A costly mistake by Ebenezer Harcourt saw Côte d’Ivoire net a late goal to beat Nigeria’s Flying Eagles 1-0 in the final of the WAFU B U-20 tournament on Wednesday night.
Côte d’Ivoire were awarded a free-kick late in the game which Harcourt came out to make a routine catch.
Unfortunately, the ever reliable Harcourt dropped the ball in front of an Ivorian player who reacted quickest by slotting the ball into the net.
Harcourt played a key role as he made a save in the penalty shootout win against Niger Republic in the semi-finals.
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In the third-placed encounter played earlier on Wednesday, hosts Ghana defeated Niger Republic 2-0.
The WAFU B U-20 tournament is part of the Flying Eagles’ preparation for the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile.
This year’s edition will start on 27 September amd end 19 October.
The Flying Eagles are in Group F with Colombia, Saudi Arabia and Norway.
Coach Aliyu Zubairu-led side will open their campaign against Norway on September 29.
Their second group game comes up on October 2 against Saudi Arabia then three days later they will take on Colombia.
At their last outing at the World Cup in Argentina, the Flying Eagles reached the quarter-finals before losing 1-0 to South Africa after extra-time.
By James Agberebi