Kwara United U18

Nigerian Premier League U18
8 Apr 2028
Saturday
Process
88 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

3 Apr 2028
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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.

In brief

Back issues
87 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

27 Mar 2028
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Olaniyi Saheed says Kwara United 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

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

In brief

86 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

20 Mar 2028
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Kwara United tear Shooting Stars apart

Rarely has this fixture seen a display like it: 3‑0 against Shooting Stars, and it could have been more.

Market

Only the photograph left for Olaniyi Saheed

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Olaniyi Saheed will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Kwara United the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Squad

Moses Nyebe keeps the receipts

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

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Player ratings

Ninety minutes of Abdulraheem Shola at his very best

Marked 8.28. Players have careers without a single afternoon like this in them, and he has just had one in front of everybody at Kwara United.

Player ratings

Junior Aimufua in the eights

A performance of 8.16 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Musa Afeez 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.

Squad

Adeshina Gata 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

Chisom Ngomere runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 13. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

In brief

85 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

13 Mar 2028
From our football correspondent Crisis

Market

David Viana asks to leave Kwara United

“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 one-man rearguard from Nurudeen Badmos

There were 6 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Johnmark Atule 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.

In brief

84 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

6 Mar 2028
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

Musa Afeez signs a new deal

“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Musa Afeez commits to Kwara United for another 3 years.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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 terraces

Kwara United supporters have found a favourite in Johnmark Atule

There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Johnmark Atule has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Chisom Ngomere

Successful dribbles: 17. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Afeez Bankole 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Musa Afeez 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.

In brief

83 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

28 Feb 2028
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

Abubeker Nasir drives the Kwara United comeback

2 behind and going nowhere, until Abubeker Nasir decided otherwise. Ikorodu City had done the hard part and then watched it come apart, and the noise at the final whistle was the sort a ground keeps.

Player ratings

Both of them Abubeker Nasir's — 8.69

2 goals, and the second was the one that settled it. Marked 8.69, and he could have had a third with better luck at the near post.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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

Abubeker Nasir the difference as Kwara United beat Ikorodu City

Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Abubeker Nasir. 3‑2 against Ikorodu City, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.

Squad

Musa Afeez 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.

Squad

Somtochuwku Ezenabo signs a new deal

“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Somtochuwku Ezenabo commits to Kwara United for another 5 years.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Jimoh Gbadamosi

“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

Arinze Ogbonna's mistake decides it

Ten men and a goalkeeper behind him, and it still finished in the net. He knew before anybody told him, and nobody at Kwara United needed to.

Player ratings

Adeshina Gata runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 13. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

In brief

82 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

21 Feb 2028
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Only the photograph left for Olaniyi Saheed

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Olaniyi Saheed will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Kwara United the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Match

6 matches without a win for Kwara United

The run now stands at 6, and the questions being asked around Kwara United are no longer polite ones.

Match

The goals have deserted Kwara United

3 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Kwara United can tell you which week it ends in.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Musa Afeez 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.

Player ratings

Chisom Ngomere runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 18. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Moses Nyebe 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.

Match

Kwara United and Katsina United cancel each other out

Nil-nil, and few chances worth the name. Katsina United came to defend and left with exactly what they came for.

Squad

Uthman Olawumi makes his debut at 18

At 18 years old, Uthman Olawumi became the latest name off the academy production line to be handed a senior shirt.

In brief

81 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

14 Feb 2028
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

David Viana 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 Kwara United can pretend not to have heard.

Match

The wait goes on for Kwara United

5 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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.

Boardroom

Kwara United agree a free transfer for Akwarandu Chimerenka

Nothing happens for months and then he simply arrives, at no cost, having signed a pre-contract while still turning out for somebody else. It is the least dramatic way to sign a footballer and frequently the shrewdest.

Player ratings

Johnmark Atule runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 20. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Home is on David Viana's mind

“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Kwara United are dealing with a man who wants a different country.

Market

Kwara United buy the years ahead of Maro Edirin

He is 19, and the scouting reports agree on the only line that matters: the ceiling. Signings like this are lottery tickets written by professionals.

In brief

80 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

7 Feb 2028
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

No end in sight to Kwara United's wait for a win

4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Kwara United has to find a result from somewhere.

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Player ratings

Abubeker Nasir runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 19. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Musa Afeez 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.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Adeshina Gata

“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.

Squad

Abubeker Nasir has had enough of the bench

“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and Kwara United will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.

In brief

79 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

31 Jan 2028
From our football correspondent Crisis

Market

Málaga come back empty-handed

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

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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

Kwara United come up short against El-Kanemi Warriors

El-Kanemi Warriors left with the points after a 1‑3 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

In brief

78 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

24 Jan 2028
From our football correspondent Crisis

Market

Only the photograph left for Kelvin Leku

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Kelvin Leku will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Kwara United the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Player ratings

Abubeker Nasir runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 22. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Johnmark Atule 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Market

Wikki Tourists expected to open talks for Olaniyi Saheed

Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Kwara United will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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

Plateau United take the points off Kwara United

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

In brief

77 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

17 Jan 2028
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Kelvin Leku 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.

Player ratings

Abubeker Nasir runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 19. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Musa Afeez 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.

Squad

5 new faces, and Kwara United are still learning each other

A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.

Squad

No hiding place for Moses Nyebe

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

Match

Point won or two lost for Kwara United?

Ninety minutes, no goals, and the argument started before the car park emptied: a point gained, or two thrown away against Wikki Tourists? Both sides of it will still be going on Thursday.

In brief

76 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

10 Jan 2028
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Kwara United run riot against Niger Tornadoes

3‑0, and the margin flattered nobody — it could have carried another goal or two without complaint. Afternoons like this are why people keep coming.

Player ratings

Kelvin Leku scores twice — 9.04

Two goals and a mark of 9.04 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Market

The Kelvin Leku conversation is coming

Everyone has stopped pretending: Niger Tornadoes will make the call about Kelvin Leku this week. Kwara United have a number in mind, and the number is not shy.

Player ratings

A masterclass from Abdulraheem Shola

Marked 8.36 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.

Squad

Musa Afeez 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.

Squad

Uthman Olawumi signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Uthman Olawumi and Kwara United agree another 3 years.

Market

Kazeem Yekini placed on the list

Kwara United have made Kazeem Yekini available for transfer. A career at this club is over in all but paperwork.

In brief

75 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

3 Jan 2028
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

Philip Ozor says Kwara United 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

Mustapha Salisu asks to leave Kwara United

“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.

Boardroom

Graduation day at Kwara United

5 boys move up, and somewhere in the building the people who coached them at twelve are quietly having the best morning of their working year. Nothing about this shows up in a result and it is why the academy exists.

Market

Abdullahi Mohammad attracts admirers

The name of Abdullahi Mohammad has come up in conversations Kwara United were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Abubeker Nasir

Successful dribbles: 20. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Kelvin Leku 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Market

One of our own: Ikechukwu Ajayi joins the Kwara United first team

Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Ikechukwu Ajayi 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: Odion Ndidi joins the Kwara United first team

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

In brief

74 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

27 Dec 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Arinze Ogbonna 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 Kwara United can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Abdullahi Mohammad says Kwara United 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

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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.

In brief

73 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

20 Dec 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

A move Yusuf Mannase would have made for nothing

There is a version of every career where the player ends up somewhere he chose rather than somewhere that chose him. Yusuf Mannase is living that version at Kwara United, and it tends to show in the first month.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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

72 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

13 Dec 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Abdullahi Mohammad has one foot out of the door

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

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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

Musa Afeez 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.

In brief

71 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

6 Dec 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Chisom Ngomere 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 Kwara United can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Johnmark Atule 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Kazeem Yekini signs a new deal

“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Kazeem Yekini commits to Kwara United for another 1 years.

In brief

70 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

29 Nov 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Arinze Ogbonna 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Musa Afeez 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

In brief

69 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

22 Nov 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Olaniyi Saheed 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 Kwara United can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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

68 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

15 Nov 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Babatunde Bright keeps the receipts

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

Market

Abdullahi Mohammad is on his way

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

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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.

In brief

67 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

8 Nov 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Abdullahi Mohammad

“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.

In brief

66 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

1 Nov 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Arinze Ogbonna 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Afeez Bankole: 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.” Kwara United have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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.

In brief

65 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

25 Oct 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Abubeker Nasir says Kwara United 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

Olaniyi Saheed 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

In brief

64 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

18 Oct 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Moses Nyebe says Kwara United 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

Only the photograph left for Abdullahi Mohammad

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Abdullahi Mohammad will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Kwara United the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Johnmark Atule 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.

In brief

63 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

11 Oct 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Kelvin Leku 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Philip Ozor 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.

In brief

62 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

4 Oct 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Arinze Ogbonna 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 Kwara United can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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

Musa Afeez 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.

In brief

61 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

27 Sep 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Olaniyi Saheed 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Kelvin Leku 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Market

Experience through the door at Kwara United

Thamsanqa Williams arrives at 36 with nothing left to prove and plenty left to pass on. Legs are a young man's currency; knowing where to stand never ages.

Squad

No hiding place for Somtochuwku Ezenabo

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

Squad

Musa Afeez 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.

In brief

60 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

20 Sep 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Chisom Ngomere asks to leave Kwara United

“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

Abdullahi Mohammad is on his way

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

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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

Nurudeen Badmos shuts the door again

15 clean sheets and counting. Strikers leave this ground muttering his name, which is exactly how a goalkeeper measures a good season.

Squad

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Yahaya Ibrahim

“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.

In brief

59 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

13 Sep 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Kwara United strike at the death to beat Rivers United

There were 88 minutes on the clock and Rivers United had all but banked the point. Football rarely reads the room, and Kwara United did not stop to explain themselves.

Market

Babatunde Bright’s move to Abia Warriors falls through

The deal that would have taken Babatunde Bright to Abia Warriors has collapsed at the last stage, and he reports back to Kwara United with a summer to forget and a season still to play. Nobody is saying which side walked away.

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Nurudeen Badmos shuts the door again

14 clean sheets and counting. Strikers leave this ground muttering his name, which is exactly how a goalkeeper measures a good season.

The terraces

The crowd has taken to Johnmark Atule

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.

Match

Kwara United see off Rivers United

Three points for Kwara United, 1‑0 the final word against Rivers United in a contest settled by the finer margins.

Player ratings

Johnmark Atule was on a different afternoon to everybody else

8.41. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Musa Afeez 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.

Squad

No hiding place for Musa Afeez

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

In brief

58 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

6 Sep 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Arinze Ogbonna 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Market

So close: Kelvin Leku’s move dies late

The fee was agreed and the flight was looked at — and then the phone stopped ringing. Rivers United moved on, Kelvin Leku reports back to Kwara United, and everybody pretends Monday is just Monday.

Market

Kwara United turn down PWD Bamenda for Abdullahi Mohammad

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

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Getting past Nurudeen Badmos has become the hardest job in the division

13 clean sheets and counting. Forwards used to back themselves here; now they shoot early, shoot wide, and look for somebody to blame.

In brief

57 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

30 Aug 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Market

Olaniyi Saheed 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Market

Kwara United turn down Austria Wien for Olaniyi Saheed

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

Player ratings

Kazeem Tesleem, 21, plays like he has been here for years — 7.60

A mark of 7.60 means one thing beside a twenty-nine-year-old's name and something else entirely beside a 21-year-old's. Nobody at the ground needed telling which this was.

Squad

Johnmark Atule 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Abdulraheem Shola

Successful dribbles: 21. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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

Kwara United come up short against Barau

Barau left with the points after a 1‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

Squad

Nurudeen Badmos 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.

Squad

Getting past Nurudeen Badmos has become the hardest job in the division

12 clean sheets and counting. Forwards used to back themselves here; now they shoot early, shoot wide, and look for somebody to blame.

In brief

56 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

23 Aug 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Enyimba punish Kwara United for switching off

2 goals to the good, and then a slow surrender of everything that had been earned. Johnmark Atule will not be the one blamed for it, but nobody at Kwara United escapes the conversation that follows a collapse like this.

Market

Chisom Ngomere asks to leave Kwara United

“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

Eyes on Olaniyi Saheed again

The phone has started ringing about Olaniyi Saheed again, and this time the name on the line is Austria Wien. Kwara United are listening politely and promising nothing.

Match

6 unbeaten for Kwara United

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

Squad

Izuchukwu Olewunne stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Izuchukwu Olewunne and Kwara United agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Kelvin Leku 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

Musa Afeez 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.

Player ratings

Johnmark Atule was on a different afternoon to everybody else

8.05. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.

Match

Johnmark Atule rescues a point for Kwara United

It needed Johnmark Atule to find the net to bring anything home at all: 2‑2 against Enyimba, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.

In brief

55 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

16 Aug 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Kelvin Leku wins it after the whistle should have gone

94 minutes played. Kelvin Leku found the finish in time that only existed because of earlier delays, and Warri Wolves went from a point to nothing inside one movement.

Market

Plateau United join the queue for Kelvin Leku

Add another name to the list: Plateau United have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Kelvin Leku. The answer from Kwara United has not changed — yet.

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Abdulraheem Shola

Successful dribbles: 21. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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

Kelvin Leku the difference as Kwara United beat Warri Wolves

Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Kelvin Leku. 2‑1 against Warri Wolves, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.

The terraces

The crowd has taken to Johnmark Atule

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.

Squad

No hiding place for Musa Afeez

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

Market

Katsina United expected to open talks for Abdullahi Mohammad

Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Kwara United will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.

In brief

54 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

9 Aug 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Junior Aimufua asks to leave Kwara United

“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 Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

No hiding place for Olaniyi Saheed

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

Player ratings

Abdulraheem Shola in the eights

A performance of 8.12 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.

Squad

Kazeem Yekini signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Kazeem Yekini and Kwara United agree another 1 years.

Market

Niger Tornadoes are about to pick up the phone

A conversation is coming this week. Kwara United will put a number on him, and from there it stops being football and becomes arithmetic.

Player ratings

The cruellest goal, and it is Philip Ozor's

A touch he did not want, a bounce he could not have read, and his name in the wrong column. There is no consoling a man after one of these, and Kwara United will not try tonight.

Match

Honours even between Kwara United and Rangers International

1‑1, and both dressing rooms will call it two points lost. A draw that asked plenty of questions and answered none of them.

In brief

53 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

2 Aug 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Kwara United say no — this time

The offer from LA Galaxy for Olaniyi Saheed 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

Arinze Ogbonna asks to leave Kwara United

“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

Babatunde Bright has one foot out of the door

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

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Player ratings

Johnmark Atule runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 21. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Getting past Nurudeen Badmos has become the hardest job in the division

12 clean sheets and counting. Forwards used to back themselves here; now they shoot early, shoot wide, and look for somebody to blame.

In brief

52 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

26 Jul 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Olaniyi Saheed 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Market

LA Galaxy watching Olaniyi Saheed

The interest is real enough to have reached print. Kwara United have said nothing, which in a transfer window is its own kind of answer.

Market

Kwara United turn down Bendel Insurance for Abdullahi Mohammad

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

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Market

Ikorodu City expected to open talks for Babatunde Bright

Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Kwara United will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.

Player ratings

Musa Afeez turns it into his own net

Nobody's fault and entirely his: a goal that goes into the book with his name against it and nothing about it intended. Kwara United deserved better, and so did he.

Player ratings

Kelvin Leku stands above it all

Some games turn on a moment; this one turned on a man. 7.35 on the card, and the Kwara United support went home talking about one name.

Match

Kelvin Leku rescues a point for Kwara United

It needed Kelvin Leku to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Kano Pillars, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.

In brief

51 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

19 Jul 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Market

Chisom Ngomere 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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 terraces

The crowd has taken to Johnmark Atule

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.

Match

Johnmark Atule the difference as Kwara United beat Bayelsa United

Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Johnmark Atule. 1‑0 against Bayelsa United, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.

Squad

Getting past Nurudeen Badmos has become the hardest job in the division

11 clean sheets and counting. Forwards used to back themselves here; now they shoot early, shoot wide, and look for somebody to blame.

Player ratings

Chisom Ngomere runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 17. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Player ratings

The afternoon belonged to Johnmark Atule

7.94, and no serious argument from anybody who was there. Kwara United had eleven men on the pitch and one of them decided how it went.

Market

Wikki Tourists expected to open talks for Abdullahi Mohammad

Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Kwara United will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.

In brief

50 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

12 Jul 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

The small margins put Kwara United out

Out, 1‑2 to Nasarawa United, and the long argument about which of the small moments decided it. The league is all there is now, and everybody knows it.

Market

Yahaya Ibrahim 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Market

Kwara United say no — this time

The offer from Nasarawa United for Babatunde Bright 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.

The terraces

The boos come down from three sides

“We pay for this every fortnight. The least we want is somebody who looks like he cares.” 6 of the 30 senior players walked off into it; the rest were not playing.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Johnmark Atule 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.

Player ratings

Muhammed Alao runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 21. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Match

Kwara United come up short against Ikorodu City

Ikorodu City left with the points after a 0‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

Market

El-Kanemi Warriors expected to open talks for Kelvin Leku

Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Kwara United will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.

Squad

Musa Afeez 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.

In brief

49 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

5 Jul 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Arinze Ogbonna asks to leave Kwara United

“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.

Match

Still nobody has beaten Kwara United

The unbeaten run reaches 8. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.

Market

El-Kanemi Warriors join the queue for Kelvin Leku

Add another name to the list: El-Kanemi Warriors have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Kelvin Leku. The answer from Kwara United has not changed — yet.

Squad

Babatunde Bright stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Babatunde Bright and Kwara United agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Kelvin Leku 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

No hiding place for Kelvin Leku

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

Player ratings

Abdulraheem Shola takes the honours

Marked 7.87 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, Kwara United had the best player on the pitch.

Market

The Abdullahi Mohammad conversation is coming

Everyone has stopped pretending: Kun Khalifat will make the call about Abdullahi Mohammad this week. Kwara United have a number in mind, and the number is not shy.

In brief

48 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

28 Jun 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Olaniyi Saheed 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Match

7 unbeaten for Kwara United

Hard to beat is not the same as winning, but 7 matches without defeat is a foundation Kwara United did not have in the autumn.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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

Niger Tornadoes join the queue for Abdullahi Mohammad

Add another name to the list: Niger Tornadoes have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Abdullahi Mohammad. The answer from Kwara United has not changed — yet.

Squad

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Match

Chisom Ngomere the difference as Kwara United beat Kun Khalifat

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

Market

The Babatunde Bright conversation is coming

Everyone has stopped pretending: Nasarawa United will make the call about Babatunde Bright this week. Kwara United have a number in mind, and the number is not shy.

Player ratings

A masterclass from Chisom Ngomere

Marked 8.44 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.

Squad

No hiding place for Musa Afeez

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

In brief

47 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

21 Jun 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Chisom Ngomere asks to leave Kwara United

“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

Abdullahi Mohammad keeps the receipts

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

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

6 unbeaten for Kwara United

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

The terraces

The crowd has taken to Johnmark Atule

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.

Match

Kwara United find a way past Bendel Insurance

Bendel Insurance made Kwara United work for it, but the scoreboard read 1‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.

Player ratings

Chisom Ngomere in the eights

A performance of 8.54 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.

Squad

Jimoh Gbadamosi 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.

Squad

No hiding place for Yahaya Ibrahim

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

In brief

46 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

14 Jun 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

14 matches without a win for Kwara United

The run now stands at 14, and the questions being asked around Kwara United are no longer polite ones.

Market

Ceará come back empty-handed

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

Market

Yahaya Ibrahim 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 Kwara United can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Yahaya Ibrahim: 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.” Kwara United have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Market

Wikki Tourists are about to pick up the phone

A conversation is coming this week. Kwara United will put a number on him, and from there it stops being football and becomes arithmetic.

Player ratings

One of those days for Chisom Ngomere

There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.25, and no argument anywhere in the ground.

Squad

No hiding place for Babatunde Bright

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

In brief

45 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

7 Jun 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

No end in sight to Kwara United's wait for a win

13 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Kwara United has to find a result from somewhere.

Market

Babatunde Bright 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 Kwara United can pretend not to have heard.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Johnmark Atule

Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

No hiding place for Kelvin Leku

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

Squad

Nurudeen Badmos shuts the door again

9 clean sheets and counting. Strikers leave this ground muttering his name, which is exactly how a goalkeeper measures a good season.

In brief

44 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

31 May 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

No end in sight to Kwara United's wait for a win

12 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Kwara United has to find a result from somewhere.

Market

Olaniyi Saheed 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Abdulraheem Shola

Successful dribbles: 21. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Player ratings

Ninety minutes of Chisom Ngomere at his very best

Marked 8.46. Players have careers without a single afternoon like this in them, and he has just had one in front of everybody at Kwara United.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Jimoh Gbadamosi 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

43 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

24 May 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

No end in sight to Kwara United's wait for a win

11 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Kwara United has to find a result from somewhere.

Market

Arinze Ogbonna 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 Kwara United can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Somtochuwku Ezenabo: 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.” Kwara United have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Squad

Johnmark Atule 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Thato Sibiya

“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.

In brief

42 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

17 May 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

The wait goes on for Kwara United

10 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.

Market

Chisom Ngomere 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 Kwara United can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Suraj Ayeleso: 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.” Kwara United have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Market

Only the photograph left for Abdullahi Mohammad

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Abdullahi Mohammad will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Kwara United the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Thato Sibiya 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

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

In brief

41 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

10 May 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

No end in sight to Kwara United's wait for a win

9 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Kwara United has to find a result from somewhere.

Market

Yahaya Ibrahim 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Moses Nyebe: 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.” Kwara United have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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.

Match

A bad afternoon for Kwara United against Abia Warriors

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

In brief

40 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

3 May 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Market

Olaniyi Saheed asks to leave Kwara United

“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.

Match

8 matches without a win for Kwara United

The run now stands at 8, and the questions being asked around Kwara United are no longer polite ones.

Match

Kwara United sink to position 18

18 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Thato Sibiya 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

Kwara United come up short against Rivers United

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

In brief

39 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

26 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

Suraj Ayeleso decides it from twelve yards

2 kept out in the shoot-out, and a stadium that will still be describing them in twenty years. A goalkeeper only needs one of these to be remembered forever.

Match

Kwara United through in the cup

A 1‑1 win over Plateau United, and the draw for the next round can be watched with some interest for once.

Match

7 matches without a win for Kwara United

The run now stands at 7, and the questions being asked around Kwara United are no longer polite ones.

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Alege Mahee

Successful dribbles: 21. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Boardroom

Kwara United counting the cost

The accounts make uncomfortable reading. Wages first and ambition second is the order of business at Kwara United now.

In brief

38 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

19 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Arinze Ogbonna asks to leave Kwara United

“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.

Match

5 matches without a win for Kwara United

The run now stands at 5, and the questions being asked around Kwara United are no longer polite ones.

Squad

Abdulhameed Lukman: 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.” Kwara United have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Market

Abdullahi Mohammad is on his way

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

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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.

In brief

37 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

12 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

The wait goes on for Kwara United

4 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Thato Sibiya 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

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

In brief

36 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

5 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

A one-man rearguard from Nurudeen Badmos

There were 6 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

6 unbeaten for Kwara United

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

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Babatunde Bright out for 21 days

The medical room confirms 21 days on the sidelines for Babatunde Bright, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.

Player ratings

Chisom Ngomere runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 17. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

In brief

35 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

29 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Boardroom

The numbers do not look good at Kwara United

Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Thato Sibiya 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 terraces

Kwara United supporters have found a favourite in Johnmark Atule

There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 22-year-old it feels ownership of. Johnmark Atule has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.

Player ratings

A masterclass from Johnmark Atule

Marked 8.07 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Afeez Bankole 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

Honours even between Kwara United and Rangers International

1‑1, and both dressing rooms will call it two points lost. A draw that asked plenty of questions and answered none of them.

In brief

34 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

22 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Only the photograph left for Abdullahi Mohammad

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Abdullahi Mohammad will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Kwara United the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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

33 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

15 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Kwara United leave it late against Kano Pillars

Ninety minutes of very little, and then everything at once. The winner arrived in the 89th, and Kano Pillars spent what remained of the match appealing to the referee rather than chasing the ball.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Thato Sibiya 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

Olaniyi Saheed 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 terraces

The crowd has taken to Olayiwola Abdulmalik

At 19 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.

Match

Kwara United see off Kano Pillars

Three points for Kwara United, 1‑0 the final word against Kano Pillars in a contest settled by the finer margins.

Squad

Kwara United lose Yusuf Ayinde

14 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.

In brief

32 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

8 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

No end in sight to Kwara United's wait for a win

4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Kwara United has to find a result from somewhere.

Squad

Nurudeen Badmos stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Nurudeen Badmos and Kwara United agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

In brief

31 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

1 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Kwara United let it slip despite Boitumelo Radiopane

Boitumelo Radiopane had done his part in building a 2-goal cushion. What happened after that was collective, and Ikorodu City were allowed back into a match that had been finished with.

Squad

Babatunde Bright: 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.” Kwara United have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Thato Sibiya 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.

Boardroom

The numbers do not look good at Kwara United

Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.

Squad

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Nurudeen Badmos 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.

In brief

30 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

22 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

Philip Ozor keeps the receipts

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

Market

Abdullahi Mohammad has one foot out of the door

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

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

Katsina United take the points off Kwara United

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

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Junior Aimufua 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.

In brief

29 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

15 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Junior Aimufua keeps the receipts

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

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Johnmark Atule 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 Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Thato Sibiya 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

Johnmark Atule runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 15. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Boitumelo Radiopane has had enough of the bench

“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and Kwara United will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.

Match

Boitumelo Radiopane rescues a point for Kwara United

It needed Boitumelo Radiopane to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Kun Khalifat, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.

In brief

28 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

8 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Arinze Ogbonna keeps the receipts

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

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Market

Nurudeen Badmos told to find a new club

“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Nurudeen Badmos has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Kwara United.

Match

Kwara United find a way past Bendel Insurance

Bendel Insurance made Kwara United work for it, but the scoreboard read 1‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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

A masterclass from Chisom Ngomere

Marked 8.07 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Musa Afeez

“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

Nothing got past Akeem Akanni

17 defensive actions and a clean sheet at the end of them. A defender's afternoon can only be told by what did not happen, which is why nobody makes a highlights package out of one and every manager in the division would take it.

Market

Remo Stars expected to open talks for Abdullahi Mohammad

Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Kwara United will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.

In brief

27 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

1 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Boardroom

The numbers do not look good at Kwara United

Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.

Squad

Alege Mahee says Kwara United 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

Tempers go at Kwara United

Thato Sibiya 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

Abdulraheem Shola told to find a new club

“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Abdulraheem Shola has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Kwara United.

Squad

No hiding place for Thato Sibiya

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

Match

Kwara United come up short against El-Kanemi Warriors

El-Kanemi Warriors left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

Squad

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Market

Ravenna are about to pick up the phone

A conversation is coming this week. Kwara United will put a number on him, and from there it stops being football and becomes arithmetic.

Player ratings

A costly moment from Olaniyi Saheed

One lapse, one goal, and ninety minutes of honest work counting for nothing. That is the job at Kwara United, and it is a cruel one.

In brief

26 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

25 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Kelvin Leku 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Market

Only the photograph left for Abdullahi Mohammad

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Abdullahi Mohammad will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Kwara United the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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.

Squad

Muhammed Alao pulls a muscle — 14 days out

The injury that keeps coming back, keeps being rushed back from, and quietly costs more careers than the dramatic ones. 14 days is the estimate; the honest figure depends on whether anybody is patient.

Match

Kwara United find a way past Plateau United

Plateau United made Kwara United work for it, but the scoreboard read 1‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.

In brief

25 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

18 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Player ratings

Boitumelo Radiopane scores twice — 8.71

Two goals and a mark of 8.71 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.

Market

Kwara United say no — this time

The offer from Wadi Degla for Babatunde Bright 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.

Match

No end in sight to Kwara United's wait for a win

6 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Kwara United has to find a result from somewhere.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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

Olaniyi Saheed signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Olaniyi Saheed and Kwara United agree another 5 years.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Thato Sibiya 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.

Squad

Adeshina Gata 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.

Match

Kwara United and Wikki Tourists 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.

Market

The shop window has Philip Ozor in it

Kwara United have let the market know Philip Ozor can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.

In brief

24 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

11 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

No end in sight to Kwara United's wait for a win

5 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Kwara United has to find a result from somewhere.

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Player ratings

Chisom Ngomere runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 20. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Match

Kwara United come up short against Niger Tornadoes

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

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Boitumelo Radiopane is still paying for one afternoon at Kwara United

Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.

In brief

23 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

4 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

Thato Sibiya keeps the receipts

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

Market

Suraj Ayeleso 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 Kwara United, and it is not being withdrawn.

Match

The wait goes on for Kwara United

4 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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.

Boardroom

Graduation day at Kwara United

4 boys move up, and somewhere in the building the people who coached them at twelve are quietly having the best morning of their working year. Nothing about this shows up in a result and it is why the academy exists.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Thato Sibiya 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

Kwara United come up short against Nasarawa United

Nasarawa United left with the points after a 1‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

Squad

No hiding place for Boitumelo Radiopane

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

Market

Kwara United promote Isaac Kalu from within

The academy exists for exactly this morning. Isaac Kalu has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.

In brief

22 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

28 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

No hiding place for Suraj Ayeleso

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

In brief

21 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

21 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Adedeji Yeshir: 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.” Kwara United have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Thato Sibiya 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

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

In brief

20 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

14 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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.

Squad

Afeez Bankole 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Kelvin Leku 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.

In brief

19 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

7 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Thato Sibiya 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

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Junior Aimufua

“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.

In brief

18 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

30 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

A knee injury of the worst kind for Suleiman Yusuf

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

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Musa Afeez 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 Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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

17 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

23 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

A knee injury of the worst kind for Suleiman Yusuf

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

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Johnmark Atule 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 Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Thato Sibiya 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

16 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

16 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Suleiman Yusuf damages knee ligaments — 31 days out

The words a physio says slowly. 31 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.

Squad

Somtochuwku Ezenabo keeps the receipts

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

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

In brief

15 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

9 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Suleiman Yusuf damages knee ligaments — 38 days out

The words a physio says slowly. 38 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.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Thato Sibiya 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

Arinze Ogbonna signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Arinze Ogbonna and Kwara United agree another 3 years.

In brief

14 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

2 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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.

Squad

No hiding place for Suraj Ayeleso

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

Squad

Afeez Bankole 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

In brief

13 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

26 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Adedeji Yeshir keeps the receipts

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

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Thato Sibiya 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

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

In brief

12 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

19 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Real improvement from Thato Sibiya at Kwara United

Form comes and goes; this has not gone. Thato Sibiya is 20, and the version of him training now would not have got into the side he was in a year ago.

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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

11 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

12 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Johnmark Atule 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 Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Thato Sibiya 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.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Moses Nyebe

“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.

In brief

10 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

5 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Loan watch

Abdullahi Mohammad has seen enough of Medeama

“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at Kwara United, and 0 appearances in 5 say he has earned the hearing.

In brief

9 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

28 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Thato Sibiya 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

Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Babatunde Bright 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.

In brief

8 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

21 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Johnmark Atule 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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.

Squad

No hiding place for Thato Sibiya

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

In brief

7 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

14 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

Moses Nyebe says Kwara United 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

Tempers go at Kwara United

Thato Sibiya 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

Suraj Ayeleso 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.

In brief

6 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

7 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Alege Mahee 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 Kwara United can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Thato Sibiya 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

Remo Stars take the points off Kwara United

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

Squad

The manager makes an example of Musa Afeez

“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.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Olaniyi Saheed 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.

Squad

Thato Sibiya has outgrown this division

There is a level at which a footballer stops being tested and starts being contained, and he reached it some time ago. Kwara United know it, and so does everybody who watches him.

In brief

5 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

31 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Match

Cruel end for Barau as Kwara United pounce

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

Player ratings

Boitumelo Radiopane scores twice — 8.61

Two goals and a mark of 8.61 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.

Player ratings

No sign of nerves from Johnmark Atule at 21 — 8.16

The hardest thing about being 21 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Johnmark Atule did not need any: 8.16, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.

Market

Aiyenugba Kayode asks to leave Kwara United

“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 Kwara United

Johnmark Atule 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

Kwara United find a way past Barau

Barau made Kwara United work for it, but the scoreboard read 3‑2 at the end and the table does not ask how.

Match

Whatever happens, Kwara United do not lose

6 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.

Squad

Musa Afeez 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 terraces

Kwara United supporters have found a favourite in Boitumelo Radiopane

There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Boitumelo Radiopane has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.

In brief

4 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

24 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Match

Kwara United bow out of the cup

El-Kanemi Warriors go through and Kwara United go home, 0‑0 the scoreline that did it. The dressing room will call the league the priority now, because that is what dressing rooms say.

Match

Cruel end for Enyimba as Kwara United pounce

There is no crueller way to lose a football match. Kwara United scored in the 94th minute, the restart barely happened, and the away end was still standing when the whistle went.

Squad

Kazeem Yekini decides it from twelve yards

1 kept out in the shoot-out, and a stadium that will still be describing them in twenty years. A goalkeeper only needs one of these to be remembered forever.

Market

Kazeem Tesleem asks to leave Kwara United

“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 Kwara United

Musa Afeez 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 Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Aimufua 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

Adeshina Gata the difference as Kwara United beat Enyimba

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

Match

Kwara United keep winning on the road

3 away wins in a row. Travelling support is the truest kind, and this season it is being repaid in the only currency that counts.

Player ratings

Adeshina Gata was on a different afternoon to everybody else

8.29. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.

In brief

3 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

17 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Squad

Musa Afeez 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Muhammed Alao 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.

Squad

No hiding place for Suraj Ayeleso

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

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Adeshina Gata

Successful dribbles: 17. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Kwara United pick somebody else ahead of Suraj Ayeleso

There is no complaint available here and everybody involved knows it, which does not make the walk to the bench any shorter. Form is the only currency in football that cannot be borrowed against.

Market

The shop window has Suraj Ayeleso in it

Kwara United have let the market know Suraj Ayeleso can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.

Market

Olayiwola Abdulmalik told to find a new club

“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Olayiwola Abdulmalik has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Kwara United.

Match

Point won or two lost for Kwara United?

Ninety minutes, no goals, and the argument started before the car park emptied: a point gained, or two thrown away against Warri Wolves? Both sides of it will still be going on Thursday.

Market

Kwara United borrow Boitumelo Radiopane

A season-long look at somebody else’s player: Boitumelo Radiopane arrives from Orlando Pirates with something to prove and a return ticket in the drawer. Good loans make everybody richer; this one starts Saturday.

In brief

2 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

10 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Triumph

Boardroom

Ayodeji Abayomi has agreed to leave Kwara United 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.

Market

Only the photograph left for Ayodeji Abayomi

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Ayodeji Abayomi will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Kwara United the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Squad

Tempers go at Kwara United

Akeem Akanni 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

Wa All Stars are about to pick up the phone

A conversation is coming this week. Kwara United will put a number on him, and from there it stops being football and becomes arithmetic.

Squad

Musa Afeez 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.

Match

Kwara United get the job done against Rangers International

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

Squad

Abdullahi Mohammad out for 47 days

The medical room confirms 47 days on the sidelines for Abdullahi Mohammad, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.

Player ratings

Ninety minutes of Chisom Ngomere at his very best

Marked 8.36. Players have careers without a single afternoon like this in them, and he has just had one in front of everybody at Kwara United.

Squad

Somtochuwku Ezenabo stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Somtochuwku Ezenabo and Kwara United agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

In brief

1 Edition

The Kwara United Sentinel

3 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Triumph

Market

Wa All Stars watching Akeem Akanni

The interest is real enough to have reached print. Kwara United have said nothing, which in a transfer window is its own kind of answer.

Squad

Abdulraheem Shola stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Abdulraheem Shola and Kwara United agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Squad

Akeem Akanni 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 Kwara United this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Kwara United training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Musa Afeez 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.

Market

No place for Chisom Ngomere in the plan

“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Chisom Ngomere has his answer from Kwara United; what he does with it is the next window’s story.

Match

Kwara United get the job done against Shooting Stars

A 1‑0 win over Shooting Stars, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Johnmark Atule

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

Market

Kwara United and Babatunde Bright are talking past each other

“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.

Market

Nobody at Kwara United has picked up the phone to Abdulraheem Shola

49 months to run and not a word offered. A club that lets the calendar negotiate for it usually ends up losing to the calendar.

In brief