The Golden Eaglets of Nigeria stunned their arch rivals Ghana 4-2 in the opening match of the WAFU B U-17 Cup of Nations qualifiers at the Cape Coast stadium on Saturday.

Defender Emmanuel Michael put the Nigerians in the lead on 12 minutes when he hit an unstoppable free-kick which the goalkeeper struggled to contain.

Ghana began to push forward in search of the equalizer but an error in goalkeeping resulted in the second goal as Precious Williams scored in the 43 minute to give Nigeria a commanding 2-0  lead.

The Nigeria captain tapped home a rebound after Ghana goalkeeper Ahmed Amadu Dembara spilt a long range shot from Kewe Iyede as the Eaglets went into the break with a 2-0 cushioning.

Back from recess, the Black Starlets piled the pressure on Nigeria – plan to reduce the deficit but it was Nigeria who went 3 goals up after a howler from Amadu Dembara. This time Djibril Azeez who got the game’s first shot on target got his name on score sheet after Dembara failed to grab a goal bound low drive.

Ghana came alive in the 58 minute after striker Abdul Razak Salifu smartly weaved his way through the Nigerian defence before smashing a low shot into the right bottom corner to make it 3-1.

The goal energized the Black Starlets – as they kept fighting for more but Nigeria had other ideas as substitute Light Eke made it 4-1 after connecting from a corner kick in the 78 minute – to throw the game beyond the reach of Ghana.

Ghana captain Colins Agyapong scored from the spot in the 88 minute as the game ended 4-2 in favour of the Golden Eaglets of Nigeria.

On Sunday, defending Champions Cote d’Ivoire will face Benin in the first match while Burkina Faso will take on Niger in the second match of the day in Group B.

The Black Starlets will face neighbours, Togo in their second group game on Friday, June 17, 2022 at the Cape Coast stadium in their bid to seal a qualification into the next stage.