Coach of Nigeria’s U-23 team, Imama Amapakabo, says the Olympic Eagles must get the desired result against South Africa, admitting that it has been tough for the team at the ongoing U-23 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.
The Olympic Eagles take on South Africa at the Al Salam Stadium in Cairo tonight in a game they must pick the maximum points to reach the semi-finals of the competition.
South Africa are top of Group B with four points, a point ahead Nigeria and remains the only side who are yet to concede in this tournament.
“We are putting our best team forward and hopefully get it right. It is important that we get the desired results that would take us to the semifinals,” Amapakabo said in a chat with NationSport.
“It has been bit tough for my team, because like I said before, every other team here had the opportunity to work for a couple of years and because of some challenges we had, we had to build a team in the competition.”
Meanwhile, team captain Azubuike Okechukwu stated that the South Africa showdown is a must win for the team. He added that the team has enough quality to qualify for the Olympics Games next year.
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“This game is a must win for us, we have been working hard as a team in training and hopefully we would win the game,” Azubuike said.
“Going forward, I believe with or without me in the team everybody is important we can win this tournament if we work hard for it”.