WAFU B U17 Championship: Golden Eaglets defeat Black Starlets of Ghana in nail bitten Bronze chase

Posted : 30 May 2024

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Nigeria finished in third place, scooping the bronze medals, but failed to secure a spot at next year’s Africa U17 Cup of Nations after a hard-fought 3-2 defeat of hosts Ghana at the WAFU B U17 Championship on Tuesday.

For several days, there had been uncertainty about the number of teams that would proceed to the 2025 Africa U17 Cup of Nations from the tournament in Ghana. However, the window closed for the third-place winner when, minutes before kick-off, Cote d’Ivoire (already in the competition final) was designated as hosts of next year’s continental finals.

With Cote d’Ivoire as hosts and guaranteed a slot, Burkina Faso (regardless of the result of the final match) and the third-place winner in the earlier game of the final day were assured of berths in Abidjan.

Stung by the words of NFF General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi, the Eaglets took to the field with a winner’s mentality and took the lead in the 9th minute when Imrana Muhammad lashed the ball into the net after a goalmouth scramble.

Home support at the University of Accra Stadium motivated the Black Starlets into action, and they equalized 10 minutes later when a Nigerian defender unwittingly put the ball into his own net.

Three-time world champions Ghana took the lead for the first time in the game in the 27th minute when Harve Gbafa profited from a defensive blunder to beat goalkeeper Dominic Chinedu in goal for Nigeria.

Six minutes later, Abdulmuiz Adeleke, who scored a brace in the Eaglets’ 3-0 defeat of Togo in their final group phase match, rattled Starlets’ goalkeeper Michael Armah, but the ball was cleared out of danger.

The Eaglets were relentless, and four minutes before half-time, Adeleke took his tournament tally to three when he nodded in the equalizer from a cross by John Ogwuche.

Both teams started the second period where they left off at half-time, with delightful attacking football. Ogwuche’s shot missed the target in the 79th minute.

In the second minute of added time, and with both teams seemingly resigned to an inevitable penalty shootout, Adeleke took matters into his own hands and netted the winner for Nigeria to eventually scoop the bronze medal.

WAFU B U17 Championship: Golden Eaglets defeat Black Starlets of Ghana in nail bitten Bronze chase

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