Stand-in Head Coach Daniel Ogunmodede said on Thursday
that the big focus of the Super Eagles B players and officials ahead of
Saturday’s African Nations Championship qualifying game against Ghana’s Black
Galaxies is to attain victory that will spring Nigeria to the finals of the
competition early next year.
Both illustrious regional rivals battled to a
scoreless stalemate in Accra on Sunday and the final qualifying fixture is
delicately poised ahead of the decider at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo
on Saturday.
“We are doing everything to stay focused by avoiding
any distractions. Yes, we got a scoreless draw in the first leg away and now
playing at home, but we are not in any way carried away. Our objective was to
score an away goal in Accra but that did not happen.
“On Saturday, we will approach the game like our lives
depend on it. Our watchword is getting the win that will qualify us for the
African Nations Championship finals coming up in East Africa.”
The eighth instalment of the competition reserved for
footballers plying their trade in their nation’s domestic Leagues will take
place across Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda, 1st – 28th February
2025.
Nigeria defended stoutly at the Accra Sports Stadium
while relying on counter-attacks, but will have to launch onslaughts from the
blast of the referee’s whistle at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium.
Their bitter regional rivalry, Ghana’s failure to
qualify for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations finals and results of previous
encounters in the African Nations Championship are indices that have rendered
Saturday’s match a potentially-explosive affair with endless fireworks.
The Black Stars have failed to reach the 35th AFCON
finals, from a group that included Sudan, Angola and Niger Republic, and the
Galaxies will throw the kitchen sink at the Super Eagles B to ensure they don’t
follow in that negative trend. Ghana last missed the Africa Cup of Nations in
2004.
For Nigeria, Ghana have dominated their African
Nations Championship clashes, with the Eagles winning only one of six previous
clashes. Three have resulted in scoreless draws. Ghana won 3-2 in Accra in 2008
and also 2-0 in Accra in 2022, and to boot, have claimed victory in even in the
ones that ended in ties.
The 0-0 draw in Calabar in 2008 meant Ghana sailed
through to the inaugural CHAN finals in Cote d’Ivoire on the strength of their
3-2 win in Accra two weeks earlier, and when their semi-final clash in the
third instalment of the final tournament in South Africa in 2014 ended 0-0, the
Galaxies prevailed 4-1 after a penalty shootout.
Ogunmodede’s charges have earned Nigeria’s best result
against Ghana in the African Nations Championship on away ground, and look
poised to gain victory in Uyo on Saturday.
The Confederation of African Football has selected
Moroccan official Hamza El Fariq as referee for the match, with his compatriots
Abdessamad Abertoune, Zakaria Bouchtaoui and Hicham Temsamani to serve as
assistant 1, assistant 2 and fourth official respectively.
Prince Kai Saquee from Sierra Leone will be the
commissioner while Miboti Moise from the Democratic Republic of Congo will be
in the role of referee assessor.
PHOTO 1: Super Eagles B players with
Coaches Ogunmodede (middle), Fidelis Ilechukwu (right) and Olatunji Baruwa
(left) during a training session at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium on Tuesday.
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