Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets on Thursday held Burkina Faso to a 0-0 draw in their opening Group B game at the 2024 WAFU B U-17 qualifiers in Ghana.
It was the first game in the Group which also has Togo and Niger Republic.
After a tight contest, both teams decided to settle for a share of the points.
The Eaglets, defending champions of the tournament will be back on Sunday, 19 May when they will take on Niger Republic.
They will round off the group phase against Togo three days later.
In the tournament’s opening game, hosts Ghana thrashed Cote d’Ivoire 5-1 in Group A.
The WAFU B U-17 tournament will serve as qualifiers for the U-17 AFCON
15 Comments
I saw the highlight on you tube.. that Cletus seem to me as a future star.. reminds me of a young Mikel obi but looks more faster than Mikel obi.. another player I noticed his good Play was the no 7 and no 4.. I think the defense also looks good..
Wishing them well! They played better than Burkina Faso but were unlucky
I caught the game from the 20-minute mark, and oh boy, the NFF got a serious kicking in my mind! These lads are dripping with talent, but dang, it’s like they barely knew each other on the field. If they had time to gel as a team, they’d be unstoppable. But nope, bad prep as usual made them look like a common rag from kickoff to final whistle.
Misplaced passes, sloppy marking, brain farts in decision-making, and don’t even get me started on their positioning – it was all over the place! And let’s talk about the captain – dude’s got skills for days, but stuck in this mess of a system, he’s like a diamond in the rough.
Seriously, what’s up with this NFF? What exactly is wrong with Gusau? Na so we go dey dey? Three weeks of training for a continental tournament? It’s like they think any U-17 team with players carrying Nigerian passports can just stroll into a competition and snatch the trophy without breaking a sweat. They’ve been squandering our young talents for nearly a decade now. Last time we won anything on the global stage at the u17 was 2015. These kids should be the backbone of our national team, but nope, the NFF seems more interested in playing matchmaker with tournaments than investing in proper development programmes.
And don’t even get me started on the dough they splash on the Super Eagles! Half of those guys came up through youth programmes from previous administrations. Oops! Walahi, this NFF is like that friend who talks big but never delivers – a total joke, I must say!
Manu Garba did a nice work. The boys would have won the match as they had a lot of chances. Imagine the boys to have been in camp for like two months before this competition. They will blend more as the competition progresses.
@Papafem, na so we see Nigeria.
We are one of the most talented nations on earth, yet we dont have much to show for it because of incompetent leadership.
You will see the hand of Ugbade well written over that team. It must have been a last minute swap for MANU to take over. Shameless NFF. U17 and U20 both Hausas, una no get sense at all.
Coache what has tribes got to do with it. Amunike won the world cup and so did Garba. Nigeria problem is leadership not tribes.
Another spineless dingus spotted!
@papafem, same could be said of the Burkina babes, cut them some slack, if they were assembled in 3 weeks guy they tried. They had begging chances and want to believe nervousness kicked in. I believe they will gel. I only have issues with the concentration of the left back, he kept making silly mistakes. Hope he improves in the next game
Hahaha, Keneth my guy. I can feel your patriotism. Thanks for loving your country! Yeah, But being proud of our nation is one thing, however, turning a blind eye to the messes our institutions make? That’s a whole different story. If we don’t call out the nonsense, we’ll just keep spiraling into failure, and that’s not a ride I wanna be on forever. We gotta speak up if we wanna see some real change around here!
@papafem, well mal-administration has always being an issue. Wonder if they don’t learn from their fellow FA. Miss those days of grass-root football. Principals cup that you go and unearth players for the Eagles, hope they wake up sooner than latter, many countries are now catching up to us.
That’s exactly the point I was making, Bro, in that first post. I want those days back.
It’s frustrating, isn’t it? Our talents are slipping through the cracks, and it feels like nobody’s holding the NFF accountable. We’re not grooming the next generation of players, and the ones we have now are nearing the end of their prime. Meanwhile, I watched Ghana take on Ivory Coast, and let me tell you, Laryea Kingston’s work with that team is impressive! Their talent and teamwork blew me away. The GFA’s backing them up, putting together a fresh squad, sending them to international competitions, and snagging a top-notch coach.
But then there’s our NFF, serving up a half-baked team that struggled to even draw against Burkina Faso. Did the current U-17 squad even play a single international friendly before yesterday? And let’s not forget the debacle with the U-15 team’s visa issues for a major tournament. It’s like they’re asleep at the wheel while our rivals are speeding ahead.
To my understanding and notice the u15 was not denied any visa by Spanish authorities but the NFF made that excuse up because they don’t want to bankroll the teams expenses. Please let’s not believe all we see on media NFF is a fraudulent organisation full of lies and deceit.
Going back to our U17, I hope they’ll top this group and meet the runners up of Group A then play Ghana in the finals to automatically qualify for the u17 afcon as finalist. I’m saying this because this tournament is going to be won by Ghana. Manu Garba will have the time to polish the team before the u17 tournament proper. For now picking one of the two tickets to the u17 afcon should be the goal.
@papafem, na make we dey pray for them. I believe dey did play one friendly. Well the Ghanaian team looked shaky at first but settled on later. Ivory coast was just ball watching
Thankfully, FIFA is making under 17 world cup happen every year till at least 2030, both male and female versions. NFF will be the most incompetent if preparations become our Achilles heel in subsequent years. Let’s forgive them for this one.
Personally, I think fans can be satisfied with the performance of the Golden Eaglets yesterday against Burkina Faso despite not been able to run out winners.
As has become a staple of Nigerian Under-17 football in recent seasons, certain undesirable factors plagued the team prior to the tournament. From failure to appoint a coach on time, failure to pick and prepare players in a timely manner to decimation of the original squad due to failing MRI tests, there were disruption at every turn.
But yesterday Manu Garba’s lads put all that behind them to produce a profession performance with just frayed around certain edges.
I loved how they created compelling goal scoring opportunities via a variety of methods. Some neatly disguised through balls from midfield put the strikers through on goal whilst they created space from the flanks to deliver a melange of high and low crosses.
They played with urgency and sense of purpose, portraying players grateful to have survived the purge of MRI to be representing Nigeria. Interplay of passes were very good and these lads showed admirable composure on the ball. Even for Under-17 football, they could not be accused of kick-and-follow football – no, they displayed tactical awareness and discipline.
It wasn’t a perfect performance by any means as some things did bother me. Decision making at times was questionable as Cletus – through on goal as a recipient of a delicious defense splitting pass – chose to pass instead of taking a punt at goal in the second half (and his pass was awful). Another winger chose to shoot from the byline with his colleagues well placed. The goalkeeper did very well but he comes across as being a bit too exuberant. The finishing was disgraceful as some of their shots lacked power-commitment and precision.
But they come across as being sturdy in defence, putting their bodies in the right places to choke out the opposition. Their passing routines were vibrant and executed with flair and energy, giving their entire presentation that lift and excitement.
These are players pulling in the right direction and they showed much potential and ability to improve and gel much better as the tournament progresses.
There wasn’t a dull moment in that match. The Golden Eaglets displayed a rich array vibrancy in their attitude and an abundance of style in their approach which sadly could not translate to 3 points with frivolous finishing and dubious decision making.
But the building blocks are there of a team that grasp the nettle, learn from past mistakes and do the business in the remainder of the tournament.