2023 U-17 AFCON: Ugbade reacts as Nigeria qualify for quarter-finals

Head coach of Nigeria’s U-17 team, Nduka Ugbade, has expressed his relief after they qualified for the quarter-finals at the ongoing 2023 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations in Algeria.

The two-time champions beat Amajimbos of South Africa 3-2 in their final Group B game on Saturday night.

The victory saw the Golden Eaglets finish second in Group B and earn a place in the quarter-finals.

“It was a really tough match because South Africa is a really good team and they gave us a tough time. They have three players that are really good; Mabena (Siyabonga), Mkhawana (Vicky) and Dokunmu (Michael). They are very talented players and I was honestly scared of them at first,” Ugbade said after the match.

He was delighted to see his side finally firing well to score three goals, having struggled to find the back of the net in their first two games despite creating so many chances.

“We worked a bit in training and we did some corrections. We realized that it was purely psychological and we talked to the players and we saw an improvement today. We might have conceded two but I am glad we scored three,” said the tactician.

Nigeria will now await the second placed team from Group C, either Burkina Faslsoqlor Cameroon, in the quarter finals in their quest to quench a 16 year wait for the title and earn a record extending third crown.