scored on that occasion against Sunderland in a 5-1 win. He would then go on to score in all of his next 3 appearances for the first team. Nevertheless, he still struggled for most of the season ending with 4 goals for Spurs in 19 games (770 minutes) in all competitions. A popular football saying goes thus; “Goals are sometimes like ketchup, you squeeze the bottle

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with so much effort and can’t get any, but when it comes, it comes all at once.” In the 2014/2015 season, Harry Kane’s ketchup arrived, and it seemed like it would never stop. He scored his first professional hat trick for Spurs in a UEFA Champions’ league tie against Asteras Tripoli. In that same season, he scored 21 league goals, equaling a Premiership club record and got voted the PFA’s Young Player of the Season. At the end of that season, he said he had done more in one season than he had expected to do in his whole career, if he only knew. By season’s end it had dawned on many a Spurs fan that what they had gone abroad searching for (read a misfiring Roberto Soldado and an out of sorts Emmanuel Adebayor) with millions of Pounds Sterling in tow was living only a few minutes’ drive away. Cue chants of “One of our own!” In the 2015/2016 season, he didn’t rest on his oars and how could he? Everywhere he turned, whispers of “Harry Kane, one season wonder” and “just another English hype” would have smarted horribly. He promptly went ahead to prove everybody wrong and won the Premier League Golden Boot, outscoring both Sergio Aguero and Jamie Vardy with 25 league goals. He was also named in the PFA team of the year for the second year running. In the 2016/2017 season, Harry Kane finished as the Premier League top scorer again, with 29 goals, winning his second consecutive Golden Boot, becoming only the fifth player to achieve this feat and only the fourth to score at least 20 EPL goals in 3 consecutive seasons. The Englishman says his goal is to become a club legend; it seems that he is already on his way. 2017: Long Live King Harry! This year, not Shearer, and in a way, not even Messi could touch Harry. From the first goal against Watford to the 56th against Southampton, Kane just always seemed to draw from the magic of his two famous magician namesakes as he beat opposition goalkeepers time and time again for club and country, eventually pipping Messi by 2 goals in the last game of the year. His hat trick against Southampton on Boxing Day 2017 made him the first player in Premier League history to score 6 hat tricks in one year. To put that into context the most any player has got in their entire Premier League career is Alan Shearer’s 11. In the league this season, he has scored 18 goals in 20 games already, an astonishing figure as he looks to climb even higher echelons than even Ruud Van Nistelrooy when (not if) he hits the 20 goal mark for the 4th season running. As we like to say at 352, the numbers do not lie. At just 24, he has already written his name into EPL folklore with 39 calendar year goals. Knowing the hitman, his amazing work ethic and desire to get better, January will not serve as a month for respite and taking stock, it would be the beginning of a new journey, but in some ways an old one too; Harry Kane’s never ending quest for self improvement. Citizen Kane lives to knock down records, it seems absurd to even suggest he could wilt under all the pressure. In fact, what pressure?

2017 Review

ASLEEP IN MILAN Sci-Fi

That sad sound you hear? Violins. The melody filtering into your consciousness from the taut strings might as well be a funeral dirge. That’s assuming the violin isn’t broken, as is the way things go at the San Siro these days. It is no doubt that AC Milan are a shadow of the team they once were. Milan is still widely regarded as the most popular and most successful Italian team in history, but lately the Italian giants have been caught in some bizarre cross between a horror movie and scifi flick sort of stasis. They have failed to win the league since 2011, they have also failed to make the top 4 since the 2013/14 season with their highest finish since that period being 6th position in the 2016/17 season. This means they have also missed out on the Champions League in this period. Four years. An entire World Cup cycle. The 2017/18 season looked to be a very promising one with new Chinese owner Li Yonghong splashing €230M in a summer transfer spending spree. In the window, they acquired high profile players including Leonardo Bonucci (€42M from Juventus), Lucas Biglia (€17M from Lazio), Hakan Calhanlognu (€24M from Bayer Leverkusen) and many others such as Andre Silva and Fabio Borini. They also put on a dominant display when they trashed Bayern Munich 4-0 in a preseason friendly. Many believed they were right back to the heights of their glory days. Despite all the promising early signs, the Milan outfit has continued to struggle this season and currently wallow in mid-table purgatory half way through the season, registering only 7 wins from their first 18 games. This poor spell has cost Vincenzo Montella his job, not like he will be too sad, he’s now the Sevilla manager. The hiring of former player and legend Gennaro Gattuso, is an attempt to turn things around. Even that seems like an initiative that is dead on arrival. Benavento, the side propping up the league, had gone over a third of the season without a point but guess where they clinched their first point via their keeper of all people? You guessed it. The Milan side of the 2000s was a ticking time bomb, a disaster waiting to happen since they had such an aging squad and had incurred a huge debt of about $700M in the past decade. The loss of huge figures like Andrea Pirlo, Thiago Silva and Zlatan Ibrahimovic also contributed to their downward spiral. With a complete overhaul of the squad and the influx of new

and high quality recruitments from all over Europe, one is left to wonder why the current Milan side has continued to underperform. One thing this current team isn’t lacking is talent. From the defence down to the attack, there are quality players but these players seem devoid of team chemistry, experience and character. AC Milan has fired 6 managers in the last three years and each manager has shuffled in his “philosophy” with no real improvement to the side. Gattuso has only won 2 games from his first 6 matches; losing 3-0 to Hellas Verona and dropping 2 to minnows, Benevento. It might be too early to call whether the former fiery midfielder will be a success or a failure at Milan but one thing that is certain is the Rossoneri need a plan to sort out their off pitch and on pitch dysfunctions if they are to return to their glory days. The sooner they do that, the better. Nobody is particularly waiting around for them to sort out all their problems, well, except the fans, assuming the violins haven’t put them to sleep too.

By Abomaye Eniatorudabo

One thing this current team isn’t lacking is talent. From the defence down to the attack, there are quality players but these players seem devoid of team chemistry, experience and character.

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2017 Review

Top 30 Under 21’s for 2017

Dayot moved to Austria with RB Salzburg from Valenciennes in his native France in 2015 and stayed for a year and half. Leaving in January 2017 to fellow Red Bull owned RB Leipzig in Germany where he was part of the side that shocked German and European pundits by finishing second in the Bundesliga with a number of young, unproven players. Upamecano has become more engrained in the first team this season as well starting in 12 out of 17 league games despite niggling injuries. A solid, hard to beat defender he could serve as part of a very strong France and Leipzig (If he doesn’t get priced away by bigger clubs) backline.

He was the player of the tournament as England won the 2017 U20 World Cup in the summer and decided to finally leave Chelsea and try greener pastures at Liverpool. He hasn’t fared badly under Jurgen Klopp and even though he has mainly been used a substitute, he still shows flashes of his direct forward play and keen eye for goal. He has been a more penetrative measure for Klopp’s Liverpool against defenses that sit back or to occupy centre backs for wide forwards to exploit spaces. While the goals haven’t come for Dom, his manager will tell you that he serves a unique and important purpose in the team and he won’t be lying.

DAYOT UPAMECANO

DOMINIC SOLANKE

Spanish left back Aaron Martin has been a mainstay in Espanyol’s defense since he made his debut in October 2016 and has gone on to become one of the finest full backs in La Liga. His energetic runs down the flank and his tough tackling have made him one to watch in the league. His positioning is rarely suspect and in the few times that it is, he has enough pace to recover and disrupt attacks. This season he has barely missed a minute of action and has been integral to the 8th best defense in the league. With his displays of maturity and tactical discipline, it is no surprise that Aaron is one of the most sought after full backs in Europe.

When an innocuous gangly 20 year old walked on to the pitch at Vicarage road to make his debut, few would have expected him to make the impact that he has so far. This few would have comprised mostly of people who watched him score 5 times and set up 5 more goals in 14 appearances in the Brazilian Serie A for Fluminense before his summer move. He also helped them to a 2nd place finish in the Campeonato Carioca where he was named in the team of the tournament. He has adapted to life in England very well and right now only fellow Manchester City’s Gabriel Jesus has made more goal contributions for players below 21 years than Watford’s £11.2m summer acquisition.

AARON MARTIN

What a year 2017 was for blooding young talent. There were so many impressive players in the U21 bracket that it would have been easy to make a list twice as long as this one. But I had to settle for 30, so based on their brilliant individual performances, here are the top 30 performing youngsters 21 and under for the year 2017.

Son of Italian striker Enrico Chiesa who himself played 59 league games for Fiorentina and helped them to a Coppa Italia win. His son while also representing Fiorentina is more of a winger, using his pace and trickery to create chances for other players to put away. He is also proficient in scoring goals and playing on either wing. 7 goals and 6 assists in 34 league starts is not a bad start for Federico who will surely be looking to write his own legend at Fiorentina.

FEDERICO CHIESA A loss that Ajax might come to regret. Their trainee for two years who was born in the city has found a niche in the camp of the enemy. Bergwijn is a very skillful 20 year old brimming with confidence in his ability. He has started 20 games for PSV in the league in 2017 and has been directly involved in 10 goals

STEVEN BERGWIJN

RICHARLISON Kessie never stops running. That without doubt is one of his strongest qualities. His ability to chase down every ball and still be a presence in the oppositions’ box is something coaches dream they can work with. At only 20 years of age Kessie is already putting himself in the bracket of the best midfielders on the African continent with his performances for Atalanta last season and European giants AC Milan this season. His 7 goals and 4 assists last season helped Atalanta to their highest ever Serie A finish and secured him a lucrative move to Milan where he has started all of the Rossoneri’s 18 Serie A games, contributing 2 goals and 2 assists to the team’s cause as well

FRANK KESSIE in that time. As he continues to grow and cement his place in the PSV team, his strengths are becoming very obvious. An energetic winger who can beat his man with ease, he is not only efficient but also a joy to watch, never giving up a chance to entertain the fans as well as help his team.

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Son of Patrick Kluivert, one of the most iconic centre forwards in the late 90’s and early 2000’s. Justin hasn’t just inherited his dad’s good looks but also a huge chunk of his footballing talent. He was not only part of the Ajax team that reached the final of the 2016/2017 Europa league, but he is now making a case for himself as one of the best players at the club. He has started 11 games this season and been substituted in on 3 occasions in the Eredivisie, scoring 5 times and setting up 2 more for his team mates including a sublime hat-trick against Roda JC. It is no surprise that other top European clubs including but not limited to Manchester United and his dad’s former club FC Barcelona are falling over themselves for the 18 year old’s signature

JUSTIN KLUIVERT Havertz has been compared to Germany World Cup Winner Mesut Ozil and it is not hard to see why, at merely 18 years of age, he displays vision and technique that are usually alien to players of his age but Kai has never been one to develop at a normal pace. On October 15th, 2016 when he was only 17 years and 102 days, he became the youngest Bayer Leverkusen player to play in the Bundesliga. In February 2017 he was already playing European football, playing the R16 tie against Atletico Madrid, the 2nd leg of which he missed due to a clash with school exams. In April, he became the youngest Leverkusen player to score in the Bundesliga and he has been on an upward trajectory since then. Somewhat benefiting from Hakan Calhanoglu’s switch to AC Milan, he has been involved in 10 Bundesliga games from the start and made 4 substitute appearances, scoring once and assisting 5 goals

KAI HAVERTZ Juventus’ £9.58m summer acquisition was fresh off helping Boca Juniors to their 32nd Argentine Primera Division. A versatile and technically gifted midfielder, he was also part of the Uruguayan team that finished 4th at the U20 World Cup. He has been used sparingly at Juventus as he adapts to the demands of a top European league but has looked impressive when given the chance and could form part of the back bone for a Juve team currently rebuilding its squad. He also added a few Senior National team caps to his already impressive CV and looks a sure shot for the 2018 summer’s world cup.

RODRIGO BENTANCUR 2017 Review

He has been a huge part of the young Lyon squad attempting to go toe-to-toe with the billionaires from the capital. He came into prominence at the tail end of last season with on and off appearances but this season he has become a mainstay in the team, starting all 19 Ligue 1 games so far as he continues to provide a shield for the back 4. He is in the top 10 midfielders in the league for tackles won, interceptions, shots blocked and clearances. A one man attack halting force for Lyon, his performances will no doubt have more established French stars like Kante and Matuidi looking over their shoulders with the World Cup coming up in the summer.

LUCAS TOUSART Frenkie De Jong has settled into life in the Eredivisie seamlessly, and why not? Playing in a league and indeed a club that cherishes young talent, the 20 year old born in little Arkel in South Holland, has been a major part of Ajax once again challenging for the Dutch league title. He stepped up from the Jong Ajax team that finished second in the Jupiler league (Dutch 2nd Division) where he was named talent of the season for 2016/2017. He has provided 8 assists and even proved his versatility filling in at centre back a few times. His composure on the ball, intelligence on and off it as well as his ability to pick a pass are what he is most known for and it is seems like just a matter of time before he becomes a name on everybody’s lips.

FRENKIE DE JONG Ajax’s Brazilian wonder kid David Neres has exploded into life in the Eredivisie this season. Initially signed for the junior team, he played a handful of games and was immediately whisked to the first team. He played occasionally for the first team in the latter part of the 2016/2017 season. He has since scored 8 times and assisted 9 goals for Ajax in the Eredivisie in the new season. This in 13 starts and 3 sub appearances. He’s a bit more skillful than your average Brazilian which of course is saying a lot, he also has a great amount of pace and a left foot that is absolutely special, whether it is cutting in to score screamers or thread well timed passes to set his team mates up for goals. He has been one of the revelations of the season and is already attracting attention of some of Europe’s big wigs who are circling barely a year after he joined Ajax.

Fede Valverde was captain of Uruguay’s U20 team that finished 4th in 2017 and won the silver ball as the second best player of the tournament where he barely missed a minute of action. He moved from Penarol to Real Madrid in 2016 where he has spent most of his time asserting himself as a key member of their Castilla team. This season he has joined the trenches to help Deportivo in their customary battle against relegation. He has made 15 appearances thus far and has also earned himself a call up to the Uruguayan senior National Team, making 3 appearances including against Paraguay where he scored the opening goal as Uruguay claimed an important win on the road to World Cup qualifying.

FEDERICO VALVERDE Malcom has been on the edge of a breakthrough since 2014 when he burst onto the scene as a 17 year old in 2014 for Corinthians and helping them to the Campeonato Brasilero in his second season with the club. His impressive form coerced Bordeaux to pay around £4.5m for him in January 2016. So far it has proved to be a wise investment as he has scored 18 goals and 13 assists for the club helping them to a 6th place finish in his first full season. In the 2017/2018 season his best efforts haven’t been able to help Bordeaux who currently sit 15th despite Malcom having a personally good season being directly involved in 11 (7 goals, 4 assists) of the French side’s 22 goals this season. It looks like Malcom has finally gotten the attention of Europe’s elite and his move to a top club is a matter now of when not if.

MALCOM

DAVID NERES

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At only 18, De Ligt not only became the youngest debutant for Netherlands’ national team for 86 years in 2017, but he also established himself as one of the best young defenders in Europe and was an important member of the youthful Ajax team that reached the final of the Europa league before losing to Manchester United who are now just one among his many suitors. He is right now focused solely on Ajax however and continues to show just how much of a talent he is. He has been a permanent fixture on the Ajax match day squad in the Eredivisie playing 90mins in all but 1 of their league games league games so far. He is renowned for his ability to read the game and stop attacks. An intelligent footballer if by any means, and it’s the choices he makes on and off the ball that has made him stand out at Ajax. Ideally it would be impossible to survive at the home of total football without being a thinker and De Ligt is thriving.

MATTHIJS DE LIGT When Lyon lost midfielders like Tolisso, Gonalons and Ghezzal, it would have been difficult to see how Lyon would fare without those players who had become integral parts of the team. Few would have thought of counting on Aouar but thank God Bruno Genesio is one of those few. At only 19, Aouar has shown maturity and confidence belying his age. His main strengths lie in his ability to beat his man with nothing more than a change in direction or a drop of his shoulder. He has a keen eye for important passes. Also a very versatile midfielder Aouar and can play as a deeper operating midfielder or more offensively. He just always seems so comfortable wherever he is deployed and is a true joy to watch. Certainly a gem for the future.

HOUSSEM AUOAR To be a part of a team that goes the entire league season unbeaten is special, to be a first choice player, a defender no less must be even more impressive, but to do all this at 19 years is mind blowing. Tierney has always been a fan of Celtic and has achieved remarkable success in the Scottish league. Twice winning the Scottish Premiership, twice being named PFA and SFWA Young player of the year and twice being named in the Scotland PFA team of the year. All in his 2 first full seasons as a professional. He has continued this season in similar vein and is still an ever present in the

KIERAN TIERNEY

Calvert Lewin scored the all-important goal in the U20 World cup Final in the summer and has never looked back since. Becoming a regular for Everton in the EPL. He has managed 3 goals and assisted 4 goals as well (more than any other Everton player). DCL has formed a formidable partnership with Wayne Rooney, often acting a screen for the more experienced English man to make late charges into the box. It has worked well for the pair with Rooney largely benefitting from DCL’s style of play to score 10 times so far in the league.

DOMINIC CALVERT-LEWIN After winning just about every award there was to win at Anderlecht, including the Belgian Professional Footballer of the Year which he won in 2017, making him the youngest recipient of the award in 12 years. He decided to move out of his comfort zone to Monaco in the Ligue 1. A club renowned for breeding young players into global superstars. Monaco were so convinced of his talent that they paid £22.5m for his services. Although his adaptation to the league has been hampered by injury, it would not be far-fetched to believe based on the evident brilliance he showed in the Belgian league that what they spent would eventually be seen as a bargain. An excellent passer with the ability to score a screamer or two, it’s only a matter of time before Monaco turn a profit on him as well.

YOURI TIELEMANS The Danish walking highlight reel. One can never speak too much of Dolberg’s penchant for the spectacular. Ajax fans have now enjoyed watching the Danish 20 year old for a season and a half and every minute has been brilliant. They have been lucky to witness him tear defenses apart with his exquisite close control and finishing skills. His 6 goals in their run to the Europa League final, 4 of which were in the KO stages including an important away goal against Lyon in the Semis, have endeared him to Ajax supporters and shot his name into the limelight as one of the most talented young forwards in the game. His exploits last season won him the awards for Ajax Talent of the Year for 2017 as well as Dutch Football Talent of the Season for 2016/2017.

KASPER DOLBERG Scottish Champion’s line up. Now 20, with bigger clubs knocking on the door, Celtic have done well to tie him down with a contract until 2023.

Valencia fan favourite Soler is as versatile as he is brilliant. Playing a number of positions varying from centre forward to winger, attacking midfielder or even deeper midfield roles. All while managing to never look out of place. It is no surprise that he has been part of Valencia’s stellar season where they until the 17th week of fixtures they were the closest rivals to league leaders Barcelona. In Soler’s absence due to injury, Los Che have lost twice in 2 games compared to their single defeat in 14 games that he started before that. A key part of Marcelino’s plans at the Mestalla, it is easy to see why Valencia are reluctant to listen to any offers from Manchester United for his signature. Touted as a future club captain and Legend, Soler staying is more integral to Valencia reliving their glory days than most people think.

CARLOS SOLER When you are so good that your threats to leave a club the size of AC Milan causes massive protests and unrest among Rossoneri faithful, then you know you must be something special. It was on the back of AC Milan securing the services of the young stopper that they felt confident enough to splash the cash over the summer transfer window to try and reclaim their glory days.; Even though things have not worked out quite as well in the league, it has done little to dampen the year that Donnarumma has had. Undisputed first choice for AC Milan and a full Italy international. It’s astonishing how a year that a lot of goal keepers would kill to have is just a stepping stone for Gigi Donnarumma. That is how much potential the Young Italian possesses and if the Milan Experiment doesn’t go as planned, there are more than a few top European clubs that would be willing to break the bank for the teenage sensation.

GIANLUIGI DONNARUMMA

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At 20, Oyarzabal is already one of the best players in the league and one of the most important at Real Sociedad. This season has seen him improve on his strengths from last season and even add a goal scoring dimension to his play. While he has always been magnificent at creating chances for his team mates with his mysterious ability to beat his man and create space, he now finds himself in positions to finish off chances as well. He assisted 8 goals in La Liga last season (the most for a teenager) and pitched in with 2 goals. This season in the 14 games that he has played for Real Sociedad, he has scored 6 times and set up 4 more goals. His push for a berth at the World Cup in Russia continues to gain momentum, and who’s to say he won’t be called up come June if he continues this level of performance.

MIKEL OYARZABAL Joe Gomez has been a stand put defender for Liverpool, and that is not a thing to take likely. He has had to step in to fill vacancies at both Right back and Centre back this season and has done absolutely well. Much better than some of his older, more experienced counterparts, He possesses good composure and great technical ability for a defender and fits perfectly into Klopp’s system. His performances for the Reds this year have led to England call ups and it would be strange if he wasn’t on the plane to Russia in the summer. A great athlete with aerial prowess, strength and intelligence. Gomez is every coach’s dream centre back without a doubt.

JOE GOMEZ America’s boy Wonder. Pulisic’s meteoric rise in football was such that by the time he was 19, he had already taken part in a season and a half of Bundesliga action and was embarking on his second season as a vital player for Borrussia Dortmund. By this time he had already become the youngest foreigner to score in the BuLi and the youngest to score a brace. 2017 was an up and down year for Pulisic as he tasted cup success for the first time in the DFB Pokal but could not save the USA from crashing out of World Cup Qualification despite being the top scorer in the final round of qualifying. Still a young man and with the world still at his feet, Pulisic will be hoping he can continue his fine vein of form as he looks to become a Dortmund legend. His ability to embark on mazy runs at high speeds is what stands out most about him, and that seems like part of a golden skill set if you ask me.

CHRISTIAN PULISIC 2017 Review

Dembele moved to Barcelona from Borrussia Dortmund in more controversial circumstances than the one that saw him sign for the German club barely a year before. And for the tidy sum of £94.5m to boot. What could make a team pay such an amount for a player? It’s not just his 21 assists and 10 goals from the previous Bundesliga season, but the raw talent that Dembouz has. Man for man he is almost impossible to stop. He could beat his man all day with relative ease. He can spot a pass, cross or cut back despite running at unusual speeds and this is why he was able to rack up so many assists last season. His ambipedal nature also makes him a nightmare on either wing, as he could cut in to shoot or take his man on the outside with a similar level of effectiveness. Barca may have paid over the odds for the French man but it is easy to see why they didn’t hesitate to dole out what Dortmund asked for.

OUSMANNE DEMBELE It has been a while since England saw a player as talented as Rashford come through the ranks and it comes as no surprise that he was an integral part of Jose Mourinho’s UEL winning team stepping up to lead the line after an injury to Zlatan in the Quarter final. Despite being played mostly in what had up until last season been an unfamiliar role on the wings, he has managed to put in a number of very good performances racking up 20 goals and 14 assists in 60 appearances in all club competitions in 2017 averaging a goal contribution every other game. His main strengths are his direct running and pace which makes him very hard to pin down for markers. He has added set pieces to his repertoire as he continues to work hard to be a force to reckon with in world football.

MARCUS RASHFORD

Gabriel Jesus has had an amazing year to continue his successes from 2016. His January move to Manchester City was a master stroke and even though his maiden season was somewhat marred by injuries, he has made a remarkable come-back in 2017/2018 to confound critics who speculated that his pre injury form was just a flash in the pan. No player younger than 22 has managed more goals than Gabriel in the top 5 European leagues this season and it is a testament to Jesus’ imperial positional sense and his penchant for being in the right place at the right time. He scored 15 league goals last year for Manchester City and also pitched in with 7 assists. Not a bad return at all for a striker competing for places in the starting XI with Sergio Aguero.

GABRIEL JESUS Easily the most outstanding young player in the world today. 2017 was essentially Mbappe’s break out year and the things he has achieved have been as boundless as his talent. From becoming the youngest player to score a Ligue 1 hat trick in 12 years, to becoming the second youngest French player to score in the UCL when he struck a sublime volley against Manchester City. He finished the season with 26 goals and 14 assists in all competitions as Monaco carted away the Ligue 1 title and reached the UCL semifinals.

In the summer he agreed a soon-to-be record shattering move to French giants PSG. First on loan and then in the summer of 2018, permanently for £162m. He has taken great strides to prove to the PSG hierarchy that it was money well spent and has scored 12 times and assisted 11 in 23 matches for the club, forming a deadly partnership with Neymar and Cavani as PSG look to run away with the league title and maybe more this season. Mbappe this year not only carted away the Golden boy Award, but became the first teenager to score in the UCL for 2 different clubs as well as the teenager with the most goals in Europe’s most illustrious competition. He ended the year by being voted into 7th place in the Ballon d’Or standings for 2017. A welldeserved accolade to cap off a magnificent year.

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KYLIAN MBAPPE-LOTTIN

This is Afica’s First 11 Africa has always produced some of the most intriguing and talented players in the history of football. In 1995, the finest hour for African football came as an African, Geroge Weah, was named World Player of the year. Prior to that time, several others made a mark on European

football - in the UEFA Champions League; Nwankwo Kanu, Daniel Amokachi etc. while By Zubair Abdulahi others on the world stage at the FIFA World Cup – Roger Milla inclusive. Today, several African players have continued to make their mark in their various sides. We look at the players who have football with outstanding performances for performed excellently well in the year 2017.

Defence Zouheir Laaroubi Goal Keeper (Morrocco)

2017 was not really a great year for African goalkeepers as the old guard (Vincent Enyeama, Carlos Kameni and Essam ElHadar) seemed to pass on. Andre Onana and Denis Onyango both had stellar seasons in 2016 but couldn’t sustain it in the New Year. In the midst of the chaos rose a new challenger - Zouheir Laaroubi. The 33year old Moroccan swept away the judges votes as he kept guard in the double winning season for Wydad Athletic Club as they won the Moroccan League and CAF Champions League. His performances also led Morocco to a world cup qualification spot.

Ahmed Hegazi Centre Back (Egypt)

West Bromwich Albion and Egypt defender, Ahmed Hegazi has been phenomenal in 2017. He takes up a place in our team ahead of perennial entrants and fan favourites like Koulibaly and Benatia. Following success with Al-Ahly in the Egyptian league this year where they won the league title, he secured a loan move to West Brom where he was an instant success to become a fans’ favourite and surefire FPL option. With Egypt, he was among the top dogs as they got into the AFCON final and qualified for the World Cup later this year in Russia, their first since 1990. He has since been signed permanently by West Brom to quell rumours of a move to other Premier League clubs and to secure the services of a decent centre back.

William Troost-Ekong Centre Back (Nigeria) One half of the famous “Oyinbo Wall” for the Super Eagles of Nigeria, Bursaspor’s William Troost-Ekong has been a delightful discovery since he first made an appearance for the Eagles. Born in the Netherlands to a Nigerian father, and Dutch mother, he represented the Netherlands at under-19 and under-20 youth levels. He made his senior international debut for Nigeria in June 2015, playing 90 minutes in an AFCON qualifier against Chad before heading to the Olympics and winning bronze. The 24-year-old centre-back also bagged a nomination for the CAF Player of the Year award.

Eric Bailly Centre Back (Côte d’Ivoire)

Manchester United’s Eric Bailly has quickly established himself as one of the best African defenders and players today. Following a move to the English Premier League from a bit-part role in Spain, he has become near indispensable for gaffer, Jose Mourinho. As part of the defence that ended up as one of the meanest in the top five leagues in Europe, the Ivorian finished his 2016/17 with a treble of sorts. He was also part of the UEFA EUROPA Team of the season and is in contention for the UEFA team of the year which makes his inclusion an easy task.

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Victor Moses

Faouzi Ghoulam

Victor Moses had one of his best years of his life in 2017. He started the 2016/2017 season as a squad player for Chelsea before benefitting from a tactical switch which he took great advantage of to cement his place in the team. He helped the Blues to a Premier League title and the Super Eagles of Nigeria to 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification.

French born Algerian international, Faouzi Ghoulam completes the back five of our team of the year. Having been part of an underwhelming Napoli side of yesteryears, Maurizio Sarri’s druid like “Sarriball” has lifted the team and Ghoulam has not been spared. Following smart and tenacious forays down the left, He was linked with a host of big names including Manchester City and Liverpool before extending his contract with Napoli as they seek to wrestle the Serie A title from defending champions, Juventus.

Right Wing Back (Nigeria)

From the right side of the defence, Moses offered width and balance to the Chelsea and Nigeria teams, even though he played further forward for the Nigeria team but still with great aplomb. He was selected in CAF’s best XI of the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying series, and the BBC African Player of the Year finalists.

Midfielders Wilfred Ndidi

Central Midfielder (Nigeria)

Wilfred Ndidi was relatively unknown when he joined Premier League side, Leicester City in January of 2017. However, he is hard to miss now. Putting in fantastic performances week in week out, he is a constant for Leicester City. He ranks amongst the best in terms of defensive actions for midfielders across Europe’s Top 5 leagues this season.

Left Wing Back (Algeria)

Nabi Keita

Central Midfielder (Senegal)

Keita will no longer be a Leipzig player after earning a move to the famous Red half of Merseyside, Liverpool. This was following an outstanding season for his German club and sensational individual performances by the Senegalese midfield dynamo. The all action midfielder stunned all of Europe as he hardly put a foot wrong in Leipzig’s fairytale season. He’ll need to stop racking up red cards as he progresses along though.

Sadio Mane

His impressive performances at the club earned him a national team call up where he also carved a niche for himself in the Super Eagles team and is a consistent performer in the as he started all 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

Right Winger (Senegal)

Since moving to Merseyside, Sadio Mane has remained one of the best players at the club and in the Premier League. Coming off a sterling debut season at the club, Mane went on to deliver excellent performances for both club and country despite a slew of injuries. He makes the best African XI with ease after becoming part of the increasingly famous “Fab Four” quartet alongside Roberto Firmino, Phillip Coutinho and Mohammed Salah.

Forwards

Mo’ Salah Left Winger (Egypt)

Mohamed Salah couldn’t have hoped for a better year in 2017. Winner of the BBC African Player of the Year award and as well as the CAF Player of the Year, Mo Salah has been outstanding in 2017. Last season he was Roma’s best player, scoring 15 league goals and leading them to an impressive second place with 87 points, their highest so far in history. He has since then moved to the English Premier League where he has been wowing many with his pace and trickery and overall performances as part of the aforementioned Fab Four. He also scored three goals in the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations helping Egypt reach the final where they lost to champions, Cameroon. He was the hero for Egyptian after he led them to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, the first since 1990; Salah scored five goals in the qualifying series. A move to Real Madrid has been whispered and one can only wonder where Salah will be playing next season. Mo Salah is a true star in the modern game!

2017 Review

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang Central Forward (Gabon)

Winner of the CAF Player of the year in 2015, Bundesliga Player of the Year and a part of the top three nominees for this year’s CAF Player of the Year award, the striker makes this team with relative ease. Gabon and Borussia Dortmund striker, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang lit up the Bundesliga in 2017 and finished the 2016/2017 season with 31 goals beating Robert Lewandowski to win the league’s Golden Boot. He set a record in the process as the first African to top the Bundesliga’s scoring chart. He finished his impressive season winning the German Cup with Dortmund and scored 40 goals in 46 appearances. He has been linked to all the big clubs in Europe and is truly one of the brightest stars in world football.

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NPFL Review

NPFL REVIEW United’s win heralds even more domestic excitement

By Edward Okaro continental ticket for the aforementioned MFM FC. ‘The Olukoya Boys’ have come a long way in such a short space of time. After gaining promotion to the NPFL in rather fortuitous circumstances in 2015 (they were handed a slot in the

Gbenga Ogunbote formerly of Enyimba FC will however be looking to restore the team to former glories. The new league season begins in mid-January but the focus will be on the participants in the continental

The surprise of the past season has to be the shambolic form of defending champions Enugu Rangers. The 2016/2017 NPFL season followed on from the previous season in that it was all about being a memorable one in terms of upsets. It saw perennial underdogs Plateau United clinch the title in pulsating fashion, pipping the more fancied MFM FC by a slim 4 point margin. The men from Jos playing at the Township Stadium, were imperious at home, winning an astonishing 17 out of 19 home fixtures and drawing only 2 of them. This impressive form was down to the exploits of tough tackling defender Elisha Golbe in the heart of defence and a collective team effort that saw goals spread round the team with striker Kabiru Umar getting 6 goals, just more than any other teammate. This title win ensured a continental ticket for United and also ensured a first 2017 Review

nationwide league in 2013 by Bolowotan FC who were in financial turmoil), they have gone from strength to strength thanks in no small part to their deadly striking duo of Steve Odey and FIFA Puskas nominee Sikiru Olatunbosun. Odey eventually ended up top scorer despite leaving the club to sign for Swiss outfit FC Zurich a few weeks to the end of the NPFL season. Sikiru has stayed on but MFM have a got quite the job on their hands to keep him while trying to figure out how replace Odey for the upcoming CAF Champions League campaign. The surprise of the past season has to be the shambolic form of defending champions Enugu Rangers. The Flying Antelopes narrowly escaped acrimonious relegation by just 6 points. New coach

competitions or more specifically, if they will be able to clinch a continental title since Enyimba’s conquest in 2004. League champions Plateau have been paired against Eding Sport of Cameroun and MFM have been paired against Malian giants AS Real Bamako. The season kicked off albeit with a preseason tournament held in Kano. The Home Based Eagles came out on top with a 3-2 victory over league runners up MFM. Olatunbosun is one of a few players to watch as he will surely be the focal point of the MFM attack. Another is Home Based Eagles and Lobi Stars goal machine Anthony Okpotu, who was the second highest scorer in the division. Brace yourselves, it is set to be a cracking season of football Naija style.

BEST LEAGUE IN THE WORLD? To the average Nigerian football fan, the English Premier League automatically comes to mind in terms of popularity and overall quality. However, to many an avid soccer follower/analyst, it’s all about perspective. Each fan would like to deploy a certain set of metrics to measure and declare a league as the “best” but there has to be some sort of pragmatic consensus no? Personally, I’d say the best league in the world should be rated for its competitiveness, followership, global reach and commercial value, the success of its teams in continental competitions as well as the variability of tactics deployed by the coaches in the said league. In order to attempt to arrive at an unbiased opinion, let’s give a critical look at the English Premier League using the aforementioned criteria Global reach and Commercial Value The league is a corporation and the member clubs act as the shareholders. Consisting of twenty clubs, the league was formed in 1992 and has been on the receiving end of lucrative television rights since then. The deal was said to be worth £1bn pounds as at 2013/2014 and the league generates €2.2bn per year in domestic and international television rights. It is the most watched sports league in the world and has a potential audience of 4.7 billion people.

It also has the second highest average league match attendance (behind the German Bundesliga). The English top tier ranks third in the UEFA league coefficient standings. This is an aggregate of leagues based on performances in European competitions over the last five seasons. Competitiveness 49 clubs have competed since the league’s inception in 1992. Just 6 of them have won the title; Manchester United 13 times, Chelsea with 5, Arsenal with 3, Manchester City with 2, Blackburn Rovers and Leicester City once each. In recent times, the dominance exerted by Manchester United has dwindled drastically partly due to the retirement of the manager responsible for their hegemony; Sir Alex Ferguson and also due to the improvement of other teams. Clubs like Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City have new and ambitious owners and have hired top notch managers cranking up the competitiveness of the league as a result. Case in point, the top four consisting of Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool no longer exists. It is now the big six that is the term bandied about, Spurs and Manchester City completing the list. The latter currently sits atop the league, with a robustly healthy point gap running into double figures. Continental Success Previously, the top three teams

qualified for the European Champions League consisting of the top teams in various leagues across Europe with the fourth team qualifying (or not) via a play-off round. However, at the end of last season, 5 English teams qualified for the Champions League. Manchester United qualified via a Europa League triumph to emulate Spain which had 5 teams (Sevilla won the Europa League) the year before. Liverpool hold the record for the most champions league triumphs amongst Premier League sides, with a haul of 5 titles, Manchester United have 3, Chelsea has 1 to boast of. Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest, who have descended down the competitive ladder of English football, have 1 title each. The English clubs performed spectacularly from 2005 to 2010, the highlight being in 2008 when all four representatives got to the semifinals and there was an all English final. In recent times however, the league representatives have only gotten as far as the quarter finals with Spanish teams dominating Europe. The second tier continental trophy, the UEFA Europa league has been poorly represented by English clubs with only Chelsea and Manchester United winning it in recently. Tactical Variability A great number of coaches, from far and wide have graced the shores of England over the years and have brought various

tactical styles along with them. The league is widely known for its fast and aggressive football and physicality. Well, Arsenal was once feted for playing beautiful football but recently, from coaches like Brendan Rogers at Swansea and then Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool, Juande Ramos, Harry Redknapp and Mauricio Pochettino and Spurs, Manuel Pellegrini and Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, the tactics on display have changed drastically from the defensive masterclass performances brought in by Jose Mourinho at Chelsea and Rafa Benitez at Liverpool in 2004/05. Managers have switched from the traditional back four, making the back three famous again. Antonio Conte at Chelsea made it more prominent and succeeded unlike Louis Van Gaal at Manchester United and Brendan Rogers at Liverpool. The influx of managers like Eddie Howe, Sean Dyche, and managers of other mid-table teams has made the league more interesting to watch, providing an even wider tactical spectrum. So in conclusion, you could probably rate the Premiership with these criteria and still end up scratching your head when asked if it is the absolute best league in the world. Compared to other leagues, the answer to “is the English Premier League the best in the world?” could easily be “the answer is relative to you”. WWW.352.COM.NG

Thousands of fans in South India gathered on the weekend of October 14-15 to watch the Premier League rivalry between a Premier matches LIVE on a big screen, including one of the biggest ďŹ xtures of the season, Liverpool v Manchester United. At the Fan Park supporters also had the chance to meet Premier League record goalscorers Alan Shearer, as well as take a photo with the Premier League trophy.

2017 Review

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2017 Review

YoungLyons The Lyon squad of the 2017/18 season is incredibly young which is embodied by their skipper Nabil Fekir who is only 24. In recent reasons, Lyon has inevitably become a selling club after the departure of star players such as Samuel Umtiti, Alexandre Lacazette and former captain Maxime Gonalons. In all fairness, they have never been a global powerhouse capable of keeping their star players, this is evident since the early 2000’s by the sale of players like Micheal Essien and Florent Malouda during when they displayed hegemonic dominance over Ligue 1 with 7 consecutive titles. Once the right price is made, their players are sold, it really is that simple.

The aforementioned circumstances make them all the more formidable as they have constantly managed to stay in contention despite losing their key players year after year even during the glory days. Similar to Portuguese clubs like Porto and Benfica, they operate on the basis of acquiring brilliant youngsters or raw players with great potential then selling them off to the Rockerfellers and Rothschilds of the football world. Admittedly, PSG have shattered what seemed to be a fairly balanced playground where clubs like Montpellier and Bordeaux where able to claim titles in recent years. Nonetheless, Lyon although they are not the great UCL powerhouse that they once were, there’s increased hope for this current brood should they not lose too many stars this summer (they will definitely lose some, come summer). Future Star: Amine Gouiri born in February of 2000 is only 17 yet has started making first team appearances. The player’s quality is extremely apparent to the eye and doesn’t take a Nostradamus-esque scout to predict that he will be a world beater very soon. His close control, turn of pace, emphatic finishing ability and overall stature is reminiscent of Man City’s all-time top goal scorer, Sergio Agüero. His recent exploits at the U17 World Cup for France has led to more people taking note of his abilities and he is definitely one to watch as France continue to overflow with young prodigies. Breakout Player: Houssem Aouar is only two years older than Gouiri and has become mainstay in the Lyon first team. He has started putting in stellar performances and it is only a matter of time before he commands a starting position in the XI. An extremely intelligent midfield player

next summer. After having a breakthrough season during the 14-15 season, he sustained a career threatening injury after tearing his knee ligaments the following campaign. Although this hampered his development, he has returned much stronger and has disproven any thoughts about his injury woes as he has stayed fit since the tragic event. He can play upfront, behind the striker or on the wings, his versatility enables him to fit into any football formation. Renaissance Players: Memphis Depay after having a terrible time at Manchester has rediscovered his form in France. Having regular playing time has done wonders for his confidence. Additionally, Mariano Diaz who is 24 years old finally has the chance to play in a top division after loitering in Real Madrid Castilla for the majority of whole career. Having finally had the chance to be a starting no 9 after some might have predicted his career would head nowhere, everyone is reaping the rewards of a ravenous man waiting for his chance.

who economises the ball and makes all the good decisions expected of a 25-year-old seasoned professional, it is hard to envisage him not becoming a World Class player. Unfortunately, the current France generation is overwhelmed with quality and it seems unlikely that he’ll make the World Cup squad for next year. Nonetheless, he is one to watch this season, as he aims become another star from the stellar Les Gones academy. Star Player: Club captain, enigmatic powerhouse and Lyon native, Nabil Fekir is undoubtedly ready to leave the club come

Best of the Rest: Lyon have good squad and there many with great potential. Lucas Tousart is only 20 years old and has become an established part of the starting XI. His intelligent play and muscular physique leave many to doubt his age, nonetheless his performances continue to improve and it is only a matter of time Lyon cash off on the talent. Betrand Traoré who was bought from Chelsea following two impressive campaigns on loan at the dutch league has vast potential. Ferland Mendy, who was bought from Le Havre for €5M has hardly started his Lyon career but looks like a left back to watch for the future. Kenny Tete, a right-back from the illustrious Ajax academy also arrived in the summer and is only getting better. WWW.352.COM.NG

2017 Review

RED BULL GIVES YOU…WINGS? The Leipzig Story.

Somewhere, on planet earth—in the football cosmos precisely—another foreign tongue is testing out the phonetics of the alien sounding name ‘RasenBallsport Leipzig. This, when the non-English speaking football world is still just coming to terms with pronouncing ‘Lei-ces-ter’ as ‘Leice-ster’.

Ralf Rangnick and Ralph Hasenhüttl. While the contributions of other prominent figures in the RB Leipzig machinery isn’t in question, many will agree these three men played very vital roles in actualising a concept birthed over a decade ago.

By Tomiwa Yussuf

If ever proof was needed that global football is evolving rapidly, this is it, evidence of the often-surprising switches. Capitalism; Concept and Competence; perhaps no other three words better define the philosophy behind the emergence of RB Leipzig into the higher echelons of German football. In retrospect, it was a perfectly lubricated intrusion well-oiled by the Red Bull energising liquid and complemented by the brains and aptitude of two Ralphs. It is almost futile to demystify RB Leipzig’s incursion into German football history without a mention of three names; Dietrich Mateschitz;

The Master Can-maker

Only those who can can, can… Dietrich Mateschitz was little known or talked about in the East German region of Saxony where Leipzig sprang from until the year 2009. The Red Bull mogul before then had been on a frantic search for a German football club—not just to add to his growing list of football franchises around the world— but to build the perfect German contenders who would compete in the UEFA Champions League in less than a decade. Having been rebuffed in the west of Germany, Mateschitz set his sights on the antiquated Leipzig region where remarkably, the German football Association (DFB) was first formed in 1900. He was to become successful in WWW.352.COM.NG

his quest at the second Leipzig club (SSV Markranstädt) he approached. At that time, the Leipzig club was in dire financial straits and didn’t dither before grabbing the bull by the horns. Within a few weeks, Red Bull GmbH acquired the playing rights of the then fifth division club; changed its name, colours, logo/kit and subsequently procured a state of the art 44,000 capacity stadium for the team which became rechristened ‘Red Bull Arena’ on 1 July 2010. Though the stage was set for the club’s steady ascent into the top-tier of German club football, the main actors were yet to take it.

Michael Schumacher, it is one of RB Leipzig’s current coach Ralph Hasenhüttl’s favourites. Hasenhüttl of course, is no stranger to success having enjoyed good spells at other German clubs. Starting with Unterhaching in 2007 and followed by VfR Aalen in the German third division, prior to Leipzig, his most remarkable feat was qualifying second division side Ingolstadt for the Bundesliga and finishing 11th at the end of the 2015/2016 season. He has since topped that by taking Leipzig to a second-place finish in their very first Bundesliga season. With the spectacular feat guaranteeing the club a place in the UEFA Champions League for the first time in the club’s (and any other club from the Leipzig region) existence, Hasenhüttl not only added the final piece to the jigsaw of a decade-long vision but also grasped his place in the success story of the Saxony upstarts. Though two wins, three losses and a draw in their first showing at the Champions League wasn’t enough to guarantee a place in the last 16 of the competition, it

The Brain

A tale of two Ralphs Ever before taking the Leipzig job, Ralf Rangnick had a working philosophy built around three Ks; Kapital, Konzept and Kompetenz (Money, Concept & Competence). He believed having those three Ks more or less guaranteed success. Initially, Ralf took on the position of sporting director at the club—and its sister franchise in Austria; Red Bull Salzburg—investing himself fully in developing a blueprint for the budding team. Under his guidance, the team became known for an attractive brand of pressing football. Fuelled by hungry, youthful players Ralf was largely responsible for recruiting, the new system took root promptly. Following a period characterised by stagnancy and coaching troubles, Ralf, himself took on the responsibility of coaching the team for the 2015/2016 season and subsequently qualified the team for first division football. RB Leipzig were finally playing Bundesliga football after 7 years journeying through the ranks. The ‘Professor’ as he is popularly called, has been many things at RB Leipzig but history will not describe him as nothing less than a genius football engineer. ‘The flowers of victory belong in many vases’. Although the quote above is attributed to 2017 Review

ensures Hasenhüttl will have a second chance at continental glory with his youthful and oft eccentric looking Leipzig side in the Europa League round of 32 come February 15, 2018. As much as the recent history of the club may read like another big money football fairytale, unlike in England and other countries, the high-flying RB Leipzig have not been uniformly welcomed across Germany. The aftertaste of their success—perceived as bought, has not been pleasant to many and this has plagued the team in the form of widespread targeted violence, protests and ample satirising. It is often said that changing an answer is evolution while replacing the question is a revolution. On both counts, RB Leipzig has definitely proven itself both evolutionary and revolutionary. That the German Red Bulls are getting it right is in no serious doubt but perhaps the most critical question their recent successes poses is this; ‘now that they have wings, how high and for how long can they continue to fly?’

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Balon ’Or 2018 D’Or 2018 Neymar’s Herculean Task Last summer, Paris Saint Germain triggered Neymar’s €222m buy-out clause to make him the most expensive player ever. Barcelona tried everything in their power to keep the flamboyant midfielder but it was a lost cause. He had his heart set on moving to the French capital.

When the Balon d’Or is brought up, you think Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Period. These two have won the prestigious award each year for the past decade, each winning five apiece. Apart from the duo, the last player to win the award was Kaka, he’s now retired. Scanning the horizon, it’s easy to wonder, who could possibly finally take over from the classy masters? Enter; Neymar da Silva dos Santos.

A lot of postulations have been made as to why Neymar decided to swap the glory of the Camp Nou for nights playing against Guingamp in Ligue 1. Money has been suggested (he’s getting paid €36.8m yearly, only Carlos Tevez earned more before his switch back to Boca Juniors) but he insisted he moved for purely footballing reasons. If you’re of the cynical/pragmatic persuasion, you’d say he wanted to “move out of Messi’s shadow,” he needed a team to be his own solar system, with other planetary bodies revolving around him. The former Barcelona man has one thing on his mind though and that is being recognized as the best player in the world. Neymar wants to win the Balon d’Or. In all fairness, after the big two, he’s the most likely candidate to be at the apex of world football next. He’s finished 3rd on two of the last three occasions already. He’s also been in scorching form this season for PSG and that’s saying it in the subtlest way possible. If the 2018 edition of the Balon d’Or were to be given out today, Neymar has already done enough to have a rightful claim to the award (same goes for Lionel Messi of course, and to some extent, Cristiano Ronaldo). The former Santos wunderkind has settled in seamlessly for PSG on the field even if he might have one or two issues off the pitch. Earlier this season in the game against Lyon, there was an argument with Edinson Cavani over who should have taken a spot kick. The Uruguayan prevailed, and promptly missed. Reports of tension between both South Americans were rife at the time. The coach, Unai Emery more or less speaking for the club, said he expected the pair to sort it out amongst themselves but a mediation had to be held for them ultimately. The club publicly came out to say that Cavani was the club’s designated penalty taker. So that was that then, the peace pipe had been smoked, all was well in Paris. Was it? PSG have been awarded three penalties since then. Neymar took the first two and converted them, Cavani took the third one and missed. So, what gives? Why did Neymar take those subsequent after the club publicly backed Cavani? Despite all the image laundering, tales of the former Napoli man being offered crazy sums of money to give up his spot kick privileges made the rounds. Denials swiftly followed but it had to be asked; was the club hierarchy actually behind Neymar and all that Cavani designated taker nothing but more PR hogwash? The club knows why Neymar wants to be the one taking set pieces and they also want what he wants, so why not? The Balon d’Or has been discredited of late with

2017 Review

By Daniel Beckley

some claiming it’s just a popularity contest that glorifies the most marketable players. Neymar doesn’t need to worry about this. Marketable is synonymous to Neymar da Silva dos Santos Jr. From his flashy hairstyles, to his charming smile and silky skills, it was no surprise when he had fans lining up around street corners and sold over 10,000 PSG shirts within 24 hours of his unveiling. In terms of statistics and output he seems to have gone from snapping at the heels of the modern era’s two greatest players to leaving them to do the catching up, albeit temporarily. In a World Cup year, leading Brazil to the Jules Rimet trophy in addition to winning the UEFA Champions League (or at least getting to its latter stages) could make Neymar an outright favourite. Neymar has scored 11 goals and created 52 chances in total (Messi has created 45, Ronaldo, 22), with his teammates converting 9 of them in just 13 league games this season. Only Messi has been involved in as many goals in Europe’s top 5 leagues. Neymar is completing more dribbles and at a better success rate in the league than both traditional juggernauts too. To put it in perspective, he has completed more dribbles than both Messi and Ronaldo combined. Of course, we expected Neymar to dominate Ligue 1, but he’s doing so in remarkable fashion. Whoscored.com rates Neymar 8.89 so far in the league season. Messi, 8.69 and Ronaldo, 7.55. These are just numbers to back up how good he’s been in the league this season, but if you actually take your time to watch Neymar, you’ll be left speechless. In the Champions league, PSG’s star boy (read man) isn’t slacking either. The €222m man has scored 6 goals and assisted a further 3, creating 19 chances in total. Again, that’s more than what Messi and Ronaldo can boast of combined. He has an average rating of 9.24 so far in the competition, the next highest rated player in the competition is 8.54 and it is not Messi or Ronaldo. Getting Real Madrid in the round of 16 draw presents quite the stage for him to make a statement if he is to be crowned number 1 anytime soon. Of course, these are just projections and we are only halfway through the season but at this rate, the Brazilian could be on track to fulfilling his lifelong dream of emulating Pele in terms of global recognition and respect. After both legs of the Champions League tie have been played, one of Ronaldo or Neymar will suffer a major blow in the race to win the Balon d’Or. Neymar just needs to put on a show in this tie to get his foot in the door and start the Balon d’Or conversation early next year. Till then, Neymar’s task might as well be as impossible as the ones Hercules had to contend with. Then again, Hercules did come out on top in the end.

Russia 2018: The Left Behind XI

RUSSIA

2018:

THE LEFT BEHIND XI BUFFON ITALY (GK)

ANTONIO VALENCIA ECUADOR (RB)

Consistent performances for Manchester United got him the Player’s Player of the Year award at the Theatre of Dreams last season. However, the 32-year old Red Devil skipper was unable to inspire his Ecuador to what would have been his 3rd World Cup. A dismal qualifying campaign culminated in the South Americans finishing 8th in the 10 team CONMEBOL qualifying group. They had just 6 wins from 18 matches.

BY TOMILOLA SADARE

It is an absolute shame that one of Italy`s finest and one of the greatest goalkeepers the world has ever seen will miss the 2018 tournament. It was meant to be his swansong, a victory lap of sorts as the legend had planned to quit the Azzuri right after the Russia tourney.

For an international footballer, there’s no greater misery inducing dagger to the heart than missing the biggest soccer fiesta, the World Cup. What’s worse? You have to wait another four years to have a chance at experiencing The Mundial.

The 39-year old 2006 World Cup winner was subjected to a tragic fate amidst tears as he watched Sweden sail through in his and Italy’s stead.

Returning to your club, it could get worse as teammates could go on and on about their experiences at the tournament you missed out on.

CHIELLINI AND BONUCCI

This year, some astonishingly big names will not be on planes to Russia, well, except they love to torture themselves in weird self-flagellating fashion. Here is a list at the best 11 players to miss out on Russia 2018.

ITALY (CB)

This imperious pair make up part of Italy’s formidable backline. The same one that has been at the heart of the insane Juventus Serie A run. Like Buffon, they tragically won’t be packing any bags for a trip eastward. At age 30 Bonucci could still feature at Qatar 2022 while at 33, it might be too late for Chiellini might be too old to turn up for the party. Maybe he could slip in as an assistant coach?

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ROBBEN NETHERLANDS (RW)

A veteran of many football victories, Arjen couldn’t lead this young generation of Dutch talents to World Cup qualification. Holland’s campaign only gathered steam after the appointment of Dick Advocaat but by this time the nation that gave us Total Football was in shambles. For the future, perhaps the onus lies on the likes of Memphis Depay and Quincy Promes to fly the Oranje flag in Qatar.

GARETH BALE WALES (LW)

Following Wales’ stellar showing at the European Championship in 2016, there were high hopes that the Chris Coleman led golden generation would secure an ever-elusive World Cup berth.

ALEXIS CHILE (ST)

The last of Chile’s qualifying games came at a time the former Udinese player’s head and heart got torn between staying in North London and moving up North to Manchester. His performances dipped and Chile faltered to miss out on 5th place in CONMEBOL qualifying. That would have guaranteed at least a play-off berth. He’ll be 33 in 4 years.

Those hopes were dashed as several injuries to talisman Gareth Bale derailed their qualification hopes. Not to worry though, the golden generation can go again in four years. That elusive qualification ticket they’ve been chasing since 1958 will have to wait for now.

PULISIC

VIDAL

The youngest player to represent the national team in a World Cup qualifier, Pulisic won’t get to experience a breakout on the biggest international stage.

Like his Bayern Munich teammate David Alaba, King Arturo won’t be at Russia. A late Paraguay goal against Colombia confirmed Chile’s drop from the CONMEBOL qualification spots.

USA (CM)

CHILE (CM)

Bizarrely, it was Trinidad and Tobago that put them to the sword. In fairness, the Dortmund midfielder carried the team throughout the qualifiers but his 5 goals and 3 assists weren’t good enough. Issues with Jurgen Klinsmann and ultimately Bruce Arena did not help. Nonetheless, at 19, there’s plenty of time for him to get over this early heartbreak, blossom and dominate on the biggest stage.

After decent World Cup performances in recent editions and back-to-back Copa America titles, Chile’s Golden Generation now has to wait for one last shot at glory in Qatar 2022.

ALABA

VERATTI

One of the best left backs in the world, the Bayern Munich stalwart will have to try again in 4 years to make a World Cup debut.

Arguably the most talented of this new Italian generation, Verratti couldn’t replicate the brilliance regularly displayed by his predecessor Andrea Pirlo.

AUSTRIA (LB)

The Austrians could not navigate their way into Russia after being grouped alongside Serbia, Ireland and Wales (the only notable teams). An abysmal showing at the 2016 Euro Championship remains his international acme till date.

2017 Review

ITALY (DM)

Not to blame him though, the Italians have been so droll lately that the Swedes pulling an Italian job on them in the playoffs was hardly shocking.

BOS MAN XI Since the Bosman ruling in 1995, the nature of player contracts changed drastically. Loads of players have been acquired for free with varying degree of success. For every Sol Campbell, Andrea Pirlo and Robert Lewandowski, there is inevitably a corresponding Milan Jovanovic, Mark Bosnich and Marouane Chamakh.

With summer 2018 set to be dominated by the mundial, a great clutch of quality players are approaching the ends of their contracts. Let’s take a look at a full team of them. GK - Kepa Arrizabalaga (Athletic Bilbao) Since his top-flight debut in September 2016 for Athletic Bilbao, Kepa has grown in leaps and bounds. So much so he has caught the eyes of Spanish Giants Real Madrid who are reportedly prepared to meet his €22m buyout clause in the winter window despite availability for free at the end of the season. After earning his first International cap in November 2017, the 23-year old looks set to man the Galactico sticks and possibly, the Spanish national team for years to come. RB - Juanfran (Atletico Madrid) He will be 33 in January but Juanfran could still do a decent job at a top European side. One of Diego Simeone’s trusted war machines, Juanfran has loads of experience on the big stage having won one La liga as well as Europa league titles.

Add to that his two painful UCL final losses against rivals Real Madrid and you’ve a player who has seen it all. His wealth of experience would be of help to any club willing to take a punt on him. CB - Stefan De Vrij (SS Lazio) De Vrij came into limelight following impressive showings for the Dutch national team at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. He was named in the team of the tournament but it was even a bigger surprise to see Lazio beat bigger clubs to his signature that summer.

With less than a year remaining on his current contract, the 25-year old has been linked with a lot of clubs including Arsenal, Barcelona, Liverpool and Manchester United. Whoever signs him will get a trusted player yet to hit his prime and all for free! CB - Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus) One prong of the famous Juventus BBC defensive trident, Chiellini might follow Leonardo Bonnuci - who left the club for free spending rivals AC Milan this summer - out of the Allianz Arena on a free. The 33-year old is into the final year of his contract in Turin and talks to extend the deal beyond the summer of 2018 have stalled. A seasoned campaigner, Chiellini definitely won’t be short of suitors if he eventually decides not to extend his deal.

Kwadwo Asamoa LB - Kwadwo Asamoah (Juventus) Asamoah’s Juventus career started brightly but a spate of injuries and the acquisition of Brazilian left back Alex Sandro has limited his chances. The reason why he’s still at Juventus is because they couldn’t get a replacement for him when Turkish giants Galatasaray came calling. With less than a year left on his current contract, they will hope to sign him on a pre-contract in January or sign him out- rightly for free next summer. DM - Emre Can (Liverpool) 23-year-old Can has had a decent Liverpool career, following on from his impressive showings last season, crowned by a spectacular goal of the season award, he has done enough to allow him shirk offers of a Liverpool contract extension. These performances have seen him become a regular in the German national squad and his place at the World Cup in 2018 looks assured. His efforts have not gone unnoticed with Juventus winning the race to snap him up on a 5-year pre-contract agreement. CM - Leon Goretzka (Schalke 04) Schalke might as well be seen as a Premier League feeder club at this point. They have lost Joel Matip, Sead Kolasinac and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting all for free to English sides in recent seasons and all indications could point to another one of their talented WWW.352.COM.NG

Stefan De Vrij starscoming down the free pipeline. Heralded as a generational leader and likened to Michael Ballack and Lothar Matthaus in many quarters, Goretzka has been in the form of his life this season. He led an experimental German side to Confederations Cup victory and hasn’t looked back with 4 goals and 3 assists for the Gelsenkirchen based club so far. With just six months of his contract left, he hasn’t been short of suitors with Arsenal, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Liverpool and both Manchester clubs all interested in him. It won’t be shocker seeing him play at the Allianz Arena by this time next year. CM - Maximillian Meyer (Schalke 04) Max completes a young German midfield trio that’s been tipped as Joachim Low’s starting selection for Russia 2018. It’s hard to understand how on earth Schalke 04 can allow contracts of their star players run down. If you want to be a selling club then look at your Ruhr based rivals Borussia Dortmund, sell for a profit! If this had been written before the start of the season, Max Meyer would have found his name and position higher up the pitch. The speedy, tricky winger’s game has undergone some form of renaissance under Domenico Tedesco’s guidance and he now finds himself in a deeper midfield role 2017 Review

Kepa Arrizabalaga

with more defensive responsibilities. No player is averaging more interceptions per game (2.8) in the Bundesliga and his 1.7 tackles per game means he’s averaging 4.5 defensive actions per game.

Ozil has had his fair share of criticism and acclaim, depending on who you ask. What has never been in doubt is his talent which has been on display on numerous occasions this season.

At just 22, his transition from a tricky winger to a disciplined deep lying playmaker shows maturity beyond his age. Tottenham were linked with his signing all summer and expect them to fight it out with Arsenal and Liverpool.

He has chosen the right time to silence his critics and serve them a reminder of his obvious talent with his Arsenal contract winding down. Barcelona are in need of a calm influence in midfield to replace the ageing Andres Iniesta while Jose Mourinho fancies a reunion with a player he once dubbed “The Best No.10 in the world.” Arsene Wenger meanwhile, will hope that whatever charming demeanour brought Ozil to Arsenal in 2011 is still viable enough to keep the German at the Emirates much longer.

AM – Marouane Fellaini (Manchester United) For a man often vilified by fans, pundits and coaches alike, the Belgian’s skillset remains one that Manchester United often need. In puzzling fashion, the looming midfielder has become something of a lucky charm for the Red Devils in terms of win percentages this season. Factor in the way Jose Mourinho adores his often brash and clunky approach to the game and you see a puzzling refusal to extend his contract at Old Trafford beyond this summer. Paris Saint Germain have been mentioned as possible suitors, ensuring that all parties involved are scratching their heads. Except the man with a full mane of hair of course. AM - Mesut Ozil (Arsenal) One of the best midfielders of his generation,

CF - Alexis Sanchez (Arsenal) It’s been a bizarrely turbulent period for the Chilean. His national team failed to qualify for the World Cup, he couldn’t get his desired transfer from Arsenal and performances so far this season have been indicative of a player who doesn’t want to stay in North London. With just about six months left on his contract, he will be hoping to get a cut-price move away soon or at worst a free transfer in the summer. Manchester City gaffer, Pep Guardiola has remained coy the subject of a transfer has been brought up but it seems more like a case of when and not if for a reunion between the ex-Barca duo.

Football has progressed tremendously through the ages with considerable advancement in all areas of the game including how balls are made, kits, boots, socks (yes! Seriously) and even the invention of the magical vanishing - shaving - foam! However, contemporary football, similar to football during the early days, continues to be dogged by controversies around refereeing decisions. 2017 in that respect, has been similar to previous years except this year witnessed the introduction of the Video Assistant Referee, VAR, during last summer’s FIFA Confederations Cup tournament. With the arrival of VAR, referees have had the chance to review incidents that they did not see and have an extra pair of eyes to help them arrive at much more informed decisions. Or have they? VAR, although a positive step in the right direction, dragging the game into to the 21st century, has not been without its numerous controversies. All major sports in the world including basketball, tennis, rugby and host of others all use technology to assist the referee and the implementation of said technology has been largely beneficial

towards the improvement of enforcing rules. Nonetheless, football has proven to be a bit of the opposite as the introduction of technology has not been seamless and continues to draw criticism. So far, goal line technology which has thrown up a few controversial moments, has been unequivocal in its success in improving the game. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for VAR as its use is far from straight forward. VAR has numerous issues, first of all because of the time taken to implement it. Unlike most sports, football is a game designed with the least number of stops in mind. Now VAR requires the time to 2017 Review

be stopped for the incident in question to be reviewed. At certain times, nothing occurs that brings the game to a natural stop which can lead to embarrassing situations such as the one that occurred in the Eredivisie. To summarise the incident, Vitesse’s El Ahmadi was fouled in the box but the referee waved play and then Feynoord scored immediately against the run of play. Instead of the goal to be allowed to stand, the referee got alerted through VAR and he subsequently awarded Vitesse a penalty a full 2 minute and 25 seconds after the initial foul had occurred. Although an extreme example, it is nonetheless a consequence that the use of VAR allows to come to fruition. Furthermore, VAR is still a subjective review of an incident, meaning that the ensuing decision by the referee is still a potential source of controversy. For example, Gonzalo Jara’s brutal elbow on Timo Werner during the Confederations Cup Final. The Chilean aggressor only received a yellow. The referee himself took time to review the incident but still came to the highly controversial conclusion despite the Germans, and indeed everyone else expecting Jara to be sent off.

Finally, VAR doesn’t account for incidents that the referee does not feel require review and therefore does not help rectify mistakes that officials make in real time. These can make key differences to a game. A good and common example of this, is an assistant referee that makes an incorrect offside call that occurs well before a goal is scored. In this instance, the foul is simply awarded to the opposing team and play continues, which negates the fact that the cancelled play could have led to a goal. Credit to VAR is that if an in game situation leads to an immediate goal which allows a natural stop, then an incorrect offside is reviewed and corrected e.g. Gerard Deulofeu against France.

VAR has good intentions to help give the referees the much-needed help that they need, however, its implementation is heavily flawed and problematic, perhaps to the extent of it being counterproductive. Nevertheless, the phenomenon of terrible referee decisions continues to plague the football world and solutions need to be proffered to help fight this disasters. From a personal point of view, if technology could be invented or VAR could be used to detect offside decisions as quickly as goal line tech is currently used, half the battles against terrible decisions would effectively be won. Hypothetically, goal line tech combined with offside tech would effectively rule out any hard-core factual controversies, every other decision in football is subjective to the official. Apart from the aforementioned, all issues ranging from handballs, penalty claims and shirt grabbing amongst numerous decisions that officials need to make, are all dependant on the situation and individual perception of the official. The machines are here to stay, but we should not be looking for ways to spice up chaos in the game with them.

VAR is still a subjective review of an incident, meaning that the ensuing decision by the referee is still a potential source of controversy.

Ghost Calls & The Machine: Football’s Romance with VAR

By Yahaya Mohammed

2017 in Cold Hard Numbers

2017

COMPILED BY TOMIWA YUSSUF

IN COLD HARD NUMBERS

Another year, another raft of numbers you just cannot ignore. The beautiful game threw up its full hand digits with glee this year and picking the best ones and leaving others out was quite something. As we love to do here at 352, here are the numbers that told the year’s story.

2 3 5 6 24 128 335 After a very successful year, England is the only second nation ever except Brazil, to win two FIFA youth tournaments in the same year. Beta.

One goal, two assists in Arsenal’s 5 nil thrashing of Huddersfield Town means Mesut Ozil has been involved in 3 goals in a single Premier League game for the first time in his career. Gamma.

No other midfielder has scored more goals in the La liga than new Barça signing Paulinho this season. Shark.

Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich handed a repeat 5-1 thrashing to Arsenal at the Emirates in a secondleg round of 16 Champions League tie. This is Arsenal’s biggest home defeat ever since 1998. Tears.

With 24 goals and eight successive wins under new coach Tite, Brazil became the first country to qualify for the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Rebirth.

This figure guaranteed that Brazilian Neymar Jr. eclipsed Frenchman Paul Pogba’s record of being the most expensive signing in the football world with a record £198m. Funds.

1 4

Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro became the highest goal-scorer in the history of the FIFA Club World Cup with his lone winning strike against Brazilian side Gremio in the 2017 final. He surpassed other top-scorers in the competition including Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Cesar Delgado; all on 5 goals each. Alpha.

Raheem Shaquille Sterling has scored the winning goal for Manchester City in the 84th minute or later in four different games this season. Clutch.

10 115

Just 18 years and 11 months, new PSG kid Kylian Mbappe is the youngest player ever to reach 10 goals in the Champions League after a meagre 15 appearances. Wunderkind.

115 goals for Serie A side Napoli means Slovakian, Marek Hamsik has levelled with Diego Maradona’s record of being the top scorer in the club’s history. Summit.

Iceland became the smallest populated country ever to qualify for a world cup after a 2-0 win over Kosovo on home turf. The previous nation Trinidad & Tobago, who held the record, had a population of 1.3 million people in 2006. Iceland has a population of about 335, 000. Vikings.

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2017 Review

AGON 2017 Review

agon 2017 Agon 7 or #LookUpSeven closed out 2017, taking place at El Amin International School, Maitama Abuja with 8 snazzy teams participating and giving it their all.

The tournament which took place on November 11, saw the Jumia Food Sponsored Cech Urself beat off competition from the other 7 teams (Kuvuki Fc, Jabi Hurricane, Get Messi, Martial Arts, Babanks Fc, Capital Eagles and Kosisi Fc) to hoist the winnerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s trophy.

Cech Urself bested defending champions Get Messi by a lone goal in a rematch of the Agon6 final which saw the team named for the Barcelona supreme win on penalties. A wide variety of vendors and other side attractions ensured that the focus was not just football but a great deal of thrilling activities like team bonding, a novelty game between event partners Medicaid and The Silverbird Group as well as Transit, the Agon after party. All 8 teams were decked out in beautiful jerseys which were sponsored by leading sport apparel company, ConeSports Nigeria Limited. With something of a budding rivalry afoot between Cech Urself and Get Messi surely scores of fans canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t wait to see the next Agon tournament come around again. WWW.352.COM.NG

2017 Review

CAPITAL FÜTBOL Review

CAPITAL FÜTBOL 2017 REVIEW

2017 was an amazing year for Abuja football and Capital Fütbol. Over 290 different players, 450+ goals and so many unforgettable moments were witnessed. 352 brings you some of the best memories from both the League and Cup competitions.

he league season began with the Union Cup game as we saw Budget Fc face off against TNT Fc. Budget FC emerged victorious and became our first ever Union Cup champions. Budget FC has now gone down in history as the first side to make a clean sweep of all 3 trophies (the Capital League, Capital Cup and Union Cup). As the season progressed so many jaw dropping moments and amazing comebacks were served up. One worthy of notice was when Rash FC came back from a 4-1 deficit to defeat Panama FC 5-4. Super FC, an underdog

in many ways than one, a team filled with youngsters, also came back from a 4-1 deficit to defeat HushPuppi FC 6-5.

beat Budget FC in Capital history. A team lead by a brute striker, Kabala (who scored a brave),beat Budget by 4 goals.

Maracana FC, newcomers to the Capital League, proved to be a force to reckon with. Filled with amazing talents, and coming all the way from Kaduna, they successfully lit up the Capital League with their undeniably skilful displays. They held Budget FC to a narrow draw and ultimately came second overall.

Budget still emerged champions with the feisty FA Fc propping up the top 4 teams.

The FA Fc, who were highly underrated by most at the onset, emerged as the first ever team to

Capital City Eagles, another star studded team, performed lower than expected. With their inconsistent form and despite a bevy of players, the team was unable to find the right balance to compete for the league title. One of the star players from the Eagles team, Hassan Abba is however definitely one for the

future. Despite missing 6 games, he ended up with 12 assists (the highest) and 6 goals. The eventual champions Budget FC, for the second time in a row, dominated the Capital League season. A team filled with firepower, led by Mubarak, successfully lifted the league trophy, despite facing tougher opponents this time around. Can they make it 3 for 3 at the next edition of the tourney or will there be more shocks and upsets? Follow all the action and updates on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram: @capitalfutbolng. WWW.352.COM.NG

2017 Review

The Socialiga 2017 Review

The SOCIALIGA 2017 Season Summary

his past season of the ever glorious Socialiga was dominated by mouth-watering transfers with the Bravos Knights and the Saints partaking in some of the league’s biggest transfers.

finals after shrugging off an early setback to recover and see off the Royals in a 3-1 v§ ictory. In the final, they continued their theme of upsets to overcome the number 1 seed Bravos Knights 5-4 in a thrilling penalty shootout.

Emmanuel Eze left Royals FC for the Bravos Knights with Dapo Adeniyi and Ojo both leaving the Knights and Citizens FC respectively, to end up at Cubs FC. Tolu Benson (the eventual joint-top goal scorer) and Wale Olorunnimbe both left Reds FC for the Saints FC.

Island Conference The Saints ensured that they dominated the Island Conference with a league high 7 wins and a record haul of 23 points. They were able to retain their status as number 1 seed as the returning Cubs FC clinched second place with 4 wins, and 4 draws out of their 10 fixtures.

Mainland Conference The actual football for the Mainland Conference saw something of a stunning effort from newcomers Bravos Knights leading the league with 6 regular season wins and only one defeat. To compound the shocking season, fellow newcomers Raineri Ghost emulated the Knights albeit in second place with 17 points and a league high 5 clean sheets. A definite highlight being their 5-0 trouncing of All Black Fc which left fans drooling in delight. Disappointingly, the defending Mainland Conference champions Royals FC had a mixed season in 3rd with 3 defeats, 3 losses and just 4 wins. Perhaps the Royals were not as downcast who both failed to make the playoffs, with their goals conceded column showing double figures. In the playoffs, Raineri pulled off quite comeback in the semi-

Where the Cubs and the Saints prospered, the Knights blew their chance to get a playoff spot by garnering just a point from a possible 9 in their last 3 games. They lost out on the final day of the regular season as Guns FC leapfrogged them into the final playoff spot. The Alphas could only muster 1 win and finished dead last in the Island conference. The playoffs was heavily tinted with a theme of revenge that saw Guns, who had lost twice to the Cubs in the regular season see them off in semi-finals 3-2 on penalties. The Saints

then took the theme further. After having to surrender their unbeaten streak to Guns on the final day of the regular season, they ensured they got even by recording a convincing 3-0 win that saw them retain their Island Conference title and set up a duel with Mainland Champions Raineri Ghost. Finals There was no Cinderella story in the finals as the Saints ensured the gulf n class between them and surprise package Raineri FC was evident. They defended their title by winning 4-1 with the league’s hottest hitmen Tolu Benson (Saints) and Shahin Alwan (Raineri Ghost) putting on a display that explaned how they both ended the season as joint top goal scorers with 7 goals each. Women’s League Both the Knights and Saints Ladies combined for a total of 25 goals with the other two teams in the division, Bravos Ladies and Cubs Ladies failing to score in the regular season. The Saints Ladies were particularly impressive with a 5-0 win over the Cubs Ladies, a record in the division. Knights Ladies however went a second consecutive season without a dent in the L column, for the regular season at least. In the finals, Saints Ladies made history by handing the Knights Ladies their first ever defeat, winning 4-0 to claim their first trophy. This was a reversal of the regular season result which saw

their only regular season loss come against Knights Ladies. Top Scorers • Tolu Benson (Saints FC) – 7 Goals • Shahin Alawar (Raineri Ghost FC) – 7 Goals • Robert Odu (Saints FC) – 6 Goals • Sylvester Ighedosa (Royals FC) – 5 Goals • Alaba Otukoya (Bravos Knights) – 4 Goals Women’s League • Natasha Awele (Knights Ladies) – 3 Goals • Opeyemi (Knights Ladies) – 3 Goals • Folashade Ijamilusi (Saints Ladies) – 3 Goals WWW.352.COM.NG

2017 Review