TIME: 7.30 AM
By KATE OBODO, Japan
Coach Edwin Okon believes it is not over yet for his side, despite their 2-0 loss to USA last Tuesday to qualify for the third place match against the host nation, Japan today in Tokyo.
As the U-20 World Cup ends today with both the third place and final matches, the Falconets will need both luck and a cool head in front of goal if they are to defeat the host and finish the tournament on a high note. For the coach, Okon, they need every strength to be the third-best team in the world.
"Though our dreams of glory and lifting the trophy have now been dashed, it is not over yet as we have another chance against Japan to prove our worth in the third place," he said.
Continuing, he said, "against USA, it was a hard fight and good match as well but, I also want to appeal to the officials of the this competition to be fair in their handling of the match," he said.
"Like I said earlier on, it is not over yet as we have learned from the last game against USA and have also corrected the mistakes made. We began the tournament looking to make the final at least but unfortunately we couldn't make.
However, being the third-best team in the world would be pretty good for us. So far, we have been able to work on all the departments of the team and hope for a better result against Japan," he stressed. Nigeria would early today battle for the third place position against Japan before the two finalists, USA and Germany take to the pitch later.
