By Daily Sports on November 21, 2017

Ikechukwu Batholomew Ibenegbu has declared that he is looking to keep up from last season by continuing his goalscoring act from dead-ball situations when the 2017-18 Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) season gets underway on 14 January 2018.

Last campaign, Ibenegbu, nicknamed Mosquito, was one of 27 players who scored direct free kicks and two out of the three free kicks he scored helped his club Enyimba to finish in the top-three which secured them a place in next year's edition of the CAF Confederation Cup.

He told npfl.ng that he had an infrequent opportunity of practising free kicks last season since most of the training routines were focused on the entire team.

"I only play it (free kick in training sessions) whenever infringement occurs because we play 11-a-side, and most of the time, I score up to 80 per cent (of my free kicks)," he said.

According to Ibenegbu, Ogunbote, who has now signed up with Oriental rivals, Enugu Rangers, played a role in encouraging him to focus on becoming the Peoples Elephant's free kick specialist last season.

"My coach (Ogunbote) usually do call me out after training to come and practice it," Ibenegbu revealed to npfl.ng. "So I practised it while we were in Calabar."

Those rare free kick sessions earned the two-time CAF Champions League winners six points as Ibenegbu scored three of his seven goals last season from set-piece situations. He scored direct free kicks against league champions Plateau United, Niger Tornadoes and Lobi Stars. (NPFL)

•Photo shows Ikechukwu Batholomew Ibenegbu.

Source Daily Sports

Posted November 21, 2017

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