Julius OkorieAfter initial scare to qualify for the quarter-finals of the ongoing U-20 AFCON in Egypt, Nigeria will on Monday face defending champions Senegal for a place in the last four.
Flying Eagles won a match and drew two in the group stage finishing in the second place behind Morocco in Group B.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelThe Aliyu Zubairu led side, who have since been joined by Super Eagles Coach, Eric Chelle, will need to dig deep to overcome hard fighting Senegal who made a good come back after beating Democratic Republic of Congo 2-0 to reach the last eight.
Flying Eagles who are seven-time winners and two-time world stage finishers cannot afford to crash out at this stage as it will mean missing an opportunity to qualify for the FIFA U-20 World Cup billed for Sat, 27 Sept 2025 – Sun, 19 Oct 2025 in Chile.
The tie against Senegal will not be a soft nut to crack and promises to be a fight to the finish showdown at the Suez Canal Stadium in Ismailia.
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The Nigerian team hit Ismailia on Thursday in preparation for Monday’s encounter.
After finishing third at the last edition equally hosted by Egypt which saw Senegal emerge Champions, the Flying Eagles cannot afford to settle for less.
Coach Zubairu is optimistic his side can rise to the occasion come Monday. “I believe the quarter-final is the most important match of the competition,” We need to work on the players’ mind-set and ensure they are fully focused on the task ahead.
“Our goal is to reach the World Cup, and to do that, we must win this match. Preparation starts now, he added shortly after the match against Kenya.
Another quarter-final draw pitched Morocco against impressive debutants, Sierra Leone.
Ghana and Congo DR are already in the quarter finals with their respective opponents expected to emerge later Friday (today) after clashes between South Africa and Zambia on one hand and Tanzania and Egypt on the other.
Julius Okorie is Chief Sports and Entertainment Correspondent for Prime Business Africa. He began his journalism career with the Champion Newspaper and Sporting Champion and later moved on to Daily Independent and the Nation Newspapers. Okorie joined Prime Business Africa in 2024 bringing on board 20 years of experience in writing investigative news on Sports and Entertainment. His well researched and highly informative articles on Sports Business and general entertainment are followed by a wide range of audience.
