The trophy is ours, no doubt

In fact, all the aforementioned qualities have been in display in three of the team’s first four matches at the competition – against Ghana, Congo-Brazzaville and Tunisia. The Ghanaians (themselves not neophytes at this level), the Congolese and the Tunisians have been visited with the full wrath of he Eaglets’ power and endowments.When the Eaglets […]

In fact, all the aforementioned qualities have been in display in three of the team’s first four matches at the competition – against Ghana, Congo-Brazzaville and Tunisia. The Ghanaians (themselves not neophytes at this level), the Congolese and the Tunisians have been visited with the full wrath of he Eaglets’ power and endowments.
When the Eaglets lost 0-1 to their Ivorian counterparts in their second match of the group phase, I had made it clear that they needed such a blow to mature fully. Maturity comes in different stages, and no one can claim to have fully matured without going through the different phases of life: winning, drawing and losing.
The team’s first defeat came in its 29th match, meaning they had played almost 30 matches before coming unstuck. Before the tournament in Morocco, the Eaglets had a final training camp at the Aspire Academy in Qatar, where they whipped Aspire’s U-18 team 7-1 and pipped Al-Sadd FC (leading club in Qatari Premier League) 1-0.
I had insisted then that the Eaglets had moved from being boys to becoming men, and I had good support from respected football writer, analyst and commentator, Mumini Alao who even backed the team for greatness despite the loss.
Fact is, there is no great side in history that had not come unstuck at one time or the other. While the present Class of Golden Eaglets are still in their tots, we can go ahead and compared their winning streak to what was achieved by some of the world’s greatest sides of yore.
One can remember the magical Magyars of the early 1950s – the great Hungarian side that shook the world of football. Before landing in Switzerland for the 1954 World Cup finals, the Magyars, boasting incredibly talented individuals like Ferenc Puskas, Zoltan Czibor, Sandor Kocsis and Nandor Hidegkuti, had lost ONLY ONE match in 30 previous internationals – a 0-1 loss to Moscow XI. Reigning Olympic and Dr Gero Cup (forerunner of the European Championship) champions, the Hungarians had scored 121 goals in those 30 matches. They crushed Czechoslovakia 5-0 and 5-1, trounced Italy 3-0, mauled Sweden 6-0 and disgraced England 6-3 at Wembley (old Wembley, that is).
In that match with England, they were 6-2 up after one hour, and then took their feet off the pedal. In their last match prior to the World Cup, they gunned down England 7-1!
At the World Cup, they walloped South Korea 9-0, with Puskas netting a brace and Kocsis a hat-trick. In their second match, they dismantled West Germany 8-3, Kocsis with four of the goals and Hidegkuti with a brace. But they did not win the trophy. In the final, to the shock of the football world, they lost 2-3 to the same West Germany after leading 2-0 with eight minutes played.
What about the Brazilian team at the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Spain? Rated one of the most entertaining teams in history and coached by the inimitable Tele Santana, the team captained by Dr. Socrates (of blessed memory) had also beaten England at Wembley and stinged Republic of Ireland 7-0 in their last match before the finals. But in Spain, they lost 2-3 to Italy in the quarter finals.
What about the German team of the same year? Karl Heinz Rummenigge and company were the European champions and had won all eight qualifiers with a goal margin of 33-3. But in Spain, they lost to Italy 1-3 in the final.
So, every good/great team must taste defeat, and I am happy the Eaglets tasted defeat at a time that correction could be made, not in a final match. Now, they are presented with a massive opportunity to avenge that defeat against the Ivorians today.
Hear Coach Manu Garba: “The final match against Ivory Coast on Saturday is going to be a different ball game because we were unlucky when they beat us 1-0 in the group stage. We are going to play a better game because we now know them better.”
That, of course, is the spirit
This is also an opportunity for our country to soar above Ghana in the overall continental rankings. Both nations have won the trophy twice (Nigeria in 2001 and 2007) and Ghana (1995 and 1999). While Ghana finished as runners-up in 2005, Nigeria was runners-up in 1995. Ghana finished third in 1997 and 2007 while Nigeria finished third in 2003.
It goes without saying that the Eaglets will also pick up some other honours, such as Golden Ball and Golden Boot. However, the important thing is that the NFF is determined to keep these boys together and continue to do what is necessary to improve and nurture the team to greatness.
NEXT WEEK: Remembering Rashidi Yekini