The Spanish La Liga/Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) U-15 tournament began on Thursday in Enugu, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.
The tournament being sponsored by the NPFL and Spanish La Liga has the Enugu State Government and the League Management Company (LMC) as co-hosts.
In the first match of the day, Enyimba International Under-15 Football Club of Aba held their counterparts from Dakkada FC of Uyo to a 1-1 draw.
The match was decided at the main bowl of Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium in Enugu.
Emmanuel Edem of Dakkada FC opened scoring in the 28th minute, while Enyimba FC equalised in the 59th minute through Chidiuto Emelda.
In other matches, Jigawa Golden Stars FC played out a goalless draw with Kwara United FC, while Akwa United FC of Uyo beat Abia Warriors FC of Umuahia 1-0.
Samuel Effiong scored the only goal of the match in the 48th minute.
In an interview, Head Coach of Akwa United, Edward Green, praised his players for their resilience which helped them to win the match.
Green, however, said the players still had enough room for improvement in the course of the competition.
Also, Head Coach of Abia Warriors FC, Emenike Ezeugwu, expressed satisfaction with his team’s performance in spite of the defeat.
“The team did not have enough time to prepare before the tournament began due to the short notice given to us,” he said.
The coach said the club still had three matches to play in the tournament and he expected the players to respond positively in subsequent matches.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the tournament will end on May 2.
