Ex-footballers Friday Ekpo and Victor Ezeji believe Enyimba will be facing an impossible task to turn the deficit when they face Egyptians Pyramids FC in the second leg quarter-final of the Confederation Cup.
Enyimba lost the first leg 4-1 in Cairo on Sunday after going ahead in the first minute.
Speaking with newsmen, both Ezeji and Ekpo said the defensive frailty of the Aba-based side was their greatest undoing, adding that it might pose problems for them in the reverse fixture.
“It will be very difficult for Enyimba to qualify. If it was in the group stage, we would have said they would win 1-0 and qualify. It is not impossible though, but if you look at Enyimba’s record, they have not been scoring many goals,” Ezeji, a CAF Champions League winner with Enyimba, said.
“It’s going to be a very difficult task for them and we know the North Africans and their antics. They will come, kill all the time and the most you can play in the game might be 65 minutes because they will waste the entire day away. They will frustrate you and do all they can to get what they came for. Somebody might be sent off.
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“Enyimba did not do themselves any good by conceding four goals in the first leg, but one thing they need to do is to work on their defence because all the four goals were defensive errors, they didn’t show the class of Enyimba.”
Ekpo added that the Egyptians would be confident after an emphatic first leg win.
“Enyimba conceded goals due to defensive errors. Maybe they can do something about that, but scoring four goals will be a tall dream. And with this kind of defence, they will be jittery against their opponents during the second leg.
“The Egyptians will be coming with confidence, knowing that Enyimba will try to attack to score three goals,” Ekpo told newmen.
Enyimba coach Fatai Osho, during his post-match reaction, said his team would give their best to ensure qualification.
“We have to let them (the players) know that it’s not over yet. We have to play and score and not concede; if we can do that we have a hope. A situation where we can score one or two goals, that brings hope and we have to work on their psyche,” Osho said.
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