Flying Eagles Soar Into WAFU B U-20 Semis After Togo Rout
By FRED LONGJOHN OBEH
NIGERIA’S Flying Eagles booked their place in the semi-finals of the WAFU B U-20 Championship with a convincing 3-0 victory over Togo’s Sparrow Hawks in Yamoussoukro on Thursday.
The win gave Nigeria a perfect start to the competition. The seven-time African champions had earlier defeated Ghana’s Black Satellites 4-2 in their opening Group B fixture.
Nigeria dominated much of the first half but struggled to break down a determined Togolese defence.
Togo came close to taking the lead in the 38th minute. The Sparrow Hawks, however, wasted the opportunity by firing wide.
Neither side could find the breakthrough before half-time. Nigeria returned from the interval with greater urgency.
Just a minute after the restart, Muiz Adeleke put the Flying Eagles ahead.
The forward, who scored twice against Ghana, quickly became the difference-maker again. Nigeria grew in confidence after the goal and began to control the match.
Adeleke struck again in the 59th minute. He raced onto a counter-attack, rounded the goalkeeper and calmly finished to make it 2-0.
The brace took his tournament tally to four goals.
Nigeria continued to threaten as Togo struggled to regain control. The Flying Eagles even missed an opportunity to add a third after a defensive error by the Togolese goalkeeper.
The third goal eventually arrived in the 85th minute.
Substitute Abdoulaye Agbejoye replaced Adeleke and made an immediate impact. He found the net to complete Nigeria’s 3-0 victory.
The result confirmed Nigeria’s place in the last four and strengthened their claim as one of the leading contenders for the title.
The Flying Eagles will now face Burkina Faso in their final Group B match on Sunday.
The encounter will determine who finishes top of the group, with Nigeria seeking to maintain their unbeaten run and carry their momentum into the knockout stage.
