It was an action-packed day at the newly constructed Diamond Stadium Umuahia as the 2018 edition of the annual Diamond Cup kicked off in the presence of the president of Portuguese side Nacional Madeira, Macedo Alvarez Rui Antonio, and a host of other foreign scouts on Tuesday.
In the opening match, Future Stars of Port Hracourt defeated Redemption Academy of Aba by a lone goal before Diamond Academy team A lit up the arena with their breathtaking football in a 3-0 thrashing of another Umuahia-based club Ahunanya FC.
In the last match of the day, Emewal Soccer Enterprise of Uyo fired a warning shot to the high-flying Diamond team A as they easily dispatched Israel Hunting Academy of Aba 3-0 in a pulsating encounter.
The three-day invitational tournament which is being organized by the president of Diamond Football Academy Hon. Martin Apugo have teams from across the country battling for honours, with the winner going home with a cash prize, while top performers will also get individual awards.
More matches are slated for Wednesday and Thursday also before trophy and award presentations to deserving players and academies.
Diamond Academy is one of the foremost amateur clubs in Nigeria and is reputed to have produced players who have made the country proud, like Kelechi Nwakali of Arsenal and Villarreal teenage sensation Samuel Chukwueze, who won the MVP award in the 2016 edition of Diamond Cup.
The duo won top awards as Nigeria claimed the 2015 U-17 FIFA World Cup trophy in Chile. While Nwakali who picked up the golden boot secured a dream move to Arsenal, Chukwueze was snapped up by Villarreal.
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