Rivers won’t make Pyramids mistake against Berkane – Finidi

Rivers United coach Finidi George has stated his team’s determination to banish memories of their 3-0 defeat to Pyramids of Egypt, as they host RS Berkane of Morocco in their second group match of this season’s CAF Champions League on Friday (today), PUNCH Sports Extra reports.

The Nigerian side held the defending champions to a goalless first half at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo last Saturday before collapsing after the restart as Egyptian forward Ahmed Atef El Sayed struck a decisive hat-trick.

They host CAF Confederation Cup champions, RS Berkane in Uyo in one of the match-day two games on Friday, and Finidi noted that they learnt from the opening day defeat.

“We knew the few mistakes we made in Cairo, and we paid for them. I don’t think that will happen on Friday. We have all the support, and we are putting in the intensity to make sure we have all three points. The game we had in Cairo has taught us a lot, and we do not want to make that mistake again,” Finidi said during his pre-match presser.

“Our wish is to compete and win. But you never know how the results will look like, but we are positive. We will approach the game with all seriousness. For us to win, we have to play our A game.

“In games of this magnitude, your concentration has to be for 90 minutes and not 50 minutes (v Pyramids). So, we have learnt our lesson, we will talk to the players and see how they can keep the concentration for 90 minutes. We are looking forward to the task ahead of us, and for us to win, we have to play our A game, and we will come out tomorrow and compete,” the former Super Eagles head coach concluded.

Only the first two group stage games will be played before the competition goes on break until 2026 because of the Africa Cup of Nations in December.

The Port Harcourt side are the only Nigerian team on the continent this season, after beating Mozambican side Black Bulls to reach the group stage of the competition for the first time as well.

Having reached the group stage of the CAF Champions League, Rivers United ensured that Nigeria’s coefficient ranking in the CAF Inter Club system and its position in the top 12 are maintained. However, they will hope to further strengthen it by performing well in the competition.