Nigeria’s national team at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON 2019) became the latest to stage a strike over unpaid bonuses, when it refused to train ahead of Wednesday’s clash against Guinea.

Nigeria’s Super Falcons who represented the country at the Women’s World Cup in France also staged a sit-in strike at a hotel, while Cameroon and Zimbabwe have also come to AFCON 2019 with unresolved payment issues.

In this article, we look at the prevailing bonus payment disputes, and how they have been managed.

Nigeria’s teams

The Super Eagles of Nigeria who had been striking over over unpaid bonuses at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations underway in Egypt, eventually suspended their strike on Tuesday.

The players had reportedly not received a $10,000 match bonus that they had each been promised.

The team finally agreed to train in Alexandria ahead of their game against Guinea in Alexandria, after the Nigerian Football Federation promised to pay a win bonus from their 1-0 victory over Burundi on Saturday.

Nigerian Football Association spokesman Ademola Alajire said the matter had been resolved, conceding that funds for the tournament had arrived late.

The Nigerian under-20 team and the women’s team, whose world cups are ongoing in Poland and France respectively, also went on strike over unpaid bonuses.

Cameroon’s late arrival at AFCON

Cameroon’s arrival at the tournament in Egypt was delayed by 24 hours when the squad refused to board their plane in Yaounde while they haggled over increased appearance fees and bonus monies.

They eventually boarded after negotiations with government officials and coach Clarence Seedorf suggested on Sunday that the experience might well turn out to be a positive.

“All teams in the world at some point in their history experience such troubles,” said the former Netherlands international and four-time Champions League winner, “but it will not affect our morale or our preparations.”

“Actually the bonus crisis has reinforced the team spirit and the determination within the squad to perform well. There was some tension but the players have behaved maturely and they’ve decided to be here to fight for Cameroon.

Cameroon won their tournament opener against Guinea Bissau at Ismailia on Tuesday, and are top of Group F after Benin and Ghana settled for a 2-2 draw in the other Group F game.

Zimbabwe’s AFCON uncertainty

While Zimbabwe’s football federation denied allegations that the national team threatened to boycott AFCON 2019 over a pay dispute, the team’s striker Khama Billiat said he was happy with his country’s performance against Egypt ‘under the circumstances’.

‘‘I think the guys are really professional, if credit to them for that, that we put everything away in the space of a few hours, and shifted our focus to the game,’‘ Billiat said after Zimbabwe’s 0-1 loss to hosts Egypt.

“ZIFA and Warriors have signed a contract and both parties will honour and respect all contractual obligations,’‘ the football association had reiterated before the tournament opener.

Source: Africa News

Mali produced three stunning goals as they thumped Africa Cup of Nations debutants Mauritania 4-1 on Monday, handing their neighbours a harsh lesson in their first ever match at the finals.

Abdoulaye Diaby blasted Mali in front and Moussa Marega converted a penalty to put them 2-0 ahead by halftime.

Adama Traore added a third before substituted by his namesake Adama Traore who then scored the fourth, both from outside the penalty area.

In between, El Hacen El Id made history by converting a penalty for Mauritania’s first ever goal at the tournament.ADVERTISING

Mali, playing at their seventh successive finals, became the first team to score more than two goals in a match at the tournament and also produced arguably the best performance so far.

Mauritania began brightly but were let down by too many elementary mistakes. They completely messed up one free kick around 30 metres from goal, gifting possession to their opponents, and their first touches were often heavy.

Mali took a while to get going but, with a young team of players based mainly in France and Portugal, were impressive once they got into full flight.

Diaby broke the deadlock after collecting a pass around 30 metres from goal, shuffling past two defenders and firing a rising shot into the net from just outside the area.

The powerful Moussa Marega was a constant threat for Mali, and after being denied several times, finally got on the scoresheet with a penalty in the 45th minute after Hamari Traore was tripped by Mauritania goalkeeper Brahim Souleimane.

Mali continued to dominate after halftime and, 10 minutes after the re-start, Adama Traore slipped past a couple of defenders and beat Souleimane with a low shot from outside the area.

Mauritania kept pressing forward and were rewarded with a penalty which El Hacen El Id converted, prompting delirious celebrations amid the players and officials.

Those were cut short, however, when substitute Adama Traore curled in from 25 metres to complete the scoring in style.

Angola snatch draw

In Group E’s other encounter Monday, Angola salvaged a surprise but deserved 1-1 draw against an uninspired Tunisia after Djalma Campos cancelled out a Youssef Msakni penalty.

In a generally disappointing game, Tunisia went ahead against the run of play in the 34th minute but failed to build on the lead and paid the price when Djalma snapped a rebound in the 73rd minute.

The game was played in hot conditions, although a sea breeze made the temperature more bearable and it did not seem to unduly affect the players. The stadium was barely one quarter full with spectators scattered around the arena.

“It was a very difficult and demanding game … I think we played the best African team,” said Angola coach Srđjan Vasiljevic. “We had enormous difficulties in the preparation period but we faced a strong rival and got a good result.”

There was a lot of probing by both sides early on but Angola were more positive and Wilson Eduardo went close with a looping shot across the face of the goal.

Tunisia went ahead with a penalty as Msakni found Sliti Naim who cut inside Salomao Paizo and was brought down by the Angolan’s clumsy lunge. There were few complaints from Angola and Msakni fired the spot kick into the roof of the net.

The North Africans, the second highest African team in the FIFA rankings, sat on their lead and Angola, back at the tournament after missing the previous two, took advantage.

Tunisia goalkeeper Farouk Ben Musthapha spilled a shot by Matheus and Djalma turned in the rebound.

Tunisia twice came close to a stoppage time winner as Wahbi Khazri prodded the ball wide after a free kick and Msakni sent a free shot wide of the post from the edge of the penalty area.

Two-time champions Ivory Coast off to winning start

Earlier Monday, striker Jonathan Kodjia struck 26 minutes from time to hand Ivory Coast a 1-0 win over South Africa as the two former champions kicked off their Africa Cup of Nations campaign.

Kodjia squandered several earlier chances before finally breaking the deadlock in the 64th minute of the Group D match at the Al Salam Stadium in Cairo.

The goal was scored at the end of a swift move out of defence by the Ivorians.

It took just two passes to find the forward, who was goalside of the defence and had only the keeper to beat.

Kodjia had been in a similar position in the first half but instead of placing the ball, he blasted it to allow South Africa goalkeeper Ronwen Williams to come up with a brilliant close-range stop in the 32nd minute.

The Aston Villa striker was also twice set up with goal scoring chances in the opening 11 minutes, but both times failed to get a touch.

The Ivorians also struck the woodwork just after the half hour mark as Nicolas Pepe curled a left-footed effort on the crossbar.

Pepe had another set piece chance two minutes from time but Williams made a finger-tip stop to deny the Ivorians a second.

With the temperature in the stadium touching 36 degrees Celsius, it stifled the tempo of what was a largely scrappy affair.

South Africa, who won their only Cup of Nations title in 1996, were unable to get their short passing game going and only had one half chance which captain Thulani Hlatshwayo headed wide of goal.

Two-time winners Ivory Coast join Morocco, who edged Namibia with a last gasp goal on Sunday, at the top of the group standings.

(FRANCE 24 with REUTERS)

Cameroon’s squad arrived in Egypt for the Africa Cup of Nations late on Saturday after delaying their departure over a pay dispute, risking possible sanction.

They touched down in Cairo at around 11 p.m. local time, to be greeted by a small group of supporters, some 24 hours behind schedule.

The squad had refused to embark for Egypt on Thursday, calling for their fee to be doubled for appearing at the tournament, which they won two years ago.

But they later agreed to travel without any promise of more money.

The Cameroon football federation said each player was paid a qualification bonus of 20 million CFA francs (US$34,693) and would be given 5 million CFA francs after winning a first game at the tournament.

In a letter signed by all the players, they said most had paid their own air tickets to the team’s pre-tournament training camps in Madrid and Doha.

“A presidential decree dating back to 2014 states that all bonuses, participation fees for friendly matches and camping must be paid to the players before the start of a major tournament,” they wrote.

“We have even accepted a 25per cent cut in our regular bonuses ahead of the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations but unfortunately, they are not honouring this. We deplore the poor communication between the players and football officials of this country.

“We wish that the future generation of players would not suffer a similar disregard as us and those who preceded us.”

Cameroon start the defence of their title against Guinea Bissau in Ismailia in Group F on Tuesday.

According to tournament regulations, teams must be in the host country five days before the kickoff of their opening match, which means Cameroon face a possible fine.

In 2014, their squad refused to board a plane due to take them to Brazil for the World Cup because of disputes over bonuses, also delaying their departure until they were paid more.

Disputes over bonus payments also overshadowed their participation at both the 1994 and 2002 World Cups, where the team failed to get past the opening group stage.

(US$1 = 576.4800 CFA francs)

Source: Reuters

Cameroon national football team coach Clarence Seedorf on Wednesday named his final 23-man squad for this month’s 2019 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Egypt.

Seedorf said he made his choices based on the players’ performance in professional leagues, the team’s tactical strength and attitude, and performance during training sessions.

“We chose players with the characteristics that suit us. You have to trust my choices and support the team.” Seedorf told a press conference in the capital, Yaounde.

Striker Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting will captain the team, though star forward Vincent Aboubakar misses out with injury.

“[Aboubakar] came in injured a week before we started training, unfortunately. From a medical point of view, he would have been ready only in the third week [of the competition],” Seedorf said.

Defending champions Cameroon are in Group F with Benin, Guinea-Bissau and Ghana.

The 2019 AFCON is set to run from June 21 to July 19.

Seven African football legends, including Nigeria’s Nwankwo Kanu have been named by the Confederation of African Football(CAF) as ambassador for the 2019 Total Africa Cup of Nations, which begins this Friday in Egypt, ending 19 July.

The championship will kick off Friday with hosts Egypt taking on Zimbabwe in Group A. The match will be played at 21.00 Nigerian time.

The other ambassadors are Mahmoud El Khateeb of Egypt, Samuel Eto’o of Cameroon, Yaya Toure and Didier Drogba of Cote d’Ivoire, Rabah Madjer of Algeria, and El Hadji Diouf of Senegal.

On its redesigned website, CAF offers the profiles of its seven ambassadors:

Nwankwo Kanu
‘Papilo’ as he is fondly called featured six AFCON editions from 2000 to 2010. The highlight of his career was his coronation as CAF Player of the Year in 1996 and 1999.

Mahmoud El Khateeb
Ranked among the best African players of all time, El Khateeb was the first Egyptian to win African Player of the Year in 1983. “Bibo” as he is fondly called among Egyptian supporters won the Africa Cup of Nations with Egypt at home in 1986.

Samuel Eto’o
Eto’o is widely regarded as the greatest players of all time in the history of African. A four-time CAF Player of the Year (2003,2004,2005 & 2010), he also won the Africa Cup of Nations with Cameroon in 2000 and 2002.

Yaya Toure
The Ivorian enforcer ranks amongst the best in his native, Africa and rest of the world. Toure was crowned CAF Player of the Year for an unprecedented four times in a row (2011, 2012, 2013 &2014), and ultimately guiding Cote d’Ivoire to the Africa Cup of Nations in 2015.

Didier Drogba
Two-time CAF Player of the Year – 2006 & 2009, Drogba ranks amongst the foremost forwards of his generation. Besides successes at club level, he appeared in five AFCONS (2006, 2008, 2010, 2012 & 2013) reaching the final in 2006 and 2012.

Rabeh Madjer
Madjer was part of the squad that won Algeria’s AFCON title, 1990 on home soil. He is revered by all and is famous for his stint with Portuguese side Porto. He also won the Ballon d’or Africain in 1987.

El Hadji Diouf
He remains the only Senegalese to have been crowned CAF Player of the Year, decorated in 2001 and 2002. Diouf was a key member of the Teranga Lions golden generation that made headlines across the world in the early 2000’s.  

Source: Pmnewsnigeria

The Africa Cup of Nations kicks off on Friday 21 June with hosts Egypt hoping to add to their record seven titles. There will be an abundance of world-class talent on display from across Europe’s top leagues and beyond, as the best players from the continent compete for the continental crown.

Defending champions Cameroon face a tough test to defend their title and are way down on the bookies’ favourites behind the like of Nigeria, Ghana and Mohamed Salah’s Egypt.

Considering all the talent on display, here’s a best possible XI of the players on show at AFCON 2019.

Goalkeeper & Defenders

Andre Onana (GK, Cameroon) – The 23-year-old keeper shot to international fame this season, after starring in Ajax’s run to the Champions League semi-finals. He was named Cameroonian Footballer of the Year and African Goalkeeper of the Year in 2018, as well as claiming a spot in the Eredivisie Team of the Year 2018/19. Curiously, his cousin Fabrice Ondoa is also in the squad as another of Cameroon’s keepers.

Serge Aurier (RB, Ivory Coast) – The Tottenham full back was a part of the team that lifted the Africa Cup of Nations in 2015. He left Paris Saint-Germain for Spurs two years later in 2017, but isn’t exactly a fan favourite in north London and played just 17 times all season in 2018/19. However, he is still a top-level, experienced right back in the prime of his career at 26.

Achraf Hakimi (LB, Morroco) – The Spanish-born Real Madrid youngster spent last season on loan at ​​Borussia Dortmund​ where he enhanced his reputation greatly, providing three assists in the Champions League tie with Atletico Madrid and bagging his first senior goal at just 19.

Kalidou Koulibaly (CB, Senegal) – The most high-profile defender at the tournament, ​Napoli’s ‘K2’ is often subject to much transfer speculation. This summer has been no different, with figures as high as £100m touted as his price tag, with Manchester United supposedly among his suitors. He was named Serie A’s best defender this season and has appeared in the league’s official team of the tear on three occasions.

Medhi Benatia (CB, Morocco) – Benatia has had a somewhat nomadic career but with clubs like Roma, ​Bayern Munich and ​Juventus under his belt, he’s one of the most experienced centre halves at the tournament. Alongside Hakimi and Wolves star Romain Saiss, Morocco have the pick of the tournament’s defences.

Midfielders

Thomas Partey (CM, Ghana) – 26-year-old Partey is the quintessential Diego Simeone player, tough and relentlessly hard-working. A defensive midfielder with Atletico Madrid, he often plays a more advanced role for his country and has seven goals in 17 appearances, since his debut in 2016.

Naby Keita (CM, Guinea) – ​Keita’s big money move to ​Liverpool hasn’t exactly worked out as many expected just yet. However, he had begun to show glimpses of his best form before injury ruled him out of the Reds’ run-in. A dynamic all-action engine-room star, Keita made the Bundesliga Team of the Season in 2017 and the CAF Team of the Year in 2018.

Hakim Ziyech (CAM, Morocco) – One of many players to enhance their reputation in Ajax’s fabled Champions League run. There are a lot of clubs reportedly tracking his progress and he can add to a potential transfer fee with an outstanding performance at the tournament.

Forwards

Sadio Mane (LW, Senegal) – ​Mane is coming off the back of the best goalscoring form of his career, culminating in a Champions League crown and Premier League Golden Boot. There’s never been a better time for him to inspire his side to victory and add some international accolades to match his domestic form.

Mohamed Salah (CF, Egypt) – Not quite the one season wonder some rivals predicted, instead finishing as the Premier League joint top scorer alongside teammate Mane. ​Salah has had to move inside to accommodate the other forwards but with a staggering 71 goals in two seasons at Liverpool he is equally at home in a more central role.

Nicolas Pepe (RW, Ivory Coast) – Pepe is not quite a household name yet but he’s another in line for a big move following this tournament after a breakthrough campaign. Pepe’s 22 goals and 11 assists helped Lille to a second place finish last season. He could, in fact, be joining Salah and Mane at Liverpool next season if the latest rumours are to be believed. However, one of Europe’s other giants is more likely.

Substitutes: FaroukBen Mustapha (Tunisia), Romain Saiss (Morocco), Kwadwo Asamoah (Ghana), Wilfred Ndidi (Nigeria), Wilfried Zaha (Ivory Coast), Baghdad Bounedjah (Algeria), Riyad Mahrez (Algeria)

Source: 90min.com

The Zambia national team has started their series of international friendly matches with a 2-1 loss at the hands of Cameroon, in a game played at the Estadio Cerro Del Espino in Madrid, Spain.

Beston Chambeshi named six U23 players in the starting line-up handing senior international debuts to Nkwazi left back Kebson Kamanga, Nkana centre back Moses Nyondo and Zesco United right back Shemmy Mayembe against the African Champions who are preparing for the Africa Cup of Nations tournament.

Cameroon opened the scoring in the second minute through Wolfsburg striker Ntep de Madiba. Madiba rose above everyone and headed the ball past Nkana goalkeeper Allan Chibwe to make it one nil.

Zambia recovered well from the early setback and took the game their opponents but where not doing enough to trouble Carlos Kameni in goal.

Joel Taguel added a second in the 71st minute and that proved to be the decisive goal for the game.

PSL top scorer and Black Leopards striker Mwape Musonda came off the bench for Fashion Sakala in the 71st minute to pull one back six minutes later but it was not enough to rescue a draw.

There were other senior debut appearances for Buildcon midfielder Klings Kangwa and Lusaka Dynamos defender Paul Banda who all came off the bench.

Next for the Chipolopolo will be another match against the Gambia on Wednesday.

Zambia XI

18. Allan Chibwe, 13. Shemmy Mayembe, 4. Kebson Kamanga (Paul Banda 88′), 14. Kabaso Chongo, 2. Moses Nyondo, 15. Salulani Phiri (Kings Kangwa 82′) 11. Enock Mwepu, 17. Augustine Mulenga, 10. Fashion Sakala (Mwape Musonda 71′) 20. Patson Daka, 12. Justin Shonga (Emmanuel Banda 65′)

Cameroon XI

Idriss Carlos Kameni – Tchatif, Yaya Banana, Jérôme Onguéné, Fai Collins – Pierre Kunde Malong, Petrus Boumal, Paul Georges Ntep, Fabrice Olinga, Jean-Pierre Nsame, Nicolas Moumi

Source: ZambiaFootball

Liverpool defender Joel Matip could be set for a return to the Cameroon side if the expected meeting with representatives of the Cameroon Football Federation (Fecafoot) goes according to plan.

The Uefa Champions League winning defender’s problems with Cameroon stem from a breakdown in communication with the previous coaching staff.

Matip missed the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) owing to his self-imposed exile, but the Indomitable Lions – managed by Hugo Broos at that time – won the tournament in Gabon.

Earlier this year, Clarence Seedorf told Goal that Matip and Nicolas Nkoulou – wouldn’t be begged to return to the side, although the door remained open if they had a change of heart.

However, according to a report by Football365, the team of representatives of Fecafoot will meet with the former Schalke defender momentarily and will bring up his absence from the national team.

Matip represented Cameroon at the Fifa World Cup in 2010 and 2014 but has never featured for the Central African nation in the greatest showpiece on the African continent having also rejected a call-up in 2010.

Matip was omitted from their provisional squad for the upcoming competition in Egypt.

The five-time African champions qualified for this year’s competition with a 3-0 defeat of Comoros in March and will aim to defend their title at the biennial tournament.

Seedorf’s charges begin their title defence in Group F against Guinea-Bissau at Ismailia Stadium on June 25, before facing off with four-time champions Ghana on June 29, with their final group encounter against Benin on July 2.Start the conversation

Goal.Com

The Cameroonian football federation (Fecafoot) is signing next June 7 in Montpellier, France, its partnership agreement with French sportswear manufacturer Le cop sportif. The paper will be inked by Fecafoot’s president Seidou Mbombo Njoya, and Patrick Ouyi, sports marketing director at Le coq sportif.

The line of sportswear specially designed by the manufacturer for the Cameroonian national football team will be unveiled during the ceremony. Under this partnership, the Cameroonian national women’s football team will also wear le cop sportif next June 10 for the FIFA Women’s World Cup, and will thus be the first to wear the outfits designed for Cameroonian players.

“This decision to inaugurate the new sportswear line with the women’s team is a major first, and reflects the interest and importance that both partners have for women’s football,” commented Fecafoot.

Let’s note that the French manufacturer provided outfits for the Cameroon national team between 1982 and 1987.

Source: Business in Cameroon

The 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, popularly known as Afcon, is the biennial championship in which Africa’s top men’s teams compete for the gold-plated African Nation Cup trophy. The winner will hoist that trophy after the final on Friday 19 July at the Cairo International Stadium.

This tournament, organised by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), will be the 32nd edition of the competition and the first in which the format has been expanded from 16 to 24 teams. All 24 teams have now confirmed their places.

According to a recent report by Nielsen Sports, Africa is one of the most engaged football markets globally. It matches even regions like Europe and South America. This supports the CAF’s decision to increase the competitiveness of the tournament.

Key things you need to know

Current title holders Cameroon were stripped of hosting rights last year due to delays with preparations and security concerns. Egypt was then selected as the host nation.

The timing of the competition is good news for fans of European teams. For the first time in the tournament’s history it’s being held during the European summer. This means African players who play for European clubs such as Liverpool’s Sadio Mané (Senegal) and Mohamed Salah (Egypt), or Manchester City’s Riyad Mahrez (Algeria) will not be withdrawn from club duty mid-season to participate in the tournament.

The 24 qualifying teams have been drawn into six groups of four teams each:

• Group A: DR Congo – Egypt – Uganda – Zimbabwe
• Group B: Burundi – Guinea – Madagascar – Nigeria
• Group C: Algeria – Kenya – Senegal – Tanzania
• Group D: Ivory Coast – Morocco – Namibia – South Africa
• Group E: Angola – Mali – Mauritania – Tunisia
• Group F: Benin – Cameroon – Ghana – Guinea Bissau.

The teams in each group will play in a single round robin format. After the group stage, the top two teams and the four best third teams will advance to the round of 16. The winners will advance to the quarterfinals stage, and from then on, progress to the semifinals. The semifinal losers will contest a third-place match, while semifinal winners will advance to the final.

The full schedule of fixtures can be found on the CAF website.

Egypt is being tipped as the tournament favourite going into the competition. They have been champions of Africa more times than any other nation, and have lost only twice in their last 25 home games against African opponents. And of course they have the prolific goal-scoring machine, Mohamed Salah, who is rated as being one of the best players in the world, both on club level for Liverpool and for Egypt.

Top 10 facts

1. Only three countries (Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia) took part in the first tournament in February 1957 and there was no qualifying competition. Egypt won.
   1. 2019 will be the first time the tournament features 24 teams, after CAF decided to expand the tournament to enhance competitiveness.
2. Egypt will be hosts for a record fifth time. They previously staged the Cup of Nations in 1959, 1974, 1986 and 2006, winning three of those four tournaments and finishing third in the other.
3. Egypt has been the most successful nation, with seven titles, followed by Cameroon (five), Ghana (four), Nigeria (three) and the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Ivory Coast (two each).
4. Madagascar, Burundi and Mauritania will be making their debuts at the tournament in 2019. Madagascar was a surprise qualifier and was among the first to qualify in October 2018, while Mauritania secured their ticket a month later with a game still to play. Burundi was definitely the biggest surprise. It currently occupies 138th spot out of 211 in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking. Twelve teams are yet to qualify for Africa’s biggest football tournament, including the Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Djibouti, Eritrea, Eswatini, Gambia, Lesotho, São Tomé and Príncipe, Seychelles, Somalia and South Sudan.
5. Cameroonian striker Samuel Eto’o is the leading overall Cup of Nations scorer, notching 18 goals in six tournaments between 2000 and 2010.
6. Egypt goalkeeper Essam El-Hadary became the oldest player at 44 years and 21 days to feature in the tournament when he faced Cameroon in the 2017 final in Libreville.
7. Shiva N’zigou of Gabon is the youngest player to feature and score at the tournament. He was 16 years and 93 days old when he played at Afcon in 2000, scoring for his team in a 1-3 defeat against South Africa.
8. The tournament has been switched to being held in odd-numbered years so as not to clash with the FIFA World Cup. Afcon will also, for the first time, be held mid-year, away from the traditional January – February window. This will alleviate the club-versus-country battles that have marred previous editions.
9. Three different trophies have been awarded during the tournament’s history. This is the third trophy, with the first and second awarded to Ghana and Cameroon in 1978 and 1984 respectively. Both won the trophy three times and therefore earned the right to keep it.

The current trophy was first awarded in 2002, and Egypt won it indefinitely after completing their historic treble of titles in 2010. Unlike Ghana and Cameroon, Egypt were presented with a replica, albeit a special full size one that they were allowed to keep.

Source: enca.com