The Nigeria Telecoms Games 2015 entered week 4 on Sunday 23rd August, 2015 with 2 matches played.
Airtel 1 0 LM Ericsson
The Airtel boys just coming off a break, went into this match needing to nick all 3 points to stand any chance of making it to the finals. They had just a point from the 2 matches played so far.
LM Ericsson were full of confidence having beaten the defending champions in their last match. A win for them against Airtel will buoy their chances of making it to their first ever finals.
The match was a cagey affair although Airtel were dominant in possession, while Ericsson were happy to sit back and soak up the pressure with the hope of catching their opponents with a counter. The first half did not produce so much in terms of clear cut chances, but Airtel will feel hard done by for not transforming their superior ball possession into goals.
The second half started in much the same fashion. Both teams tried to up their tempo as they went in search of the all-important goal.
Kayode Akinyosoye of LM Ericsson was quite a handful for the Airtel defence with his pace and trickery and the few occasions that the Ericsson defence was breached, Ahmed Ajagbe in goal was always alert to thwart their efforts.
Airtel did eventually take the lead after they were awarded a penalty. The resultant penalty kick was taken by Musah Isah who made no mistake in finding the back of the net to give Airtel a one goal lead. Airtel held on to their advantage till the final blast of the referees whistle.
Airtel’s chance of playing in their first ever finals still lie firmly in their hands as a victory over MTN in their last match will guarantee them that.
LM Ericsson will content themselves with a place in the 3rd place playoff irrespective of the outcome of their last match against IHS next weekend.
MVP: Musah Isah
Etisalat 0 2 IHS
Newcomers IHS continued their fairy tale run in the NTG with their 3rd straight win. They have thus qualified for the finals of the NTG 2015 football event.
Defending Champions Etisalat came into the game already out of the finals but needing to finish on a high. They have just a point after 3 games in what is easily their worst season in the NTG.
The match got off to a frantic pace with Etisalat mostly in control. There were a few absences in the Etisalat line up, most notably that of Captain, Andrew Enebeli while former best goalkeeper, Chima Nnorom started in goal.
Although Etisalat continued to dominate possession, it was IHS through their talismanic Ibrahim Anifowoshe who continued to prove dangerous on the counter.
Both teams went into the break at par. At the resumption of play, Etisalat continued to dictate the pace and came close to scoring their second goal of the tournament but the ball came crashing off the bar.
This seemed to wake IHS as they started putting more pressure on the Etisalat defence and it soon paid off as the Etisalat defence went to sleep momentarily in a goal mouth scramble to afford Ibrahim Anifowoshe to score his 5th goal of the tournament. IHS soon doubled their tally as Ibrahim turned provider with a looping cross which Adebusayo Adepoju diverted into goal despite the best efforts of the Etisalat defence to clear their lines.
At the end of the game the following facts had emerged:
– Etisalat is the first defending Champion not to play in the finals
– Etisalat is also the first defending champion to be knocked out of the tournament
– IHS are the first debutants to make it to the finals
MVP: Ibrahim Anifowoshe
The table after week 4 stands thus:
Fela is the Co-founder of MediaVision Limited .
