An alternative DElta jet was chartered to leave the USA at 12.00 GMT – meaning they are due to arrive in Manaus just 13 hours before their opening Group B fixture against Japan.
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Nigeria U-23 national team coach Samson Siasia has described his side’s breathtaking 5-4 victory over Japan in their Rio 2016 Olympic Games opener in Manaus as a miracle.
The team is expected to arrive Brazil less than 36 hours before its opening game. “We had to go as a team and as a nucleus”, said Mr. Jinadu, who did not accompany the team to Brazil. He said they were scheduled to arrive in Manaus in time to play the match, but the team faced the uncomfortable situation of making its debut nearly immediately after a lengthy flight.
Jinadu said the problem stemmed from poor planning and coordination on the part of the Nigerian team in leaving Atlanta, where it has been training to prepare for the games.
It worked out that the NBA had already booked a plane to fly the US men’s basketball team back to the States after the end of the Olympics.
They now look ahead to their second match of the tournament against Sweden on Sunday, with Japan meeting Colombia that same day. The good news for Nigeria is the new plane is said to have luxury accommodations, so at least it will be a comfortable flight. Signed by the team and coaching staff, the soccer ball was provided to Delta as a thank you.
Oghenakaro Etobo scored to restore the lead for Dream Team VI, but Japan replied through Takumi Minamino to equalise.
The days leading up to the start of the Olympic men’s soccer competition were anything but smooth for Nigeria, with their being disputes with the Nigerian Football Federation regarding items such as the payment of their bonuses and the size of the plane that was supposed to take them from Atlanta to Manaus.
Delta Airlines were eventually contacted and after several deliberations the Airline offered to “bail out” the Nigerian team.
“So, after meeting with both of them and explaining my position, I am pleased to say Azubuike who has been our captain understood and was happy to hand over the captain’s band to Mikel”.
“Nigeria has tough skin”, he said. “All the players playing on this team know this is their livelihood and they have been overly anxious to get to Rio”.
“Nigeria’s defeat of Japan is the work of God because given the Dream Team’s late arrival in Brazil, many people already gave that match to Japan”.
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The Super Eagles, as the team is known, were stranded in Atlanta for days amid a freakish saga that saw flights cancelled because of missed payments and because a plane was too small, before eventually taking off on the morning of the game.
