By Amaechi Agbo

Nigeria’s U-15 coach, Usman Haruna has said that his target in this year’s Japan Invitational Dream Cup Tournament is for the young teenagers to win the championship in their maiden appearance.

Coach Haruna who spoke with Best Choice Sports as the team departed Abuja Sunday en route Japan, said that the team and its technical crew have three main priority in participating in the competition – exposure of the team, winning the trophy and ensuring that the crop of the players graduate to play in the Super Eagles latest in 2026 World Cup

You played three matches while in camp in Abuja, of what essences are those matches?

The matches were in preparation for the invitational tournament. We are just making sure the players get used to themselves. One of the ways of identifying the lapses in the team and correcting them is to play matches. We are in Japan to play an external team we don’t know and that is why we invited bigger teams to play them in Abuja. The essence is to assess their level of resistance, how they play and be able to assess them based on if they are implementing our instructions given to them as well ahead of the Japan Invitational

Of what essence is the tournament?

The Japanese have been playing the invitational yearly and for us, it is an opportunity to get the boys exposed. It is always difficult to expose the guys if tournaments of this nature are not put in place because of the financial implications which is not always easy. So when an opportunity like this comes, it is always a big welcome. The boys develop through this medium and I am confident that when they come back from Japan, things can never be the same for them. They would have had a lot of experiences in meeting three different countries and completely three different styles of play.

How comfortable are you with the team?

The last three matches we played in Abuja before our departure gave us enough confidence and a sigh of relief that the boys can do it. Right now we don’t have much problem, there is no inferiority complex in the team.

They have been able to apply all that we taught them and they are good to go. Remember, the team is a developmental programme, so they need to grow and gain exposure. The synergy in the team is getting better and I appreciate that and believe they will replicate it when we play on Tuesday

Who are the various countries you are going to meet in the tournament?

Our first match is against Mexico on June 12th, our second match is against the host country, Japan on 14th while our last match is against Romania on the 16th. We will return on the 17th.

The Future Eagles, just as the name indicates, remain the bedrock of other national teams in the country. Early this year, seven players from the team made it to the U-17, would you say the team is fulfilling its purpose?

That is what we are saying and that is how it should be. From this invitational tournament, we are expecting that if the boys play very well which I am confident of, I am sure the Manu Garba-led technical crew of the Under 17 will come in to pick more plyers.

What is your target in the Japan invitational?

My first priority is the exposure of the team, that is very important. Secondly, I want to win the tournament. I want the team to be champions in Japan. Every coach and player share one aspiration going into ant tournament, to be champions. But we are not desperate to win.

Thirdly, I want to see the boys become members of the Super Eagles players in 2026 World Cup. So we have three targets in the competition, one has been actualised, the second one is within our hands but the third one is out of our control but we are optimistic that all the three and realistic.

What next for the team after the tournament?

I am the U-15 team. The tournament is meant for U16, but the federation said we should go and use the boys that played the Africa Youth Games in Algeria last year. Apart from the tournament, I am optimistic that a lot of other goodies will come the way of the team jus as we have now. Remember last year we were in Algeria, two years ago we were in Morocco. So we never can say what next. The federation has plans and we will continue to align with them.

How do you monitor the players to ensure that they do not play beyond the age category they are meant for?

The majority of the current crop of players we have now have been with us from the Under 13 and we have been with them when we played in Morocco and Algeria. It is from there that we begin the follow them. We have their birth certificates and once any player is grown above the age, we will move him to the next stage of the developmental programme which should be under 17. But don’t forget that it is not all the players that will make the Under 17 team. So we are monitoring their progress. It is my dream to see that all the players from the team can migrate to Under 17 and possibly Under 20. If they can remain and play together for 4 to 6 years, they will beat any team in the world.