LAGOS,Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) –Rivers United recorded a slim 1-0 win over Algerian club, USM Alger, in the first leg of the CAF Confederation Cup quarter-final tie.
Augustine Okejepha delivered the all-important goal in the 10th minute, securing a slim advantage for Rivers United ahead of the second leg next weekend in Algeria.
The Nigerian representatives faced a formidable challenge from the reigning champions, who were desperate for a favourable result despite playing away from home.
They, however, failed to increase the tally as they missed several scoring chances through poor finishing.
Speaking after the game, Coach Stanley Eguma Eguma attributed the low scoreline to over-anxiety by his players, adding that though they played well, they got lost at the vital point of scoring goals.
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He said: “We had a very good game at the beginning of the match and we scored within the first 10 minutes of the game.
“We played with high intensity to ensure that we pressed them down, which yielded the early goal in the game.
“One would have expected that the boys would continue that way because we had a lot of scoring chances early in the game.
“Unfortunately, we could not convert our chances.
“We rightly out classed them in the game because we had a lot of ball possession.
“We matched them on counter-attacks to increase the tally but, unfortunately, we could not.
“The scoreline did not reflect the standard of the game we played today.
“The players created a lot of chances but over-anxiety affected them.
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“They lost their heads when they got to the vital point and that made us have a very low scoreline today.”
Rivers United is aiming to become Nigeria’s first team to win the CAF Confederation Cup and they kicked off the quarter final task in good form with the strikers taking the fight to USM Alger defenders.
The Nigerian club, who squeezed through to the quarter-finals by finishing second in their group, have a tough game ahead in Algiers in the return leg.
In the group stages, Rivers United won all their home games but lost twice away, including 3-0 at another North African club, Tunisia’s Club Africaine.
Eagles Online