Kwara United FC secured a hard-fought 1-0 win over Nasarawa United FC at the Akure Township stadium on Sunday, May 7, 2023 to retain their status in the Nigeria Premier Football League.
The Harmony Boys as they are fondly called won the encounter courtesy of a goal from substitute Ibrahim Yahaya in the 82nd minute after a drabbed goalless first half.
Kwara United started brightly, with Samson Paul firing over the crossbar in the tenth minute as Adewale Adeyinka, United goalkeeper denied the visitors a chance to take the lead with a brilliant save in the 20th minute.
In the 30th minute, Kabiru Balogun’s free kick was parried by the goalkeeper, while Samad Khadiri’s effort late in the opening game didn’t yield any dividend.
However, in desperate search of victory, Coach Kabiru Dogo of Kwara United FC reacted with a double change, introducing Samuel Chisom and Ibrahim Yahaya for Musa AbdulAfeez and Paul Samson respectively.
With eight minutes to the end of the game andafter missing series of chances, Kwara United eventually took the lead through substitute Ibrahim Yahaya.
Yahaya ferociously fired the ball to the roof of the net, profiting from a cutback pass from Chisom Samuel.
The Harmony Boys held on to the victory despite the pressure from Nasarawa United to get back into the game.
With the victory, Kwara United are four points ahead of Nasarawa United, who will be relegated from the Nigeria Premier Football League ahead of next season.
Speaking with reporters after the cracker, Coach Dogo thanked football fans in Kwara State for believing in the team and commended them for their support when the going was tough for the team. He also noted that the victory was a special gift to Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq for his assistance to the team since the inception of his administration and ensuring Kwara United maintain their league status.
Meanwhile, Nasarawa United has joined El Kanemi Warriors and Dakkada as teams to be relegated from the NPFL to the NNL so far, this season. Their elegation to Nigeria’s second division, the Nigeria National League (NNL) was confirmed for Nasarawa United following their disappointing 1-0 loss to Kwara United in Akure.
Founded in 2003, the Lafia club had only experienced relegation from the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) once, in 2009/10, but gained promotion back in 2012 after winning their division.