By Adebayo Abubakar
Kwara United Football club of Ilorin, yesterday, breezed into the Niger Republic, ahead of tomorrow’s 2nd leg encounter with the Nigerien club, AS Douanes, in the ongoing CAF Confederation’s Cup, to complete the task they started at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan waterfront Lagos, last week.
The team goes into tomorrow’s encounter with an advantage of a 3-0 victory recorded in the reverse leg last Sunday at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan waterfront Lagos, with brightened chances of advancing to the next stage of the competition.
Any loss of concentration, or complacency could spell catastrophy for the team, in Niamey. However, there should be little or no cause for worries, if the quality of play, witnessed in the first leg, especially in the first half, could be maintained, the team would be as good as being in the next round. The artistry in the midfield, the industry of the entire team and the confidence with which they move the ball around, are some of the strong points of the Harmony Warriors.
The team will have to do more on the team’s attack, to ensure that, they are less profligate in front of goal, than they were in Lagos. They would need Ayodeji Bamidele and his defensive crew to be at their impregnable best, to minimise how much they expose Adewale Adeyinka or whoever will be between the sticks, so as to aim for a clean sheet, like they did, 6 days ago.
Meanwhile, Samson Paul and Wasiu Jimoh would need the likes Jide Fatokun, and Issa Gattah, to join them in the business of “net-shaking” to ensure that they put the game beyond the hosts, as progression to the next stage remains the ultimate prize in the fixture.
By and large, the Coach Nosike Onyewuchi-tutored team must ensure that they’re at their clinical best, in the first half of tomorrow’s game, and beyond, as dehydration is expected to be a challenge they will have to contend with. An atmosphere of a higher temperature 33 degree Celsius, six more than they had in Lagos is more likely than not, in Niamey.
This would be the third time the Harmony Boys are playing on the continent in their history, having done so, twice in the past – seasons 1999/2000 and in 2006/2007. They’re however expected to go beyond the quarter finals this time around, courtesy of the massive support afforded the team by the executive Governor of Kwara State, Mallam Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, who endeavoured to be on ground to cheer the team to victory in Lagos, during the first leg.
Meanwhile, the other Nigerian representative in the competition, Remo Stars, will this weekend entertain their Moroccan opponent, Association sportive des Forces armées royales (AS FAR) in Ikenne, as the North Africans have arrived Nigeria ahead of the decisive match. The first leg ended 1-1 in Morocco last weekend.
Remo stars will hope to avoid a draw, in order to be guaranteed passage into the next round.
