It was an Acquah-man show in Uyo as Rivers United moved closer to the CAFCC semifinals after thrashing Motema Pembe.
Nigerian champions Rivers United took a giant step to booking a ticket to the semifinals of the CAFCC following an excellent performance against DC Motema Pembe in Uyo on Sunday.
Inspired by their Ghanaian superstar, Paul Acquah, who helped himself to an impressive hat-trick, the Pride of Rivers demolished their visitors 3-1 at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium.
It was a statement performance from the NPFL champions and Nigeria’s only representative left in CAF club competitions this season.
Following that victory, here is a breakdown of the numbers behind an excellent day at the office for Stanley Eguma’s Rivers United.
Walk with me;
100% finishing from Acquah
Ghana’s Paul Acquah took the CAFCC game against Pembe personally and delivered with his first hat-trick.
After he led Rivers United to a stunning win against the away team in the first leg in Luanda, in a typical Acquah-man style, the 27-year-old came home to complete the job.
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For 89 minutes, Acquah was too hot for Pembe defenders en route to his brilliant hat-trick, which included a second-half brace.
But that is not all, his three goals came from just three shots as the Ghanaian finished with 100% accuracy.
He always created two chances, made two key passes with 54 touches, won one tackle and recovered the ball five times in a complete performance.
Solid Midfield
Whatever you think of the Rivers United midfield, for this particular CAFCC match, one thing is certain, against Pembe, the trio of Ukeme Williams, Marice Chukwu and Onoja Joseph delivered.
Led by Williams, the United midfield trio put in more than a shift in the CAFCC encounter, giving their forwards, especially Acquah, the platform to wreak havoc on Pembe.
Let's look at how the trio performed individually on the day
Williams - he was the creative box in the team, not only did he keep the ball superbly with 89% accuracy, Williams didn't keep the ball for the sake of it.
He created the most chances, three, made two key passes and assisted one of the goals for Acquah. He also won two tackles, made two interceptions and recovered the ball nine times.
Chukwu - Another player who was outstanding in the middle of the park. With 89% of passes completed, he also helped Rivers United retain the ball whenever they had it.
While he didn't create a chance, Chukwu was excellent off the ball with 100% of his tackles won, five interceptions and eight recoveries. He also won 75% of his aerial dwells.
Onoja - he was the most secure on the ball with 91% of his passes completed. Onoja created one chance and made one key pass from 41 touches.
Like Chukwu, he was also brilliant off the ball, winning 100% of his tackles as well, two interceptions and nine recoveries.
The Acquah-man show in Uyo inspired Rivers United to a comprehensive CAFCC win over Motema Pembe.
Rivers United
The Pride of Rivers were, however, dominated at home by their visitors Pembe but Eguma’s men created the better chances and were more clinical on the day.
Pembe completed more passes, and attempted as many shots as United, 13, but went on to score just one and conceded three from Rivers United, who also hit the woodwork.
What the table says
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