BY JOE APU
ALL roads lead to the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos today as the Flying Eagles of Nigeria take on visiting Sudan in the final leg qualifying game ahead of the Zambia 2017 championship.
Ordinarily, with Nigeria already a foot in Zambia courtesy of a 2-1victory in Omdurman last Sunday, many Nigeria football fans would troop out to watch the Nigeria U20 side massacre their opponent.
But the Nigeria coach, Emmanuel Amunike states that he is not one for such beliefs noting on his team’s return to the country on Monday that the battle is far from over.
“We had a warm reception on arrival back to Nigeria and all the players and officials were very glad but I have told my players that we’re starting on a clean slate. The victory in Sudan was heartwarming but that does not give us any reason to be complacent. The Sudanese team will come looking for an upset against us but our only focus is to take the fight to them and battle them to submission.
Coach Amunike noted that his counterpart on the Sudanese bench will be hoping his boys could turn the table against Nigeria and for that reason his players must be at their very best as he does not want any surprises.
“Our journey (to Zambia 2017) is in the hands of God. As human beings, we can only work hard to be able to do our best in every single game with the utmost desire to win and qualify for the 2017 CAF U-20 Nations Cup in Zambia.
“No doubt, Sudan could offer a stiff resistance. That means we have to be mindful of the fact the game will be tough because it is the last qualification game but I think we have all it takes to win and go through.”
However, the team’s talisman, Victor Osihmen would be expected to play his killer role of destroying the visitors just the same way he and Samuel Chukwu eze did in Omdurman, Sudan.
While speaking ahead of the game, Osihmen noted that the team’s preparation has been going on well since they came back from Sudan where they won 2-1 in the first leg. “
We have been preparing physically and psychologically; and the coaches have been keeping us focused for the return leg.
We know it won’t be an easy match despite the fact that we won the first leg.
It has been a great experience for us playing against Burundi in the previous round because they are a very good side in terms of their tactical awareness. The atmosphere in the camp has been very great and by the Grace of God, we shall win in Lagos.
“We are happy to play the second leg against Sudan in Lagos. On a personal level, I’m very excited because I have not had the opportunity of playing in a Nigeria shirt in front of my family and fans in Lagos.
My family and friends would be there to support us; and it would be a great opportunity for us to show the Lagos fans the stuff we are made of. We know the Lagos crowd will be massive and they will support us.
“On his expectations for the game, he said: “I’m not good at predicting results of matches but we are confident we are going to win. In this team, we have a lot of players who can score and it is not down to only me.
We should expect goals from the team and if I get the opportunity, I would utilize it and if possible create opportunities for others to score for others too.
“I think it’s a motivation but we must first qualify for the tournament in Zambia before talking about defending the trophy.