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African Nations Championship (CHAN) bound Super Eagles and last season’s runners-up in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) MFM FC will go toe to toe in the final game of the NPFL Invitational Tournament in Kano on Sunday.
The Super Eagles managed by Salisu Yusuf are the only side that have won a match at the tournament since it began on 11 December at the Sani Abacha Stadium with the five other games ending in stalemates.
Yusuf’s men played out a goalless draw with NPFL champions Plateau United on Day 2 of the competition before edging Enyimba 1-0 through a sumptuous Sunday Faleye finish in the first game of Day 3 on Friday to book their place in the final. The national team are also the only team yet to concede a goal.
MFM are without a win in the tournament but have scored the most goals, being two. Both goals were scored by Adegboyega Adekunle as they were held by Akwa United and Kano Pillars in their group games by similar scoreline of 1-1.
LOW-SCORING TOURNAMENT
It has been a tournament with fewer goals. The two finalists have a combine of three goals between them which accounts for 43 per cent of the total goal scored. So far, seven goals have been scored in six matches averaging 1.16 goal per game.
Despite the low-scoring stats, MFM forward Adekunle has been responsible for two of the seven goals. His tally means he has accounted for 29 per cent of the total goals netted in the tournament with Faleye, Chinedu Udeagha, Tosin Omoyele, Ajibola Otegbeye and Alassan Ibrahim scoring one each.
HOW THEY MIGHT PLAY
Nonetheless the low-scoring return is expected not to influence the selection of the coaches of the two teams. It is expected that MFM manager Fidelis Ilechukwu will stick to the group that played the last game against Kano Pillars.
For the Super Eagles, Yusuf has dropped the hint that there could be a change in the goalkeeping area with Theophilus Afelokhai starting after Ikechukwu Ezenwa and Dele Ajiboye featured in the games against Plateau United and Enyimba respectively.
The coaches will further use this game to assess their teams as they prepare for two different African competitions, the CHAN and the CAF Champions League.