Kun Khalifat FC captain Joseph Ameh has refused to allow one difficult afternoon in Benin to become a crisis, urging his teammates to transform their 4-2 defeat to Bendel Insurance into motivation for the journey ahead in the 2026/27 EuroMatch Nigeria Premier Football League.
Kun Khalifat travelled to the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium on Matchday Three having not conceded in their opening two league matches, but their impressive defensive beginning was brought to an abrupt end as Bendel Insurance struck four times in a six-goal encounter.
For Ameh, however, the most important result could now be the response.
> “Losing a game is not the end of the season. I think this loss will be motivation for me and my teammates.”
It is the kind of message expected from a captain after a difficult result.
The disappointment is real, but so is the reality of a long EuroMatch NPFL campaign. Three Matchdays cannot define an entire season, and Ameh believes Kun Khalifat must take the lessons from Benin rather than carry the disappointment into their next assignment.
From two clean sheets to a six-goal reality check
Before the trip to Benin, Kun Khalifat had established themselves as one of the early defensive talking points of the campaign.
They opened with a 0-0 draw away to Abia Warriors before another goalless encounter against Barau FC.
Two matches.
Two clean sheets.
No goals conceded.
Then football reminded them how quickly circumstances can change.
Bendel Insurance scored four, but Kun Khalifat also found the net twice, registering their first goals of the new campaign.
For Ameh, there is therefore little value in pretending the defeat did not hurt.
> “This isn’t the result we expected, but it is football. Anything can happen. We didn’t plan for this. I think we have to take it that way. We take it in good faith.”
That acceptance does not mean ignoring what went wrong.
Quite the opposite.
The Kun Khalifat captain believes the players must accept responsibility, examine the mistakes that contributed to the defeat and return to work.
> “We have to fix our lapses and work better in our next game.”
