By Wale Mustapha
Niger Tornadoes technical adviser Mohammed Magin Mohammed has attributed his team’s defeat to Abia Warriors to complacency and overconfidence, following their Matchday 11 clash in the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) on Sunday.
The Ikon Allah Boys suffered a surprise home loss at the Bako Kontagora Stadium in Minna — their first of the campaign — after a disappointing performance against the visitors from Umuahia.
Reflecting on the result, Magin admitted that his players may have been carried away by their previous away victory over Kano Pillars and failed to maintain the same level of intensity.
“First of all, I think we were carried away by the victory against Pillars; we thought we could just ride over Abia Warriors,” Magin told the club’s media team.
He added that while Tornadoes created several scoring opportunities, their inability to convert chances and defensive lapses proved costly.
“We had our chances but couldn’t utilise them, and the visitors capitalised on defensive errors and took their chances. That was how we conceded two cheap goals,” he explained.
The defeat leaves Niger Tornadoes with work to do as they look to regain momentum and consistency in their ongoing NPFL 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.
