Cool-headed 2023 U17 AFCON alum to captain Golden Eaglets, Manu Garba watches Ghana thrash CIV

Allnigeriasoccer.com understands that a Senior Secondary 1 student, Simon Cletus has been appointed captain of the Golden Eaglets ahead of their opening game of the 2024 WAFU B U17 Championship.

The 16-year-old will be stepping out onto the Accra University Stadium pitch on Thursday when the Golden Eaglets face off with Burkina Faso in their opener wearing the number 10 at the back of his jersey.

An attacking midfielder by trade, Cletus was a member of the Golden Eaglets squad to the 2023 U17 AFCON in Algeria, where he was given minutes in the quarterfinal clash against Burkina Faso.

The Mavlon FC starlet was originally not in the plans of erstwhile coach Nduka Ugbade for the competition in North Africa but climbed the pecking order of midfielders after some key players failed MRI tests. 

Cletus has been described as a player with leadership qualities, cool-headed and not egocentric. 

Meanwhile, officials of the Golden Eaglets attended a pre-match meeting with the match commissioner on Wednesday, in which the squad was informed of the colours of the jersey they would don against Burkina Faso.

The Golden Eaglets players under the supervision of coach Manu Garba trained for approximately one hour on Wednesday, their final workout before their opening game of the 2024 WAFU B U17 Championship.

There are no injury worries for the Golden Eaglets, with all the twenty players taking part in the workout. 

Looking ahead to a potential meeting with Group A opponents in the knockout rounds, Manu Garba was on opposition scouting duties today, watching hosts Ghana thrash Ivory Coast 5-1.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel 

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