Football fans, majorly the diehard supporters of Bendel Insurance FC, watched with dismay how their darling team fumbled and wobbled for most part of 90 minutes before they could subdue ASO Chlef from Algeria with a lone goal in the first leg of their CAF Confederation Cup match held inside the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, Benin on Saturday, August 19th.
The dedicated supporters were shocked that despite all the efforts of the state government which ensured that scores of buses were made available on the match day to freely move football fans from different parts of the Benin metropolis to the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium to cheer up the Benin Arsenal to victory they performed below expectation.
The Bendel Insurance supporters were not convinced that the team would do better if they field the same set of players when they get to Algeria for the second leg match the following weekend.
As the final whistle was sounded by the central referee some officials of the Bendel Insurance supporters club took a decision to meet with the club’s coaching crew to vent their anger at the club’s poor performance in the match that day.
At the meeting with the Insurance coaching crew the supporters expressed their misgivings that some fit and capable players of the club were not on the field of play, insisting that if such players had been fielded the result would have been more favourable to the home team.
The miffed supporters now dropped a warning that such overlooked players must be featured in the return leg match in Algeria or else the coaches will face dire consequences from them.
“It was this warning adhered to by Bendel Insurance coaching crew that saved the day for the Nigerian clubside which eventually won the match on penalty kicks,” a reliable source divulged.
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