Posted by On Tuesday night, the University Stadium will host the West African Football Union (WAFU) B U-17 third place final, with the Golden Eaglets of Nigeria taking on the Ghanaian national team.
After losing in the semi-finals last weekend, fans and analysts alike are eagerly awaiting this matchup.
Côte d’Ivoire beat Nigeria by a score of 1-0.
The other team, Ghana, was defeated by Burkina Faso, 2-1.
Both squads advanced to the bronze medal round as a result of their losses.
It reportedly also ended their chances of making it to the 2025 FIFA U-17 World Cup, according to LEAKNEWS.
Now that their regional supremacy and national honor are at stake, Nigeria and Ghana will play to the best of their abilities to conclude the WAFU U-17 zone B competition.
Despite not getting tickets to the FIFA U-17 World Cup, they will still get the chance to show off their youthful skills and perseverance on the field.
Out of all the countries who competed in this year’s WAFU U-17 zone B competition, only Burkina Faso and Côte d’Ivoire advanced to the U-17 World Cup final.
Côte d’Ivoire and Burkina Faso have advanced to the World Cup, according to the DAILY POST. Meanwhile, Nigeria and Ghana will be playing for pride and would want to complete the competition on a high note.
Three o’clock in the afternoon is when the WAFU U-17 third-place final will begin.
On Monday, Emmanuel Brown, a former coach of TTC Football Academy, spoke with DAILY POST to offer his prediction for the next encounter between Ghana and Nigeria.
In addition to being disappointed that neither side was able to earn a spot in the World Cup, Brown voiced his displeasure with the competition overall.
In an interview with LEAKNEWS, Brown expressed his disappointment that the defending champions, the Golden Eaglets of Nigeria, did not advance to the WAFU final this year.
Concurrently, you’ll agree with me that the team’s preparation was impacted by the lack of preparedness shown by Manu Garba’s men before the tournament and the problems with the Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) tests during camp.
Inadequate and poor preparation for the competition was done by the coach and his team. Consequently, it was evident throughout the tournament. Watching their most recent Group match against Togo, they had many golden opportunity lost.
“Even in the semi-final, their performance was inadequate against Côte d’Ivoire.”
He said, “To be honest, I thought the Ghanaians would make it to the final, but they were just as disappointing as Nigeria in their semifinal match against Burkina Faso.
“Their coach [Laryea Kingston] retired after the loss to Burkina Faso because they failed to take advantage of being the host nation to at least reach the final of the competition.”
The match between Ghana and Nigeria for third place is sure to be a fiercely contested affair, with both sides displaying their utmost passion and drive,” Brown said.
For both Nigeria and Ghana, this encounter will have greater significance than a mere consolation match. Even if we didn’t get tickets to the World Cup next year, this will be a chance to salvage pride and finish the tournament on a high note.
Everyone will have an equal opportunity to win. He went on to say that any side that takes chances while scoring would win.