Manu Garba and his boys must treat each game as the final- Garba Lawal

Former Super Eagles winger, Garba Lawal, has charged the Flying Eagles team not to underrate any team in their 2015 FIFA U-20 world cup which kicks off later this month in New Zealand.

Lawal, who was a member of the Nigerian team that won the 1996 Olympic gold medal in Atlanta, USA explained that with Brazil in the same group, Nigeria must ensure that they treat each game as the final so as to make it far in the championship, saying the team should treat every match in the 24-nation championship like the final.

Nigeria will go to the May 30 to June 20 championship in New Zealand as the African champions, and are drawn in Group E alongside powerhouse Brazil, Hungary and Korea.

Former Super Eagles midfielder Lawal said, “I believe they (Flying Eagles) are capable of winning the World Cup. But the Africa Youth Championship is a different ball game. This is World Cup. Playing in the World Cup is different from playing in a continental competition. The important thing is for them to be focused in every game. If you want to get to the final and win the cup, you have to win every game.

“It’s not going to be an easy one with teams like Brazil in the competition. When it comes to football a lot of countries respect Brazil because of the way they play. Also there are other South American and European teams that are strong. It’s going to be tight, but with the quality of players we have, I believe Nigeria can go far.”

However, the former Holland and Greece-based player said Nigeria can beat Brazil (in Christchurch on June 1) if they prepare well for the encounter.

The Atlanta ’96 Olympic Games gold medallist added, “The Flying Eagles coaches Manu Garba (head coach), Nduka Ugbade (assistant coach), the goalkeeper trainer, the medical team and the media team have been fantastic. They just need to be careful and focused in every game. They should play every game like the final.”

Meanwhile, Manu is expected to name his 21-man squad for the tournament this week. The Nigeria Football Federation will forward the country’s squad list to FIFA on Friday.

The Flying Eagles are currently training in Nurnberg, Germany ahead of the tournament. They will play their first friendly match against Hoffenheim’s U23 team on Tuesday. Punch