Pre-Olympic qualifiers: Beating Nigeria has given us confidence, says Senegalese coach
..as D'Tigers handler calls for patience
Ifeanyi Eduzor
Coach of Senegalese national men basketball team, Mamadou Gueye said that the victory of his team over host nation, Nigeria in Match Day 1 of the ongoing France 2024 Pre- Olympic qualifying game will help build up
confidence of his players as they progress in the tournament.
Senegal Monday, August 14 at the Eko Hotels venue of the championship spoilt the fun for Nigeria when they beat the host nation, 93-87 in a keenly contested close game
Speaking to journalists shortly after the game, he noted that his payers were mentally ready for the match because they know D’Tigers are very good.
” I’m very happy winning this match especially against a very formidable Nigerian side. This victory has increased the confidence of my players and we’ll now take other games one after the other.
On the strategy he employed against Nigeria, he explained that his team was able to make Nigerians commit fouls which helped them win the game.
Meanwhile coach of D’Tigers,
Ogor Odaudu has appealed to Nigerians to be patience with the team as they intend to block all loopholes discovered in the game against Senegal before their next match against Mali.
” I know that a lot of Nigerians will be disappointed that we lost our first game but my appeal is that they should believe in this team because we’re going to come back stronger.
” It’s even good that we lost the first match because it has shown us that we’re beatable. It would have been more painful if we had lost in the semi-finals or finals. We’re going to have a look at the video, correct all our mistakes and hopefully cone out stronger in our remaining matches”, he assured.
Captain of the team, Chimezie Metu while expressing regrets that they lost, agreed that the Senegalese were more aggressive but was quick to add that their remaining matches will be a different ball game.
Action continues at the same venue Tuesday, August 15 when Cameroon and Guinea enters the court by 3 PM followed by Nigeria and Mali taking the centre stage by 6 pm.
