Golden Eaglets defender Yahaya Lawali has declared he and his teammates are fully motivated going into Wednesday’s second Group B game against Morocco at the ongoing U17 Africa Cup of Nations in Algeria.
Though many were expecting a comprehensive victory from the Eaglets, Lawali while speaking on Cafonline.com said the hard-earned 1-0 win over Zambia will serve as a motivation to do more against table-toppers Morocco.
“It was a really tough game because Zambia are a good side. The little details gave us a win… We scored when it mattered most and we defended well. It has given us motivation for the next game,” Lawal who was voted Man-of-the-Match noted.
Just like the Golden Eaglets, the Young Atlas Lions also got off their campaign to a winning start; beating South Africa 2-0.
That result gives the North Africans a slight advantage ahead of Wednesday’s tie against Nigeria.
For Lawali, while he is happy to have been named Man-of-the-Match against Zambia, he has credited his teammates and coaches for his performance while also promising to do even better in the next match.
“I am really delighted and this means a lot to me. Being named man of the match in the first game for the team is a massive encouragement,” Lawal said.
He added; “This is not my trophy though. It belongs to the team; the coaches, the staff and my teammates. We all worked hard for this.”
Lawali, who turns 17 in June, plays for Mahanaim FC in Nigeria.
Conquered Zambia
Meanwhile, the coach of the Zambia U17s, Ian Bakala, has refused to blame his players despite their 1-0 defeat to the Golden Eaglets on Sunday.
Bakala said he saw a lot of positives from the match despite the defeat and has praised his players for putting up a good fight.
“It is painful to lose a game like this, but it was a tough game. Credit to Nigeria for the win because they used their chance. When you are coming to the first game of the tournament, anything is possible,” Bakala told CAFonline.
Zambia will take on South Africa in a regional derby in their next match, and having both lost their first games, the two teams need a win badly to keep their hopes of progressing to the last eight alive.
Source : Premiumtimesng
