Nigerians in Cameroon mobilise for Eagles

Pius Ayinor in Yaoundé
A handful of Nigerians were at the Ahmadu Ahidjo Stadium in Yaoundé on Sunday to watch the Super Eagles train but those few that were on the grounds said they had intensified their efforts to ensure a lot of Nigerians were at the stadium to cheer the Eagles, Extrasportsnigeria.com reports from Yaoundé.
Eagles will battle their hosts the Indomitable Lions from 6pm Monday in the second leg match of the 2018 World Cup qualifying match. Nigeria thrashed Cameroon 4-0 in the first game played in Uyo, Nigeria on Friday. A self-styled Eze Ndigbo Youths of Yaoundé (King of Igbo Youths in Yaoundé) who spoke with Extrasportsnigeria showed the section of the stadium they hope to occupy for the game. The Igbo are a major ethnic group in the south east of Nigeria and they have a high number of residents in the neighbouring Cameroon.
“We are going to occupy this section,” he said pointing at area mapped out. “We see this game as an opportunity to walk taller in Cameroon. We were taunted before the first match in Uyo but that result has made us stars here. We hope and pray for another victory here that will finally define which country has the better national team. We are very proud of the Nigerian teams that come here to play.”
He spoke just as the Cameroonian police led out the fans and journalists who had gathered to watch the Eagles train. The Nigerian journalists had hoped that they would be allowed to watch the training from the stands but the managers of the team said they would not extend the 15 minutes granted to the media.
Both the fans hung around until the Eagles completed their training and rushed at the opportunity to take selfies with the players. Team captain Mikel Obi and Victor Moses were easily recognised and became the favourites. Apart from the slight delays at the airport immigration point the Cameroonians have been generally friendly to their guests this time. The Cameroonians fans lined up around the stadium entrance to cheers the Eagles as they arrived for the Sunday work out and still waited under slight showers of rain to see them leave after about two hours.