Nigeria U17 side, Golden Eaglets, were beaten 2-1 by their counterparts from Niger at the ongoing U17 WAFU B Championship in Ouagadougou on Wednesday, reports www.aclsports.com.
Niger, having played a 1-1 draw with Côte d’Ivoire in their opening game, entered the game on Wednesday needing a win to seal their place in the semifinals of the competition.
Meanwhile, the Eaglets also needed to win to confirm their place in the next round with a game to spare. However, they fell to Niger in shocking fashion.
Nigeria led by coach Eboboritse Uwejamomere started the game on the back foot and struggled to create chances in the opening quarter. In the 20th minute, they fell behind to a headed goal from Abdoul Rasak Zada after the Nigeria goalkeeper fumbled a shot.
The Eaglets were behind at the break, and tried getting back into the contest with some changes. However, they failed to troubled Niger’s backline.
Three minutes from time, Niger doubled their lead following a defence splitting pass that was expertly finished by the winger.
Substitute Mubarak Fasiu scored a stunning goal in stoppage time to halve the deficit for the Golden Eaglets. However, it was little too late for them as they slumped to an opening day defeat.
Niger have booked their place in the semifinals of the tournament, while Nigeria will have to beat Côte d’Ivoire in their final group game on Saturday to secure their place and keep their hopes of reaching next year’s U17 AFCON alive.
