By Dayo Awoniyi
The Nigeria U20 national team, the Flying Eagles, will face Cote d’Ivoire in two friendly matches on February 26 and 28, 2025, in Abidjan, after their planned friendly matches with Egypt were cancelled.
The cancellation was due to both Nigeria and Egypt being drawn in the same group (Group B) for the Africa U20 Cup of Nations, alongside Morocco and South Africa.
The men’s youth tournament will take place in Cote d’Ivoire from April 26 to May 18.
The Flying Eagles, who have been in camp in Abuja for weeks, will depart for Abidjan on February 24.
The team’s administrator, Aliyu Lawal Ibrahim, confirmed the new arrangements.
The matches against Cote d’Ivoire will provide the Flying Eagles with valuable preparation for the Africa U20 Cup of Nations, where the top four semi-finalists will qualify for the FIFA U20 World Cup finals in Chile.
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.
