ABUJA – Coach Emmanuel Amuneke of the under-17 national team, the Golden Eaglets, has said that the team will not underrate any of their group foes at the African U-17 Championship in Niger Republic.
Amuneke was reacting to the draws for the tournament, held on Sunday, which pitched Nigeria in Group A with hosts Niger, Guinea and Zambia.
A statement from the team’s Media Officer, Morakinyo Abodunrin quoted Amuneke as saying that the team got a fair grouping and was aware of the task ahead.
“ I think it is a fair grouping, not minding the fact that we are going to face the host country, Niger.
“We are not going to underrate any of the teams, though Zambia and Guinea are making a return to the tournament after they failed to qualify for the last edition in Morocco.
“They won’t be treated with kid’s gloves, because they both showed they are a strong side during the qualifiers, so, we are going to take all the matches seriously.
“We are aware of the task ahead of us, so we won’t take chances at all,’’ Amuneke was quoted as saying.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the tournament which is in its 11th edition is scheduled to hold from Feb. 15 to march 1.
Amuneke said the objective of the team was to secure a World Cup ticket from the championship.
“As I said before the draw, our sole objective in Niger is to qualify for the World Cup and after that, we can begin to talk about other things,’’ he said.
NAN reports that the eight team tournament would serve as the qualifier for the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Chile.
The semi-finalists of the tournament will represent Africa at the World Cup. (NAN)
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