‘History has not been good with us against Ghana but we focus on the present’ – Daniel Ogunmodede ahead of Black Galaxies showdown

By Oyediji Oluwaseun Babatunde

The stand-in coach of Nigeria men’s national team B, Daniel Ogunmodede, has admitted that history has not been good for Nigeria against their Ghanaian counterparts as far as the Championship of African Nations (CHAN) Qualifiers was concerned.

In two of the four previous times that the Super Eagles failed to qualify for the competition popularly called CHAN, Ghana was the bogey team. In the qualifiers for the inaugural edition in Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria took a 2-0 first-half lead in Accra, only to eventually lose the match 2-3. The return at the UJ Esuene Stadium, Calabar ended scoreless.

In the qualifiers for the last edition hosted by Algeria, Ghana won 2-0 at home and lost by the same margin in Abuja, only to snatch the ticket after a penalty shootout.

In a bid to make their first appearance at the CHAN tournament for the first time since 2018, the Remo Stars head coach opined that the focus now is to try and qualify despite Ghana having a better history against Nigeria.

“History is not good or very sincere with us against this country, so we decided not to pay attention to what history has done to us,” Ogunmodede told NFF TV.

“We pay attention to the present and what the future holds for us. We know how important it is if we qualify; we have a good future for ourselves, the players, the coaches, the country, and the incoming generation of footballers in the country.

“It is going to be a good market for the league. To whom much is given much is expected.” He concluded.

The first leg in Accra ended in a 0-0 draw making the return leg in Uyo on Saturday an open encounter.

With Ghana responsible for the Super Eagles’ failure to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup after also playing out a 0-0 draw away only to play out a 1-1 draw in Abuja, there is a lot at stake.

Ghana, not qualifying for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco, will hope to avoid a double disaster as far as the CHAN Qualifiers are concerned.