IBRAHIM Muhammad, who opened the scoring for the Flying Eagles last night as they defeated hosts Argentina in the round of 16 of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, has dedicated his goal to President Bola Tinubu.
The Flying Eagles won the knockout clash 2-0 in San Juan, with Halilu Sarki scoring the other goal in stoppage time to take the Nigerian side to their first quarter-final in the competition since 2011.
Tinubu of the ruling All People’s Congress won the disputed presidential election in February and was sworn in on Monday as successor to Muhammadu Buhari.
During his post-match interview, Muhammad praised his teammates and said they were not bothered by the partisan crowd of over 27,000 cheering on the home team.
He ended the interview by making the dedication to Nigeria’s new President, whom he inadvertently gave the title of ‘Honourable’.
“I feel so happy. As you can see, this is my first goal in the World Cup and it makes me so happy,” Muhammad said.
“It was not on my mind that we were playing the host nation. I felt so comfortable. Me and my teammates had confidence that we could beat them.
“That’s how football is; football does not care about host country. We gave our best in this match and got the result.
“Within myself, I dedicate this goal to our new President, ‘Honourable’ Bola Ahmed Asiwaju (Tinubu). I dedicate my goal to him and really appreciate the efforts my teammates put in today.”
The Flying Eagles will play either Ecuador or South Korea in the quarter-finals billed for Sunday.
Ecuador battle South Korea tonight for a place in the quarter-finals.
