Nigeria’s national U-23 football team, Olympic Eagles’ Coach, Salisu Yusuf, has attributed the lustreless goalless draw result his team achieved against the U-23 Syli National of Guinean in their 2023 U-23 AFCON qualifier Final Round first leg in Abuja on Wednesday to pressure and insufficient time to prepare, Completesports.com reports.
Speaking after the match at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium Abuja, Salisu said the pressure came about when the Olympic Eagles failed to take their chance in the first half, adding they were in much hurry to get a goal and lost focus in the process.
“I am disappointed that we didn’t win the game but all hope is not lost. We go for the second leg in Morocco full of hope and I believe we will get it right in that second leg. Football is very unpredictable, so don’t write us off,” Yusuf told Completesports.com.
“My boys bowed to pressure, allowing the Guineans to dominate the game in the midfield but without breaching our defense. We wanted to win the game, but self-inflicted pressure and lack of cohesion in our game cost us victory.
“We shall go for the second leg in Morocco as if we are already two goals down. We shall fight them with all our hearts. They will come out to attack us in the reverse fixture and in football anything can happen. If we had taken our two clear chances, we could have been smiling now.
“Our preparation for this game was not sufficient enough to blend the overseas-based with the home-based players well before this game. However, with a few more days of training before the second leg to prepare in Morocco, we shall try not to disappoint Nigerians,” Yusuf started.
Olympic Eagles will face the U-23 Syli National of Guineain the second leg at Complexe Sportif Prince Heritier Moulay Al Hassan in Rabat, Morocco on Tuesday, March 28 2023 at 8pm Nigerian time (7pm Moroccan time).
The winner over two legs will qualify for the 2023 U-23 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco which will also serve as CAF qualifiers for Paris 2024 Olympic Games’ men’s football event.
By Richard Jideaka, Abuja
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