Official MOTM Lawali admits Golden Eaglets paid the price for not converting their chances 

Nigeria fullback Yahaya Lawali has admitted that the Golden Eaglets were wasteful in front of goal which contributed to their 1-0 loss to Morocco in their second group game of the 2023 Africa U17 Cup of Nations. 

The Mahanaim FC starlet was named the TotalEnergies Man of the Match for the second game in a row despite the Golden Eaglets' defeat to the Young Atlas Lions. 

It was a frustrating first half for Nduka Ugbade's team as the north Africans took the lead as early as the second minute when Maali's shot ricocheted off Tochukwu Ogboji to be an own goal. 

The five-time world champions had several chances to restore parity but wasted the opportunities. 

Abubakar Abdullahi and Emmanuel Michael came close in the first half, while Favour Daniel, Lawali and Light Eke were not efficient in front of goal when presented with chances to grab an equalizer.

Speaking at the post-match press conference, Lawali stated : "We are heartbroken that we couldn’t take our chances, but we are sure to do better in our next match.

"We will work to ensure we are better and more efficient with scoring."

Of the twenty seven shots mustered by the Golden Eaglets against Morocco, only four were on target. 

The Golden Eaglets must not lose to South Africa in their final group game on Saturday to be certain of automatic qualification to the quarterfinals of the U17 AFCON.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel 

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