By Dayo Awoniyi
Nigeria’s U20 national team, the Flying Eagles, have kicked off intensive preparations for the 24th FIFA U20 World Cup with their first full training session in Santiago, Chile, on Wednesday evening.
The two-hour workout at the Cancha Liga Training Pitch, supervised by head coach Aliyu Zubair, followed a light recovery exercise earlier in the day at the team’s base, Le Meridien Hotel.
Training will continue on Thursday as the seven-time African champions fine-tune tactics and fitness levels.
The Flying Eagles are scheduled to face host nation Chile in their first warm-up game on Saturday, September 20, before testing themselves again against Australia on Tuesday, September 23.
Both matches are designed to sharpen the team’s competitive edge ahead of the global youth tournament, which kicks off later this month.
Expectations remain high back home, with many Nigerians hopeful the team can surpass the disappointment of recent outings on the world stage.
The pressure now rests on Zubair and his young squad to deliver a convincing campaign.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. On the back of domestic engagement since 2008, he began his international career journey at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.
