Ugbade: Why We Lost To Burkina Faso
Says essence of championship is not only about winning
Golden Eaglets coach to the U17 Africa Cup of Nations in Algeria, Nduka Ugbade says his boys would have repeated their WAFU B final win over Burkina Faso if his boys had taken all their chances.
The Nigerians lost 2-1 in their quarterfinal clash in Algiers on Thursday and missed the chance to qualify for their 13th FIFA U17 World Cup and the opportunity to stay on in the championships.
Ugbade insists they would have had a different result were they more clinical infront of goal.
‘Everything worked as we had planned, but we could not score with the chances we had. We paid dearly for that. We learn the lessons and move on,’ he said.
The tactician believes that the defeat will more so work to strengthen the mentality of the players, backing them to bounce back in future age categories.
Ugbade who has refused to blame his boys for the defeat says it is not all doom and gloom.
‘The players are disappointed of course because they are young but we must support them because they need to continue their careers. We should work on their development because I believe that some of these players will eventually move to the senior national team,’ the tactician said after the defeat to Burkina Faso.
‘I am happy with the performance of our players and in such competitions, even if you lose, you gain something by developing the players for the future.’
