Nigeria U23 male team (Olympic Eagles) now face a tough hurdle to reach the U23 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) slated for Morocco between June 24 and July 8, 2023 after were held to a 0-0 draw by Guinea in the first-leg of the final playoff inside the MKO Abiola Stadium, Abuja yesterday.
Coach Salisu Yusuf -led team were just a shadow of themselves and could not produce any clear chance as Guinea stifled Nigeria’s midfield play, created chances of their own and were solid at the rear.
Nigeria had to wait until the half-hour mark before getting their first shot on target which came from a dead ball situation, with Ogunniyi Omo-Jesu crashing a lovely freekick against the bar.
In the second half, the visitors came quite close when Ousmane Camara hit the upright from a corner kick. Ifeanyi Ogba blasted a couple of opportunities wide, and in the 64th minute, Jonathan Alukwu watched in agony as Keita punched away his shot when Nigeria flowed forward.
On the dot of time, Nigerian defender Christopher Nwaeze was handed the red card for a second bookable offence, and will miss the return leg in Rabat on Tuesday.
