Ikorodu City FC, in a breathtaking second-half display on Sunday, ended the unbeaten run of table-toppers, Rivers United FC, with a 2-0 win.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the 2024/2024 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) Match Day 10 was played at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan, Lagos.
The hugely entertaining match ended goalless in the first half and had a turnaround in the second match with two quick goals.
Ikorodu City coach, Nurudeen Aweroro, made a triple substitution at the start of the second half by introducing Ayomide Cole, Rivio Ayemwenre and Toyeeb Ajeyigbe, replacing Alade Solomon, Salau Yusuf and Emmanuel Solomon, respectively.
Cole made an immediate impact as he scored in the 48th minute with a beautiful loop after a delightful pass from the captain, Waliu Ojetoye.
Another super sub, and a former Sporting Lagos FC striker, Ayemwenre, made it two in the 53rd minute after strings of offensive display in the 18-yard box of Rivers United with the assist by another substitute, Ajeyigbe.
Speaking after the game, Aweroro said it was a game he was poised to win.
“My target is to play the match without conceding a goal, which God did for me. I want to win this match because every game is important.
“I am not afraid of Rivers United FC, I know that I need to approach the game with confidence.
“I always want to play the right player at the right time. The three players that I brought in instantly made their impact.
“I know I need some players that can help out. So, there is no fuss about the numbers of players I substituted at a time. It is the quality of their impact,” he said.
Aweroro noted that he could have substituted five players at once, adding that one of the goalscorers, Rivio, was someone he had a lot of respect for his dedication and energy.
“If he had started the game, no one could have complimented him.
“We will start from where we stopped for the next. This match has given us the edge that we needed for the next match,” he said.
On his part, Rivers coach, Finidi George, played down the significance of the loss as he described it as a normal occurrence in football.
“Sometimes along the line in the league, we will have to lose, but we could have done better.
“We conceded a careless goal because, after that, nothing happened.
“We will go back to do the review of the game. Losing 2-0 is normal in football, we are not expecting to win all the matches.
“We will just go back and make up for the lost moments. We also lost concentration during the match and we failed to make use of the first half opportunities,” he said.
Finidi, however, gave credit to Ikorodu City for putting up a good fight against his side.
“We didn’t make the right decision. I give credit to Ikorodu City, they did their best.
“No cause for alarm yet for our title race. This loss is one of those things we see in football that will see us prepare better,” he said.
NAN reports that Rivers United now occupies second position after 10 matches with 21 points, while Ikorodu City moved up to 17th position with 11 points.