Nigeria U17 boys have finished top of Group B with seven points after thrashing Togo 3-0 to book a place in the semifinals of the ongoing U17 WAFU B Cup Championship in Ghana.
Nigeria recorded seven points from three matches to climb ahead of Burkina Faso, who also got seven points but scored fewer goals after they scraped a 1-0 win over Niger in a final group game.
A brace from Abdulmuiz Adeleke and Rapha Adams’s goal were enough to give the Golden Eaglets the semifinal ticket.
The Golden Eaglets will now battle it out on Saturday when they take on Cote d’Ivoire in the semifinal of the WAFU B U17 AFCON qualifiers in Ghana.
The record five-time world champions made a stuttering start to their campaign with a barren draw against Burkina Faso at the University of Ghana on Thursday but boosted their title defense with a 1-0 win over Niger Republic on Sunday at the same venue, with Raphael Adams’ 31st-minute strike separating both sides.
The Golden Eaglets final Group B game against Togo was postponed to Thursday due to a heavy downpour which left the university stadium in Accra, Ghana, in an unplayable state for the match.
The News Agency of Nigeria reported that the match was originally fixed for Wednesday (today) at 5 pm.
In the same vein, the other Group B game between Burkina Faso and Niger has also been postponed for the same reason. The matches were later played on Thursday morning which saw both Nigeria and Burkina Faso edging out their respective opponents to reach the semifinals.
Burkina Faso defeated Niger Republic 1-0 and they will take on host country Ghana in the semifinal.