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2022 FIFA World Cup: Clint Dempsey Points Out Where The USMNT Needs To Improve

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FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022

The United States men’s national team (USMNT) will be returning to the FIFA World Cup this year, having missed out on Russia 2018. Prior to that tournament, the Stars and Stripes had appeared at seven successive World Cups, with their best performance coming at the quarterfinal stage in 2002.


SuperSport viewers on DStv and GOtv will be counting down the days to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, with the tournament set to run from 21 November to 18 December and provide the most thrilling distillation of the widely-watched tournament


The US did not qualify for Qatar 2022 with any great flourish: they finished three points off the pace set by Canada and Mexico in the third round of the CONCACAF tournament and were only ranked ahead of Costa Rica on goal difference.


Clint Dempsey, who racked up 141 caps for the USMNT and shares the record as their all-time leading scorer in international football (57 goals, tied with Landon Donovan), has pointed the areas where coach Gregg Berhalter’s team needs to improve before facing the likes of England and Iran in the group stage at Qatar 2022.


“We’re missing a No. 9,” said the retired striker. “I think someone needs to kind of solidify that role and be the main guy. For example, if you’re looking at Canada with [Jonathan] David and Cyle Larin, they’ve both been doing a great job … if one is out, another one steps in and they don’t really miss a beat.


“Also, with teams [that are] going to be pressing us, I think that we need to do a better job of building out of the back with our centre backs and having that confidence to try to play. So it’d be interesting to see how things play out for the team. I think that they do have the quality to get out of the group [in Qatar]. They’ve just got to be at full strength.”


Dempsey also believes that goalkeepers Zack Steffen and Matt Turner need to see more playing time at club level to ensure they are on top of their games for the tournament in November and December.

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Unity Cup 2025: Africa Meets the Caribbean in London on GOtv

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The 2025 edition of the Unity Cup kicks off today in London. The competition returns after 21 years, ready to deliver a week of football, culture, and community. Running from May 27 to 31 at the Gtech Community Stadium in Brentford, the tournament features four national teams: Nigeria, Ghana, Jamaica, and Trinidad & Tobago, each competing in a straight knockout format. It’s football with flair, backed by a deeper mission: celebrating the enduring ties between Africa and the Caribbean.Today’s opener sees Trinidad & Tobago face Jamaica at 7:45 pm, while tomorrow brings a blockbuster clash between long-time West African rivals Nigeria and Ghana at 7 pm. Winners advance to the final on May 31, with a third-place playoff earlier that day.But Unity Cup 2025 is more than a sporting contest. It doubles as a diaspora culture festival, with music, food, and performances that reflect the richness of African and Caribbean heritage, especially among UK-based communities.Launched in 2002 to promote unity through sport, the tournament returns at a time when questions of identity, solidarity, and representation feel more urgent than ever. Its comeback is both timely and symbolic.For participating teams, the stakes go beyond pride. Nigeria, for example, sees the Unity Cup as a valuable warm-up ahead of their FIFA World Cup qualifiers, giving the coaching crew a chance to test combinations and sharpen the team’s rhythm.With top-level football, carnival-like atmosphere, and GOtv bringing it straight to your screen, Unity Cup 2025 is shaping up to be an unforgettable celebration of connection, on and off the pitch. Stay tuned to GOtv for match details and coverage updates.

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Redemption, UCL at Stake: Europa League Final on GOtv

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on Wednesday night in the Europa League final, with both clubs seeking to rescue poor domestic campaigns and qualify for next season’s Champions League. The game is live at 8 PM.

For Manchester United, it has been a season of contrasts. While currently 16th in the league was nothing short of disastrous, their European form has told a different story. Under new manager Ruben Amorim, United have stormed through the knockout rounds, seeing off Real Sociedad, Lyon, and Athletic Bilbao with a combined score of 19-9. The semi-final demolition of Bilbao, 7–1 over two legs, was particularly emphatic as seen on GOtv.

Tottenham’s domestic struggles were not far off. With a club record 21 league defeats, Ange Postecoglou’s side are 17th behind United on the table. Like United, their European form has offered a welcome distraction. Spurs edged out AZ Alkmaar and Eintracht Frankfurt before comfortably dispatching FK Bodø/Glimt in the last four.

For Spurs, this final represents more than a shot at silverware; it is a chance to end a 17-year wait for a major trophy. For United, it is about revival and a return to Europe’s top competition. The Europa League final may yet deliver a fitting finale in a season of chaos. Catch the game live at 8 pm on SS Football (GOtv channel 61).

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NFF appoints Malian Chelle as Eagles coach

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The Nigeria Football Federation appointed Mali coach Éric Chelle as the new head coach of Nigeria’s senior men’s national football team, becoming the third man to be in charge of the Super Eagles since the resignation of Jose Peseiro in March 2024.Chelle’s appointment was confirmed by the NFF on Tuesday, hours after president Ibrahim Gusau in another video had said the appointment would be soon.“The Executive Committee of the Nigeria Football Federation has endorsed the recommendation of its Technical and Development Sub-Committee for the appointment of Mr. Éric Sékou Chelle as Head Coach of Nigeria’s senior men national football team, Super Eagles,” NFF said in a statement.“At its meeting held in Abuja on Thursday, January 2, 2025, the NFF Technical and Development Sub-Committee had recommended the appointment of the former coach of the senior men national team of Mali as the new head coach of the Super Eagles. This recommendation was on Tuesday, 7th January endorsed by the NFF Executive Committee.”

According to the NFF president, Gusau, Chelle’s work will begin immediately with the home-based Super Eagles at the 2024 African Nations Championship in Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda where Nigeria will be competing with 17 other countries from February 1-28.

“We are all concerned and we want whoever will take charge of the team must start immediately and that is why we also have the policy that it is the same coach that will manage the CHAN Eagles. So, you cannot have the opportunity to manage a team comprising of home-based players and at the end of the tournament, you come back to tell us that you don’t see one or two that can be injected into the senior national team.”The Super Eagles B are currently in camp at the Remo Stars Stadium in Ikenne under the tutelage of Remo Stars Coach Daniel Ogunmodede and his Rangers International Counterpart Fidelis Ilechukwu as well as goalkeeper trainer Olatunji Baruwa, who led the team through the qualifiers against Ghana.

Chelle, who won five caps for the Aiglons of Mali and coached clubs such as GS Consolat, FC Martigues, Boulogne and MC Oran, has been head Coach of the Aiglons since 2022.At the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations finals, Chelle’s Mali came very close to a place in the semi-finals, losing to hosts and eventual winners Ivory 2-1 after extra time, after leading by a lone goal until the final minute of regulation time.Another work cut out for him would be guiding the Super Eagles to earn a ticket to the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals, with the team currently languishing in fifth place in their qualifying group ahead of the next round of matches taking place in March.

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