C
Chris Maduewesi
Guest
Nigeria’s homebased Eagles on Saturday qualified for the African Nations Championship(CHAN) for the first time,going through 4-3 on aggregate,after coming through against Ivory Coast.
The Ivoriens defeated Nigeria 2-0 in Abidjan,but it was not enough to qualify them,with coach Stephen Keshi’s side qualifying courtesy of the huge 4-1 scoreline they recorded in the first leg in Kaduna.
It was not the brightest of starts from Nigeria,with Ivory Coast taking the early initiative,scoring in the sixth minute,to give themselves a lift and belief of overturning the result.
Kevin Koelly capitalized on a defensive mix-up from big defender Azubuike Egwueke and goalkeeper Chigozie Agbim to take Ivory Coast 1-0 up.
Not quite long after that,Kano Pillars’ midfielder,Rabiu Ali impeded an Ivorien in the box,leaving the referee with no option but to call for a penalty kick.
The homebased Eagles were further pegged behind for 2-0,with Koelly clearly dispatching his kick for his second goal of the game.
But Nigeria overcame tensed moments and gradually settled in the game,with Ivory Coast searching for the elusive third goal.
With more pressure coming in the second half,Nigeria did not surge forward a lot for an away goal,but did a good job in seeing out the game at 2-0.
Nigeria with the result was able to overcome the disappointment of missing out on the first two editions of CHAN to Ghana and Niger Republic,and will now make an appearance in South Africa next year.
The teams that have qualified for next year’s CHAN tournament are :South Africa(Host),Mauritania,Morocco,Angola,Ghana,Libya,Ethiopia,Uganda,Burkina Faso and Nigeria.
Six other teams will join the fray,after their qualifiers on Sunday.
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The Ivoriens defeated Nigeria 2-0 in Abidjan,but it was not enough to qualify them,with coach Stephen Keshi’s side qualifying courtesy of the huge 4-1 scoreline they recorded in the first leg in Kaduna.
It was not the brightest of starts from Nigeria,with Ivory Coast taking the early initiative,scoring in the sixth minute,to give themselves a lift and belief of overturning the result.
Kevin Koelly capitalized on a defensive mix-up from big defender Azubuike Egwueke and goalkeeper Chigozie Agbim to take Ivory Coast 1-0 up.
Not quite long after that,Kano Pillars’ midfielder,Rabiu Ali impeded an Ivorien in the box,leaving the referee with no option but to call for a penalty kick.
The homebased Eagles were further pegged behind for 2-0,with Koelly clearly dispatching his kick for his second goal of the game.
But Nigeria overcame tensed moments and gradually settled in the game,with Ivory Coast searching for the elusive third goal.
With more pressure coming in the second half,Nigeria did not surge forward a lot for an away goal,but did a good job in seeing out the game at 2-0.
Nigeria with the result was able to overcome the disappointment of missing out on the first two editions of CHAN to Ghana and Niger Republic,and will now make an appearance in South Africa next year.
The teams that have qualified for next year’s CHAN tournament are :South Africa(Host),Mauritania,Morocco,Angola,Ghana,Libya,Ethiopia,Uganda,Burkina Faso and Nigeria.
Six other teams will join the fray,after their qualifiers on Sunday.
Continue reading...