Ikorodu City FC of Lagos coach, Bright Ozebagbe has declared in an intetview with sports237.ng that his team will go all out to prove a point against Remo Stars of Ikenne in this year’s Value Jet Cup final on Wednesday.
Though he admitted that Remo Stars will have home advantage and familiarity of the pitch in their favour, Coach Bright stressed that his players will enter the game with positive expectations.
He pointed out that, being a pre-season competition, all the matches at Value Jet Cup 2024 have helped him prepare his side for their maiden outing this coming season in the Nigerian Professional Football League (NPFL).
Ikorodu City gained promotion from the second cadre Nigerian National League (NNL) at the end of the past season and Coach Bright believes the experience gained by his players during the 2024 ValueJet competition in Ikenne has been very rewarding.
He added: “We are in pre-season and basically here to see new players that we want to bring into our team.
“Knowing fully well that we’ll be playing some of these clubs in the league, this tournament gives us the opportunity to see those teams and play against them in a competitive atmosphere.
“It’s a very good opportunity for us to be in this tournament and play against these NPFL teams. We have used it to assess our players and check our readiness for the season.
“We want to see how ready we are as we go into the league proper and, I must say, we are happy so far with the performance of the boys.”
The soft-spoken tactician then spoke about his expectations from Wednesday’s final against the host team, who placed second at the end of last season in the NPFL.
While acknowledging that his team will face an Herculean challenge against their vastly exposed hosts, Ozegbagbe promised that they will not enter the game with a negative mindset.
“This is a pre-season tournament that is meant to mirror the league. So, we won’t say because it’s not the league that we will not come out with the positives.
“So, we are staying positive, and we are giving it all we’ve got. We are ready to give our best in the final.
“We are playing Remo Stars in the final on that same turf where they are the host team. We will play them on the same turf during the league.
“So, we will approach this match with the league in mind and, hopefully, the performance of the boys will give us some positives.
“We should learn one or two lessons to go home with us after the final,” Ozebagbe enthused.
