AC Milan’s new signing, Christian Pulisic has opened up about his time at his former club, Chelsea FC. Pulisic joined Milan for 22 million euros and signed a four-year deal with the club.
The 24-year-old American joined Chelsea from Borussia Dortmund in 2019 and made 145 appearances during his four seasons with Chelsea, scoring 26 goals and adding 21 assists.
Pulisic admitted that he could have been given more opportunities to prove himself at the club while speaking with ESPN.
“Of course there are definitely times where I wish I could’ve gotten more of an opportunity and been that guy, but yeah, for whatever reason, that’s not the case, and like I said, I’m just so excited for this new challenge, and I’m definitely ready and up for it.”
Speaking on his new adventure, he said
Obviously, I want a fair opportunity like everyone else to have the chance to come here. I still need to earn my place, of course, but it felt like I was wanted here, and I have a great opportunity, if I show good effort, good attitude every day and train well, that I’m going to get the opportunity to go out and perform.”
He will reunite with Olivier Giroud, Fikayo Tomori, and Reuben Loftus Cheek at the club
[OpinionNigeria]
Air Peace CEO, Allen Onyema, firmly believes that the secondary school football teams of the 1980s would triumph over the present-day Super Eagles if they were to meet on the pitch, The PUNCH reports.
The Nigeria senior team has only won four of their nine games under new manager Jose Peseiro, losing the remaining five, with the side scoring 18 goals and conceding 15.
Perhaps, the recent results may have influenced Onyema’s assertion.
“Those days used to be very tough. In fact, secondary school games in those days used to be tough. I remember when I played for Government College, Ughelli, they even killed one of our school boys in Agbarho (Delta State). It used to be tough in those days,” Onyema told The PUNCH.
“Let me tell you, secondary school teams in the 70s will beat our national team of today. The present national team will be nowhere near the secondary school teams of yesteryear. I’m not talking about clubs, those days, secondary school teams were unlike these days,” he said.
“Today, secondary schools are now in two-storey buildings, no compound, no playground. Everybody is protective of their child, nobody allows the child to go out again to experience the street life,” Onyema added.
He advocated for the use of football as a means to generate employment opportunities and called on the government to prioritise sports.
“We should use football to create jobs. I call on this government to look into sports, if they can invest in it and make the place safe for people to go and recreate on weekends, we will bring back that followership. It will still happen again,” the entrepreneur said.
Former welterweight champion, Kamaru Usman has declared his willingness to take on Conor McGregor because they both share similar career trajectories.
Since headlining UFC 286 in London, when he lost to Leon Edwards in the rubber match for the trilogy title, Usman, the top-ranked welterweight contender, hasn’t participated in any competitions.
On the other hand, since McGregor suffered a serious leg injury during a contest with Dustin Poirier, the 34-year-old Irish mixed martial artist, who formerly held the undisputed lightweight and featherweight crowns, has yet to make an appearance inside the Octagon.
Usman and the welterweight division have not yet engaged in combat even though McGregor is reportedly interested in the fight for quite some time now.
McGregor hasn’t yet re-joined the USADA testing pool, therefore according to UFC president Dana White, his future in mixed martial arts is in doubt.
After Usman’s scheduled fight with Khamzat Chimaev was rescheduled, he extended an invitation to McGregor to a showdown in place of the rescheduled fight.
Because both fighters are looking to bounce back from recent setbacks, UFC enthusiasts are extremely intrigued by the potential fight between Usman and McGregor.
In an interview with the press ahead of the UFC 290, Kamaru Usman said, “Conor (McGregor) said he’s always wanted to fight me at 170 pounds, so that makes sense.
“I’m not the champ any more, so, hey, let’s do it.”
While UFC president Dana White added, “We’ll see how that plays out… I don’t talk about sh*t until sh*t happens, you know what I mean?”
bia State Governor Alex Otti has approved the appointment of former Super Eagles skipper and two-time CAF Player of the Year, Nwankwo Kanu as the new chairman of Enyimba International Football Club of Aba.
Nwankwo will be replacing the club’s longest serving chairman Felix Anyansi Agwu who was in charge of the team for 24 years .
Kanu’s appointment was confirmed by the Abia State Commissioner for Information and Culture, Prince Okey Kanu yesterday in a terse press statement which read thus: “Sporting legend and former Super Eagles’ star, Mr. Kanu Nwankwo has been appointed to supervise Enyimba Football Club to strengthen the team and make it win more laurels for the State.”
Kanu twice won the coveted African Footballer of the Year award first in 1996 after leading Nigeria to win historic Africa’s first Olympic Games football gold medal in Atlanta Georgia. He made an encore in 1999 during his days with Arsenal.
Under Anyansi, Enyimba became a household name across the continent as the first Nigerian club to win the continent’s most prestigious club competition , the CAF Champions League trophy in 2003 and made an encore in 2004. The club also won the African Super Cup twice in 2004 and 2005.
On the domestic Nigeria football scene, Enyimba won a record nine Nigeria Premier Football League title as well as four national cup otherwise known as Federation Cup among other laurels.
Man United scout and former Rangers and Aberdeen coach Tommy Moller Nielsen passes away aged 61 as Scottish sides lead tributes
AdminA Manchester United scout has passed away at the age of 61.
Tommy Moller Nielsen was a talent scout with the Red Devils since 2016 after retiring from playing and entering a career in coaching.
The son of former Denmark manager Richard Moller Nielsen, he was a popular figure in Dutch football having played for the likes of Odense Boldklub and Kjobenhavns Boldklub.
He also featured for Boldklubben 1909 and Odense Kammeraternes Sportsklub in Denmark before taking the step into coaching.
During a long coaching career he spent time at the likes of Rangers, Aberdeen and FC Vestsjaelland before making the move to England under Jose Mourinho.
Manchester United scout Tommy Moller Nielsen has passed away at the age of 61
Moller Nielsen was appointed first team coach at Rangers in 1997, handed the opportunity by Walter Smith.
He stayed on board with the club under Dick Advocaat and was part of the coaching staff that helped the club win the league title in 1999 from arch rivals Celtic.
After a short spell with Aberdeen, he moved on to take the reigns as a manager again having led the likes of Boldklubben 1909, firstly back at the club before managing Viborg and HB Koge.
Rangers led the tributes to the Dane on social media, posting: 'All at Rangers FC are saddened to hear of the passing of our former first team coach, Tommy Moller Nielsen, at the age of 61. Our thoughts are with his family at this difficult time.'
Rangers led the tributes to the Dane on social media after his passing was confirmed
Aberdeen added: 'Everyone at AFC is saddened to learn of the passing of Tommy Moller Nielsen at the age of 61.'
Odense Boldklub, meanwhile, also offered their condolences following his death.
They posted: 'It is with deep sadness that we have received the message that the former first team player and OB ambassador Tommy Møller Nielsen has passed away.
'All our thoughts go out to Tommy's family and friends at this difficult time.'
[DailyMail]
Barcelona have made two first-team signings so far this summer with Ilkay Gundogan and Inigo Martinez arriving earlier this month.
While the official announcements have been made for both their signings, the club has yet to present either of them as their new players.
And now Mundo Deportivo is reporting that Barcelona have set the dates for the official presentations of Gundogan and Martinez following their summer arrivals.
Gundogan was the first of the two signings to be confirmed, with the midfielder arriving from Manchester City on a free transfer after his contract expired.
The 32-year-old has signed a two-year contract with an option for a third depending on the number of appearances he makes in his second season.
Now, MD is reporting that Barcelona will officially present Gundogan at the club’s Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper complex next Monday, July 17.
The midfielder has been given an extended break after his involvement in international fixtures last month and will be joining the pre-season camp next week, which is when he will be presented officially as a Barça star.
As for Martinez, his signing was officially confirmed only last week and the defender, who also signed for free from Athletic Club, has already started pre-season training under Xavi.
The 32-year-old left-footed centre-back has signed a two-year contract with the Blaugrana and his presentation is set to take place this coming Thursday, following a double training session on Tuesday and the afternoon session on Wednesday.
The transfer business is far from done for Barcelona though as they have all but confirmed the signing of Vitor Roque from Athletico Paranaense, although his arrival could be delayed until January 2024.
Oriol Romeu is another player who is understood to be close to joining the La Liga champions in the near future while work is also being done to rope in Ivan Fresneda.
[barcauniversal]
John Souttar believes he will benefit from the rigours of Rangers’ pre-season training as he prepares to battle for his place in Michael Beale’s side next season.
The revamped Light Blues squad are being put through their paces in Germany with a view to a flying start to next season.
Beale has signed six new players, with the promise of more to come, and the Gers defender told RangersTV that he is in a good place.
Souttar, whose 2022/23 season was hampered by injury before he was involved in Scotland’s Euro 2024 qualifying campaign wins over Norway and Georgia, said: “For me it is the first time in a couple of years I will have had a proper pre-season where I am feeling fit and feeling 100 percent.
“It gives you a base for the rest of the season, you are not catching up with the lads or feeling like you are behind, you are right on it.
“This next week or two will give me a great base to hopefully have an injury-free season, so I am looking forward to it.
“Everyone is really hungry and when there are that number of new boys that come in everyone automatically has got to fight for their shirt.
“It is always the case at Rangers, but even more so now with the amount of quality that has been brought in and I think everyone is aware of that.
“There are only 11 jerseys for the first game of the season so everyone is going to be fighting for it and that can only be a good thing going forward.
“It has got a slightly different feel to it with the new players coming in and I am looking forward to seeing them all in training.
“These few weeks are massive, especially when there are new boys coming in, they are getting a feel for the club and how everyone gets on – off the pitch is as important as on it.
“Especially in pre-season, getting to know everyone’s characters, what they are like and what pushes them, so it is good, and everyone is going to enjoy getting away and enjoy creating bonds.
“I think that is what pre-season is about, when you are at home you don’t really get that 24/7 with the lads and hopefully it is the foundation for a successful season for us.”
[irishnews]
Al-Hilal are desperate to lure Man City’s Bernardo Silva to the Saudi Arabian league and have told the Premier League champions that they are willing to pay €70m for the Portuguese midfielder.
That is according to CBS’ James Benge, who reports that the Saudi club have also offered Silva a massive salary worth €50m-a-year. However, the Man City star is yet to decide on his future and is not sure where he will play next season.
The 28-year-old is also wanted by Ligue 1 champions PSG, but City will only sell to the French club if they can convince them to part-exchange with talented teenager Warren Zaire-Emery, reports RMC Sport.
Silva has a contract at the Etihad until 2025 and Man City will not stand in his way if the Portugal international wants to challenge himself elsewhere; however, the European champions want their asking price to be matched and that is something Al Hilal are willing to do.
It remains unclear if Man City would accept a bid if it arrives and it is also uncertain if Silva wants to move to Saudi Arabia during the prime of his career.
[caughtoffside]
Everton have made an enquiry about signing Manchester United goalkeeper Tom Heaton.
United manager Erik ten Hag has already blocked a move from newly-promoted Luton Town to try and sign England international Heaton. But Everton are now also trying to lure Heaton away in another twist in the goalkeeping crisis at Old Trafford.
Everton have Jordan Pickford as their established No1 but the England keeper has attracted interest in the past but – more pressingly – last season’s back-up Asmir Begovic left Goodison Park at the end of the campaign.
That could leave Everton with a vacancy in the keeper department and United are clearly trying to sign a replacement for David de Gea. They are close to clinching a deal for Inter Milan keeper Andre Onana and are believed to be looking for ANOTHER keeper after de Gea’s departure.
Heaton is well respected at Old Trafford as being a top pro and he signed a two-year contract in 2021 with a further one-year option.
Luton were planning to sign Heaton with the promise of regular first team football which they hoped would lure the experienced keeper to Kenilworth Road. But they face competition from Everton, who want an experienced, top quality keeper.
Meanwhile, United are set to complete a deal for Cameroon keeper Onana as the man who Ten Hag wants as his new No1. United have already made a £50m bid for the Inter keeper but the Italian club want at least £60m.
However, Inter are ready to negotiate with a deal moving closer and it would also likely give them cash to spend on potentially making a fresh move for Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku.
Ten Hag worked with Onana at previous club Ajax and believes he is the right man to take De Gea’s place in the side. The Spaniard confirmed his departure on Saturday, bringing to an end his 12-year stay with United.
He wrote: "We’ve achieved a lot since my dear Sir Alex Ferguson brought me to this club. I took incredible pride every time I pulled on this shirt, to lead the team, to represent this institution, the biggest club in the world was an honour only bestows upon a few lucky footballers.
"It’s been an unforgettable and successful period since I came here. I didn’t think from leaving Madrid as a young boy we would achieve what we did together. Now, it’s the right time to undertake a new challenge, to push myself again in new surroundings. Manchester will always be in my heart, Manchester has shaped me and will never leave me. We’ve seen it all."
[mirror.co.uk]
Arsenal have a surprise next signing from LaLiga in their sights and Barcelona’s ‘slowness’ could prove decisive for the Gunners, per a report.
Arsenal are spending big this summer, with Kai Havertz already banked to the tune of £65m. Deals for Jurrien Timber and Declan Rice have been agreed. The Ajax defender and West Ham captain will cost £38.5m and £105m respectively.
Timber’s move will be a blow to Man Utd who tried in vain to sign the Dutch international last year. The versatile 22-year-old is equally adept at playing at right-back or centre-half and is known for his elite passing range.
Arsenal expert Charles Watts exclusively told TEAMtalk it’s Ben White who is most at risk once Timber arrives. White spent last season deputising at right-back, though may be relegated to the bench if Arteta puts his faith in Timber from day one.
However, according to Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo, another right-back is in Arsenal’s sights.
Indeed, MD state Arsenal’s interest in Real Valladolid’s Ivan Fresneda – which dates back to the January window – has been reignited.
Fresneda, 18, was heavily linked with Newcastle, Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund in the winter window. The Spaniard ultimately remained with Valladolid, though couldn’t prevent their relegation to the Segunda Division.
Per Mundo Deportivo, Valladolid’s exit from LaLiga has triggered a reduction in Fresneda’s release clause. It’s claimed he can now be signed for just €20m (approx. £17.2m).
The discount is understood to have revitalised Arsenal’s interest who have reportedly initiated contacts with Valladolid. Another club keeping a close eye on developments is AC Milan.
Fresneda is also admired over at Barcelona, though their well-documented financial strife is preventing them from acting quickly and decisively.
As such, their ‘slowness’ is opening the door for Arsenal who are moving ‘faster’ than their Spanish counterparts.
Fresneda is a player Mikel Arteta is reportedly a big admirer of. Aged 18, he could be viewed as an option to help secure the club’s future rather than a player who’ll make an instant impact.
Timber (22) and White (25) have the best years of their careers still to come. As such, spending around £17.2m on a third-string right-back would be a surprise.
But given Fresneda is a player tipped to be a future Spain international and his release clause means his value is artificially lowered, if Arsenal don’t strike, someone else will.
[teamtalk]
More...
Nigerian striker, Victor Osimhen is the top transfer target of PSG should in case the club’s talisman, Kylian Mbappe leaves the club this summer.
Mbappe has openly stated his desire to leave Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer when his contract ends in June 2024, but the Ligue 1 giants are hoping to sell him this summer if he chooses not to sign a new contract.
The printed edition of La Gazzetta dello Sport from Sunday states that if Mbappe is sold this summer, Osimhen will be PSG’s top priority.
According to reports, Napoli has raised their asking price for Victor Osimhen to €180 million after turning down PSG’s bid of €100 million.
Mbappe’s summer sale will help PSG’s finances even more, which might enable them to accede to Napoli’s asking price.
The Serie A champions still intend to extend their contract with Osimhen beyond the summer of 2025 in which his current contract is expected to expire.
Naija News has reported that Napoli and Osimhen’s agent, Roberto Calenda have been negotiating for a contract extension but the wage demands of the 24-year-old striker have been delaying the process.
La Gazzetta dello Sport claimed that Lille forward Jonathan David will be Napoli’s primary priority if Osimhen leaves this summer.
While PSG has continued to consider a move for Victor Osimhen, top Premier League clubs, Manchester United, Chelsea, and Liverpool, have begun negotiations with Napoli to sign the Nigeria international. Hence, if Napoli finally decides to sell Osimhen, there could be a fierce bidding war among the player’s suitors in the coming days.
It is a sad day and a sadder period for sports in Nigeria.
A few days ago, Jeremiah Okorodudu, a famous Nigerian boxer, probably the most flamboyant and loquacious boxer in the country’s boxing history, died in a private hospital in the outskirts of Lagos, Nigeria.
He was only 64 years of age.
His death attracts special attention. It followed a mostly-silent, 2-year battle with poor health described by some media reports as the product of Stroke and Diabetes. In the past two weeks, the public was drawn to Jerry’s plight through the social media. Pictures of him lying on a bed in a local hospital in Ikorodu, Lagos, with headlines screaming for help for the celebrated former athlete, were very pitiable, a sad commentary on the general life-after-sport of many national sports heroes. There was also a video of Jeremiah gasping, struggling to speak through obvious pain, inaudible mumbling through laboured breath. He was shown crying and appealing to the government and to Nigerians not to let him die, like that.
All that he needed at the time were about the equivalent of $2000:00 to pay for an essential life-saving surgery – amputation of his foot. This meagre amount was‘change-money’, even for any one of those in the corridors of sports at different levels of government, particularly. Obviously, the era of sports administrators that spent their personal funds to support sports and athletes is a long way back in the dungeons of history. These days, sport is a sector to be milked of any sweet harvests. That’s why there is a fight-to-the-finish in the scramble for positions of leadership in sports by those with the least stakes in sport.
Jeremiah Okorodudu, needed that paltry sum to save his life. His family could not raise it till he died despite appeals to the public. His painful death reminds me that there is a whole legion in Jerry’s shoes languishing around the country waiting for help that may not come quickly.
There are: Ngozika Ekwelum, African boxing champion, in his lonely bed in Anambra, suffering for over a decade with a case of urinary incontinence and other depression-related issues that have made his life miserable; Kenneth Abana, mercurial goal-poacher for Rangers International and the Green Eagles, with one foot already amputated, lying critically ill in a hospital in Enugu; Christopher Friday, ex- Shooting Stars and Super Eagles, completely blind and living in perpetual darkness; Dahiru Sadi, former national team football Captain, downed by Stroke and now confined to the four corners of his room; Siji Lagunju, former Shooting Stars, national football assistant coach and player, downed in the past two years by Stroke; Christian Chukwu, Emmanuel Okala and Charles Bassey who can no longer work or walk unaided for the rest of their lives; an innumerable number of other athletes all around us in 40 other sports, neglected, forgotten, living poorly and in pain, with nothing in place within the Nigerian sports architecture to take care of their welfare when their careers in sport end.
Jeremiah’s situation is not an isolated one. The Nigerian sports landscape is littered with similar stories of the abject poverty of former athletes, with most ending up victims of neglect and societal amnesia, forced to accept a life in abject poverty and of dying young.
This last aspect struck me when I checked Jeremiah’s age at death again – 64! He is of a common tribe in sport. One that deserves scientific interrogation and study – Do Nigerian athletes die young?
I am in the process of compiling a list of Nigerian athletes that went to represent the country some 47 years ago at the 1976 Olympics. The NIIA and Airpeace Airline are planning an uncommon re-union and celebration for the athletes outside sport. I was a young member of that contingent, a freshly minted graduate at the time.
Even as I look back now, it seems like yesterday. Most of the surviving athletes now in their late 60s and early 70s.
I am looking at the list of the 45 athletes whose action (or inaction) created a diplomatic tsunami that changed the course of history in the world, and I ask: where are they now?
There were 3 registered boxers in that contingent. All three are dead.
All must have died before they turned 60! They all died in Nigeria.
There were 20 football players in that contingent. 9 of them are dead. All died in their 30s, 40s, and 50s. One died in his 60s. Most died in Nigeria.
There were 20 Track and Field athletes. 5 of them died in their 40s and 50s. 3 of the 5 died in Nigeria. Now the observations and questions:
Most of the athletes in track and field that are still alive have lived in the USA.
Do high-performance athletes die so young? Is that really the case? If so, why? Is it the United States general (or sports) welfare system that has kept the Nigerian athletes alive? These should be a subject for intellectual interrogation.
Of those that stayed back in Nigeria, their stories have been pathetic, gory tales of neglect, poverty and early death, afar departure from the promise in the national Anthem that fires up their spirit before and after competitions:‘the labour of our heroes past, shall never be in vain’ -a promise hardly ever delivered!
It is hard to understand why establishing a simple welfare scheme for athletes should become rocket science.
Several welfare schemes that could serve as models exist everywhere on the planet, and, indeed, have been created in Nigeria in the past. They were misused, abused or unused for the purpose. One or two of the Welfare schemes still exist but as private estates of those in the original committees set up to manage them. They may still keep the huge financial contributions made by Nigerians in their vaults, never accounting to anybody for anything, remaining in ‘office’ in perpetuity, their silence like that of the graveyard, their ‘reward’ or ‘punishment reserved for the gates of heaven, or of hell, depending on what use they put the funds contributed by Nigerians for the amelioration of the painful conditions of suffering athletes in need of help. Through the decades, the shallowness of the instruments that set them up did not protect their sustainability and supervision. So, they went into convenient hibernation, resurrecting only occasionally to service personal, narrow interests and purposes.
Jeremiah fought many battles of neglect and injustice against the sports establishment in the past, always drawing attention to his suffering. He was punished several times for his effrontery to be his own one-man army when fighting his causes.
Those leading the sector, mostly drawn from the political class, with all their good intentions to do well for sports, do not understand enough about what needs to be done to arrest this ugly scourge.
Otherwise, there is no reason on earth why a Jeremiah Okorodudu should spend two whole years in pain and suffering and neglect, and now die needlessly. His corpse, it has been reported, is still held up in a morgue and will not be released to his family because they could not pay outstanding hospital bills of less than $1000 Dollars.
Jeremiah Okorodudu’s death could have been avoided with a little more care and concern. The sports sector failed him. His colleagues failed him. Government failed him. Those who could have helped but did not, failed him.
As Jeremiah takes his place amongst the saints, amongst resting heroes of Nigerian sports, I pray that the great pugilist who won a Bronze medal for Nigeria at the Commonwealth Games, who narrowly failed to win a medal for Nigeria at the 1984 Olympic games, who graced several rings around Nigeria during his prime, who trained and took several Nigerian boxers to international competitions, who served boxing passionately throughout his life, who died in misery, pain and penury, will find the divine peace of the Creator of us all, to forgive Nigeria.
Chelsea forward Romelu Lukaku has been tipped to leave Stamford Bridge for a cut price, despite the club placing a €45m asking price on his head.
The Belgian forward is expected to leave this summer, although clubs from around Europe are reluctant to meet Chelsea’s asking price.
Inter Milan had toyed with the idea of signing Lukaku on loan again but with the obligation to buy included in the deal.
Chelsea rejected this bid and now the two clubs are back to the drawing board. Along with Inter, Juventus and Al-Hilal are also interested.
While Lukaku wasn’t keen on the idea of a move to Saudi to begin with, he is now said to be considering the move.
Gabby Agbonlahor has had his say on the situation and he believes that Chelsea and Inter will eventually come to an agreement.
“Negotiations could be tricky between Chelsea and Inter for Lukaku,” the pundit told Football Insider.
“Inter Milan knows they want to offload Lukaku, so they will not need to offer what the Blues are demanding.
“Both parties will offer their best deal and Inter could say either take or leave it, with Chelsea not wanting to be stuck with a player who won’t be used.
“When it gets closer to August and a deal still hasn’t been accepted, they are going to have to eventually accept Inter’s offer.”
The Belgian forward had his fair share of injury problems last season, but he still managed to score 14 goals across all competitions.
Chelsea aren’t likely to receive anywhere near the £97.5m they spent on Lukaku back in 2021, but they are keen to recoup some of their original investment.
With Juventus and Al-Hilal now in the race to sign Lukaku, time will tell if Chelsea do receive the €45m they are looking for.
He is contracted with the club until 2026, although Mauricio Pochettino will be keen to iron out his situation as soon as possible.
Along with Lukaku, Chelsea also hope to sell the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Hakim Ziyech and Christian Pulisic in the next few weeks.
The summer rebuild is already well underway at Stamford Bridge, but there is still plenty of work to be done.
[football365]
Morocco/Egypt: Morocco Win Maiden TotalEnergies U-23 Africa Cup of Nations Title With Victory Over Egypt
AdminMorocco made history on Saturday night as they clinched their first TotalEnergies U-23 Africa Cup of Nations title with a thrilling 2-1 win against ten-man Egypt at the Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, requiring extra time to settle the match.
Egypt took an early lead when Mahmoud Saber unleashed a brilliant curler into the top corner, giving his team an advantage after just nine minutes of play.
However, Saber's night quickly turned sour as he received a red card eight minutes later for a reckless challenge on Abdessamad Ezzalzouli.
Despite being reduced to ten men, Egypt managed to hold their ground for the remaining minutes of regular time. However, their defence faltered in the 37th minute, allowing Yanis Begraoui to score the equalizer for the host nation.
The first and second halves concluded without any additional goals, leading the match into extra time. It was during the first half of extra time that Morocco seized the lead, putting Egypt behind for the first time in the competition.
Substitute Oussamna Targhalline capitalized on a free kick from Ezzalzouli, delivering a powerful strike that eluded the Egyptian goalkeeper, making it 2-1 in favor of Morocco.
Efforts from Egypt to secure a late equalizer proved fruitless, as Morocco held on to claim victory and secure their first TotalEnergies U-23 AFCON trophy.
Both Morocco and Egypt have earned their spots in next year's Olympic Games, set to take place in Paris, alongside Mali, who secured their qualification after defeating Guinea in the third-place playoff game on Saturday.
Guinea can stil secure a place as the fourth African side at the Olympic Games in Paris but they have to win a playoff against a yet-to-be-decided Asian opponent.