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Nigeria and Ghana clash in what is a repeat of the final of the last edition, as the Group B attrition of the 2026 WAFU B U20 Championship begins in the Ivorian town of Yamoussoukro on Monday 29 July.
The Flying Eagles won that match at the Stade Kegue in Lomé, Togo, in October 2024, retaining the trophy they won in Niamey two years earlier.
Coach Isa Ladan Bosso led the team that triumphed in Niamey while Aliyu Zubairu was the chief strategist of the team that successfully retained the trophy in Lomé following a 2-1 defeat against the Black Satellites.
On Monday, coach Abdu Maikaba, himself a former assistant coach of the team, will begin his competitive odyssey as the team’s chief strategist in their major clash with their feisty West African neighbours.
His joke underlines his confidence in the work he has done with the team and leaves no one in doubt about his mission in Ivory Coast.
“We are looking for an outright win against Ghana because our aim is to retain the trophy and we need to start winning our matches from day one,” Maikaba said ahead of Monday’s clash. The match will kick off at 2pm Côte d’Ivoire time (3pm Nigeria time) at the Lycée Scientifique de Yamoussoukro.
Before Monday’s battle, Maikaba’s team beat Athletique Club de Zenuola 2-1 in Thursday’s friendly.
The rivalry between Nigeria and Ghana on the football field dates back to 1951 and has produced a number of memorable encounters at senior, intermediate, junior and academic levels in both the men’s and women’s categories.
Monday’s victory will give seven-time African champions Nigeria a good shot at a place in the semi-finals, with clashes against Togo and Burkina Faso coming in the four-team Group B.
The second day on 30 July will see the seven-time African champions face off against the Togo Sparrowhawks at the same Lycée Scientifique de Yamoussoukro. The match is scheduled to kick off at 2pm local time (3pm Nigeria time).
The cup holders will conclude their Group B matches against the Young Stallions of Burkina Faso on 2 August also at the Lycée Scientifique with kick-off scheduled for 2pm local time (3pm Nigeria time).
Hosts Ivory Coast, Benin Republic and Niger Republic make up Group A.
