FIFA U-20 World Cup:Nigeria progresses to Knockout stage.

Abuja – Flying Eagles coach John Obuh on Thursday in Istanbul, Turkey praised Olanrewaju Kayode whose goal helped Nigeria to qualify for the second round of the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
Kayode, who had been criticised for throwing away several scoring chances in previous matches, finally delivered against South Korea at the Ali Sami Arena in Istanbul.

Olarenwaju Kayone of Nigeria scores his goal during the FIFA U-20 World Cup group B match between Korea Republic and Nigeria at the Ali Sami Yen Arena on June 27, 2013 in Istanbul, Turkey. (FIFA)
His 9th minute header earned Nigeria the runner-up spot in Group B and an automatic ticket to the knockout stage of the competition.
“Kayode has worked really hard for this team, getting many of our assists here. He just needed to score a goal and I’m happy he did just that today,” Obuh said at a post-match conference.
The coach said that by scoring the goal, Kayode had justified the confidence the entire team have in him.
He said he was also satisfied with his team’s performance even though it should have long killed off the game after dominating and creating the better chances against the Asian champions.
“We made one or two mistakes. But, overall, I’m okay with our performance,” Obuh said.
The coach acknowledged that South Korea were a good team even though his team beat them.
“They had shown they can come back from defeat, like they did against Cuba and then Portugal. So, we had to be a little bit cautious against them,” he said.
Also speaking, South Korea coach Kwang Jong Lee conceded his team found it tough going against the individually-talented and fast Nigerians.
“It was a tough match against the individually-gifted and fast Nigerian team,” he admitted.
Kwang said his players found it difficult to penetrate the Nigerian defence and as a result did not create any scoring chances in the first half.
“But I was satisfied with what we showed in the second half,” he added.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Nigeria became the first African team to qualify for the Round of 16 at Turkey 2013 after they finished second in Group B.
The Flying Eagles had six points, behind Portugal who defeated Cuba 5-0 in the other match of the group to finish with seven points.
They will now face the runners-up from Group F on Tuesday at Istanbul in the Round of 16.
The opponents are likely to be one of Uzbekistan, Uruguay and Croatia who will play their last first round group match on Saturday. 

-vanguard

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