Under-20 World Cup: Flying Eagles Gun For Three Points Against Saudi Arabia

By Akinwale Kasali

The Flying Eagles of Nigeria will be aiming for victory against Saudi Arabia on Match Day Two in the ongoing FIFA U20 World Cup finals in Chile, after a disastrous outing against Scandinavian Country, Norway.

The Flying Eagles 1-0 loss to Norway in their first group game on Monday was described by Coach Aliyu Zubairu as painful.

Despite dominating the game and creating a number of opportunities, the seven-time African champions were unlucky not to have equalized in the second half of the encounter, and probably taken the three points.

On two occasions, their appeals for penalty awards were turned down by the referee.

Victory against Saudi Arabia will put the two-time World Cup runners-up in a good position to qualify for the championship’s Round of 16, ahead of their clash with Colombia on Sunday.

Head Coach, Zubairu is upbeat abd remain optimistic that his wards have shaken off the defeat against Norway as their attention has shifted towards the confrontation with Saudi Arabia, to ensure the team gets the desired result.

With the availability of all key players, Coach Zubairu may stick to his usual 4-3-3 formation with more focus on attack and ball possession.

Israel Ayuma, Daniel Daga and Charles Agada have all been booked and will have to play with caution to avoid missing the last group game against the Colombians.

The Flying Eagles have never won the FIFA U-20 World Cup, but have come close on two occasions, at the Saudi 89 tournament where Nigeria came from 4-0 down to equalize against the USSR and win via penalties, before losing to Luis Figo Captained Portugal team 2-0 in the final.

Also at teh 2005 tournament in Holland, the Flying Eagles lost the final to Argentina 2-1 with legendary Lionel Messi scoring twice from the Penalty spot to give the South American country victory.