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Tag: WAFU B

  • Nigeria qualify for U-20 AFCON, battle Ghana in WAFU B final

    Nigeria qualify for U-20 AFCON, battle Ghana in WAFU B final

    The Flying Eagles of Nigeria are through to the final of the WAFU B U-20 Championship after defeating Niger Republic 3-1 in Lome, Togo on Sunday.

    The win ensured Nigeria’s qualification for the 2025 AFCON in South Africa, while they will battle arch rivals Ghana in the final of the WAFU B U-20 championship on Wednesday.

    The Flying Eagles had to come back from a goal deficit to secure victory against their hard fighting opponent from Niger Republic.

    The Junior Mena of Niger went in front after only nine minutes of the second semi-final at the Stade Kegue, but Nigeria were unruffled.

    Instead, the Nigeria lads found a better shape and dominated afterwards, scoring three stunning goals that took them to the Final.

    Clinton Jephta finished with a plomb from outside the box to put Flying Eagles on level terms in the 35th minute, after an eye-catching interchange of passes among Kparobo Arierhi, Abba Maigari and Nasiru Salihu.

    Jephta was on song again 13 minutes after the restart, putting Nigeria ahead for the first time in the match, and goalkeeper Ifeanyi Harcourt deserves praise for his excellent saves that maintained Nigeria’s advantage.

    The Flying Eagles netted the third in added time, through substitute Olalekan Alonge.

    The Flying Eagles of Nigeria who are defending champions will now clash with bitter rivals the Black Satellites of Ghana in the final of the championship on Wednesday in Lome, Togo.

  • WAFU B: Golden Eaglets win Bronze, beat hosts Ghana 3-2 in Accra

    WAFU B: Golden Eaglets win Bronze, beat hosts Ghana 3-2 in Accra

    The Golden Eaglets of Nigeria claimed the bronze medal at the WAFU B U-17 Championship after defeating the Black Starlets 1-0 at the University of Accra Stadium.

    Imrana Muhammad gave Nigeria the lead inside nine minute of   the thrilling encounter.

    The Black Starlets fought back, with Harve Gbafa netting the equaliser 10 minutes later.

    Gbafa again, found the back of the net three minutes before half hour mark, capitalising on an error by a Nigerian defender.

    Nigeria drew level four minutes before the break following a superb attacking play, after Abdulmuiz Adeleke nodded home from a John Ogwuche cross.

    Golden Eaglets forward, Adeleke struck in the dying minutes to win the game for the Golden Eaglets.

    Adeleke ended the WAFU B competition with four goals and is in the running for the tournament’s golden boot award.

    Burkina Faso will face off with Cote D’Ivoire in the Final on Wednesday.

     

     

  • WAFU B U17 Championship: Eaglets confront Black Starlets for bronze

    WAFU B U17 Championship: Eaglets confront Black Starlets for bronze

    Global youth football powers Nigeria and Ghana will on Tuesday battle it out for the bronze medals of the ongong WAFU B U17 Championship in Accra, Ghana.

    Given their pedigree at this level, both nations should have been preparing to test strength and savvy for who deserved the trophy, in the final match of the competition. However, the Eaglets were downed by Cote d’Ivoire’s Baby Elephants while the Starlets were plucked by the Baby Etalons of Burkina Faso in the semi-finals.

    With the West African Football Union still unable to provide clarity on the number of teams that will proceed to the 2025 Africa U17 Cup of Nations from WAFU B, General Secretary of Nigeria Football Federation, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi has charged the Eaglets to go all out and execute the third-place encounter like a final match.

    “We are still awaiting clarity on the number of teams that will qualify to the U17 AFCON from this tournament. Some people have said only three teams; some said four teams. It is therefore important that our boys go out there and play their hearts out to finish in third place.

    “The Black Starlets will not be an easy ride. They are the home side and they will bank on the support of the fans. But our boys have what it takes to achieve victory.”

    The third-place match will kick off at 3pm Ghana time (4pm Nigeria time) at the University of Accra Stadium, ahead of the final match between Burkina Faso and Cote d’Ivoire, which commences at 6pm Ghana time (7pm Nigeria time).

  • Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets to miss U-17 World Cup

    Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets to miss U-17 World Cup

    Five-time world champions Nigeria and three-time world champions Ghana were eliminated from the WAFU B U17 Championship at the semi-final stage on Saturday, with Burkina Faso getting the better of the host nation and the Baby Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire narrowly sending the Eaglets packing.

    Burkina Faso was the first team in the final after a 2-1 defeat of the Black Starlets. In the second semi-final, rampaging Cote d’Ivoire scored through Youbah Coulibaly off a defensive mix-up by Nigeria in the 54th minute and that strike separated both teams at the University of Accra Stadium.

    It was a tough battle for the Eaglets as the Baby Elephants showed greater composure and hunger for the final ticket, and goalkeeper Dominic Chinedu came to the Eaglets’ rescue on several occasions.

    The result means that the Golden Eaglets have failed to qualify for next year’s Africa U17 Cup of Nations, where Africa’s flag-bearers at next year’s FIFA U17 World Cup finals will emerge.

  • WAFU B: Heavy downpour stops Nigeria vs Togo clash, new date revealed

    WAFU B: Heavy downpour stops Nigeria vs Togo clash, new date revealed

    The Golden Eaglets of Nigeria will now face off with their Togolese counterparts on Thursday Morning after their game was shifted due to a heavy downpour at University Stadium.

    Recall that the WAFU B U-17 Championship Group B encounter was initially scheduled for 5 pm on Wednesday but was postponed due to heavy downpour.

    According to Golden Eaglets media officer, Francis Achi, the game will kick off at 9 am Nigerian time.

    The other Group B clash between Burkina Faso and Niger Republic has also been shifted to Thursday morning for the same reason.

    Both last group B matches  will be played simultaneously with the Nigeria versus Togo game.

    The Golden Eaglets need a point from the game against Togo to progress to the semi-final of the competition.

    Hosts Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire have already qualified for the last four.

    Two finalists will progress to the African U-17 Championship billed to hold in Algeria later this year.

  • WAFU B: We will defend, attack and score as a team, says Golden Eaglets’ forward Adams

    WAFU B: We will defend, attack and score as a team, says Golden Eaglets’ forward Adams

    After scoring the winning goal against the Junior Mena of Niger, Golden Eaglets’ striker Rapha Adams says that the team will work very hard to beat Togo on Wednesday.

    According to the Sporting Supreme FC of Abuja attacker, the Eaglets will do all they can to beat Togo and qualify for the semi- final, noting that winning will be the collective effort of all the players on the pitch.

    “We thank God for the victory over Niger. It was a tough game. No game is easy and we know that the game against Togo will be another tough one as well,” Adams told thenff.com in Accra, Ghana on Tuesday evening.

    “We will defend, attack and score as a team by the grace of God. We have been working hard in training and we will work harder on match day. Our coaches have been teaching us a lot and if we can inteprete everything we have been taught very well against Togo, we will come out victorious.”

    Golden Eaglets will file out against Togo on Wednesday at 5pm Nigeria time. Nigeria have four points from two games, the same number of points with Burkina Faso that sits atop on goals difference of plus two, while Nigeria has plus one.

  • WAFU B U17 Championship: Manu insists Eaglets will go for three points against Togo

    WAFU B U17 Championship: Manu insists Eaglets will go for three points against Togo

    Coach Manu Garba has reiterated that Nigeria’s U17 boys will go for a win in Wednesday’s group B final encounter in Accra even though a draw will be good enough to see the five-world champions through to the semi finals.

    “We are not here to be drawing matches. I am not happy that we drew our first match against Burkina Faso. We should have scored a number of goals especially towards the end but we cannot be crying over spilt milk.

    “We got the three points against Niger Republic, and we have to keep at the winning mentality. We cannot afford to gamble; a win is what we are going for. Even though they lost their first two matches, we cannot afford to under-rate the Togolese. They got two goals against Niger Republic, even though they eventually lost, so they are not a team to be taken for granted.”

    Cup holders Golden Eaglets will finish top of the pile if they win against the Togolese at the Accra Sports Stadium and fellow group leaders Burkina Faso fail to get the better of Niger Republic at the University of Accra Stadium in games that will be played simultaneously.

    Victory for Nigeria, and draw or defeat for the Burkinabes, will mean the Eaglets avoid in-form Black Starlets of Ghana, who are expected to top group A, in the last-four confrontations.

  • WAFU B: Golden Eaglets inch closer to semi-final, pip Niger Republic 1-0

    WAFU B: Golden Eaglets inch closer to semi-final, pip Niger Republic 1-0

    Nigeria joined Burkina Faso at the top of group B of the WAFU B U17 Championship after a lone goal defeat of Niger Republic at the University of Accra Stadium on Sunday.

    Rapha Adams’ 31st-minute goal separated both teams on the night, the Nigeria side played the final 27 minutes with 10 men after Chibuike Okorie was shown the red card.

    Victory means the five-time world champions climbed to four points, same as Burkina Faso, ahead of the closing day of group B attrition on Wednesday when the Eaglets confront group whipping boys Togo at the Accra Sports Stadium, while Burkina Faso square up to three-pointer Niger Republic at the University of Accra Stadium.

    The Golden Eaglets will face already-eliminated Togo in their last group game on Wednesday.

    A draw against the Togolese team on Wednesday will guarantee the Eaglets a place in the tournament’s semi finals.

    STAR-BOY: Nigeria captain Simon Cletus wins Player of the Match award, just as he did in the match against Burkina Faso on Day 1.

     

    GROUP B RESULTS

    Burkina Faso 0 Nigeria 0

    Niger Rep 3 Togo 2

    Togo 0 Burkina Faso 2

    Nigeria 1 Niger Republic 0

  • WAFU B: Golden Eaglets, Burkina Faso share spoils in Group B opener

    WAFU B: Golden Eaglets, Burkina Faso share spoils in Group B opener

    Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets and Burkina Faso played out a goalless draw when both teams clashed n their Group B fixture at the University Stadium, Accra, on Thursday in the ongoing WAFU Cup.

    The Golden Eaglets dominated the game from start to finish but weren’t clinical in front of goal.

    The Burkinabes failed to create any clear-cut opportunities for the entire duration of the game.

    Manu Garba’s side will take on Niger Republic in their next game on Sunday.

    The Eaglets will play their third group game by Wednesday next week against Benin Republic.

    The top two teams in the group will make it to the semi-final.

    The two finalist will secure qualification to the African U-17 AFCON holding later in the year in Algeria.

  • WAFU B U17: Ghanaian, Nigerien officials for Nigeria, Burkina Faso match

    WAFU B U17: Ghanaian, Nigerien officials for Nigeria, Burkina Faso match

    Ghanaian official Adaari Abdul Latif will be the referee for Thursday’s WAFU B U17 Championship group B opener between five-time world champions Nigeria and the Burkina Faso U17 boys at the Accra University Stadium.

    Latif will work with compatriot Emmanuel Dolagbanu (assistant referee 1) and Nigeriens Sakina Hamidou (assistant referee 2) and Brahamou Sadou Ali (fourth official) at the game that will kick off 3pm Ghana time (4pm Nigeria time). Latre-Kayi Edzona Lawson-Hogban from Togo will be the commissioner while Ivorian Songuifolo Yeo will serve as referee assessor.

    The championship serves as a qualifying competition for next year’s Africa U17 Cup of Nations.