RandaFooty: Everything Nigerian football, home and abroad

So we huffed and puffed our way to the semi-finals of the CHAN tournament in Morocco. It was another come-from-behind win, we did it the hard way again. We had to come from behind to beat Equatorial Guinea in our last group game and we made hard work of the quarter-final tie against the Palancas Negras.

Rivers United will be gunning for a third consecutive home win in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) this season when they face Enyimba International in Port Harcourt on Sunday. United have won on each of the last two occasions they have faced Enyimba in the NPFL in Port Harcourt and will be hoping normal service continues on Sunday. Enyimba however look to be on a renaissance this term and won 1-0 against Nasarawa United in their last NPFL game on Thursday at the UJ Esuene Stadium, Calabar. Stanley Dimgba scored the winner against the Solid Miners and he is likely to start against the ‘Pride of Rivers’ on Sunday, supported by a stellar cast that includes Stephen Chukwude, Chinedu Udeagha and fearsome attacker, Chinonso Okonkwo who makes a return to his old stomping ground. Okonkwo is a darling in Port Harcourt having played his part as United punched above their weight to finish as runners up behind Enugu Rangers in the NPFL two seasons ago.

Nigeria came from a goal down to beat Equatorial Guinea 3-1 to qualify for the quarter-finals of the CHAN tournament in Morocco. The Eagles fell behind in the first half but rallied back to hit three past their opponents to top the group ahead of Libya who also beat Rwanda 1-0 to come second behind Nigeria. Here are some of the highlights from the game last night.

Searching for more goals for FCIU FC Ifeanyiubah striker Godwin Obaje has started the league with a bang  as he scored his third goal in as many games as he helped the Nnewi  side beat Kwara United 2-0 in a week three game of the Nigeria  Professional League on Sunday. Obaje has scored in all the games his side has played this season as he is looking like the striker that won the top scorer award in the 2015/16 season when he banged in 18 goals. He scored on matchday one against Yobe Desert Stars before another goal in the 2-1 away loss to Niger Tornadoes. Obaje opened the scoring for in Sunday’s game before going off injured.

Match Day 3 results of the 2017/18 Nigeria Professional Football League. First loss for Plateau United and Niger Tornadoes as well as first wins for Rangers and Nasarawa United while Kwara United were condemned to their third straight defeat in as many games

In action vs Rivers United Reigning Nigeria Professional Football League champions Plateau United have started the new season like a house on fire and have left no one in doubt that their performances last season wasn't a flash int he pan. The Jos side has picked up maximum points from two games so far and even though it is early days, they have shown they mean business this term. A 1-0 win over Nasarawa United was followed up by an impressive 2-0 win over Rivers United in Jos where Plateau put up a show to easily see off the visitors. Signing the dotted lines for Plateau United. One man who has been ever present in Plateau’s strong start to the season is newly signed right back Terna Suswan.

Ayisat delivering her speech at the event  No matter the circumstance, you can make a mark: Ayisat Yusuf Aromire. This was indeed the words of encouragement spoken by Ayisat Yusuf Aromire during the She football campaign in Lagos. Ayisat an ex-Falcons player based in Finland was on hand to give back to the society through The She football campaign a personal innovation by her to touch the lives of women footballers. She gave these words of encouragement in Lagos during the seminar in Ogudu that later dovetailed into a mini-tournament on Sunday.

The Nigeria Professional Football League resumes this weekend across the country with NPFL faithfuls eager to see their teams strut their stuff on the pitch. As usual, the battle for the title will begin more so the battle for survival. One thing for sure is that just like death and taxes, a coach will surely be fired. Not a question of 'if' but 'when'. The NPFL is tough and unforgiving as such. I spoke to a few league experts who dropped their thoughts on who they reckon will win the league, who will be relegated, what players will shine and which coach is odds on favorite to get the boot. But before that, here is what I think;

The wait is finally over and action returns to the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) this weekend. Rivers United will face El Kanemi Warriors in one of the stand out fixtures of the opening weekend of the 2017/18 NPFL campaign at the Yakubu Gowon Stadium, Port Harcourt. United largely underwhelmed last season with only a late surge preventing a shock relegation to the second tier of Nigerian football in a season the ‘Pride of Rivers’ flew the flag of the nation in Africa’s premiere club competition, the CAF Champions League.

By Faith Oluchi 2017 was a year that came with so much expectations for football administrators, journalists and fans. Now that the year has come to a close, it is time to do an appraisal of football in Nigeria in the past year. Did we really achieve much in 2017?  I decided to take a stock of all that happened in our country, football-wise, in 2017. 1. Nigerian Women Football League (NWFL): 2017 was a year during which the present board of the Women's league led by Aisha Falode should be commended for being able to steady the ship without so many controversies.