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Pinnick proud of his Eagles

Cape Town - Nigeria Football Federation president Amaju Pinnick was most impressed with the character shown by the players in the national team, after they beat Congo 2-0 in a dramatic Africa Cup of Nations qualifying fixture on Saturday.

When Nigeria got its qualifying campaign off to a slow start, there were many who had doubts about the team’s chances of securing passage to the continental showpiece next year. Pinnick said that the team displayed extraordinary spirit and total commitment when the situation demanded it.

"I cannot commend you enough for making Nigeria proud, through your fighting spirit and the patriotic fervour with which you approached the game," Pinnick told the Nigerian national team on Monday.

"It was a difficult environment in its entirety but you were not deterred, and that must be our guiding philosophy from now on," added Pinnick.

There was some controversy about what was perceived to be a hostile environment in Pointe-Noire at the weekend, especially when Nigeria secured victory in the 90th minute of the match. However, Pinnick said that the players stood tall in the face of adversity and earned a commendable victory.

"Apart from being denied access to our team’s only training session, our delegation was not given any match ticket, contrary to the regulations, and our accompanying media were denied accreditation to the match," said a disappointed Pinnick.

"But we are all happy that we could sing after the match. You have simply turned the campaign around for the better and we look forward to finishing the qualifying campaign on a high note in Uyo on Wednesday," added the NFF boss added.

The final assignment of this qualifying campaign will be a fixture against South Africa, who have already secured passage to the Africa Cup of Nations tournament. A win for Nigeria will be desirable and there is the distinct possibility that this objective can be realised.



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