NIGERIA can't afford to underestimate LIBERIA, says MIKEL

Super Eagles midfielder Mikel Obi have said Liberia must not be taken lightly in a final qualifier for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations. Thursday’s draw in Johannesburg,South Africa, will see Nigeria take on the Lone Star of Liberia for a place in the AFCON finals that will also be hosted by South Africa. The first leg of the qualifiers will be played between September 7-9 in Liberia,while the return leg will be staged in Calabar between October 12-14. Chelsea star Mikel told MTNFootball.com Nigeria could not have asked for an easier draw,but at the same time the Eagles must take the game seriously as there are no longer minnows in the world. “The draw was a good one for us,we couldn’t have asked for an easier opponent than that. I am not underrating Liberia,” Mikel said. “I see us beating them, but we have to be careful and take them seriously because there are no minnows in football, we have to give our best in the game.”

ARSENAL ADJOURN NIGERIA TRIP

The North London club had scheduled a match against the Super Eagles,which was set to take place on the 5th of August. This trip was set to be the first match that the team played in Africa, following Arsene Wenger being appointed manager of the club. However, the way things are going, it seems like this trip is no longer going to take place on the date that it was supposed to. The club has claimed that they have some logistical problems and these are going to prevent the match to take place on the scheduled dates. Marketing director Angus Kinnear is quoted to have said: "Bringing a top-level club to an international market is always complicated and logistically challenging.” "With the proposed match in Nigeria planned for early August, we could not get comfortable on everything needed to satisfy our requirements,so we have reluctantly taken the decision to postpone the team’s visit." He then went on to apologize to the African fans who were looking forward to the game, as he admitted that the club would try to balance things out and could be in the country next summer. "We have a huge and loyal following in Africa, and we are sorry that the team will not be visiting this summer," he continued. "However, we have a long-term commitment to Nigeria and we are already making plans for a visit next summer.” The club haven’t really revealed as to what the details are for the trip, since they seem to be blaming it all on logistical problems. What is rather interesting, is the fact that the club made these announcements only hours after Robin Van Persie revealed that he won’t be sticking around at the Emirates. Many believe that the club are trying to resolve that situation, before they can think of travelling to numerous countries, in order to have a successful pre season.