THE Flying Eagles of Nigeria have failed in their quest for an eighth U-20 Africa Cup of Nations title after losing their semi-final clash 1-0 to The Gambia at the Cairo International Stadium, Egypt today.
Adama Bojang, who scored a hat-trick in Gambia’s 5-0 quarter-final win over South Sudan, netted the only goal today to send the tiny West African country to their first-ever final of the tournament.
The Steve Biko FC forward took advantage of an error in the Nigerian defence to score in the seventh minute.
The Flying Eagles, who have been goal-shy in this competition scoring just four goals in their first four games, did not put the Gambian defence under much pressure in a lacklustre first half.
Ladan Bosso’s side were however presented with a great opportunity to equalise when awarded a penalty in the second half.
Instead of pulling the Flying Eagles level though, Ahmed Abdullahi failed to convert the spot kick, hitting the base of the upright.
Gambia held on comfortably to advance to the final, where they will face Senegal, who thrashed Tunisia 3-0 in the first semi-final earlier today in Ismailia.
Pape Demba gave the Young Lions the lead before Lamine Camara added a brace to hand Senegal the big win.
The Flying Eagles will battle Tunisia for bronze on Friday, while West African neighbours Senegal and Gambia will face off for the trophy on Saturday in Cairo.
All of Nigeria, Tunisia, Gambia and Senegal have qualified for the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Indonesia in May and June.
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