Nigeria, Jamaica light up London in Unity Cup final

Nigeria, winners of the only previous edition of the Unity Cup in 2004, will aim to reclaim their title against the Reggae Boyz of Jamaica in what promises to be an explosive final of the Unity Cup Invitational Tournament at Brentford’s Gtech Community Stadium in West London today (Saturday).

Neither the Reggae Boyz nor the Super Eagles had an easy path to the final, as both were stretched to the limit by the Soca Warriors and the Black Stars, respectively. Jamaica led 2-0 against the Warriors, only to see their opponents draw level, before a fortuitous added-time penalty secured their victory.

The Eagles also led 2-0 after just 19 minutes and appeared to be cruising to a comfortable win, only to ease off. Ghana’s youthful side, led by veteran Jordan Ayew, gained momentum in the second half. After a well-taken goal by Brandon Thomas-Asante, they came close to equalizing in added time, but Nigerian goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali rose to the occasion with a crucial save.

The stands at Gtech this evening are expected to be awash with green-and-white and yellow-and-black, creating a festival-like atmosphere of dancing, drumming, loud singing, and fierce competitive spirit. Off the pitch, fans can expect scenes of wrist-pumping and chest-bumping celebrations.

Nigeria’s victory over arch-rivals Ghana on Wednesday mirrored their win in a friendly match against the same opponents in Marrakech, Morocco, in March last year. On both occasions, Cyriel Dessers opened the scoring, this time doing so with greater poise.

Today, Coach Eric Chelle will be eyeing his third win in four matches in charge of the three-time African champions. The chance to lift a trophy after just four games at the helm adds extra incentive.

Goalkeeper Maduka Okoye, defenders Waliu Ojetoye and Junior Nduka, midfielder Saviour Isaac, and forwards Tolu Arokodare, Nathan Tella, and Adamu Abubakar—who all sat out the win over Ghana—will be hopeful of getting minutes. They may be joined by Germany-based wing-back Felix Agu, now cleared to represent Nigeria. Former junior international Benjamin Frederick, called up to replace the absent Christantus Uche, is also in line for action.

Nigeria and Jamaica last thrilled fans in a memorable 2-2 friendly draw in Kingston ahead of the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France.