World Under-17 champions, the Golden Eaglets, lost by a lone goal to their South African counterparts in the semi-final at the ongoing African Cadets Championship in Niamey, Niger Republic.
Khanyisa Mayo’s 26th minute strike was enough to seal victory for the Amajimbos for the dumping out of the Golden Eaglets.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Federation has commended the Eaglets, for earning a place at the FIFA U-17 World Cup finals taking place in Chile later in the year.
The NFF President, Amaju Melvin Pinnick, declared on Wednesday that the semi-final defeat to South Africa at the African U-17 Championship in Niger Republic has not diminished the value of the Eaglets accomplishment.
Pinnick said: “Certainly, every Nigerian yearned for the Eaglets to win the African
championship trophy in Niger after the boys reached the semi finals.
“They lost by a lone goal but we cannot accuse the players of lack of effort.
“The present NFF administration has continued to harp on the fact that it is not only concerned with winning trophies.
“We want to win trophies but more than that, we want to build a sustainable football culture.”
Pinnick promised that the boys will not be treated like outcasts following the failure to reach the championship final.
He said: “The NFF will send a jet to pick the players after the third place match on Sunday.
“The technical crew remains intact and the NFF will give support to them to plug the necessary holes in the team so that we will have a squad capable of doing the nation proud in Chile.”
The NFF president also noted that Cup holders, Cote d’Ivoire, were eliminated in the group phase of the championship in Niger.
