By Dayo Awoniyi
Rangers International’s hopes of lifting the 2025 President Federation Cup were dashed on Wednesday following a 1-0 defeat to Kwara United in a tense semifinal encounter at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena in Lagos.
The decisive moment came just three minutes after the break when Kwara United’s Wasiu Alalade pounced on a defensive lapse to slot home the winning goal, sealing a historic final appearance for the Ilorin-based side.
Rangers head coach Fidelis Ilechukwu cut a disconsolate figure after the final whistle, describing the result as heartbreaking.
“This is really a sad loss for us as a team, but we have taken it as one of the outcomes of a football match. It was not destined to be our day,” Ilechukwu said.
He admitted the team’s first-half performance fell short of expectations but commended the players for their improved second-half display.
“Our first half was not too impressive, but we came back for the second half a better side. Unfortunately, that error at the back gave us away,” he added.
Despite the setback, Ilechukwu remained optimistic about the future and pledged to bounce back.
“We shall go back and regroup and find our way back to the top in the coming season.”
Rangers will now turn their focus to the final fixture of their 2024/2025 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) campaign, as they travel to Ibadan to take on Shooting Stars (3SC) on Sunday, May 25.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. He began his career 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.
