•As Dalung thanks CAF over financial support
Joe Apu
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko said on Wednesday that the infrastructure for the 2018 FIFA World Cup must be ready by April 1, noting that the stadiums for the tournament must be commissioned by March and handed over to the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) Russia-2018 on May 25.
“On the whole, we have a clear-cut schedule on the completion of works, we must be fully ready with the infrastructure by April 1 and we will be able to hand over everything to the LOC and FIFA by May 31,” Mutko, who oversees the issues of sports, tourism and youth affairs in the Russian government, told journalists.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Minister of Youth and Sports Solomon Dalung has thanked the President of the Confederation of African Football CAF Ahmad for his support to the five African nations which qualified for the World Cup in Russia with particular reference to Nigeria’s football team. Dalung showed his gratitude in a meeting with Ahmad on Wednesday at the Four Seasons Hotel Casablanca, Morocco where Nigeria’s Super Eagles Team B are currently taking part in the African Championship CHAN.
The CAF President granted a financial subsidy of five hundred thousand US dollars to the five African teams which qualified for the World Cup in Russia to strengthen the technical supervision of the teams as well as a Fieldwiz equipment, a technological device used for measuring the physical performance for outdoor team sports players.
The teams include the Super Eagles of Nigeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Morocco and Senegal.
‘I wish to thank you for turning around African football and giving it a facelift. Football in Africa today has been revolutionized and the effects of what we are seeing now is unprecedented. CAF now consists of a new generation of football administrators and I am happy too that we have a Nigerian in the person of Amaju Pinnick in the inner caucus of CAF.
“I thank you for supporting Nigeria with five hundred thousand dollars and an outdoor performance measurement equipment. This will assist the Nigeria Football Federation in preparing the Super Eagles for the World Cup.”
The CAF President Ahmad also praised Nigeria for qualifying for the quarter finals of CHAN adding that Nigeria has always been the cynosure of all eyes at African and World Cup tournaments.
“Nigeria has played an important role in African football and is the strongest African contender at the World Cup in Russia. CAF is backing Nigeria to make a mark at the 2018 World Cup. We must prepare our African teams to make us proud at the World Cup,” Ahmad said.
Also at the meeting was President of the Nigeria Football Federation Amaju Pinnick, the Nigerian Ambassador to Morocco Hon Edward Pakwok and Mrs Alabi Loveth Funmilayo, a staff of the Ministry.