Flying Eagles head coach Aliyu Zubairu says his team is not concerned about Morocco’s foreign-based players ahead of their upcoming U-20 Africa Cup of Nations group match.
Nigeria started their tournament with a 1-0 win over Tunisia at the June 30 Stadium in Cairo on Thursday. Auwal Ibrahim scored the only goal of the match after a smart assist from Odinaka Okoro.
That victory puts the seven-time champions in a good spot going into Sunday’s clash against Morocco, a team filled with players from top European clubs.
Nineteen out of Morocco’s 26-man squad play for clubs across Europe, including PSG, AS Monaco, Marseille, Anderlecht, Celta Vigo, and more. Others play in countries like France, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Portugal, and Italy.
Despite that, Coach Zubairu says his team is sticking to their plan.
“We focus on every match one at a time. Tunisia is behind us now. We’ve prepared our strategy for Morocco, and we’ll follow it,” he told Saturday PUNCH.
When asked if Nigeria’s own foreign-based players could match Morocco’s, Zubairu explained that the Flying Eagles also have players from European clubs — but they’ve taken time to fit them in gradually.
“We have five Europe-based players. Three played today and two were on the bench. They are adjusting to our tactics because they joined the team late, but they’re doing well,” he added.
Nigeria’s win over Tunisia continued their dominance in past U-20 meetings, with four victories from six games since 1981.
Looking ahead to the Morocco game, Zubairu praised the players’ mindset and said the team is focused on the big goal.
“There’s no magic. We’re serious about getting a World Cup ticket, and the players know the first step was to win the opening game,” he said.
The match against Morocco is set for Sunday evening at the June 30 Stadium in Cairo.
