By Wale Mustapha
Rivers United head coach George Finidi has criticised his side’s performance despite grinding out a narrow 1-0 victory over Shooting Stars in their Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) Matchday Four clash.
The Pride of Rivers secured all three points on Sunday at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium in Port Harcourt, but Finidi was far from impressed with what he described as a lacklustre and error-strewn display from his players.
“I am not quite happy, I have to be honest. We were too much in a hurry, too many mistakes,” Finidi admitted in his post-match interview.
“I didn’t see my team in one moment that I could say we were in total control. Honestly, we need to do better than that.”
While acknowledging the importance of the win, the former Super Eagles winger stressed that his team must raise their standards if they are to remain competitive over the course of the season.
Rivers United remain unbeaten so far, collecting eight points from their opening four matches, but Finidi made it clear that improvements are non-negotiable.
The Port Harcourt side will next travel for a tricky Matchday Five encounter against Barau FC on Sunday.
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.
