Flying Eagles coach seeks North African test to be ready for U20 AFCON

Flying Eagles coach Aliyu Zubairu has said he hopes to play a North African team as part of his preparations for the U20 AFCON in Cote d’Ivoire, where Nigeria are drawn in “Group of Death’ along with Morocco and Egypt.

The Flying Eagles were to have played a test game against Egypt last month, but this was later shelved after both teams were drawn against each other at the U20 AFCON.

“We will still want to play against a North African team before the AFCON because this will prepare us for the tournament,” said Zubairu.

The El Kanemi Warriors coach led the Flying Eagles to beat Cote d’Ivoire 2-0 in a test match, before the U20 AFCON hosts avenged this loss with a 2-0 win Friday.

He said he played a second tactic in the second game and also made changes to the starting XI.

“We played a second tactic and we lost the game even though we also made some changes in the team,” he said.

“All the same what we wanted to see, we have seen.”

The U20 AFCON will be played from April 26 to May 18 in Cote d’Ivoire with the four semifinalists qualifying for the FIFA U20 World Cup in Chile.