Barcelona midfielder Pedri admitted he is loving playing with Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams for Spain after Saturday’s win.
I was watching the Euro 2024 football games and unfortunately for me, the young ones had their party at my place and all the cousins were there and they love football.
So they tell me this Euro has the youngest ever football player who is 16 years old. I asked who is that kid. They tell me his name is Lamine Yamal and he is playing for Spain.
Then I look at the kid in the field and I see he is an African. I asked the young folks why is this African playing for Spain.
They told me his mother is from Guinea and his father is from Morocco and he was born in Spain so that is his country and he is better off playing for Spain and he is already a big player at Barcelona football club one of the best in the world.
Lamine Yamal: ‘I want to continue enjoying wearing the Barça shirt’
Pedri scored twice in the game, while Lamine Yamal grabbed two assists and departed to a standing ovation.
Another player for Spain is Williams Junior who is a terrific football player whose parents are from West Africa. So I was telling the kids this is not Euro 24 because it is Africa 2024 in disguise.
Before that I watched the game between Switzerland and Hungary and I was stunned to see this young African guy score the first goal. He is a citizen of Ghana and Switzerland but he plays for the Swiss team.
Kwadwo Duah completes EURO 2024 whirlwind with Swiss opener
Switzerland took an early lead in their opening EURO 2024 encounter with Hungary.
Kwadwo Duah opened the scoring after just 12 minutes with a tidy finish.
That early strike also saw the London-born forward completed an incredible turnaround through his early strike.
Duah’s first-ever goal for the Swiss arrived in a first-ever appearance at a major international tournament and only a second outing for the country.
Making the feat even more remarkable is that he only made his national team debut just 11 days ago.
Embolo scores on comeback as Switzerland holds on to beat Hungary 3-1 at Euro 2024
Breel Embolo ran, arms spread wide in celebration, after his goal that meant a win for Switzerland and a triumphant personal comeback.
The Monaco forward couldn’t have had an easier chance in the Group G clash, and not only failed to celebrate, but looked rather emotional.
Born in Yaounde, the capital of Cameron, Embolo moved to France as a child, and then Switzerland, a country he has represented since his 2015 debut.
A regular goal threat in the Bundesliga and now at Monaco, the striker was left with a simple task of sweeping home in the second half.
Embolo had not played for Switzerland in 18 months as a succession of injuries — worst of all a cruciate ligament tear — left him an observer of his club Monaco and of his national team. They robbed the momentum of a player who scored two goals in four games at the last World Cup.
It was all in the past as Embolo scored in added time to complete Switzerland’s 3-1 win over Hungary in both teams’ first game of the European Championship on Saturday.
So the kids here in Canada give me headaches about African players and they love their Canadian duo of Alphonso Davies the best football player in the country who plays for Bayern Munich and the other one Jonathan David who plays in France.
Bayern Munich have shortlisted Lille OSC’s Canadian striker Jonathan David as a potential option to replace Robert Lewandowski.
The Bavarian outfit has reportedly been keeping tabs on the 22-year-old striker since his Ligue1-winning campaign, and with 19 goals in 48 games last season, David represents a potent striker canditate to replace an imminently-outbound Lewandowski.
David has been linked with a move away from Lille OSC for the summer transfer window, with teams like Arsenal, Liverpool and Internazionale all reportedly interested in his signature.
Netherlands Euro 2024 squad and best players
Then today Sunday we had some interesting Euro 2024 games. The first one was Netherlands against Slovania. The kids told me that 6 players of Netherland team players are Africans. As the game went on more than 9 Africans were playing for Netherland which won the game.
The captain of that team is Vigil Van Dijk one of the best defenders in the world in the last 5 or so years. He has helped to win everything for Liverpool including UEFA Championship trophy. Then they have Cody Gekpo an attacking winger who scored the first goal.
Nathan Ake provided assists for all the goals for them team. They had black players like Mephis Depay, Dumphries, and the lovely Jeremie Frimpong. I told the kids that this an African team paying in Euro 2024.
Then finally we had to have a debate of how an African team is playing for Netherlands. My son told me their ancestors came from Suriname which was a Dutch colony where African slaves were taken and the Dutch took them to their country and that is why there are so many Black people in Netherlands and they love football.
The Dutch Legacy of the Caribbean – Suriname
Suriname also officially known as the ‘Republic of Suriname’ is one of the smallest countries in South America and the world in general. It is bordered by the Atlantic ocean in the north, Guyana to the west and Brazil to the south.
The country derived its name from the first Indigenous inhabitants in the area called ‘surinens’. like most small nations, Suriname has its own tale of colonialism. It was invaded by strong European forces in the 16th century before coming under Dutch rule in the 17th century.
Let’s take a look at Surinam’s journey from a plantation colony under the Dutch to an independent state.
THE COLONIAL PERIOD
Suriname first inhabitants are said to have dated back to 3,000 BC which saw the arrivals of the first Indians in the country. The country was relatively unnoticed until in the 16th century when it came under the microscope of French, Spanish and English explorers.
The country was named Suriname by Spanish explorers who visited the area. The Europeans made their first attempt to settle in the area in 1630 when English settlers led by Captain Marshall attempted to form a colony but failed.
in 1650, Lord Willoughby the governor of Barbados was determined to form a settlement in the area. He stormed out with ships loaded with guns as well as necessary tools needed for settling on the colony.
However, it was another English man major Anthony Rowse who finally settled there and named the settlement ‘willoughbyland’. The settlement consisted of 3,000 acres and deployed Indian and African slaves to work on the plantations.
The area was invaded by the Dutch and the settlement ‘willoughbyland’ was captured after long hours of combat. After the fort willoughbyland was taken from the British, it was renamed ‘fort Zealandia’ and later back to Suriname by the Dutch. The Dutch and English signed the treaty of Breda where it was agreed that the Dutch could keep occupying Suriname while the British occupied the former Dutch colony in New Amsterdam.
These kids we have out here are very sensitive. They love their countries in Africa and they go there all the time but they always tell us that they are citizens of the countries where they were born and also citizens of Africa. We always respect that and then they are very fine because they like their culture but they also like the countries where they were born and live. If you argue with them they will tell you exactly the hospital where they were born and got their birth certificate. But it is just fun they are Africans and they know that.
Then finally it was England against Serbia for Euro 2024 in the weekend and I didn’t watch it but guess who was the best player for England.
Jude Bellingham scores in England’s opening win
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73411003/2157294567.0.jpg)
Over the last few years, England have formed a squad of highly talented young players capable of going all the way on the big stage. After choking in the final three years ago, they would be looking to go one further this time out – and Real Madrid man Jude Bellingham would be at the heart of those plans.
After all that there are some good news for Kenyans. Our Harambee Junior Starlets have qualified for the FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup in style, this afternoon, defeating Burundi 2-0 (5-0 on aggregate) at the Ulinzi Sports Complex in Lang’ata. We celebrate them for their great achievement!
