After losing to Burkina Faso 2-1 in the quarterfinals of the TotalEnergies U17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Algiers on Thursday, Nigeria’s coach Nduka Ugbade claimed his team gave it everything they had and that he did not criticize them.

Following the loss, Nigeria’s hopes of winning a third championship and making it to the FIFA World Cup were dashed, and Ugbade is now left to pick up the pieces of their broken hearts.

“The players are disappointed of course because they are young but we must support them because they need to continue their careers.

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“We should work on their development because I believe that some of these players will eventually move to the senior national team,” the tactician said after the defeat to Burkina Faso.

He adds; “I am happy with the performance of our players and in such competitions, even if you lose, you gain something by developing the players for the future.”

When reflecting on the loss to Burkina Faso, Ugbade claims that a different outcome would have occurred if they had been more proficient in front of goal.

“Everything worked as we had planned, but we could not score with the chances we had. We paid dearly for that. We learn the lessons and move on,” he said.

The tactician thinks that the defeat will more effectively work to fortify the players’ psyche, supporting them to bounce back in upcoming age groups.