Flying Eagles head coach Aliyu Zubairu has expressed delight at his team’s growing confidence following his team's victory over Egypt, Soccernet.ng reports.
A morale-boosting 2-1 victory over host nation Egypt in a pre-tournament friendly at the Cairo International Stadium on Tuesday has set up Zubairu's troops ahead of their first group game.
The friendly win comes just 48 hours after the Nigerian U-20 squad landed in the Egyptian capital, and Zubairu believes the result offers the perfect boost ahead of their U-20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) opening match against Tunisia.
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“That result has provided a good impetus for us as we prepare to face the Tunisians – another North African opposition,” Zubairu said. “You need a result like that when you’re preparing for a competition like this. It does not mean that we will rest on our oars; it only serves to give us much-needed confidence and ginger us to face our challenges better.”
“We will go for the maximum points against the Tunisians and then take it one step at a time as we forge ahead,” he added.
The Flying Eagles are scheduled to kick off their U-20 AFCON campaign on Thursday, May 1, in Cairo, as they aim to secure one of four continental tickets to the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile later this year.
