Akwa United’s Coach Umar Abdullahi Worried Over Poor Finishing

Akwa United assistant coach Umar Abdullahi has expressed concern about his team’s struggles to convert chances, following a goalless draw against Rangers in a matchday 8 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) clash.

The Promise Keepers have endured a tough start to the 2024-25 season, with just one win, three draws, and four losses from their opening eight matches. Abdullahi pointed out that poor finishing is their biggest issue, despite creating many scoring opportunities.

“It is painful that the outcome of this game is not what we planned,” Abdullahi said after the match. “We wanted to win, but it ended in a goalless draw.

“Even though we dominated and played well, we could not make good use of our chances, which is disappointing.

“A closer look at our performance shows we are improving and playing good football. When a team plays well, they create chances, and we did that today. But the problem is our inability to convert those chances.”

Abdullahi acknowledged that the team’s inability to score has become a worrying trend.

“We have now gone two matches without scoring, and that is not good enough. We need to keep working on the boys’ goal-scoring ability. We want everyone on the pitch to be capable of scoring because we are not a bad team.

“I believe in this squad, and we are committed to making an impact this season.”

Akwa United currently sit 18th on the NPFL table with six points from eight games. They will travel to Ibadan to face Shooting Stars this weekend in a crucial matchday 9 fixture.