Rivers United showed Nigerians, and the rest of the continent a perfect example of how not to lose an important game on Friday night in Uyo.
It was a crucial CAF Champions League group-stage fixture against Morocco’s RS Berkane. Rivers United had already been bruised 3–0 by Pyramids of Egypt on Matchday 1, making this home match a must-win.
Finidi George set up his team in his familiar style: slow, deliberate build-ups from the back, patient ball circulation, and sudden breaks in transition. It worked in spells, but Berkane sat deep, compact, and disciplined, refusing to be stretched.
Rivers United huffed and puffed through the first half before forcing the breakthrough. Under intense pressure, a cross dropped dangerously in the Berkane area and, in the confusion, Mamadou Lamine Camara sliced the clearance into his own net. It felt like the needed opening.
When the second half started, Berkane changed gears. Camara pushed forward, Imad Riahi orchestrated play like he brought the ball from home, and Rivers United’s attack became increasingly toothless, the kind that wouldn’t score even against an empty goal.
Still, the home side held on. The clock hit 90 minutes. Seven minutes added. This was when everything unravelled, and not through tactical failure, not through superior opposition, but through a loss of composure.
With Rivers United leading 1–0 in the 94th minute, they earned a corner. Instead of protecting the ball, running down the clock, or packing bodies around the flag, they floated in a long cross, the worst decision in that moment.
Berkane countered immediately, won a free kick, and from the resulting ball into the box, Youness El Kaabi pounced on a loose rebound to level the game. Uyo fell silent.
But Rivers United weren’t done losing their heads.
From the restart, instead of settling for a draw, they chased a winner as if they had ten minutes left. The ball was played back to the goalkeeper, Osagie, who tried to launch it long, only for it to rebound off a pressing Berkane player.
What followed was a chaotic chase toward the Rivers goal. Mounir Chouiar sprinted down the middle while three Rivers defenders paused to ball-watch.
When the shot cannoned off the post, Chouiar kept running; the defenders didn’t. First to the rebound, he tapped in Berkane’s late winner.
Game over. Lesson harshly delivered.
When I got home, my 16-year-old son, a college footballer asked what happened. I showed him the 94th-minute corner. His response was simple:
“But every footballer knows you don’t play a long corner when you’re leading 1–0 in the 94th minute.”
Out of the mouths of children, as they say.
Why the Outrage?
The reaction after the match was predictable. Nigerians blamed the coach, the league, the players, and the entire footballing ecosystem. Finidi George faced the media with the expression of a man who had aged rapidly in 90 minutes. His comment said it all:
“I can only use the players I have. I cannot create human beings.”
Finidi will learn. He has coached in this league for five years. Perhaps, someday, he will seek new challenges outside Nigeria. He will likely still win the NPFL this season, but doing well in Nigeria is not the same as competing in Africa. That gap remains wide.
For what it’s worth, I still believe Rivers United can win two games in this group. Let January come.
But We Were in Uyo
Nobody in the team ever promised to win the Champions League. Nobody even promised qualification from the group. Every conversation with the coach hinted at limitations, and a willingness to simply compete. So, my traveling crew- Cyril Dum Wite, Ufuoma Egbamuno, Carl Orakwue, Ghanaman, Kingsley Olisa, Kalu Mba arrived Uyo with clear heads and low expectations.
We made it an experience
Day one: Tropicana trade fair, where I ran into former league top scorer Mfon Udoh, now a brand ambassador for Ibom Air.
Day two: A heated monopoly tournament. Ufuoma bought property like money dey chase am, and soon went bankrupt. Kingsley followed. Ghanaman won; I finished second.
We ate everything Uyo had to offer: Okro, Afang, White Soup, Fisherman Soup, Native Soup. If it existed, we consumed it.
So, when people ask if I was heartbroken because Rivers United lost, my answer is simple:
I came to Uyo to watch football, not to worship a result.
I enjoyed the match. The loss changed nothing.
By the end of the season, a quarter of the Rivers United squad would have left the country, and Finidi will be forced to rebuild again. Yet we ask why Nigerian clubs struggle in Africa. The cycle continues.
Final Word
Rivers United lost because they lost their heads. Nothing more. Nothing less. Some times, we should look a bit less at the coach, but the mentality of the players. The players just did not have the mentality, and like the coach said, he can only work with what he has. I can just imagine a Brown Ideye or an Odion Ighalo or, maybe a John Mikel Obi in that team. Just one person with a good head, and these may not have happened.
But beyond that, Uyo was fun, the football was entertaining, and the diary remains rich
