Enyimba of Aba’s rave of the moment, Anayo Iwuala netted anoher goal for the The Peeoples’ Elephant on Sunday, but his lone effort was not enough to push them ahead in the CAF Confederations Cup, as his side failed to overturn a 4-1 first-leg deficit against FC Pyrmaids of Egypt.
Megasportsarena.com reports that, despite spirited efforts from Iwuala and his teammates, Enyimba were knocked out of the second-tier continental competition after holding the Egyptian side to a 1-1 draw in the second-leg of their quarter-final match in Aba.
Iwuala, who made his Super Eagles’ debut against Benin Republic in March, missed the first-leg in Cairo due to fitness issues but, while his return sparked thrills in his squad, Fatai Osho’s side failed to overcome the first-leg loss a week ago and they bowed out with a 5-2 aggregate defeat.
Ibrahim Adel got the visitors off to a flying start at Enyimba International Stadium, with a stunning long-range strike in the 32nd minute but AIwuala drew Enyimba on level terms with his 40th-minute equaliser.
With the score 1-1, Osho immediately opted for fresh legs after the break, as he chased three goals to turn the encounter around, with Augustine Oladapo, Gabriel Orok and Nabil Yarou all quickly sent on to replace Philip Ozor, Victor Mbaoma and Nelson Ogbonnaya respectively.
Enyimba continued their push for more goals but Egypt goalkeeper Ahmed El Shenawy was brilliant between the sticks as he stopped two attempts from Orok to keep the visitors in control of the game.
Anthony Omaka and Kadri Timileyin were later introduced in the 81st minute, but the tactical changes had no effects on the score; and Enyimba have now been eliminated in back-to-back quarter-final games after they fell 3-1 on aggregate to Horoya of Guinea last year.
