AFRICAN YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP Hunting for glory!
- Details
- Category: Sports
- Written by Ismaila Lere
- Hits: 780
The five-time African champions won the title in 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989 and 2005.
After that triumph, the Flying Eagles failed to record meaningful success in the tournament, and in some cases even struggled to qualify for subsequent editions of the world championship.
At the last edition in 2009, the Flying Eagles crashed out of the championship in Rwanda losing to perennial foes, Cameroon 0-2 in the second semi-final.
But the U-20 team handler, John Obuh is optimistic of relaunching Nigeria to winning ways, as he has assembled a group of young lads that have proved in the past to have what it takes to win a championship. It’s a squad that has been reinforced by the inclusion of striker Ahmed Musa, who plays his club football with VVV Venlo in the Netherlands and has already cut his teeth with the senior national team.
In South Africa, the Nigerian team will, however, face stiff challenge from the onset. With three other West African teams streamed along with the Eagles in Group B, namely Ghana, Cameroon and the Gambia emotions are sure to run high as the regional rivalry takes centre stage.
Nigeria’s opening match against Ghana on Sunday promises to be expolsive and dicey. The Black Satellites Coach Orlando Wellington has named a strong squad for the tournament that includes a bevy of foreign-based players. However, he has been denied the services of Jordan Ayew (another son of the legendary Abedi Pele), who was not released by his French club Olympique Marseille, as well as Italian-based duo Afriyie Acquah and Daniel Agyei.
Wellington says Ghana will show their regional rivals all the respect required, but is in no doubt his team will triumph.
“They do not fear us, neither do we fear them,” Wellington said. “But we respect them, we respect their pedigree at this level and we respect what they have achieved at this level.”
Cameroon and the Gambia are seemingly the outsiders in this group. The young Indomitable Lions have been beaten by both Egypt and hosts South Africa in recent warm-up games, but having overcome the Central African Republic and Congo in qualifying for the tournament, the Cameroonians should be competitive at the very least.
The Gambia’s team, known as the Darling Scorpions, have a mix of players from their local league and foreign-based players who ply their trade in a variety of countries from Iceland to Spain to the USA. However, they have been denied the services of highly-rated defender Lamin Samateh, who has not been released by his Croatian club.
Group A comprising of Egypt, Lesotho, Mali and host South Africa is, on paper, the weaker of the two pools in the competition. However it should provide for some fierce competition, as the teams battle it out for two semifinal berths and qualification for the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Colombia later this year.
Most pundits would write off Lesotho as minnows, but it was they who beat regional rivals South Africa in the preliminary qualifying rounds. They have also eliminated Algeria and Kenya, so clearly the junior Crocodiles have no lack of talent in this generation of players.
Mali, too, should provide a stiff challenge for any opponent. The young Eagles eliminated Chad and Gabon en-route to qualifying and have had a good preparation for the tournament. Added to that, they will be able to call on a number of players who are on the books of Ligue 1 clubs in France.
The hosts, whose U-20 team goes by the nickname Amajita, will be looking to make the most of home advantage. A recent friendly victory over Cameroon (who are in Group B) has given hope that they will emulate the class of 2009, who made it as far the semifinals.
New coach Maqsood Chenia has been fretting over the unavailability of certain key players who have not been released by their clubs (the competition does not fall on FIFA-sanctioned dates, so clubs are not obliged to release players), but in this regard most of his counterparts are in the same boat anyway.
Egypt, the only former winners in Group A, also defeated Cameroon in a recent friendly and are perhaps the favourites to top the standings.
Coach Diaa Al-Sayed is fortunate to be able to pick from a promising group of youngsters, many of whom have impressed in the highly competitive Egyptian Premier League.
The likes of Omar Gaber and Mohamad Ibrahim (both with Cairo giants Zamalek), Arab Contractors’ striker Mohamad Salah and Al-Masry first team goalkeeper Ahmad El-Shenawy all have top flight experience under their belt, making this young Pharaohs team arguably the most battle-hardened and experienced of the group.
The tournament kicks-off on Sunday at Soweto’s Dobsonville Stadium with two Group A games: hosts South Africa face Mali in the opneing game, and Egypt take on Lesotho later in the day.
Articles
AFRICAN YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP Hunting for glory!
Category: Sports Written by Ismaila Lere Hits: 780
After some years in doldrums, Nigeria’s Flying Eagles are on the hunt for glory in the 17th edition of the African Youth Championship (AYC) taking place in Johannesburg, South Africa from April 17 to May 1. The last time the Nigerian U-20 side won the event was in 2005, when it defeated defending champions Egypt 2-0 in Benin to win their fifth African Youth Championship title.The five-time African champions won the title in 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989 and 2005.
After that triumph, the Flying Eagles failed to record meaningful success in the tournament, and in some cases even struggled to qualify for subsequent editions of the world championship.
At the last edition in 2009, the Flying Eagles crashed out of the championship in Rwanda losing to perennial foes, Cameroon 0-2 in the second semi-final.
But the U-20 team handler, John Obuh is optimistic of relaunching Nigeria to winning ways, as he has assembled a group of young lads that have proved in the past to have what it takes to win a championship. It’s a squad that has been reinforced by the inclusion of striker Ahmed Musa, who plays his club football with VVV Venlo in the Netherlands and has already cut his teeth with the senior national team.
In South Africa, the Nigerian team will, however, face stiff challenge from the onset. With three other West African teams streamed along with the Eagles in Group B, namely Ghana, Cameroon and the Gambia emotions are sure to run high as the regional rivalry takes centre stage.
Nigeria’s opening match against Ghana on Sunday promises to be expolsive and dicey. The Black Satellites Coach Orlando Wellington has named a strong squad for the tournament that includes a bevy of foreign-based players. However, he has been denied the services of Jordan Ayew (another son of the legendary Abedi Pele), who was not released by his French club Olympique Marseille, as well as Italian-based duo Afriyie Acquah and Daniel Agyei.
Wellington says Ghana will show their regional rivals all the respect required, but is in no doubt his team will triumph.
“They do not fear us, neither do we fear them,” Wellington said. “But we respect them, we respect their pedigree at this level and we respect what they have achieved at this level.”
Cameroon and the Gambia are seemingly the outsiders in this group. The young Indomitable Lions have been beaten by both Egypt and hosts South Africa in recent warm-up games, but having overcome the Central African Republic and Congo in qualifying for the tournament, the Cameroonians should be competitive at the very least.
The Gambia’s team, known as the Darling Scorpions, have a mix of players from their local league and foreign-based players who ply their trade in a variety of countries from Iceland to Spain to the USA. However, they have been denied the services of highly-rated defender Lamin Samateh, who has not been released by his Croatian club.
Group A comprising of Egypt, Lesotho, Mali and host South Africa is, on paper, the weaker of the two pools in the competition. However it should provide for some fierce competition, as the teams battle it out for two semifinal berths and qualification for the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Colombia later this year.
Most pundits would write off Lesotho as minnows, but it was they who beat regional rivals South Africa in the preliminary qualifying rounds. They have also eliminated Algeria and Kenya, so clearly the junior Crocodiles have no lack of talent in this generation of players.
Mali, too, should provide a stiff challenge for any opponent. The young Eagles eliminated Chad and Gabon en-route to qualifying and have had a good preparation for the tournament. Added to that, they will be able to call on a number of players who are on the books of Ligue 1 clubs in France.
The hosts, whose U-20 team goes by the nickname Amajita, will be looking to make the most of home advantage. A recent friendly victory over Cameroon (who are in Group B) has given hope that they will emulate the class of 2009, who made it as far the semifinals.
New coach Maqsood Chenia has been fretting over the unavailability of certain key players who have not been released by their clubs (the competition does not fall on FIFA-sanctioned dates, so clubs are not obliged to release players), but in this regard most of his counterparts are in the same boat anyway.
Egypt, the only former winners in Group A, also defeated Cameroon in a recent friendly and are perhaps the favourites to top the standings.
Coach Diaa Al-Sayed is fortunate to be able to pick from a promising group of youngsters, many of whom have impressed in the highly competitive Egyptian Premier League.
The likes of Omar Gaber and Mohamad Ibrahim (both with Cairo giants Zamalek), Arab Contractors’ striker Mohamad Salah and Al-Masry first team goalkeeper Ahmad El-Shenawy all have top flight experience under their belt, making this young Pharaohs team arguably the most battle-hardened and experienced of the group.
The tournament kicks-off on Sunday at Soweto’s Dobsonville Stadium with two Group A games: hosts South Africa face Mali in the opneing game, and Egypt take on Lesotho later in the day.