Nigeria Professional
Football League (NPFL) club, Rivers United have arrived in Madrid, Spain for
the fifth and final phase of pre-season ahead of the 2016/17 campaign.
There was a brief
stop-over in Frankfurt after the contingent arrived in the German city at
5:20am local time following a six hour, ten minute flight that began at the
Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja by 11:10 pm on Friday, December 12.
The Port Harcourt club
began their pre-season preparations on November 1 in Port Harcourt with new and
retained players commencing light physical work under the guidance of technical
manager, Stanley Eguma.
The second and third
phases of pre-season continued in Abuja and Kaduna, respectively.
United’s fourth phase
of pre-season between December 7 and 11 came in the shape of Nigeria’s most
prestigious pre-season tournament – the Super 4 in Enugu.
The ‘Pride of Rivers’
emerged champions of that competition after navigating three hard-fought
matches against Nigeria’s flag bearers in 2017 CAF club competitions, Enugu
Rangers, FC Ifeanyiubah and Wikki Tourists.
Speaking shortly before
the team departed the Port Harcourt International Airport on Tuesday, Omagwa, leader
of the delegation and Rivers State Commissioner of Sports, Honourable Boma
Iyaye explained that the trip was imperative as it acts as the icing on the
cake as far as the club’s preparations for the new season is concerned.
“This trip represents
the fulfillment made to the team by the number one supporter, the Rivers State
Governor, His Excellency, Ezebunwo Nyesom Wike as part of their pre-season
preparations. Clubs in Madrid,
particularly Real Madrid have a winning culture and coming here (Madrid) will
help us imbibe that spirit and psyche.
“Another objective of
this training tour to Madrid is making Rivers United not just a national and
continental brand but one to be reckoned with internationally. We will be in Madrid
for ten days and have already forged an alliance with La Liga, Spain, in the
shape of training matches and more. By the time they are
done with the training tour, I am sure the players, coaches and officials will
be the better for it,” Iyaye told the club’s official website,
www.riversunitedfc.com.ng.
In the same vein,
striker Emeka Ogbugh has expressed happiness at the opportunity which will be
afforded him and his teammates in Spain.
“We want to thank the
Rivers State Government for this opportunity and we promise to justify this
high level of confidence repose on us. It is important to let
the sponsors and fans know that we understand why we are all here and
hopefully, we will do Rivers State and Nigeria proud come 2017,” he said.
Rivers United players
in Madrid
Festus Austine
Nzube Anaezemba
Godbless Asamoah
Joseph Douhadji
Elvis Wike
Guy Kuemian
Olalekan Gabriel
Yusuf Jaiyeola
Kingsley Patrick
Ayobami Asekunowo
Sunday Rotimi
Gabriel Wassa
Emeka Ogbugh
Christian Weli
Ovoke Bernard
Ifeanyi Nweke
Markson Ojobo
Abiodun Akande
No comments:
Post a Comment