Rivers United have arrived in Kaduna to compete in the 2016 Shehu Dikko Annual Football tournament.
The tournament which is scheduled to begin today.
The tournament which would run till December 5, constitutes the third phase of pre-season preparations for the team.
Wikki Tourists FC, FC IfeanyiUbah, Niger Tornadoes and Katsina United are the four other Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) clubs the organisers have invited to take part in the pre-season tournament.
Technical Adviser of Rivers United, Stanley Eguma was impressed with his side’s workout so far in the pre-season.
“All the friendly matches were a good source of lessons for us. We have been able to draw positives from the games. There are many things we need to mend before the season starts.
“We are still building and trying to set up the shape of the team. Winning the game was also good for the psychology of the team.
“We will continue to play more pre-season games in order to expose and build our players.
“Building confidence and improving the squad as a unit are important objectives in these pre-season games,” Eguma, a former Heartland coach said.
Also, technical adviser of Abuja Football College, Gobbo Renzo, believes Rivers United is “one of the strongest teams in the country.”
Renzo, a former assistant coach at Italian Serie A club, Palermo was left impressed after United came from a goal down to beat his side 2-1 in a pre-season game decided at the training pitch of the National Stadium, Abuja, last weekend.
Taiwo Salaudeen had put the Abuja club in front in the 26th minute but United responded with goals, either side of the break from Emeka Ogbuh and Best Deemua to keep their one hundred per cent win record in pre-season intact.
The 55-year-old Italian, Gobbo trainer who also made one appearance for Italy’s U-21 football team in 1981, saw enough of the Port Harcourt club to leave him impressed.
“I saw a good team in Rivers United. They finished in second place in last season’s NPFL so they are a good team.
“In the past when we played against NPFL teams, it was never an easy game for them because we drew a lot of times and won some times.
“Yes, we lost to Rivers United but I was impressed with the quality of our work,” he said.
Rivers United will represent Nigeria in the CAF Champions League in 2017 and Renzo expects a strong challenge from the ‘Pride of Rivers’ when they come up against Africa’s elite.
“This [Rivers United] is a strong team and will do well in African competition.
“They are surely one of the best teams in Nigeria, of course,” he said.
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