Senegal 2015: Flying Eagles, Cote d’Ivoire in supremacy battle

Six-time African Youth Championship winners, the Flying Eagles, plan to take their pound of flesh from their eternal foes, the Junior Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire, as both sides step out in the final group game Group at the Caroline Faye Stadium, M’bour, Senegal.
Both sides squared up twice in Marrakech, Morocco in the group stage and all the way to the final, the Ivorians won on both occasions.
Meanwhile, both teams have seen the transition from the U17s to the U20s with the Nigerians brimming confidence to avenge their previous loses.
Flying Eagles’ forward, Chiderah Ezeh, who was part of that 2013 team, vowed that they are out to win every game and a victory over Cote d’Ivoire will be satisfying.
“We are happy to have qualified for the FIFA U-20 World Cup. The job is not done yet. Our aim is to win all our matches in this tournament. Against Cote d’Ivoire, we will be looking for a win as well. They beat us in the final of the Africa U-17 Championship in Morocco in 2013 and we want to avenge that loss,” the Porto FC player promised.
The Nigerian team handler, Manu Garba, in a brief chat, was also desperate for a win in order to end to the edge the Junior Elephants have enjoy in the past years.
Garba said: “Well, I don’t know what some people mean by avenging our past games against the Ivorians, but we are here to win all matches and represent Africa as champions at the World Cup.
“I believe the Ivorians are not better than us even at the Under 17 because we scored a good goal which was cancelled by the referee before they won the trophy on penalties in the final and we later went on to win the World Cup while Cote d’Ivoire fell by the way side in UAE.
“You will also agree with me that since then, a lot of things have changed and the teams are not the same as it was two years ago. For us, Cote d’Ivoire won’t stop from laying our hands on the AYC trophy. The spirit is high in camp and the boys are raring to go.”
With the both teams current form, the Garba boys appear as the better side after scoring a total of seven goals and conceding only two in their first two games.
On the other hand, the Junior Elephants managed to draw their two games, while they scored three and also conceded three against Congo and Senegal.
Having drawn their previous two games, the Ivorians walk a tight rope and are faced with an imminent elimination from the African Youth Championship.
They must perform a magic to beat the high-flying Nigerians to pick the U20 World Cup ticket and a spot in the last four at the African Youth Championship.
The Ivorians must also pray that the Young Red Devils of Congo hand the hosts, Senegal, a defeat in front of their teeming home fans at Stade LS Senghor in Dakar.
Both games kick off at 6pm Nigerian time.