Germany’s Manuel Neuer my major inspiration reveals Nwabali
Super Eagles goalkeeper and current rave of the moment Stanley Nwabali has revealed he draws a lot of inspiration from German goalkeeper Manuel Nueer. The Chippa United of South Africa safehand revealed that he loves watching the videos of his German counterpart before matches.
He made the revelation while speaking in an interview at the ongoing African Cup of Nations tournament, Nwabili, who has been very pivotal to the Super Eagles’ outstanding run at the Nations Cup, considered Neuer as his role model.
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“I love playing my PlayStation, I love watching my role model, I love watching Manuel Neuer even before my game, even two days before my game, even in the dressing room, I always watch him, and even before my game, I always play my PlayStation,” the Super Eagles goalkeeper said in a clip posted on the official X handle, Pooja.
Meanwhile, former South African player, Junior Khanye believes his country’s national team, Bafana Bafana have reached their last bus stop as they prepare to face Nigeria on Wednesday in the semifinals.
South Africa recorded a 2-0 defeat in their opening 2023 AFCON game which was against Mali. They bounced back by defeating Namibia 4-0 in their second group stage game and ended the group stage campaign with a 0-0 draw with Tunisia.
osimhen to join rest of the team Tuesday Feb.6
They stunned football enthusiasts on January 30 when they defeated the tournament’s favourites, Morocco 2-0 in the round of 16. They, however, struggled against Cape Verde in the quarter-finals and managed to win via a penalty shootout.
They will next face Super Eagles who have conceeded only one goal in five games of the tournament played so far.
Due to the unconvincing win against Cape Verde, Junior Khanye, who is a former South Africa under-23 international, argued that his team stands no chance against Nigeria.
He however commended the performance of South Africa’s goalkeeper Ronwen Williams, who saved four penalties in five shootouts against Cape Verde.
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The Eagles are in quest for a fourth AfCON title in Ivory Coast while South Africa are searching for their second title after the first one in 1996. They have ended as runners up in 1998, third place in 2000 and reached the quarterfinals three times 2002, 2013 and 2019.
The Eagles have already settled in Bouake after boarding a 10pm Air Cote D Ivoire flight
Osimhen did not however make the trip as a result of an abdominal discomfort. Team medics confirmed that he has been placed under close watch with a member of the medical team staying behind in Abidjan with him. If cleared by tomorrow morning, he will join the rest of the squad before 5pm.