By Damilola Oyebode
Nigeria defender Kenneth Omeruo has praised striker Cyriel Dessers for his exceptional performance in the recently concluded Unity Cup, describing him as his personal “man of the tournament”.
Dessers, who capped off a prolific season with Scottish giants Rangers—where he finished as the club’s top scorer—carried his fine form into the Unity Cup, making a significant impact in both the semi-final and final.
The 30-year-old opened the scoring against Ghana with a composed finish off a pinpoint cross from Sadiq Ismaila and later provided the assist for Moses Simon’s goal in the final against Jamaica.
Reacting to Dessers’ contributions, Omeruo took to social media platform X (formerly Twitter), posting: “Man of the tournament, for me @CyrielDessers.”
Although Dessers was not included in the squad for Nigeria’s upcoming friendly against Russia at the Luzhniki Stadium on Friday, June 6, he remains focused on resolving his club future.
Despite a challenging start to the 2024/25 campaign, the forward ended the season strongly and is reportedly open to continuing with Rangers.
The Unity Cup served as a key preparatory outing for the Super Eagles as they gear up for crucial international fixtures.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. He began his career at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.
