Golden Eaglets skipper allegedly turned 18 about seven years ago

The U-17 World Cup, currently taking place in Nigeria, has been rocked by allegations the host nation’s captain, Fortune Chukwudi, is actually somewhere closer to 25.

Before the tournament, FIFA had made attempts to stamp out ‘age cheating’ by using MRI scans to determine a players age through bone density, but on Sunday a former Nigerian international revealed he’d seen Chukwudi playing youth team football as far back as 02/03:

“In the 2002/2003 season, I was chairman of Sharks Football Club of Port Harcourt. I decided to have a feeder team of fresh school leavers not older than 20 years.

One of my key players then is the current captain of our so-called Under 17 Golden Eaglets. By his own admission at that time, that is seven years ago, he was 18 years old.

As you peruse today’s links, consider the fun you could have with a pair of flip flops and some superglue…

Nigeria’s coach has demanded their Olympic team get haircuts before the Beijing tournament
[WithLeather]

Bet on Manchester Utd getting a third consecutive league title
[chickendinner]

Will vile scumbag Joey Barton be forced to take a pay cut?
[Football 365]

For our American fans: How to pick a Premier League team to support
[USA Today via The Offside]

The latest lady of loose morals who claims to have been at it with Cristiano Ronaldo
[Machochip]

Our friends at Grid Crasher believe they may have discovered the Stig’s identity
[Grid Crasher]

Everton star in kidnapping hell

If you ever travel to Nigeria, there is approximately a 98 per cent chance that you will be kidnapped. Accordingly, Norum Yobo, brother of Everton defender Joseph, has been held by an armed gang since Saturday:

The 27-year-old defender’s sibling Norum was grabbed with two pals leaving a nightclub in Nigeria at the weekend.
On Wednesday a group called Motive sent an email to a newspaper demanding a £5,500 ransom.

And they warned Yobo’s family not to involve cops “if you want him alive”.

£5,500 may sound like the kind of amount that Cristiano Ronaldo would nonchalantly spend on a pair of swimming shorts, but is a huge amount by local standards. While Yobo could undoubtedly afford to pay up, these situations can take time to resolve - Wilson Palacios’ 15-year-old brother was kidnapped last year and is still being held for ransom.

[More info here and here]