Ladan Bosso, Nigeria's men's U20 coach, will look to go into their last game at the football event at the Africa Games with the hope of winning and gaining passage into the knock-out stage of the competition.
They face a Senegal side that is also in the hunt for the last spot in the group. Uganda qualified after picking up maximum points in their first two games.
The groupings initially included Nigeria, Tunisia, Uganda, Senegal, and South Sudan, but after the North Africans withdrew, the three teams battled for two spots.
Uganda have been the stand-out team in the group as they have won two games. They defeated Nigeria 2-1 on match-day one and then followed it up with a slim 1-0 win over a much fancied Senegal team to top the group.
Nigeria and Senegal still stand a chance as both defeated South Sudan and both lost to Uganda in their first two games.
Nigeria coach Ladan Bosso has revealed that his team will do their best to beat the Senegalese as his team has been growing into the competition game by game.
“We can and will do better against Senegal. The team is getting better by the day and we will be ready to face Senegal,” Bosso said after the win over South Sudan.
“We can do it and we are working towards achieving our goals here at the Africa Games he said via official NFF channels.
With South Sudan out of the way, it is a make-or-break game for both sides as they face off at the Accra Sports Stadium on Friday.
How Nigeria U20 is expected to line up
Bosso dropped goalkeeper Samuel James from the first game and replaced him with Nathaniel Nwosu who is expected to start again against Senegal.
The defence is expected to retain itself, same as the midfield and the attack might see a re-jig with Charles Agada returning back to the starting line-up after he dropped to the bench for the second game.
Alonge Ibrahim is expected to start from the bench after losing his spot in the second game to Rabiu Abdullahi who did well against South Sudan.
Outside that, Bosso is expected to go with the same line-up like he did in the last game.
Flyings Eagles at the Africa Games so far
- March 7, 2024 | Nigeria 2-1 Uganda
- March 11, 2024 | Nigeria 1-0 South Sudan
- March 15, 2024 | Nigeria vs Senegal **
Nigeria U20 predicted starting XI
Nathaniel Nwosu, Godwin Samson, Daniel Bameyi, Ibrahim Abdullahi, Haruna Aliyu, Daniel Daga, Sulaiman Idris, Chibueze Izuogu, Sadiq Isiyaka, Rabiu Abdullahi, Charles Agada
