CAF Champions League: Rivers United Can Upset Wydad Casablanca — Eguma

Rivers United manager Stanley Eguma has revealed that the underdogs' tag is good for the team ahead of the CAF Champions League second-round clash with Defending Champions Wydad Casablanca.

The NPFL Champions earned a 3-1 aggregate win over Liberia’s Watanga to advance to the next round of the competition.

The longest-serving coach in the Nigeria Professional Football League is confident that Rivers United can make history against Wydad Casablanca despite being the underdogs.

“It is quite true that Wydad Casablanca are a very strong team in Africa and are the defending champions, and we also acknowledge the fact that they have been there and have a lot of experience, but football is not mathematics,”

“We are not going to rest on our oars; we are going to intensify our preparations and fashion out a strategy that will help us overcome them.

"It is very possible that we can beat them; it is even good for us that we are the underdogs because the pressure will be on them.

"They will see us as easy opponents, but we are going to do our best and see how we can overcome them,” he said.

He revealed that Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike has promised to reward the team financially.

“The Governor of the state (Nyesom Wike) has promised the team a financial reward if we get to the group stage, and there is a high level of motivation to get to the group stage because it also gives the players the opportunity to showcase themselves at the biggest level.

"It will also be a big plus for our league as well,”

“A lot is up there to motivate the team.

"We have Rivers United and Plateau United, and we expected that both or either of us should go through and break the long-time jinx,” Eguma added.

Nigeria's other representative in the competition, Plateau United, will also battle it out with four-time winners Esperance in the second round.

Kwara United is Nigeria's sole representative in the CAF Confederations Cup, and they have a date with defending champions RS Berkane in the second round.