Football
The Nigeria Football Federation has again praised the Federal
Government and the Federation’s sponsors for the successful prosecution of Sunday’s
2018 FIFA World Cup African Qualifying Matchday 1 encounter against Zambia in
Ndola.
Two first –half goals by England –based Alex Iwobi and Kelechi
Iheanacho steered the three –time African champions to a 2-1 win, three
precious points and early leadership of the so-called ‘Group of Death’ in the
World Cup qualifying race.
“We cannot thank the Federal Government, and the Honourable
Minister of Youth and Sports enough for their kind gestures. We also cannot
appreciate our sponsors enough, particularly Supersport. Their good intentions
made everything possible, and made the victory even sweeter.
“The Government and our partners and sponsors are our strength.
There is not much that we can do without them,” NFF President Amaju Pinnick
said on Thursday.
Aware of the challenges at hand, major partner Supersport paid the
charter cost of the 148 –seater ARIK Air plane that conveyed the delegation to
and from Ndola, in addition to paying ticket refunds for the overseas –based
players.
“The gesture from Supersport was heartwarming, but we have always
known the organization to be that responsive and of noble intentions. We thank
our other sponsors as well, because at all times we must praise them for being
there.
“The Honourable Minister was marvelous. He took our case to the
Government and we got good support. We also cannot forget his leadership role
on the trip. He put everyone at ease, played the good Leader of Delegation and
delivered an inspiring message from President Muhammadu Buhari just before the
team left for the Stadium in Ndola.”
Pinnick said the NFF and the team have put behind the victory in
Zambia and already fully focused on next month’s Matchday 2 clash with the
Fennecs of Algeria, who like Nigeria played at the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cup
finals.
“We have three points and lead the group, but we do not have the
World Cup ticket yet. We must keep our heads. Picking three points in the
encounter with Algeria next month is paramount.”
“We also want to use this opportunity to appeal to other corporate
organizations to join and assist the NFF with more financial support to help
the Super Eagles land safely at Russia 2018, as Government alone cannot afford
the huge cost of prosecuting these games, with so many other sectors in need of
support.”
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