Super Eagles head coach, Eric Chelle, has declared that his side will play for honour in their final CHAN 2024 group game against Congo on Tuesday night, www.aclsports.com reports.
The Nigerian side, who have already been knocked out of the competition, will conclude their tournament with a clash against the Red Devils at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam.
Chelle, speaking at the pre-match press conference on Monday afternoon, stressed the importance of keeping their honour in place even after the side’s elimination from the tournament.
“We travelled from Zanzibar immediately after the game, and we are here. We have had three training sessions. For us, these three days were difficult. When we think about the game against Congo, our motivation is about our honour. We are focused on that, and we wait for the game tomorrow.”
On his selection for the game against Congo on Tuesday, Chelle said, “For this game tomorrow, there will be changes because we lost two games. We gave away five goals in this tournament because we made a lot of mistakes. The tournament is done for us, that is why we talk about our honour and go back to Nigeria with something.”
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“It is a game we can try to win and forget our mistakes. I am waiting on how they [the players] will start and how they will finish this game. As a professional, you need a great state of mind, and we need to show our qualities,” Chelle concluded.
Junior Nduka, skipper of the side, said: “It has happened, but the boys have been able to pick up their pieces and focus on the last game, which is the most important. We do not want to be defeated the last time again, and go back with nothing. We are playing against Congo, who need a win to qualify. But we also want to defend the country and play for honour.”
The Nigeria v Congo clash will kick off at 6pm (Nigerian time), while the other group D game between Senegal and Sudan will be decided at the Amaan Stadium in Zanzibar.
