Slippery forward Kparobo Arierhi netted a brace as champions Nigeria successfully defended their WAFU U20 title on Wednesday night after a 2-1 victory over regional rivals Ghana in this year’s final in Lome.
The Flying Eagles dominated large portions of the encounter, but it turned out to be a game of two halves. Nigeria was imperious in the first half, while Ghana turned up the heat in the second.
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Harcourt made a clever palm-down save when the Ghanaians broke through from the left with a cross and a header in the 14th minute, and then punched the ball away after a point-blank shot as the Satellites waltzed into the box from the right in added time.
In between, Kparobo Arierhi inflicted damage. First, in the 34th minute, he received a pass on the edge of the box as the Flying Eagles broke forward on the right and scored with a calm, left-footed finish into the bottom corner, leaving the goalkeeper clutching at thin air.
The second goal was more spectacular. The Nigerian snatched the ball midway into the Satellites’ area, and after a couple of passes, Kparobo, who plays his club football for Beyond Limits FC and had scored Nigeria’s winner in the 2-1 victory over Côte d’Ivoire in the group phase, found himself face-to-face with the goalkeeper.
Without any attempt at showboating, he unleashed a right-footed rocket into the roof of the net.
In the 60th minute, Nigeria had to clear their lines with determination as the Black Satellites, in a rare onslaught, picked the pockets of several defenders and got the ball past goalkeeper Harcourt.
Five minutes later, Nigeria again escaped through stout defending, as a flurry of shots from inside and outside the box simply failed to beat Harcourt.
The pressure finally paid off for the Ghanaians in the 74th minute, as they reduced the deficit following a goalmouth scramble.
However, the Flying Eagles held on to retain the trophy they won two years ago in Niger Republic, with Kparobo Arierhi collecting the Man-of-the-Match award.
Nigeria and Ghana will represent WAFU B at next year’s Africa U-20 Cup of Nations, to be hosted by South Africa.
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