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Algeria's U-23 coach apologises for Olympics failure Coach Ezz El-Deen Goudy apologises to Algerians for failing to qualify for the London Olympics, while thanking his players
After failing to qualify for the 2012 London Olympic Games, Algeria U-23 national team manager Ezz El-Deen Ayet Goudy has apologised to Algerian fans for the humiliating 4-1 defeat against Nigeria on Friday. “I apologise to Algerian fans that stood behind us. We failed them and couldn't make it to London 2012 Olympic Games. I also apologise for the humiliating defeat,” Goudy told the Confederation of African Football (CAF) official website Saturday. Baghdad Bounedjad gave Algeria a first half lead in the 42nd minute, but the Nigerians fired back in the second half through a hat-trick by Raheem Lawal in the 47th, 75th and 84th minutes while Daniel Uchechi completed the rout in the 87th minute. Goudy believes that failing to make the best use of his team's good start is a main reason for the defeat. “We took the lead after the first half but we didn't make use of that. Nigeria is a big team and once they scored the equaliser just two minutes into the second half they took over the game. They also capitalised on the sending off we suffered and that helped in that heavy score,” he explained. “We attacked from the start as we played to win. I told the players to press on the Nigerians and that showed in our first goal. I asked them to score more, but we made mistakes and they punished us for that. "I thank my players for what they did. We wanted to qualify and show our skills on the international stage and make our fans happy but unfortunately we couldn't make it,” concluded Goudy. The Algerian team was eliminated as they ended the tournament's first round at the bottom of Group A with only three points, while Senegal have topped the group, with six points, courtesy of a better goal difference than Morocco. Nigeria is in third spot with only three points after conceding two early defeats against Morocco and Senegal. http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/28391.aspx
