Amuneke: It takes time to build a strong team

Former Nigeria international winger and head coach of Heartland FC of Owerri, Emmanuel Amuneke says his club’s first win of the season will give the players the necessary confidence to confront any opposition, especially El Kanemi Warriors who they play next in the Nigeria Premier Football League, NPFL.

Amuneke and Heartland defeated Katsina United 2-0 to record their first three points of the season after drawing one and losing three of their opening four games.

The 1994 Africa Cup of Nations winner congratulated the team of the victory and insists nothing has been won or lost yet as the NPFL is a marathon.

‘I want to congratulate the team. Everyone put in much efforts to ensure we get to this stage. The league is a marathon and when you lose some games, you will be a little upset but we are focused on what we want to achieve,’ he told the club’s media and revealed why he has had a slow start.

‘When you look at Heartland FC last season, a lot happened there and many players left. We are redirecting the course by having very young players that can serve for the future also.

‘We all understand that when you are in a period of processing, it takes time for things to grow and work. All we need to do now is to review ourselves and look at the area we need to continue to improve as a team knowing that in a team, there will always be moments of mistakes.

‘Those mistakes count a lot, and we have to go back and learn from them,’ he said.

Amuneke believes the victory has come at a crucial moment for the club.

‘We are happy that we won. It will give us a lot of relief ahead of our game coming up against El Kanemi Warriors. It will give us more confidence going into the game,’ he added.