A few months after vying for the position of Super Eagles coach, former internationals Finidi George and Emmanuel Amuneke will be on the opposing side of the dugout on Saturday (today) when Rivers United hosts Heartland in a 2024–25 Nigeria Premier Football League match-day two in Port Harcourt.
Coincidentally, both managers are in search of their first league wins in charge of their new clubs after they both made the switch before the start of the campaign.
Finidi, who got the Super Eagles job and had a two-game stint with the national team, however, refused to play the main character as he faces his former Super Eagles teammate, who was also in the running for the national team job.
“He is a colleague; he is a friend of mine, and there is nothing special about us being on the bench. We will just do our jobs. No extra pressure on my own part, and I hope that will be the same on his part too,” Finidi said ahead of the game.
It’s the first home game of the season for Finidi’s Rivers United, who played a goalless draw against Bendel Insurance with 10 men last week, while Amuneke is also in search of his first point in charge of Heartland after suffering a 3-1 defeat at home against Enyimba last week.
“They lost at home, so I think they will come here like wounded lions, but we at home will be focused on getting the maximum three points. It’s going to be a difficult game, but at the end of the day we want to win, and they will also want to get something out of it,” Finidi added.
“We want to play good and balanced football, so the support will be huge for us.”
The Rivers United vs. Heartland game will be televised live on StarTimes (the official league broadcast partner) via Beta Sports Channel 244 starting at 3 pm, and the game will be followed by the Southwest derby clash between Remo Stars and Sunshine Stars in Ikenne starting at 5:30 pm.
