‘Rangers, Rivers United’s exit bad for Nigerian football’

Former Super Eagles Midfielder, Friday Ekpo, is still sad that Enugu Rangers and Rivers United could not qualify for the group stage of the CAF Champions League. Rangers lost 5-3 on aggregate to Egypt’s Zamalek, while Rivers United bowed out to El Merreikh of Sudan 3-4 on aggregate despite winning the first 3-0 in Port Harcourt.

Ekpo said the results posted by both teams showed that they did not employ the right type of players, adding that in football one only gets what he puts into it.

“We are not talking about mathematics because football is not mathematics. How you plan your game and how you set up your team determines your result at the end of the day. I knew it would be difficult for Rangers to come out of the 1-4 defeat to Zamalek in Cairo. But the one that surprised me was the result of the Rivers United against their Sudanese side. I did not expect them to lose by a 4-0 margin. A 4-1 and 4-4 on aggregate would have qualified them for the group stage of the competition.

Ekpo, who advised clubs representing Nigeria to recruit quality players, added: “We need to update our league and also update our referees for the best team to emerge at the end of the league. Here we are talking about a Champions League for champions of every country in the continent.”