Samson Siasia’s side had Oghenekaro Etebo to thank after the midfielder scored 4 of Nigeria’s 5 goals.
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“My boys defied science to win this game; what gave us this game was the mental toughness of the boys”.
After 13 minutes of the match and a period of four goals in five minutes, a tie game was being shown as the match was tied 2-2 from that point.
Chibuike Ogummah, a secondary school games Master, said U-23 team beating Japan had sent strong signal to countries in group “B” and other teams participating in the tournament that Nigeria was a force to reckon with.
“Our target here is to win the gold and no two games are the same”.
On his thought about the Japanese side, Siasia added: “The team we defeated is a good side; I respect them for pushing my boys to the limit”.
They will be hoping to tighten up at the back when they face Sweden on Sunday, after conceding 4 goals against Japan.
Now, could we please get the correct national anthem for their next match?
The Nigerians only flew into the country a few hours before the game, due to a week of delays and problematic travel plans, but the issues did not stop them from getting off to a winning start in Olympic men’s football action.
Four-goal hero Oghenekaro Etebo has dedicated his goals to God after an wonderful performance from the Feirense man. Even though Etebo didn’t score the first goal for his side, he was able to net the ball to four times to keep Nigeria ahead.
The former Super Eagles coach described the Japanese as a good team while pardoning his boys for conceding four goals. “So, we need to work on that”. Reports also had it that they played friendly games wearing different jersey brands.
In December 2015, he helped the Nigerian U-23 Team to the U-23 Africa Cup of Nations triumph in Senegal; finishing top scorer with 5 goals, including a brace in a 2-1 win against Algeria in the final.
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Team Nigeria’s assistant captain and flag bearer at the opening ceremony Funke Oshonaike will begin her quest for a medal in the women’s singles table tennis event on Saturday (today) as well as Segun Toriola who is making a seventh appearance at the Olympics and teammate Aruna Quadri in the men’s singles.
