Plateau United shift focus to CAF Confederation Cup, NPFL after Champions League exit News

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Plateau United shift focus to CAF Confederation Cup, NPFL after Champions League exit

By Daily Sports on March 20, 2018

Plateau United manager, Kennedy Boboye has said his side have shifted focus on the CAF Confederation Cup after exiting from the CAF Champions League at the hands of Tunisian side, Etoile du Sahel.

The Jos Elephants pipped the North African side 1-0 in the reverse fixture clash of the CAF Champions League first round tie on Sunday at the side’s temporary ground, Sani Abacha Stadium in Kano.

The result proved inadequate to see the Tin City side progress to the lucrative group stages of the competition, falling 2-4 to the Tunisian side in Sousse, thereby losing out on 3-4 aggregate.

The Nigerian champions have now dropped to Africa’s second tier club competition, the CAF Confederation Cup playoff stage.

Boboye said his side gave the campaign their very best as first timers and inexperienced in the continent’s top club competition, but felt unlucky not to have made it to the group stage.

“Plateau United tried their very best in the competition but could not achieve the first mark – making it to the group stage of the competition.

“Plateau United are young team and I guess first timers in the Caf Champions League compared with their opponents, Etoile du Sahel.

“They tried their best but could not progress to the group stage, I give the players kudos.

“The first leg result in Sousse largely unsettled us, we were unlucky not to have made our several chances count positively in the second leg.

“Now we are going to compete in the Confederation Cup and I know that our experiences in the matches we played in the Champions League will help us greatly in the Confederation Cup.

“We have shifted our focus to the Confederation Cup as well as the league as we still want to excel in those competitions.

“We have three outstanding matches to play against Go Round FC, Yobe Desert Stars and Kwara United.

“We must work hard to get something from those matches to help improve on our standing on the league log.

“A side that aspires for the summit cannot afford to drop points irrespective of where the match is played,” said the former Sunshine Stars and Abia Warriors coach to supersport.com.

The Jos outfit will wait to know their Confederation Cup playoff stage opponents on Wednesday at the draw ceremony at the CAF headquarters in Cairo, Egypt.

Other Nigerian campaigners MFM FC, Akwa United and Enyimba are competing in Africa’s second tier club competition. © supersport.com

•Photo shows Plateau United Manager Kennedy Boboye

Source Daily Sports

Posted March 20, 2018