Ghana U-20 head coach Maxwell Konadu has applauded the quality of Nigeria’s Flying Eagles after his side suffered a 4-2 defeat in the opening match of the WAFU B U-20 Boys Championship, admitting the Black Satellites were punished for costly errors.
The regional rivals produced an entertaining contest, with Ghana enjoying a bright start before Nigeria turned the game around with clinical finishing to secure all three points.
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Reflecting on the defeat, Konadu said his tactical plan was to press the Flying Eagles high up the pitch and deny them time on the ball, but his players failed to execute consistently.
“Our game plan was to press high and stop Nigeria from playing their normal game, but we gave the ball away too easily and they punished us for those mistakes,” Konadu said.
The former Ghana international acknowledged the quality within the Nigerian squad, insisting the Flying Eagles deserved credit for capitalising on the opportunities they created.
“Nigeria has a lot of quality in their team, and they made good use of it. Whenever we made mistakes, they were quick to take advantage,” he added.
Despite the disappointing start, Konadu refused to rule out Ghana’s chances of progressing to the knockout stage, expressing confidence that his players can recover in their remaining group fixtures.
The defeat leaves the Black Satellites with work to do in the race for a semi-final place, while Nigeria strengthened its position with an impressive opening-day victory over one of its fiercest regional rivals.
Konadu maintained that Ghana’s campaign is far from over, urging his players to learn from their mistakes as they prepare for their next fixture, while the Flying Eagles will look to build on their winning start and move closer to a place in the last four.
