Imama Amapakabo, Head Coach of the national under-23 male football team, on Friday assured that his team’s preparations for the Under-23 Africa Cup of Nations were in top gear.
Amapakabo told newsmen after the team’s training session in Abuja that all efforts were being made to ensure the team evolves as necessary.
While admitting that having with him in camp only one foreign-based player could be a drawback, the coach expressed the hope that more players would soon be joining the camp.
“Right now, we have in camp with us one (Kelechi Nwakali) out of the three foreign-based players invited and we are hopefully expecting the others to arrive at the camp within the next few days.
“But their early arrival will enable us to get a clearer picture of our preparations for the competition,’’ he said.
Amapakabo said he and his technical crew colleagues were not unaware of the nature of opposition ahead of them at the Under-23 AFCON in Egypt in November.
“We know the kind of games we are preparing for, and we believe that it is going to be tough, but we have been preparing as we should,’’ he said.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the Under-23 AFCON, now in its third edition, is scheduled for November 8 to November 22 in Egypt.
The top three teams at the event will qualify for the Men’s Olympic Football Tournament at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Nigeria will open their campaign against Cote d’Ivoire on November 9 in Cairo, before taking on Zambia on Nov. 12 and South Africa on November 15.
All the matches are expected to hold at the Al Salam Stadium.
The Super Eagles assistant coach acknowledged that there were no longer easy teams in football and neither of the groups at the competition was also not difficult.
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