MANAUS, Brazil – The Nigeria U-23 football team on Monday qualified for the quarterfinals of the Olympic Games football event after beating Sweden 1-0.
The Africa representative scored in the 39th minute through Umar Sadiq.
The second win meant that Nigeria who beat Japan in their first game lead the Group B table with six points and automatically qualified for quarterfinals.
Nigeria’s Olympic team are better known as Dream Team VI after the original Dream Team won a historical Gold medal at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.
According to pundits, a lot is expected of the current team, with some suggesting this team could go all the way to the Olympic class of 96 that paraded the likes of Austin Jay Jay Okocha and Daniel Amokachi.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Minister of Sports, Solomon Dalung has apologized to the to the Dream Team for their rough start.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“I want to apologize for all the circumstances that led to your late arrival here. I apologize because I am the head and as such I must take responsibility for anything that happens under my watch,”[/perfectpullquote]
Dalung offered.
He said he was happy the “unfortunate incident” is behind them and honored the team for “making the country proud,” after being the first team to qualify for the quarter-finals.
Further, the sports minister assured his team that all that is owed to them would be paid back, hence avoiding an all too familiar situation. At the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, the Super Eagles, Nigeria’s senior team, refused to attend a training session and almost held a strike because of money issues.
According to reports, Mikel John Obi assured Dalung that the team would not lose focus in their pursuit of gold.
Featured Photo: Mikel against Sweden. Getty Images
