Nigeria’s Flying Eagles began the defence of their WAFU-B U-20 championship regional title with a 1-1 draw with hosts and rivals Ghana in their opening Group A encounter on Thursday.
The clash, which went down at the Prampram Centre in Accra, saw the hosts dominate proceedings and duly found the breakthrough in the 22nd minute through skipper Aziz Misbau, after he fired a belter home. The Black Satellites went into the interval holding the slim advantage over their fierce historical rivals.
Upon resumption of the second half, coach Aliyu Zubairu’s lads began to up the ante. Having been pegged back for most of the first half, the Flying Eagles began to create opportunities in a bid to grab the equaliser.
The much sought after goal came 10 minutes from time, when Abdullahi Muhammad directed his header into the net off a corner kick. Both teams went in search of the go-ahead goal, but it was to no avail as they settled for a share of the spoils.
The result leaves both sides with one point each. Aliyu Zubairu’s side will next face Benin Republic at the same venue on Sunday, 13 July. A victory for the Eagles would see them move into the knockout rounds of the competition, in which they are the defending champions.
