Mfon Patrick
With just one point separating 5th placed Akwa United from the four joint leaders on top of the Nigeria Professional Football League table, Vice-Captain Ubong Friday has said that he and his teammates are on a mission to secure their second away win of the season in Lagos this weekend.
The Promise Keepers are one of the best traveling teams in the league, having picked six points from seven away games comprising one win, three draws and three losses.
Friday expressed the hope that his team will get a positive result on Sunday when they clash with MFM FC on Match-day 17 at Agege Stadium in Lagos.
“At the moment, we are not too far away from the top and that is why our match against MFM is very important for us. We see every match as an opportunity to improve our standing on the log and on Sunday, we won’t leave anything to chance.
“We have played MFM at Agege Stadium four times, out of which we drew just once and lost on three occasions, but we are mentally ready to break that jinx on Sunday by picking the maximum points.
“The current season is running smoothly and we have seen a whole lot of improvement. Despite the fact that the league is tough and competitive, teams are picking vital points away from home and I’m optimistic that if we play well, three points will be ours on Sunday,” Friday explained.
After 15 rounds of matches, Akwa United are on 26 points having won seven, drew five and lost three.
Victory on Sunday will be their second on the road this season following 0-1 win over Adamawa United on Match-day 8 in Gombe.
With 17 goals scored and nine conceded, Coach Kennedy Boboye’s team parade one of the sharpest attacking line and the most resoulate back-line in the league.
Joint leading scorer Ndifreke Effiong who has scored eight of Akwa United’s 17 goals so far this season is expected to lead the team’s attack while goalkeeper Adewale Adeyinka who has kept seven clean sheets in his last ten games will maintain his place between the sticks when the team file out on Sunday at the Agege Stadium.