Julius OkorieNasarawa United risk another NPFL hammer after Plateau United Striker, Vincent Temitope, was stabbed by a yet to be identified fan at the Lafia Township stadium on Sunday.
Tope who scored one of the goals in Plateau United’s 3-2 loss to Nasarawa United was attacked by an assailant with a knife forcing him to be rushed to the Federal University Teaching Hospital in Lafia for immediate medical attention.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelPlateau United Director of Media Operations, Yaksat Maklek,while narrating the incident, said some fans had approached Temitope after the match seemingly to ask for photographs. However, as they got close to the player, one of the fans suddenly attacked him.
“After the game, a couple of fans went close to him pretending they wanted to take some snapshots, and one of them struck him in the neck.
“They say he actually held a knife and struck him in the neck. You would imagine how much worse it could have been if the player had not escaped that particular attack,” Maklek recounted.
Following the shocking incident, Temitope was rushed to the Federal University Teaching Hospital in Lafia for immediate medical attention. Maklek confirmed that the player is in “stable condition” after receiving treatment.
He further revealed that the club has compiled all necessary evidence related to the attack and intends to present it to the NPFL for appropriate action.
“We will be submitting all the relevant evidence to the NPFL to ensure that the right steps are taken in response to this incident,” he said.
Vincent Temitope, who joined Plateau United, last year, has been a standout performer for the club. He was also named in the Super Eagles B training squad ahead of the upcoming African Nations Championship (CHAN) later this year. Temitope reportedly missed a penalty and also scored a goal during the encounter.
With the no nonsense approach of the NPFL to breaching of rules of the game and poor adherence to safety of visiting teams and players, there are strong indications that Nasarawa may get knocks unless they are able to fish out the fan who attacked the striker.
READ ALSO:Misconduct: NPFL Fines Nasarawa Utd N3m, Deducts Three Points
Recall that Nasarawa were slammed with N3 million fine and had three points deducted from them following a fracas in their matchday 18 tie against visiting Rivers United.
On that particular occasion, a match official was equally attacked. Dishing out its verdict then, the league body said “Nasarawa Utd have been charged for breaching the NPFL Framework & Rules in the course of their Matchday 18 fixture vs. Rivers Utd on December 22, 2024,” NPFL wrote. “The Lafia club breached #NPFL25 rules following encroachment unto the field of play in the course of the match.
“Nasarawa Utd also failed to ensure proper conduct of their team and supporters which led to the assault on the away team.
“The club’s supporters also assaulted one of the match officials (centre referee Musibaudeen Ibrahim). Continuing, the league body further informed that “Nasarawa Utd will pay a fine of N3 million, being N1 million each for encroachment unto the pitch, failure to ensure proper conduct of their team & supporters & failure to provide adequate & effective security.
“3 points & 3 goals shall be deducted from Nasarawa Utd’s accrued points & goals for the assault on centre referee Musibaudeen Ibrahim.”
The league body also ordered Nasarawa United then, to identify and prosecute the fan(s) involved in the assault on the away team.
Julius Okorie is Chief Sports and Entertainment Correspondent for Prime Business Africa. He began his journalism career with the Champion Newspaper and Sporting Champion and later moved on to Daily Independent and the Nation Newspapers. Okorie joined Prime Business Africa in 2024 bringing on board 20 years of experience in writing investigative news on Sports and Entertainment. His well researched and highly informative articles on Sports Business and general entertainment are followed by a wide range of audience.
