By God’sbest Christ’sfullness
Nigeria’s Flying Eagles will begin the defence of their WAFU B U-20 Championship title with a clash against long-time rivals Ghana on Monday in Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast.
The opening Group B match will also be the first competitive game for new head coach Abdu Maikaba, who has set his sights on starting the campaign with a victory as Nigeria seek to retain the regional title.
The Flying Eagles defeated Ghana’s Black Satellites 2-1 in the final of the 2024 edition to successfully defend the trophy they first won in 2022. Nigeria lifted the 2022 title under Isa Ladan Bosso before Aliyu Zubairu guided the team to another triumph two years later.
Speaking ahead of the encounter, Maikaba said his team was focused on securing all three points, stressing that a winning start was important to their title defence.
The match is scheduled to kick off at 2 p.m. local time (3 p.m. Nigerian time) at the Lycée Scientifique de Yamoussoukro.
Nigeria head into the tournament after recording a 2-1 victory over Athlétique Club de Zenuola in a friendly match last Thursday.
A win over Ghana would strengthen Nigeria’s chances of reaching the semi-finals before facing Togo on July 30 and Burkina Faso on August 2 in their remaining Group B matches. Both fixtures will be played at the same venue and are scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. local time.
Hosts Côte d’Ivoire are drawn in Group A alongside Benin Republic and Niger Republic.
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