Rivers United technical adviser Finidi George has expressed satisfaction with his side’s performance in their CAF Champions League clash against San Pedro.
The Port Harcourt club battled to a 1-1 draw with the Ivorian side in the first leg of their first preliminary round tie at the Laurent Pokou Stadium on Sunday.
Issouf Dosso gave San Pedro the lead four minutes before half-time, heading home after a swift counter-attacking move.
Rivers United responded strongly after the break, with substitute Iyowuna Douglas restoring parity in the 69th minute.
Finidi Happy With Away Result
Speaking after the game, Finidi said avoiding defeat away from home was one of Rivers United’s major objectives going into the encounter.
“I said it yesterday that we wanted to have a good game and not lose here. It could have been 0-0 or 1-1, and the game ended 1-1. So, not losing here is not a bad result. It’s good,” Finidi said.
“If you look at the game, in the first half, there was not much created by both teams. The game was a bit balanced, but in the second half, after they scored, we tried to bring some new energy into the team.
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“I think after we got the equaliser, we dropped too deep towards the end. But in Nigeria, it is going to be a different ball game. We are going to approach the game differently.”
Finidi Assesses San Pedro Threat
Finidi also revealed that the first-leg encounter gave Rivers United an opportunity to properly assess San Pedro’s strengths ahead of the return fixture.
The former Super Eagles head coach praised the youthful energy and quality of the Ivorian side, but believes Rivers United will have the advantage when both teams meet again in Nigeria.
“We tried to see what they were doing and assess their capacity. Like I said, the game was balanced. But we knew they were a very good team, a young team full of energy, so we knew it was going to be a difficult game,” he added.
“But if we could get a good result by not losing here, I think my team will play differently in Nigeria. So, I would say it is going to be 60-40 in our favour in Nigeria.”
Rivers United will now look to finish the job in the return leg and secure a place in the next round of the competition.
By Adeboye Amosu
