Eyes on Ghana, Chile in mind: Zubairu comes clean on Flying Eagles flaw, reveals plan to reboot

Nigeria U20 head coach Aliyu Zubairu has admitted that the Flying Eagles are far from the finished product, especially in the attacking department, but insists that steps are being taken to fix the team’s biggest weakness, Soccernet.ng reports.

Zubairu, who led the team during their underwhelming outing at the 2023 U20 Africa Cup of Nations, acknowledged that the inability to convert chances was a major problem during the competition.

Nigeria played six matches at the AFCON but failed to score in half of those games despite creating several clear-cut opportunities.

The Flying Eagles only won one game in regular time, a narrow 1-0 victory over Tunisia, and managed to score more than once in just one match — a 2-2 draw with Kenya.

With the WAFU B U20 Boys Tournament in Ghana and the FIFA U20 World Cup in Chile approaching fast, Zubairu is determined to correct the team’s flaws in front of goal.

What Flying Eagles coach said

“We are taking proactive measures to ensure that the challenges we encountered previously are addressed, squarely,” coach Zubairu told the NFF.

“My assistants and myself are very much aware of the issues related to the team’s attacking prowess and we are making concerted efforts to rectify the situation.”

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The Flying Eagles are currently in camp in Abuja preparing for the regional WAFU tournament, which kicks off on 10 July.

Nigeria have been drawn in Group A alongside host nation Ghana and Benin Republic, with their opener against Ghana expected to be a stern test.

Beyond immediate concerns, Zubairu sees the tournament as a vital opportunity to scout more talent and build a stronger squad ahead of the FIFA U20 World Cup in Chile later this year.

“The tournament in Ghana offers us a good window to showcase a few more players and we will grab that opportunity. We intend to use the matches as preparation for the FIFA U20 World Cup finals in Chile,” Zubairu added.

The 2025 U20 World Cup will be held in Chile from 27 September to 19 October, with Nigeria joining South Africa, Morocco, and Egypt as Africa’s representatives.