Lucky Emmanuel

Central Midfielder - Niger Tornadoes
23 Jan 2028
Sunday
Process

Marked for Lucky Emmanuel

73 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

20 Dec 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Boardroom

Pressure builds in the Shooting Stars boardroom

The directors have stopped offering the manager public warmth. In football that is usually the stage before the short statement.

Market

Abubakar Taheer hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shooting Stars can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Muyiwa Balogun out for 35 days

The medical room confirms 35 days on the sidelines for Muyiwa Balogun, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.

Squad

Words exchanged at Shooting Stars

Qamar Adegoke and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

Ebunobi Onyedika arrives at the club he grew up with

Every footballer has an answer to the question about his boyhood club, and most of them never get to act on it. Ebunobi Onyedika has, at Shooting Stars, and the first month will show what that does to a man.

Squad

Salomon Chigoziem falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

The dugout

Moruf Umar knocks on the manager's door

“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Shooting Stars, and both men came out saying it was fine.

The dugout

Ismail Ayodele gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Ismail Ayodele is on it.

Market

The Abubakar Taheer talk will not go away

Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Shooting Stars know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.

In brief

Back issues
72 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

13 Dec 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Squad

A fracture rules Chijioke Mbaoma out for 99 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Shooting Stars will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Market

Lucky Emmanuel hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shooting Stars can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Tempers go at Shooting Stars

Chijioke Mbaoma was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

The dugout

No hiding place for Salomon Chigoziem

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Salomon Chigoziem, and the manager let it.

The dugout

Muyiwa Balogun knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Muyiwa Balogun trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

The dugout

Lekan Abdulsalam gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Lekan Abdulsalam is on it.

Market

Issa Yusuf linked with a move away

The name of Issa Yusuf keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Shooting Stars say nothing, which says plenty.

Squad

The penny has dropped for Chijioke Mbaoma

He looks like a man who lives here now rather than one who is working here. It took most of a season, and at Shooting Stars the difference is visible from the back of the stand.

The dugout

The manager comes out for Abubakar Taheer

Public backing, and the sort that costs a manager something if it turns out to be wrong. Abubakar Taheer has been told in front of everybody that the shirt is his.

In brief

68 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

15 Nov 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Squad

Chijioke Mbaoma breaks a bone — 129 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 129 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Market

Lucky Emmanuel asks to leave Shooting Stars

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Squad

Tempers go at Shooting Stars

Qamar Adegoke was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Market

No place for Charles Ribannu in the plan

“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Charles Ribannu has his answer from Shooting Stars; what he does with it is the next window’s story.

The dugout

Lekan Abdulsalam gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Lekan Abdulsalam is on it.

Market

Issa Yusuf linked with a move away

The name of Issa Yusuf keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Shooting Stars say nothing, which says plenty.

The dugout

The manager makes Salomon Chigoziem a promise

Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Shooting Stars. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.

The dugout

Lekan Abdulsalam knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Lekan Abdulsalam trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

Squad

The penny has dropped for Salomon Chigoziem

He looks like a man who lives here now rather than one who is working here. It took most of a season, and at Shooting Stars the difference is visible from the back of the stand.

In brief

64 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

18 Oct 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Market

Lucky Emmanuel hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shooting Stars can pretend not to have heard.

The dugout

Darlintin Ovunda: that is not what I was promised

“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Shooting Stars have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Squad

Tempers go at Shooting Stars

Chijioke Mbaoma was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Salomon Chigoziem falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

The dugout

Muyiwa Balogun asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

The dugout

Lekan Abdulsalam has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at Shooting Stars will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

Market

Issa Yusuf linked with a move away

The name of Issa Yusuf keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Shooting Stars say nothing, which says plenty.

Squad

The training reports on Dillon Hoogewerf are not good

A bad Saturday is forgiven; a bad Tuesday is chosen. Standards have slipped and in a building where everybody watches everybody, it has been noticed.

Squad

Dillon Hoogewerf finally belongs at Shooting Stars

The language has come, the shrug has gone, and he argues in training like a man who expects to be here next year. None of it shows up on a fee and all of it shows up on the pitch.

In brief

62 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

4 Oct 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Boardroom

Shooting Stars spell it out for Peter Madu

The board’s statement ran to three sentences and one of them mentioned results. Peter Madu has managed long enough to translate: win soon, or the next statement is shorter.

Squad

A row about effort at Shooting Stars

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Dillon Hoogewerf was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Squad

Words exchanged at Shooting Stars

Peace Dewan and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

Lucky Emmanuel named in the team of the month

A month is long enough that nobody gets in by accident. Lucky Emmanuel is in the division's best eleven for it, which is a quieter compliment than an award and a more reliable one.

The dugout

When it matters, Kabiru Tijjani plays

It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.

The dugout

The manager's exit leaves Darlintin Ovunda exposed

Every squad has men who were signed by a particular manager and men who were merely inherited. Darlintin Ovunda is in the first group, and the man who wanted him here is no longer in the building.

The dugout

Qamar Adegoke knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Qamar Adegoke trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

Squad

Issa Yusuf moves up the pecking order

Nothing is announced when this happens and everybody knows. He is a bigger part of the plan at Shooting Stars than he was a month ago, and the training ground worked that out before the team sheet said so.

Market

Muyiwa Balogun linked with a move away

The name of Muyiwa Balogun keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Shooting Stars say nothing, which says plenty.

In brief

60 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

20 Sep 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Match

Full time on the season at Shooting Stars

Position 12 on 45 points. Every season is a story and this is the last line of it, and now the club has three months to decide what the next one is about.

Market

Ganiyu Wasiu puts it in writing

“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Shooting Stars, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Muyiwa Balogun signs a new deal

“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Muyiwa Balogun commits to Shooting Stars for another 4 years.

Player ratings

A goal and an assist for Lucky Emmanuel — 7.91

Involvement in 2 goals, from a player who spent the ninety minutes doing the thing a manager actually wants: being where the ball was going to end up. 7.91 beside his name.

Market

Darlintin Ovunda is a Shooting Stars player again

He left as a boy and has come back still knowing where the away end is. Most signings have to be explained to a town; this one needed a photograph and nothing else.

Squad

Tempers go at Shooting Stars

Qamar Adegoke was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Words at Shooting Stars training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Dillon Hoogewerf is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Darlintin Ovunda

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

Player ratings

Ninety minutes of Awal Auta at his very best

Marked 8.13. Players have careers without a single afternoon like this in them, and he has just had one in front of everybody at Shooting Stars.

In brief

58 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

6 Sep 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Boardroom

Shooting Stars put Peter Madu on notice

The board have said in public what they had been saying in private. Results between now and the next meeting decide it, and everybody in the building knows the arithmetic.

Market

Lucky Emmanuel hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shooting Stars can pretend not to have heard.

Boardroom

Shooting Stars close the window on a squad of their own making

9 in and 15 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.

Match

Nobody wants to play Shooting Stars right now

3 wins in a row changes how opponents warm up: quieter, more glances across. Runs end, everybody knows that — but nobody in this dressing room is planning for it.

Transfer targets

An offer of $370.0K for Lius Dadong

Shooting Stars have gone to Kano Pillars with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.

Market

Shooting Stars get their man

The chase for Awal Auta ended with $190.0K changing hands and Nasarawa United out of reasons to say no. The supporters will judge the fee the only way that matters: on Saturdays.

Squad

Mustapha Lawal in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Shooting Stars this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

The terraces

The town asked, and Shooting Stars paid $190.0K

Awal Auta was the name on every phone-in, and the club has gone and signed him for $190.0K. For one week the board can do no wrong, which is a week most boards never get.

Squad

Words at Shooting Stars training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Qamar Adegoke is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

In brief

54 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

9 Aug 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

17 days out for Adam Mustapha after a fracture

A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Shooting Stars will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.

Market

Lucky Emmanuel asks to leave Shooting Stars

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Market

Shooting Stars turn down El-Kanemi Warriors for Mustapha Lawal

The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.

Boardroom

Olumide Henry signs for Rangers International while still at Shooting Stars

The rules permit it and it stings anyway. Olumide Henry has agreed terms with Rangers International for the summer, and until then he pulls on this shirt as a player who has already chosen his next one.

Market

Only the photograph left for Olumide Henry

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Olumide Henry will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Shooting Stars the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Squad

Mustapha Lawal in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Shooting Stars this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Player ratings

Ismail Ayodele beats them one at a time

Successful dribbles: 21. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.

Transfer targets

Shooting Stars rebuffed over Aaron Olanare

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Najran have kept their man, and Shooting Stars go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Squad

Words at Shooting Stars training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Qamar Adegoke is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

In brief

51 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

19 Jul 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

A fracture rules Adam Mustapha out for 41 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Shooting Stars will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Market

Tijani Adeloju agrees terms with Katsina United

The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Shooting Stars people have started saying his name in the past tense.

Market

Mfon Rowland hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shooting Stars can pretend not to have heard.

Market

Shooting Stars turn down El-Kanemi Warriors for Olagoke Olajobi

The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.

Squad

Qamar Adegoke signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Qamar Adegoke and Shooting Stars agree another 4 years.

Squad

A falling-out at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Transfer targets

Door shut on Muhammed Usman

Shooting Stars asked and Kano Pillars said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

Squad

Words at Shooting Stars training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Qamar Adegoke is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Match

Lucky Emmanuel sends Shooting Stars past Kano Pillars

It finished 1‑0, and it was Lucky Emmanuel’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Shooting Stars.

In brief

50 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

12 Jul 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

Adam Mustapha breaks a bone — 48 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 48 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Match

Shooting Stars through in the cup

A 2‑0 win over El-Kanemi Warriors, and the draw for the next round can be watched with some interest for once.

Squad

Mustapha Lawal keeps Shooting Stars in it on his own

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.

Market

Shooting Stars turn down El-Kanemi Warriors for Mustapha Lawal

The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.

Market

Lucky Emmanuel asks to leave Shooting Stars

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Market

Ozovehe Adeiza agrees terms with Bendel Insurance

The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Shooting Stars people have started saying his name in the past tense.

Market

Mfon Rowland has one foot out of the door

Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Shooting Stars they have already started talking about him in the past tense.

Squad

Mustapha Lawal in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Shooting Stars this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Transfer targets

Shooting Stars rebuffed over Ezekiel Tamara

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Zbrojovka Brno have kept their man, and Shooting Stars go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

In brief

47 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

21 Jun 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

Adam Mustapha breaks a bone — 70 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 70 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Market

Terms done: Mustapha Lawal is going

Fee agreed, wages agreed, and El-Kanemi Warriors waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Shooting Stars is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.

Market

Abayomi Adebayo asks to leave Shooting Stars

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Market

El-Kanemi Warriors come back empty-handed

The bid was some way short and Shooting Stars did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.

Match

4 matches without a win for Shooting Stars

The run now stands at 4, and the questions being asked around Shooting Stars are no longer polite ones.

Squad

A falling-out at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Transfer targets

Ararat-Armenia tell Shooting Stars: Dillon Hoogewerf is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Market

Mfon Rowland attracts admirers

The name of Mfon Rowland has come up in conversations Shooting Stars were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.

Player ratings

Lucky Emmanuel was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 17. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

In brief

46 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

14 Jun 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

77 days out for Adam Mustapha after a fracture

A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Shooting Stars will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.

Market

El-Kanemi Warriors come back empty-handed

The bid was some way short and Shooting Stars did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.

Market

Lucky Emmanuel hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shooting Stars can pretend not to have heard.

Market

Terms done: Tijani Adeloju is going

Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Rangers International waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Shooting Stars is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.

Transfer targets

Ezekiel Tamara due for a Shooting Stars medical

Everything agreed with Zbrojovka Brno, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.

Market

So close: Ozovehe Adeiza’s move dies late

The fee was agreed and the flight was looked at — and then the phone stopped ringing. Wikki Tourists moved on, Ozovehe Adeiza reports back to Shooting Stars, and everybody pretends Monday is just Monday.

Squad

Mustapha Lawal in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Shooting Stars this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

3 matches without a goal for Shooting Stars

The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 3 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.

Transfer targets

Zbrojovka Brno tell Shooting Stars: Ezekiel Tamara is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

In brief

45 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

7 Jun 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

A fracture rules Adam Mustapha out for 84 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Shooting Stars will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Market

Adam Mustapha hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shooting Stars can pretend not to have heard.

Market

Ozovehe Adeiza agrees terms with Wikki Tourists

The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Shooting Stars people have started saying his name in the past tense.

Boardroom

The scrutiny sharpens at Shooting Stars

Nobody upstairs has said anything, which is the loudest thing they could do. Results buy silence in this game; the account at Shooting Stars is running low.

Player ratings

Abubakar Taheer was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 24. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

Squad

Tempers go at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

A row about effort at Shooting Stars

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Qamar Adegoke was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Match

Katsina United take the points off Shooting Stars

Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

The dugout

Peter Madu: “No excuses”

“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 0‑2, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.

In brief

43 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

24 May 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Squad

Adam Mustapha breaks a bone — 99 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 99 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Market

Ozovehe Adeiza hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shooting Stars can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

A falling-out at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

Words at Shooting Stars training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Qamar Adegoke is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Match

Qamar Adegoke the difference as Shooting Stars beat Kun Khalifat

Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Qamar Adegoke. 2‑1 against Kun Khalifat, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.

The terraces

The crowd has taken to Qamar Adegoke

At 22 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Lucky Emmanuel

Successful dribbles: 19. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

The dugout

Toheeb Adebayo gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

Player ratings

Muyiwa Balogun in the eights

A performance of 8.50 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.

In brief

42 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

17 May 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

The knee: Christian Dawariomi out for 14 days

14 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Shooting Stars lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.

The terraces

The mood at Shooting Stars has turned into something else

Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.

Market

Lucky Emmanuel puts it in writing

“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Shooting Stars, and it is not being withdrawn.

Market

Ozovehe Adeiza has one foot out of the door

Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Shooting Stars they have already started talking about him in the past tense.

Squad

Mustapha Lawal in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Shooting Stars this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

A row about effort at Shooting Stars

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Qamar Adegoke was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Match

Barau take the points off Shooting Stars

Beaten 1‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

The dugout

No hiding place for Mustapha Lawal

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Mustapha Lawal, and the manager let it.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Lucky Emmanuel

Successful dribbles: 18. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

In brief

41 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

10 May 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

Christian Dawariomi damages knee ligaments — 21 days out

The words a physio says slowly. 21 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.

Market

Abayomi Adebayo asks to leave Shooting Stars

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Squad

Tempers go at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Match

Bendel Insurance take the points off Shooting Stars

Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

Match

The half-term report on Shooting Stars

Position 13, 22 points, and every result so far reduced to one line. The second half of the season starts with the same squad and a different set of expectations.

The dugout

The manager’s verdict

“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑1 Peter Madu left the room before anybody could ask which.

The dugout

No hiding place for Johnmark Atule

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Johnmark Atule, and the manager let it.

The dugout

Kabiru Tijjani knocks on the manager's door

“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Shooting Stars, and both men came out saying it was fine.

Player ratings

Lucky Emmanuel was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 13. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

In brief

40 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

3 May 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

Christian Dawariomi damages knee ligaments — 28 days out

The words a physio says slowly. 28 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.

Market

Abubakar Taheer hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shooting Stars can pretend not to have heard.

The dugout

Abiodun Adegoke: that is not what I was promised

“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Shooting Stars have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Market

Abiodun Adegoke has one foot out of the door

Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Shooting Stars they have already started talking about him in the past tense.

Squad

Words exchanged at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

Words at Shooting Stars training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Qamar Adegoke is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Match

A bad afternoon for Shooting Stars against Enyimba

1‑2 to Enyimba, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.

Player ratings

Lucky Emmanuel was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 18. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

The dugout

Peter Madu faces the questions

“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Peter Madu after 1‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.

In brief

39 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

26 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Match

Shooting Stars through in the cup

A 2‑0 win over Bendel Insurance, and the draw for the next round can be watched with some interest for once.

Squad

Christian Dawariomi damages knee ligaments — 35 days out

The words a physio says slowly. 35 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.

Match

Cruel end for El-Kanemi Warriors as Shooting Stars pounce

There is no crueller way to lose a football match. Shooting Stars scored in the 91th minute, the restart barely happened, and the away end was still standing when the whistle went.

Player ratings

A brace, and Olagoke Olajobi takes the afternoon — 9.16

There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Olagoke Olajobi provided it, and the 9.16 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.

Player ratings

Johnmark Atule was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 28. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

Market

Olumide Henry asks to leave Shooting Stars

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Squad

A falling-out at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

Words at Shooting Stars training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Qamar Adegoke is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Match

Shooting Stars get the job done against El-Kanemi Warriors

A 2‑1 win over El-Kanemi Warriors, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.

In brief

37 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

12 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

A knee injury of the worst kind for Christian Dawariomi

50 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Shooting Stars lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.

Player ratings

Tijani Adeloju scores twice — 7.82

Two goals and a mark of 7.82 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.

Market

Lucky Emmanuel asks to leave Shooting Stars

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Squad

Words exchanged at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

Words at Shooting Stars training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Qamar Adegoke is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Player ratings

Muyiwa Balogun in the eights

A performance of 8.86 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.

The dugout

No hiding place for Mustapha Lawal

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Mustapha Lawal, and the manager let it.

Match

Late, late show earns Shooting Stars a point

Minute 93, against Plateau United, and a goal that felt like a win to everybody who had stayed. It was a draw. Nobody leaving the ground will describe it as one.

Match

Shooting Stars and Plateau United take a point apiece

It finished 3‑3, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.

In brief

36 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

5 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

The knee: Christian Dawariomi out for 58 days

58 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Shooting Stars lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.

Squad

Mustapha Lawal keeps Shooting Stars in it on his own

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.

Market

Ozovehe Adeiza asks to leave Shooting Stars

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Market

Abiodun Adegoke has one foot out of the door

Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Shooting Stars they have already started talking about him in the past tense.

Match

After 8 games, Shooting Stars finally taste it again

The first defeat in 8 matches. The manager will say it had to come; the dressing room will say it did not have to come against Rangers International; the supporters will say both, in that order, all week.

Squad

Tempers go at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

A row about effort at Shooting Stars

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Qamar Adegoke was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Match

Rangers International take the points off Shooting Stars

Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

The dugout

Peter Madu answers for it

“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.

In brief

33 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

15 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

The knee: Christian Dawariomi out for 81 days

81 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Shooting Stars lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.

Market

Lucky Emmanuel puts it in writing

“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Shooting Stars, and it is not being withdrawn.

The dugout

Olagoke Olajobi: that is not what I was promised

“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Shooting Stars have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Squad

Words exchanged at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Match

6 unbeaten for Shooting Stars

Hard to beat is not the same as winning, but 6 matches without defeat is a foundation Shooting Stars did not have in the autumn.

Player ratings

Ismail Ayodele was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 20. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

Squad

A row about effort at Shooting Stars

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Qamar Adegoke was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Squad

Appearance number 100 for Muyiwa Balogun

100 games in this shirt, through managers and relegations and everything else. Service like it is disappearing from the game and the crowd knows what it is watching.

Match

Shooting Stars rescue it on 92 minutes

Behind, and beaten by any honest reading, until minute 92. Niger Tornadoes had the points in their pocket and a corner of the ground still believed, which is generally when it happens.

In brief

32 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

8 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

The knee: Christian Dawariomi out for 88 days

88 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Shooting Stars lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.

Market

Ozovehe Adeiza puts it in writing

“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Shooting Stars, and it is not being withdrawn.

Market

Only the photograph left for Abiodun Adegoke

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Abiodun Adegoke will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Shooting Stars the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Squad

Tempers go at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

The dugout

No hiding place for Adam Mustapha

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Adam Mustapha, and the manager let it.

Player ratings

One of those days for Muyiwa Balogun

There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.02, and no argument anywhere in the ground.

Match

Muyiwa Balogun rescues a point for Shooting Stars

It needed Muyiwa Balogun to find the net to bring anything home at all: 2‑2 against Kano Pillars, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Lucky Emmanuel

Successful dribbles: 15. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

A place in the month's best eleven for Abubakar Taheer

Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Abubakar Taheer has come out of that comparison in the side, and Shooting Stars have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.

In brief

31 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

1 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

The knee: Christian Dawariomi out for 95 days

95 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Shooting Stars lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.

Market

Abubakar Taheer asks to leave Shooting Stars

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Squad

Mustapha Lawal stands alone

8 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.

Player ratings

Lucky Emmanuel was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 24. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

Squad

Mustapha Lawal in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Shooting Stars this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Shooting Stars training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Qamar Adegoke is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Player ratings

Muyiwa Balogun in the eights

A performance of 8.53 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.

Match

Shooting Stars refuse to lose to Nasarawa United

A point taken on 91 minutes is worth exactly one point and considerably more than that to a dressing room. This side does not stop, which is a reputation worth more than the result.

Match

Shooting Stars and Nasarawa United take a point apiece

It finished 2‑2, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.

In brief

30 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

22 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Christian Dawariomi damages knee ligaments — 102 days out

The words a physio says slowly. 102 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.

The terraces

The mood at Shooting Stars has turned into something else

Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.

Player ratings

Abubakar Taheer scores twice — 8.31

Two goals and a mark of 8.31 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.

Market

Tijani Adeloju asks to leave Shooting Stars

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Market

Only the photograph left for Ozovehe Adeiza

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Ozovehe Adeiza will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Shooting Stars the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Squad

A falling-out at Shooting Stars

Abubakar Taheer and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Match

Shooting Stars get the job done against Bayelsa United

A 3‑2 win over Bayelsa United, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.

The terraces

One of their own: Abubakar Taheer

He is 23 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.

Player ratings

One of those days for Lucky Emmanuel

There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.14, and no argument anywhere in the ground.

In brief

29 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

15 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

The knee: Christian Dawariomi out for 110 days

110 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Shooting Stars lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.

Market

Lucky Emmanuel hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shooting Stars can pretend not to have heard.

The dugout

Tijani Adeloju says Shooting Stars went back on their word

“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.

Squad

Words exchanged at Shooting Stars

Abubakar Taheer and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Player ratings

Kabiru Tijjani takes the honours

Marked 7.35 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, Shooting Stars had the best player on the pitch.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Johnmark Atule

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

The dugout

The view from the dugout

“We did not lose. Some weeks that is all you get, and I would rather have the point than not.” Peter Madu chose the glass-half-full version of 0‑0; the supporters left with the other one.

The dugout

Qamar Adegoke asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

Match

No goals between Shooting Stars and Abia Warriors

Ninety minutes, two goalkeepers with clean gloves, and not one finish worth keeping. Abia Warriors will be the happier side with the point.

In brief

28 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

8 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

A knee injury of the worst kind for Christian Dawariomi

117 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Shooting Stars lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.

Market

Idowu Aremu puts it in writing

“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Shooting Stars, and it is not being withdrawn.

The dugout

Albert Korvah keeps the receipts

“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Shooting Stars may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.

Market

Only the photograph left for Abiodun Adegoke

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Abiodun Adegoke will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Shooting Stars the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Transfer targets

Ismaël Maïga due for a Shooting Stars medical

Everything agreed with Cukaricki, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.

Market

Tijani Adeloju’s move to Rangers International falls through

The deal that would have taken Tijani Adeloju to Rangers International has collapsed at the last stage, and he reports back to Shooting Stars with a summer to forget and a season still to play. Nobody is saying which side walked away.

Squad

Shooting Stars count the cost of losing Calvin Madu

26 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.

Transfer targets

Javor-Matis tell Shooting Stars: Kayode Saliman is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Squad

A row about effort at Shooting Stars

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Qamar Adegoke was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

In brief

26 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

25 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Christian Dawariomi damages knee ligaments — 131 days out

The words a physio says slowly. 131 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.

The terraces

Supporters organise against the Shooting Stars board

A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.

Market

Terms done: Abiodun Adegoke is going

Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Niger Tornadoes waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Shooting Stars is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.

Market

Ozovehe Adeiza puts it in writing

“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Shooting Stars, and it is not being withdrawn.

Market

Shooting Stars say no — this time

The offer from Bayelsa United for Christian Dawariomi was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.

Market

Only the photograph left for Ozovehe Adeiza

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Ozovehe Adeiza will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Shooting Stars the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Transfer targets

Mohamed Sanoko turns down Shooting Stars

The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Real Bamako keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.

Squad

A falling-out at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Transfer targets

Shooting Stars rebuffed over Francis Ebuka Nwokeabia

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Spartak Subotica have kept their man, and Shooting Stars go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

In brief

25 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

18 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

A knee injury of the worst kind for Christian Dawariomi

138 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Shooting Stars lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.

Market

Tijani Adeloju agrees terms with Rangers International

The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Shooting Stars people have started saying his name in the past tense.

Squad

Mustapha Lawal stands alone

7 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.

Market

Lucky Emmanuel puts it in writing

“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Shooting Stars, and it is not being withdrawn.

The dugout

Afolabi Samad says Shooting Stars went back on their word

“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.

Market

El-Kanemi Warriors come back empty-handed

The bid was some way short and Shooting Stars did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.

Player ratings

Qamar Adegoke was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 22. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

Squad

Words exchanged at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Match

Qamar Adegoke’s goal not enough for Shooting Stars

Qamar Adegoke scored, and precious little else went right: 1‑3 to Remo Stars, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.

In brief

3 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

17 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Market

Terms done: Ozovehe Adeiza is going

Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Kun Khalifat waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Shooting Stars is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.

Market

Only the photograph left for Stephen Amos

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Stephen Amos will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Shooting Stars the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Transfer targets

Leandro Filipe turns down Shooting Stars

The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: DAC Dunajska Streda keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.

Boardroom

Stephen Amos signs for Rivers United while still at Shooting Stars

The rules permit it and it stings anyway. Stephen Amos has agreed terms with Rivers United for the summer, and until then he pulls on this shirt as a player who has already chosen his next one.

Transfer targets

Sigma Olomouc tell Shooting Stars: Yunusa Muritala is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Squad

Mustapha Lawal in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Shooting Stars this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

Shooting Stars come up short against Rangers International

Rangers International left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

Squad

Muyiwa Balogun falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

The dugout

The view from the dugout

“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 0‑1 defeat, delivered by Peter Madu to a room that had heard them before.

In brief

2 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

10 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Tijani Adeloju has said yes to Niger Tornadoes

The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Shooting Stars have lost him in all but the paperwork.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Ghali Falke

Successful dribbles: 28. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Market

Ghali Falke has one foot out of the door

Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Shooting Stars they have already started talking about him in the past tense.

Transfer targets

The paperwork begins on Leandro Filipe

A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Shooting Stars have done the hard part with DAC Dunajska Streda, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.

Boardroom

Tunde Azeez has agreed to leave Shooting Stars for nothing

He will play here until the summer and then walk out of the door for free, having already signed elsewhere. Supporters will manage the first part of that sentence; it is the second they will struggle with.

Transfer targets

Door shut on Žan-Luk Leban

Shooting Stars asked and NK Celje said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

Squad

Words exchanged at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Market

One of our own: Henry Adeleye joins the Shooting Stars first team

Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Henry Adeleye is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.

Market

One of our own: Isaac Onuachu joins the Shooting Stars first team

Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Isaac Onuachu is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.

In brief

1 Edition

The Shooting Stars Gazette

3 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

8 saves: Mustapha Lawal was the team

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 8 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.

Market

Tunde Azeez is on his way

The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Shooting Stars is pretending he will be back in the shirt.

Boardroom

Gbolagade Adelowo has agreed to leave Shooting Stars for nothing

He will play here until the summer and then walk out of the door for free, having already signed elsewhere. Supporters will manage the first part of that sentence; it is the second they will struggle with.

Squad

Kabiru Tijjani signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Kabiru Tijjani and Shooting Stars agree another 4 years.

Transfer targets

Olympiacos tell Shooting Stars: Bruno Onyemaechi is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Squad

A falling-out at Shooting Stars

Mustapha Lawal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Market

Eyes on Tijani Adeloju again

The phone has started ringing about Tijani Adeloju again, and this time the name on the line is Niger Tornadoes. Shooting Stars are listening politely and promising nothing.

Squad

Words at Shooting Stars training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Muyiwa Balogun is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Lucky Emmanuel

Successful dribbles: 16. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

In brief