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By Abiodun Adewale.
Akwa United head coach Deji Ayeni believes his side will recover in time from their 2022/23 Nigeria Premier Football League opening day defeat against Bendel Insurance on Sunday.
The Promise Keepers were beaten 2-0 by the newcomers in front of their fans at the Nest of Champions, with two first half goals by the Benin Arsenal doing the damage.
“I am a very positive person and I believe nothing is impossible. Football is a game where you win, lose or draw. We have found ourselves on the losing side this time, and next time we can find ourselves on the winning side. So, losing this game isn’t the end or anything we can be worried about, although it is very painful as a coach that has trained the players for several months. We will go back, and I believe we can bounce back in a bigger way,” Ayeni said.
Ayeni took charge of Akwa United in the middle of last season, following the resignation of Kennedy Boboye.
He managed the former champions to a ninth place finish on the table and was given a head start ahead of the new campaign, which saw the club add 29 new players, the exit of several others.
“In terms of recruitment, a lot of players left the team, but that isn’t the yardstick to measure the result because if you watched the boys that played, they played very well especially in the second half.
“Sometimes players can be naïve and won’t play to instructions. So, I felt the first half they were a bit nervous, maybe because were playing for the first time at home, and I made some changes in response. Of course, the chances came, but we were unable to convert.
“All of us will have to put hands on deck, strategise and correct our mistakes. I also need to talk to the players and make them understand that losing the first match isn’t the end of the league. We still have other matches. Who says we cannot go to other away games and get our own win? So that is football,” he added.
Akwa United’s next game is against eight-time champions Enyimba in Aba.