March 16, (THEWILL)- The Flying Eagles of Nigeria have been knocked out of the men’s football event at the 2023 African Games in Ghana, after suffering a 3-2 defeat against Senegal, on Friday evening. The loss at the Accra Sports Stadium ended Nigeria’s campaign, where they managed just one victory over South Sudan.
Nigeria took an early lead through Charles Agada’s second-minute strike, but Senegal equalised in the 21st minute via Idrissa Traore. Chibuzor Izuogu restored Nigeria’s advantage with a brilliant free-kick, only for Pape Diouf to convert a penalty and send Senegal through to the semi-finals.
In their opening fixtures, the Flying Eagles lost 2-1 to Uganda, before the 3-2 reverse against Senegal. They finished third in their group behind Uganda and Senegal, with South Sudan propping up the table in fourth place.
After the match, Head Coach Ladan Bosso blamed poor preparation for Nigeria’s underwhelming performances. “I’m disappointed because this game was the best we have played so far. I didn’t have enough time to scout properly”, he lamented.
Four years ago in Morocco, Nigeria claimed men’s football silver at the 2019 African Games following a 2-0 defeat to Burkina Faso in the final.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
