South African goalkeeper Ronwen Williams has shed light on his inability to save any penalties during his team's 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) semi-final match against Nigeria's Super Eagles earlier this month. Despite his heroics in the shootout victory against Cape Verde in the AFCON quarterfinals, where he played a pivotal role for Bafana Bafana, Williams faced challenges in the semifinal clash with Nigeria. The Mamelodi Sundowns shot-stopper was unable to thwart any of the spot kicks he faced as the Super Eagles emerged victorious with a 4-2 shootout win, advancing to the final where they ultimately fell to Ivory Coast in a close encounter. Reflecting on the match and his approach to penalty-saving, Williams disclosed that he attempted to psych out some of the Super Eagles' penalty takers, but his tactics did not yield the desired results. "Obviously, when facing penalties, there are three possibilities – down the middle, left, or right. However, regulations...

  Retired Nigerian footballer Mikel Obi has unveiled his Premier League's all-time African XI, notably omitting compatriot Nwankwo Kanu and Algerian star Riyad Mahrez. Despite Kanu's decorated career and Mahrez's multiple title wins with Manchester City and Leicester City, they didn't make the cut. Obi himself didn't include in the XI, alongside Kanu, despite their impressive achievements. Obi revealed his XI in a 4-2-1-3 formation on his podcast, "The Obi One." His lineup features Édouard Mendy in goal, Celestine Babayaro at left-back, Kolo Toure and Lucas Radebe as center-backs, and Lauren at right-back. In midfield, Michael Essien and Yaya Toure were chosen, with Jay Jay Okocha as the attacking midfielder. The attacking trio comprises Mohamed Salah, Didier Drogba, and Sadio Mane.