Golden Eaglets will on Friday, June 24 battle with Burkina Faso in a cranky final of the West African Football Union (WAFU) B U17 championship at the Cape Coast Stadium, Ghana.
Burkina Faso narrowly edge out host nation Ghana in a 1-0 win to book a final clash with the Golden Eaglets of Nigeria that walloped Cote d’Ivoire 3-1 in a comeback win.
Both countries by their victories, qualified for next year’s U17 African Cup of Nations hosted by Algeria in 2023.
While Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire lock horns for the third place prior to the final at the same venue, Nigeria are upbeat to defeat Burkina Faso to kick start their surge towards a third AFCON trophy in Algeria. The Trumpet Gathered
Meanwhile, head coach Nduka Ugbade of the five-time world champions has attributed the team’s mistakes, while processing the game against the Young Elephants, to inadequate time for preparations.
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Ugbade, who spoke to the media after Golden Eaglets clinched one of the two qualifying tickets to the U17 AFCON ticket, stressed they will have to improve on their deficiency before the continental tourney in Algeria next year.
“For all we know, this was a cross-over match to qualify for Algeria. It’s been interesting so far, but we’ve been losing a lot of passes,” he said in a post-match conference.
“This is bound to happen in football but at the end of the day we think before Algeria we will get a lot better,” Ugbade said.
He continued: “We are not 100 per cent there yet because some of the things I was expecting from my players to the best of my knowledge weren’t carried out specifically.
“It was quite obvious from the match today that they made a lot of mistakes in their passes and this we will have to improve.
“It is a direct result of us not starting preparations at home on time,” Ugbade faulted.
However, the Eaglets’ head coach praised the team for their performances in the tournament, while dignifying Emmanuel Michael for his consistency that has earned him ‘Man of the Match’ award three times.
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