No pressure on Eaglets despite first leg loss, says Amuneke
NATIONAL Under-17 football team (Golden Eaglets) coach, Emmanuel Amuneke, has reiterated his commitment to ensuring the Golden Eaglets qualified for next year's Africa U-17 Youth Championship billed to hold in Niger, saying the 1-2 defeat inflicted on his team by Gabon has not put the side under pressure.
Speaking with The Guardian on the team's arrival in Calabar Wednesday to commence training for the qualifier's second leg game against Gabon, the former Super Eagles player explained that the Eaglets were not able to outshine their opponents in Libreville because of the challenges the boys faced before the encounter.
Amuneke said the team's technical crew would work hard to raise the morale of the players ahead of the return leg, noting that the Eaglets are not under any form of pressure in their quest to book the ticket.
The former African Footballer of the Year assured that he would raise a formidable team against Gabon, noting that the Eaglets have talented players that can beat any team.
"The Eaglets just arrived in Calabar today after a two-day break to commence training tomorrow.
"My mission now is to work on the boys to put behind them the defeat and focus on the task ahead, which is to pick the AYC ticket," he said.
On the Super Eagles' stuttering start to the Maroc 2015 Nations Cup qualifying series, Amuneke said the team needed to raise the standard of their game to qualify for the competition.
He advised that the Eagles' boss, Stephen Keshi, should not be forced to pick players that do not suit his game plan.
"The Super Eagles are in a very tight situation in the AFCON qualifiers after two games; so Keshi needs to work hard on his players to raise the standard of their game if they want to be in Morocco next year.
"I believe Keshi knows the right players he needs for a particular game. It is not right for people to impose players on him because he is experienced enough to pick the best legs that suits his game plan.
"I am happy that the Nations Cup qualifiers are televised because it will help to make the Eagles understand that there are no more minnows in African football. They must play as a team to win their remaining matches," he said.
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