Nigeria Players Abroad
Maikaba blames tactical errors as Flying Eagles lose WAFU B final
Nigeria head coach Abdul Maikaba says a poor opening 10 minutes and a series of tactical mistakes were responsible for the Flying Eagles’ 4-1 defeat by Burkina Faso in the WAFU B U-20 Championship final on Sunday.
The result denied Nigeria the sole qualification place for next year’s U-20 AFCON in Ghana, while Burkina Faso completed a second victory over the Flying Eagles in this year’s tournament.
“We lost the game in the first 10 minutes conceding three goals,” Maikaba said on BRILA FM.
“We made a lot of tactical mistakes which cost us the early goals which forced us to come out and made them to hit us on the counter.”
The defeat was Nigeria’s second against Burkina Faso in the competition. Burkina Faso had already beaten the Flying Eagles 2-0 in their final group-stage fixture before producing another convincing performance in the final.
Maikaba accepted that Burkina Faso were deserving winners and praised their consistency throughout the tournament.
“Burkina Faso deserved to win because they have been consistent, they beat everybody so I salute them, they are a very good side.”
The Flying Eagles’ failure to win the WAFU B championship means they have missed the opportunity to claim the region’s single ticket for the U-20 AFCON, which will be staged in Ghana next year.
The continental tournament will also determine Africa’s representatives at the 2027 FIFA U-20 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan.
Ghana will host the CAF U-20 AFCON for a second time. Its previous staging of the competition came in 1999, when the host nation won the title by beating the Flying Eagles 1-0 in the final.
The top four teams at the U-20 AFCON will qualify to represent Africa at next year’s FIFA U-20 World Cup.
Nigeria remain the most successful nation in U-20 AFCON history, with seven titles won in 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989, 2005, 2011 and 2015.
At the 2025 tournament, the Flying Eagles finished third after beating hosts Egypt on penalties in the third-place play-off.
They have also twice finished runners-up at the FIFA U-20 World Cup, in 1989 and 2005.