Mali edged closer to the last eight of the Africa Cup of Nations on Friday when they held Nigeria to a goalless draw in a crucial Group B match.
Mali now have four points from two matches, while Nigeria have just one point.
Nigeria made several changes to the team which started their opening defeat to the Ivory Coast.
PHOTO: AP
Osaze Odemwingie replaced injured Nwankwo Kanu, Obinna Nsofor came in for John Utaka while Obinna Nwaneri was preferred to Onyekachi Apam at right back.
The Eagles started out by delivering long balls behind the Malian defense in search of twin strikers Obafemi Martins and Yakubu Aiyegbeni, who used his size and power to good effect.
The first shot fired in anger was in the 16th minute when Martins rifled home from the top of the box but goalkeeper Mahamadou Sidibe went down well to make a comfortable save. Soon after Yakubu, set up by Odemwingie, also fired a grounder, but again Sidibe saved easily.
Mali paraded a top-class midfield that included Mahamadou Diarra, Seydou Keita and Mohammed Sisoko, but Chelsea ace Mikel along with Wolves midfielder Seyi Olofinjana held their own in the engine room.
However, Olofinjana will miss Nigeria's next group game against Benin after he was booked for the second time in the competition in the 37th minute for a late tackle on Seydou Keita.
Mali skipper Mahamadou Dirra will also miss his team's next game after a rough tackle on Ikechukwu Uche in the dying minutes.
Nigeria started brightly again after the break, but it was Mali who threatened to open the scoring in the 47th minute when Seydou Keita's low shot was pushed away by Austin Ejide for a corner kick.
But it was the Super Eagles who came closest to a goal in the 59th minute after Yakubu bundled into goalkeeper Sidibe.
On 70 minutes Sidibe was alert to save a long distance Shittu free kick after it took a slight deflection.
Mali's effective use of the offside trap kept the Nigerians at bay. Yakubu who had an effort in the 79th minute ruled out for offside.
Keita's effort from 20m then grazed the crossbar in the 81st minute with Ejide well beaten.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two