Julius Okorie
CAF Confederation Cup campaigners Enyimba are standing on one leg after failing to grab three maximum points against vising Al Masry of Egypt at the weekend.
Enyimba who had bounced back into contention following their 4-1 defeat of Black Bulls of Mozambique last week, were expected to have consolidated with another victory against Al Masry to brighten their future of progressing in the competition.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelUnfortunately the battle against Al Masry at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium, ended in a 1-1 draw thus boxing the peoples Elephant in a tight corner ahead of their next came away to Zamalek of Egypt next Sunday.
Enyimba are thus condemned to win the match against Zamalek to enhance their chances of qualifying for the next round. The Aba landlords while doing their part, will also be praying for Black Bulls to earn victory against Al-Masry.
As a result of the draw, Enyimba remain in third place in CAF Confederation Group D, with five points. Should Enyimba succeed in earning victory against Zamalek they will catapult to eight points and move to the second position provided Al Masry lose to bottom placed Black Bulls.
In the event that the permutations fail to click, Zamalek and Al Masry are likely to emerge from the group leaving Enyimba and Black Bulls to leak their wounds and sing lamentation songs.
Enyimba had fortified with the engagement of veteran coach Stanley Eguma and signing of former Super Eagles forward Brown Ideye who has been impactful despite the team’s precarious situation.
Zamalek are already as good as qualified for the next round with 11 points in the kitty.
READ ALSO: CAF Conf Cup: Hope Rises For Enyimba, Turns Table Against Black Bulls
Meanwhile, as if telling whoever cares to listen that what is good for the goose is good for the gander, the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) has banned former Rivers United Media Officer, Sammy Wejinya from all NPFL related matters for the next one year.
Wejinya’s ban was pronounced on Sunday after an inquest into the crisis which rocked Rivers United’s NPFL match-day 18 game against Nasarawa United in Lafia on December 22, 2024, when he was attacked by irate home fans.
According to the NPFL board’s statement, Wejinya’s account of the incident was a misinterpretation of facts and harmed the image of the league.
“After a thorough inquest conducted into the fallout of the Nasarawa Utd v Rivers Utd game, the media aide of Rivers State sports commissioner, Sammy Wejinya, has been banned from all NPFL-related activities, including league venues, until the end of the season.” a part of the statement released by the NPFL read.
“Wejinya’s ban comes following a review of his article titled ‘Lafia, pain, blood and escaping death by whiskers’ misrepresented the true state of affairs.
“The exaggerated & false statements from the article have harmed the image of NPFL and brought the game into disrepute.
“Wejinya has been urged to refrain from actions that undermine the credibility of the NPFL in future as the decision was taken to safeguard the image of the league.”
The NPFL board is however yet to decide the fate of the two clubs following the violence which rocked the game.
The Nigerian topflight is currently on a mid-season break with actions set to return on January 25.
Sammy Wejinya currently serves as the media aide to the River State Commissioner for Sports, Chris Green
Recall that the NPFL went tough last season dishing out punitive measures to clubs and officials found on the wrong side of the rules including reigning league champions Rangers international, Enyimba as well as well as referee Bahir Saidu.
Julius Okorie is Chief Sports and Entertainment Correspondent for Prime Business Africa. He began his journalism career with the Champion Newspaper and Sporting Champion and later moved on to Daily Independent and the Nation Newspapers. Okorie joined Prime Business Africa in 2024 bringing on board 20 years of experience in writing investigative news on Sports and Entertainment. His well researched and highly informative articles on Sports Business and general entertainment are followed by a wide range of audience.
