Nigeria’s Flying Eagles are condemned to defeat the Junior Elephants of Côte d'Ivoire by scoring at least two goals if they are to qualify for the semifinals of the ongoing WAFU U20 tournament in Lomé, as Côte d'Ivoire defeated Burkina Faso 1-0 in the WAFU B U-20 AFCON.
The Young Elephants of Côte d'Ivoire are clearly the better of the two sides. They burst out of the blocks at the blast of the first whistle and created most of the chances in the match, but they failed to convert these opportunities, and the first half ended goalless.
The match was more open in the second half, as both sides came out looking for goals, with the Burkina Faso team creating early chances before the 60th minute mark.
The Junior Elephants' quest to win the game suffered a setback in the 75th minute when striker Konaté was sent off for dangerous play.
Burkina Faso took advantage and threatened the defensive line of the Ivorians but failed to find a breakthrough.
With two minutes left in the match, fortune smiled on the Junior Elephants as they broke the deadlock against the run of play and won the match 1-0 at the death.
The result leaves the Flying Eagles at the bottom of the group, as only two out of the three teams will qualify.
Nigeria, who failed to spark and drew a blank in their first match against Burkina Faso, will need to score two goals and defeat Côte d'Ivoire in their final game of the competition to secure a spot in the next round.
Burkina Faso has completed their group matches and is second with 3 points and a zero goal difference. They will be looking forward to Côte d'Ivoire defeating or drawing with Nigeria to confirm their place in the semifinals.
The finalists of the 2024 WAFU B U20 football tournament will represent the region at the 2025 U20 African Cup of Nations, which will be held in Egypt next year.
The CAF U20 AFCON will also serve as a qualifying tournament for the 2025 FIFA U20 World Cup, with all the semifinalists earning their World Cup tickets.
ADD A COMMENT :