Ex Nigerian U23 player Kingsley Udoh recalls playing Ghana in Kumasi

Kingsley Udoh recalled his experience playing against Ghana at the famous Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi during the 2011 African Games qualifiers.

Udoh was a part of Austin Eguavoen’s U23 squad, who competed against Ghana for a spot in the 2011 African Games but was eliminated when the tie finished 3-3 on aggregate.

The first leg at Benin City concluded 3-1 in favor of Nigeria, but Ghana’s U-23 side, the Black Meteors, won the tie 2-0 to qualify on the away-goal rule.

The defender, who won the U-17 World Cup in 2007, claimed the players had a nightmare playing against Ghana in Kumasi 11 years later.

Udoh claimed that home supporters put the players through hell before, during, and after the game.

“We were not allowed to enter the dressing room,” Udoh told PUNCH Sports Extra.

“They poured excreta and juju inside our dressing room and we couldn’t go in. We changed outside. They destabilised us, Kumasi fans are very harsh and unfriendly and it’s same city coach Austin Eguavoen is going back to,” he alleged.

“It’s not a place you’ll like to play, the forces there are too much but I believe we have players who can withstand the heat there.”