Amuneke Picks Nwakali, Osimhen, 16 Others For Burundi

Amuneke Picks Nwakali, Osimhen, 16 Others For Burundi

Adeboye   22:15:00   No comments:

Coach Emmanuel Amuneke has cast his lot with his FIFA U-17 World Cup winners, with about 15 of them making the list of 18 players of the U-20 squad to this weekend’s 2017 CAF U-20 Cup of Nations qualifying match against Burundi in Bujumbura.

Team Secretary Aliyu Lawal Ibrahim told thenff.com that the Nigeria delegation will fly out of Abuja aboard an Ethiopia Airlines plane on Wednesday.
Nwakali, named the Player of the Tournament at the FIFA U-17 World Cup finals in Chile, where Nigeria scooped a fifth title, is joined by tournament best scorer Victor Osimhen and Bronze Boot winner Samuel Chukwueze.
There are also goalkeeper Akpan Udoh, defenders Ejike Ikwu, John Lazarus and Udochukwu Anumudu, midfielders Orji Okonkwo and Kingsley Michael and forwards Chukwudi Agor and Chinedu Madueke.
Nigeria and Burundi clash in a second round, first leg qualifying tie at the Prince Louis Stadium in Bujumbura on Saturday, starting from 3pm Burundi time (1pm Nigeria time). The winner of this fixture will confront Sudan in the final qualifying round.
Zambia will host the finals of the 2017 CAF U-20 Cup of Nations.
Flying Eagles for Burundi:
Kelechi Nwakali, Akpan Udoh, Chukwudi Agor, Ejike Ikwu, Anas Mohammed, Chinedu Madueke, Tobechukwu Ibe, Gavi Thompson, Samuel Chukwueze, Kehinde Ayinde, Orji Okonkwo, Victor Osimhen, Halilu Zakari, Udochukwu Anumudu, Kingsley Michael, Douglas Uzama, Chiaha Chisom, John Lazarus

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Amuneke Drops Six More Players From Flying Eagles Camp

Amuneke Drops Six More Players From Flying Eagles Camp

Adeboye   19:44:00   No comments:

Head Coach of the Nigeria U-20, Coach Emmanuel Amuneke has finally pruned the number of players in camp to 31 after Saturday’s friendly match with Nigeria National League side, Supreme Court FC.

The match ended 1-0 in favour of the Flying Eagles but it also afforded the technical crew an opportunity to further assess the ability of the fringe players ahead of the May 22, CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier with Burundi in Bujumbura.

Midfielder Kingsley Michael scored from the penalty spot in the 65th minute for the only goal of the match that is the fifth in a series of games played so far by the U-20 boys.

On Saturday, Amuneke fielded a completely new team against Supreme Court FC but was left disappointed at half time as the Flying Eagles failed to exhibit what they have learnt in over three weeks of intensive training. The second stanza saw the introduction of 10 new players as the U-20 boys began to dominate play, leading to a 65th minute penalty converted by Michael.

With 20 minutes left on the clock, the coaches introduced star players Victor Osimhen and Samuel Chukwueze to further pile pressure on the Abuja based team but their effort did not add to the scoreline as the match ended 1-0 at full time. Amuneke thanked the dropped players for their perseverance and endurance during the screening and advised them to stay fit as their services may still be required in the near future.

One more player will be dropped next week to further reduce the number in camp to 30. The Flying Eagles have so far played five matches, including defeating Sia-One Academy 4-1, Dabo Babes 5-0, Ace FC of Kaduna 6-2 and drawing 0-0 with Dreams FC of Makurdi.

Nigeria must beat Burundi over two legs to advance to the final round of the qualifiers in July this year.

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