Super Eagles, Bafana Bafana in supremacy battle – Nigeria V South Africa Preview

Super Eagles of Nigeria face probably the toughest match of their 2019 African Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifiers, as South Africa’s Bafana Bafana make the trip to Lagos.

By Nnaemeka Meribe

• Super Eagles of Nigeria. Photo Credit: Reuters

Super Eagles are under enormous pressure to win at home although this is just their third Group C match.

The three-times African champions go into Saturday’s match against South Africa’s Bafana Bafana, tied with Seychelles in second position on the log, and desperate for a win in order to lead the group after the encounter.

Their shocking stoppage time defeat away to Libya last time out brought the players down to earth and it means anything less than a win in the weekend encounter with Bafana Bafana could be a deadly blow.

The Gernot Rohr’s side now need to up their game, having spent considerable time on the training ground with most players injury free.

Weekend offers them a good opportunity to confirm their superiority over their South African counterparts, who are currently on a run of good form having won their last four matches.

South Africa

South Africa currently atop the group, may be going for a draw - or even a win - to maintain their position.  A win appears an uphill task, but considering the splendid game they had in their second match against Libya, anything is still possible.

• Libya's Muaid Ellafi is challenged by Sifiso Hlanti of South Africa. Photo credit: www.espn.com

This is Bafana Bafana’s first game away in the qualifiers and they will want to prove that they do not owe their good form so far to home advantage.

Managed by Stuart Baxter since 2016, South Africa have enjoyed good results so far in the qualifiers.

An impressive 3-0 win at home to the group’s weakest team on paper, Seychelles, was a result for them, but it was their 4-0 humbling of Libya at home that showed that they were the team to beat in the group.

Team news

Super Eagles will have almost all their players for the match. Kelechi Iheanacho is back to full training after suffering a groin injury, and the Leicester city striker could start alongside Chesea’s Victor Moses and Shanghai FC’s Odion Ighalo in what is growing into one of Africa’s most deadly front threes.

Skipper Mikel Obi will be assisted in the centre by midfield powerhouse, Wilfred Ndidi and fit again Ogenyi Onazi, who is rumoured to have agreed a fee with Israeli clubside, Maccabi Tel Aviv.

William Troost-Ekong has yet to start since the goaless draw in Seychelles, missing out against both Libya, so coach Rohr may want to bring him back in at right-back due to his form.

South Africa will be facing the greatest test to their newfound form as key players Steve Matthew, Themba Zwane and Bongani Zungu are out with injuries.

In the absence of the trio, Aubrey Modiba, Calvin Tethe and Tiyani Mabunda will have to prove that they are as good by doing the against Nigeria.

Did you know?

Rohr is still unbeaten as Super Eagles gaffer at home since 2014 when he took over from Samson Siasia.

That’s a total of 14 matches, with 11 victories and four draws in that time, restoring the feeling of invincibility at home.

Super Eagles have yet to lose a game to South Africa - whether home or away – since 1992 when the two teams met for the first time.

Prediction

Nigeria 3 – 1 South Africa

What is glaucoma and how can it be treated?

By Nnaemeka Meribe

Glaucoma is a leading cause ofirreversible blindness in the world. It is a group of diseases of the eye that causes permanent blindness by destroying the optic nerves at the back of the eye. Optic nerves take information from the retina of the eye to the brain for interpretation.

• Illustration of intraocular pressure in the back of the eye due to damage to the optic nerve. Photo credit: www.allaboutvision.com

Who is at risk?

While anyone can develop glaucoma at any time, some people, more than others, are predisposed to developing glaucoma, particularly chronic glaucoma. People over 40 years and above fall into this. In addition to increasing age, race is another predisposing factor.

Black people are at ahigher risk of developing glaucoma than any other race. People whose relations have been diagnosed with glaucoma are also at risk. The risk is higher if they are above 40 years. Other risk conditions include high myopia or short-sightedness, diabetes and hypertension. People who are on medications containing corticosteroid, especially eye drops, over a long period are also likely to develop glaucoma.

What are the causes?

The cause of glaucoma is not completely known. But raised pressure in the eyeball has been frequently linked with glaucoma. Inside the eyeball is fluid which gives the eyeball its shape and assists in its function by exerting some pressure within the eyeball.  When this pressure exerted by the fluid goes beyond acceptable range, damage to the optic nerve occurs. The extent of the damage is determined by the magnitude of the pressure, with higher pressure resulting in much more damage and the duration of the pressure determined by how much damage is done to the optic nerves.

What are the symptoms?

At the onset, the disease could be chronic or acute.  Chronic cases develop slowly without symptoms over the years. This is why glaucoma is often referred to as ‘thief of the eye’. Acute cases are rare but are sudden and associated with sharp pain and irreversible loss of vision. Glaucoma could also be a result secondary to another condition or factor and congenital glaucoma has been seen in newborns and associated with incomplete development of the visual system at formation.

In most cases of glaucoma, there are no appreciable symptoms reported until advanced stages of the disease. It starts with narrowing of the visual field to tunnel vision. Other symptoms like sharp pain, reduced and blurry vision, haloes around bright light, poor contrast and red eye (in acute glaucoma) etc. occur at advanced stage of the disease.

• Illustration of malignant glaucoma. Photo credit: www.eyeworld.org

Can it be treated

In managing glaucoma, early detection is key.  A study is currently going on inAustralia to improve early detection. Yearly comprehensive eye check by an optometrist is recommended. For those identified as being at higher risk, comprehensive eye check twice every year is recommended. Generally, early detection and treatment will ensure minimized risk and damage to the eye, since vision loss is irreversible. The goal of the treatment is to reduce the pressure in the eye and improve blood circulation to the optic nerves.

If the disease was detected late and significant vision has been already lost, much can still be done to stop further loss and help maximize the remaining partial vision. Low vision devices can be helpful where drugs, surgery and other optical devices have failed or could not help. Contact an optometrist for further details.