Nigeria’s Spartan Eagles will face Ghana in the quarterfinals of the 2021 Mini football Africa Cup of Nations on Thursday.
Nigeria qualified for the quarterfinals with four points. The Spartan Eagles drew 0-0 with Libya in the competition opener, lost 2-3 to Senegal before their hard-fought 3-2 win over Zambia in the last group match.
Ghana on the other hand, booked a place in the last eight after two wins and one draw in the group stage. Ghana drew 3-3 with Burkina Faso in their first group game before beating title holders, Cote d’Ivoire 3-1 and humiliating Somalia 7-1 in their last group game.
Ghana are the first team to score seven goals in a match in the tournament while Dennis Appiah is the only player to score four goals in a game.
Meanwhile, the head coach of Nigeria Minifootball national team, Fabian Edaba is optimistic that his boys are motivated to beat the Ghanaian national team today, urging Nigerians not to relent in supporting the team. He said the team continues to get better as they progress in the competition.
“I am optimistic that Nigeria will defeat Ghana in Thursday’s quarter-final match because the players are well motivated to achieve that. They know what is at stake and will put everything to pick the semifinal ticket.
“I urge all Nigerians to continue praying and supporting the team. Spartan Eagles started on a not-too-impressive note but we are getting better as we play more games.
The first quarter-finals match is scheduled for Ilaji Minifootball pitch, Ibadan at 3pm.
Omotayo hopeful of Team Nigeria’s Table Tennis Olympics contingents
Nigeria National Table Tennis player and Olympics newbie Olajide Omotayo has stated that he is hopeful of Team Nigeria’s Table Tennis contingent to the Tokyo Olympics doing well due to the quality and rich level of experience of the players representing Nigeria.
Omotayo who will be attending his first Olympic games with Team Nigeria qualified for the games as All Africa games Gold medalist winner and believes the presence of Quadri Aruna is a big motivation for him on a personal note and that the team can draw inspiration from his experience and that of others in the team.
Retaining the AITEO Cup is our priority, says Ezekiel
Kano Pillars midfielder Tamara Ezekiel has disclosed that winning the Aiteo Cup remains a target for his team.
The Sai Masu Gida played a goalless draw with lower league side Kebbi United but managed to secure a 3-2 win in the penalty shootout on Wednesday.
In a chat with brila.net after the game, but The defensive midfielder said, although Kano Pillars are not giving up hope of winning the Nigeria professional football league title, retaining the Aiteo is also a target.
“We want to win everything as a football club and thank God we are through to the next round of the Aiteo Cup”
“It wasn’t an easy game, but Kebbi United game with good strategies to stop our attack, but we are happy that we are still in the competition.”
“Everything is still very much open in the league, so we aren’t giving up, but retaining the Aiteo Cup is a priority as well,” he told brila.net.
African Mini football Nations Cup Quarterfinal: Spartan Eagles to slug it out against Ghana
