Few minutes past 6PM on Thursday evening, 5th of October, 2023, MBBS walked away with a 3-0 win against Philosophy at the SUB Pitch.
The match kicked off at exactly 5:01PM. MBBS had the most ball possession in the first ten minutes, with Karbon and Jide registering shots on and off target. Habeeb, who played 10, did a very good job at disturbing the opposition defenders and, more importantly, winning fouls at it. For the next ten minutes, Jide, the team’s striker, and Habeeb became very dangerous in the final third but Philosophy’s defenders did a good job neutralising all threats.
A goalless game went on until the 21st minute when a defender from Philosophy committed a handball in the 18-yard box and the referee immediately pointed to the penalty spot. Arguments ensued but the decision stood, and Karbon, the team’s left winger, put the ball in the back of the net from the penalty spot, registering the first goal of the game.
Subsequent loose balls from Philosophy indicated that they were under pressure. MBBS forwards kept winning fouls but Philosophy defenders guarded their net from another goal and halftime ended 1 – 0. Second half resumed 8 minutes later and Philosophy became calm again while looking for an equaliser.
After 10 minutes of intense physical contacts, fouls, offside traps, Jide received a long low through pass from Lukman, the right centre-back, charged forward while outrunning Philosophy’s last defender, and lobbed the goalie to put MBBS two goals ahead. At that time, Philosophy players became demoralised while the fans gyrated.
Coach Mark Obeya made some substitutions, bringing in Gerald, Fu’aad, Teslim, and Abang for Ramoni, Ola, Behemoth, and Jide, respectively. Close to the end of the game, a minor scuffle erupted at the stands when a student from Adult Education took out his phone and recorded Philosophy fans who were losing. They were triggered and asked the guy to stop but he continued and the stands got noisy.
In the last minute of the game, Habeeb took a corner kick from the left that got headed out by a defender. Abang trapped the ball beautifully, still in the final third, and laid a pass to Istanbul who dribbled a defender, took a direct shot, and scored the third goal.
3 – 0, and the atmosphere was full of praises and banters to the appropriate sides. The referee blew the fulltime whistle a minute after and the match ended in a 3 – 0 win. MBBS have 6 points out of a possible 6, +5 goal difference, and are top of the table in Group B. Mechanical Engineering will face Adult Education next.
Here are what some MBBS students have to say about the match:
Today’s match was really an exciting one. Always believe they say, yes, we came believing we could win and of course we did!
From the coach, players, and fanbase, the energy today was a beautiful one to see. I so much loved the goals.
It’s so promising looking forward.
Moses Ojile, 2k25.
What a game of football did I just watch. Going into the game, I was expecting an end to end game of football but the UIMSA team controlled the game perfectly from start to finish.The skillful plays, dogged defending, and the electric atmosphere made it truly entertaining. It was a brilliant display of teamwork and athleticism. Jide’s strike and Istanbul’s stunner to wrap up the game? Oh my…
Elijah Olaniyi, 2k24.
Peter Adeyemo.