Rangers, Rivers Were Not Ready For Africa – Friday Ekpo

By Andah John

Ex-international, Friday Ekpo, has expressed disappointment over the early ouster of Nigerian champions Rangers and Rivers United from the Caf Champions League.

The Flying Antelopes were beaten 5-3 on aggregate by five-time champions Zamalek in the First Round of the competition.

Similarly, Rivers United went down to Al Merreikh of Sudan 4-3 on aggregate despite winning the first 3-0 in Port Harcourt.

And reacting to the results, Ekpo said it meant both sides did not adequately prepare for the competition.

“We are not talking about mathematics because football is not mathematics. How you plan your game and how you set up your team determines your result at the end of the day.

”I knew it would be difficult for Rangers to come out of the 1-4 defeat to Zamalek in Cairo. But the one that surprised me was the result of the Rivers United against their Sudanese side.

”I did not expect them to lose by a 4-0 margin. A 4-1 and 4-4 on aggregate would have qualified them for the group stage of the competition,” Ekpo said.

The former Super Eagles midfielder then advised clubs representing Nigeria to recruit quality players, as he said, “We need to update our league and also update our referees for the best team to emerge at the end of the league. Here we are talking about a Champions League for champions of every country in the continent.”