WAFU-B U-17 Championship:  Ambassador Endoni charges Golden Eaglets to win tourney

Photo : Ambassador Endoni with the Golden Eaglets and their officials on Friday evening.

“Win for us, win for the millions of football-loving Nigerians,” was the key message delivered by Nigeria’s Ambassador to Burkina Faso, His Excellency, Ambassador Syndoph Paebi Endoni, to the Golden Eaglets and their officials during a dinner hosted in honour of the team at the Nigerian Embassy in Ouagadougou on Friday evening.

Ambassador Endoni, who disclosed that he was a former basketball player and founder of Royal Hoopers Basketball Club in Port Harcourt, which later metamorphosed into Rivers Hoopers, urged the Golden Eaglets players to seize the opportunity to represent Nigeria with pride at the WAFU-B U-17 Championship, which begins this Saturday.

“I welcome you to the Nigeria House in Ouagadougou, the Embassy of Nigeria in this country. There are millions of young footballers waiting for this opportunity to represent Nigeria,” Ambassador Endoni said.

“You have come here to represent Nigeria. I therefore charge you to fly Nigeria’s flag higher and higher. Win for us. Win for the millions of football-loving Nigerians all over the world.

“You may make mistakes on the pitch, but you must correct them immediately and ensure that you win all your games. We are a blessed country. We are united, and we are a very strong nation.

“We must get it right from the scratch, using these young footballers as good examples. Nigeria will continue to be strong when we encourage these young ones to take their minds off criminality, and football is key in this regard.”

Ahead of Nigeria’s opening match against Niger Republic on Wednesday, Ambassador Endoni assured the team of massive support from Nigerians living in Burkina Faso.

He disclosed that thousands of Nigerians reside in the country and pledged to mobilise the Nigerian community to cheer the team at the stadium.

“I want to assure you that Nigerians here will be at the stadium to support the team. We have thousands of Nigerians in this country. The Nigerian community will give the team huge support in all its matches in the championship,” he concluded.