Yakmut tasks Dream Team VI to win gold medal

The Director-General, National Sports Commission (NSC), Mallam Alhassan Yakmut, on Thursday urged the Dream Team VI to win the gold medal to make the nation proud at the football event of the 11th All Africa Games in Congo Brazzaville.
Yakmut lauded the team for their 2-0 victory over the Black Meteors of Ghana and urged the team to go for the gold medal at the Men’s Football Tournament of the games.
The team defeated the All Africa Games champions, Ghana, by 2-0 to book their place in the semi-finals of the football event.
Nigeria’s final Group B match against Senegal, that drew 0-0 with Ghana on the opening day, will determine the overall winners of the group, following the last-minute withdrawal of Egypt.
Yakmut said that Nigerians had confidence on the Dream Team VI, stressing that the team could not afford to let the nation down after an excellent run.
“The country believes so much in your ability to deliver; I also believe in you but the only way you can justify this belief is to go out there and win the gold medal to make the nation proud; I know you can do it,’’ he said.
He urged the team to be disciplined and remain focused so that the U-23 boys could get to the peak of their career, saying that “this is just the beginning of greater things to come for them”.
The Dream Team will meet Senegal for the second and last group game on Saturday.
Nigeria will, at the African U-23 Championship, join hosts Senegal, Algeria, Zambia, Egypt, South Africa, Tunisia and one other qualifier in the finals.
The championship’s top three teams will fly Africa’s flag at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with the fourth-placed team playing off against a qualifier from Asia.