NOC: Eaglets Have Done Nigeria Proud
Dogara, Adenuga, Ambode, Wike, Ahmed, others congratulate Chile 2015 champions
The Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC) has congratulated the Golden Eaglets for winning the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Chile last Sunday.
In a message signed by its President, Habu Gumel, the NOC said the Eaglets have made Nigerians proud after beating Mali 2-0 in the final to win an unprecedented and historic fifth title at the cadet stage.
Gumel said “the Golden Eaglets, with this historic victory in Chile, have made Nigerians proud and reinvigorated hope of a brighter and better future for our youths. “We join Nigerians to celebrate this triumph and hope that this victory will boost our sports development”.
The executive committee member of the International Olympic also urged the Nigeria Football Federation to monitor the progress of the players, who he hailed as exceptionally talented and disciplined.
Also speaking yesterday, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara and Deputy Speaker Yussuff Sulaimon Lasun hailed the Golden Eaglets over their victory in Chile.
Dogara, according to a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Mr. Turaki Hassan, said the team has done Nigerians proud.
He added that the hardwork and unity of purpose demonstrated by the team show that Nigeria can surmount its challenges and emerge victorious as a nation.
“I doff my hat for these young patriots who have written their names in gold in the annals of Nigeria’s soccer history,” Dogara said.
The Speaker who said he was looking forward to meeting with the team when they arrive Nigeria, called on authorities of the nation’s football and other sports to harness talents of young men and women in our country,” he advised.
Lasun, in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Oyewole Oladimeji, said the victory of the Eaglets is an indication that Nigeria still has the potential to grow and compete with other developed countries in sports.
“The victory is a demonstration that the country is not doing badly and that with honesty of purpose and hard work the nation can move forward,” he said.
Chairman of Globacom, Dr. Mike Adenuga Jr also congratulated the Golden Eaglets, President Muhammadu Buhari and the people of Nigeria on the victory of the team in Chile.
“It was indeed an unlimited performance by our dear Golden Eaglets. I congratulate them for emerging world champions. Once again, they have done exceptionally well to bring honour to Nigeria and Africa. We are proud of them,” Dr. Adenuga said.
He said that Globacom, as the major sponsor of Nigerian national football teams, would continue to contribute to the development of football which has always been the greatest unifying factor in the country.
“We congratulate President Muhammadu Buhari and the leadership of the Nigerian Football Federation for the moral and financial support that propelled the boys to global success,” he added.
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode also yesterday congratulated the Golden Eaglets for their feat at the Under-17 World Cup.
The governor, in a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Habib Aruna, said the resilience of the Eaglets to go all the way to defend their title which they won in the UAE two years ago was typical of the Nigerian spirit in the face of any daunting challenge.
“This is another eloquent testimony to the fact that Nigeria is a great country with enormous potential and we can achieve anything and everything if we are united and determined towards a course or a target.”
“In the opening minutes of the final match when the Nigerian team lost a penalty, they did not lose their heads, but remained focused on the task. Even when they went two goals ahead, they didn’t allow complacency to set in. This is commendable and inspiring and I can only hope that it signals the beginning of the return to the glory days of Nigerian football”.
“On behalf of the good people of Lagos State, I congratulate the victorious team, the technical team and all the backroom staff for this feat”, the governor said.
Similarly, Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike congratulated the Golden Eaglets and their technical crew for retaining the trophy through hard-work, display of soccer artistry and show of patriotism during the World Cup in Chile.
In a message sent out by his Special Assistant (Media), Simeon Nwakaudu, Governor Wike expressed happiness that the young footballers and their handlers did the nation proud during the competition, noting that with the professionalism displayed by the players, most of them would become world stars in no distant time.
He noted that his administration will continue to promote sports as a platform for empowering youths in line with the state’s New Rivers Development Blueprint .
Kwara State Governor, Dr Abdulfatah Ahmed, in his congratulatory message said the Golden Eaglets with this victory have kept Nigerians tenacity of making positive history, especially in age grade football alive, recalling that Nigeria won the first edition in China 30 years ago.
“This is a profound and unique instance of history repeating itself on a positive note, especially when it is recalled that in 30 years Nigeria has now won the cup five times. In the process, winning it back to back and throwing up all time highest goal scorer in Victor Osimhen thus earning the bragging rights as the best age grade football nation in the world”, he said.
According to the governor, on the road to victory, the Golden Eaglets played beautiful football, with a lot of panache couched in clinical ruthlessness that made football looked simple but interesting”.
Governor Ahmed charged Nigerians to make the enduring values of selfless service, unquestionable love for the fatherland that the Eaglets’ victory underscore manifest in all aspects of their national life.
“If on the field of play Nigerians never bothered where each player comes from, if the religious persuasions or lack of it, of each player never raised any concern; if as a nation we can rally round our teams in unison without such ethno-religious biases why can’t we translate such high qualities of patriotism into other aspects of our national life”, the governor wondered.
He advised the football authority in the country to ensure that the Golden Eaglets are properly counseled as they chart new paths in their football careers so that their dreams of football excellence on the world scale would not be aborted before take off like those of some of their predecessors.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) said that the superlative performance of the Golden Eaglets that saw them winning the 2015 FIFA Under-17 World Cup in Chile epitomizes the can-do spirit of Nigerians.
In a statement issued in Abuja yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party also said the harvest of honours by the team is a reflection of the nation’s ongoing rebirth under the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, who incidentally was also the leader of the country when it won the inaugural Under-17 World Cup, known then as FIFA Under-16 World
Championship, in China in 1985.
‘’As President Buhari has always said, Nigeria has what it takes to surmount any obstacle and to excel in all areas of human endeavour. There is no better affirmation of that statement than the fact that our young footballers have achieved a feat that no other nation has achieved - winning the U-17 World Cup five times and in grand style.
‘’We hail the determination, doggedness, discipline and patriotism of the Golden Eaglets and their officials, and we have no doubt that the team’s success will reverberate not only in the sports sector but in all other areas, as the APC-led Federal Government kick-starts a national rejuvenation process,’’ APC said.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also described the victory by the Golden Eaglets, as a bold statement by the Nigerian youth against series of uninspiring and negative utterances and actions of President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC government that has been de-marketing the nation in the international arena.
PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, in a statement yesterday said the victory is a clear demonstration that Nigeria, as a country is endowed with enormous talents and potentials waiting to be exhibited to the entire world.
The party said the victory further expresses the resilient spirit of Nigerians despite a discouraging government that has not only shown an obvious inability to chart a clear course of governance and the future of the youth, but also refused to acknowledge the potentials in its citizens.
“The time has come for us to dwell less on our negatives but to showcase the positives, the talents and indeed the natural resources waiting to be harnessed and exhibited for foreign investments and participation in our economy.
“Finally, the PDP states that this victory should be a wake-up call on President Muhammadu Buhari to recognize the hardworking spirit of Nigerians, our overflowing talents and welldeveloped natural endowments,” concludes the PDP spokesman.
Wife of the Governor of Ogun State, Mrs. Olufunso Amosun congratulated the Golden Eaglets for winning the FIFA Under-17 World Cup for the record fifth-time.
“Let’s assist them to explore the full potential of their capabilities, as is with the case of Akpan Udoh previously a member of UPLIFT Football Team that was sponsored to Italy for a football training camp in 2013,” she recalled.
Udoh, Golden Eaglets’ number one goalkeeper, was one of the 22 young football players of the UPLIFT Football Team, sponsored on soccer training to the Udinese Football Club in Italy by Mrs. Amosun in 2013.
Born in July, 1999, Udoh was a student of Akesan Community High School in Iperu Remo in Ogun State at the time he was discovered and nurtured through Mrs Amosun’s pet project.
The Owner and Sole Sponsor of Go-Round Football Club, Bro. Felix Obuah has commended the Golden Eaglets of Nigeria for successfully defending the U-17 World Cup which they won two years ago.
Reacting to the victory of the Nigerian lads over their Malian counterparts in Chile Sunday night, Obuah who is also the Chairman of the Rivers State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said the victory has once more proven that Nigeria is a dominant force in youth football.
He described the feat as unparalleled as the Eaglets have now won the cup five times.
Bro. Felix Obuah also called on the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to leverage on the victory by developing a succession programme to strengthen the senior national teams.