A lack of cutting edge ultimately did Remo Stars in as they fell to a second home loss of the season in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL). They were beaten 0-1 by Niger Tornadoes in a Matchday 7 game on Wednesday at the Gateway Stadium, Sagamu.
Niger Tornadoes had two shots on target all game, compared to six by their hosts, but tellingly, they had the key attempt of the encounter in the 21st minute.
It was a simple tap in. Faced with an unguarded net, Chidiebere Ajoku only needed the most innocuous of connections after Ebenezer Odeyemi had done all the hard work which included a neat dribble of the Remo Stars goalkeeper David Walbe before rolling the ball towards the goalscorer. It was Ajoku's fourth of the campaign.
Remo Stars were almost two down with 31 minutes played after defender Onuoha Chukwujekwu headed towards the wrong goal with his keeper caught unawares. Their blushes were spared as they watched the ball bounce away from the post just at the last moment.
The half ended with Tornadoes keeper, Mustapha Aliko choosing correctly to punch back a fine free kick by Victor Mbaoma.
The threat posed by Ajoku on the counter ended with just 52 minutes played when he had to depart due to what looked like a thigh strain. Tornadoes afterwards invested more men at the back to protect their lead.
This made Remo Stars' attacking impetus a lot more frequent, but they lacked a point man who could be targeted for goals.
Substitute Nonso Paul was brought in to trouble the Tornadoes defence from the flanks. In the 54th minute, he opened up some space for himself with fine dribbling but shot high when he pulled the trigger.
When they did hit target, Remo Stars found in Tornadoes keeper and captain, Mustapha Aliko, a stumbling block. With 13 minutes left, he put himself on the line from point blank range to save back-to-back shots.
He repeated same two minutes later as Remo Stars kept probing, albeit with limited quality.
When Mbaoma headed wide, unmarked in added time, most of their agitated fans were already closer to the exit as the refereee called it a wrap which gave way to a loud jubilation in the Tornadoes ranks.
MATCH STATS Remo Stars 0-1 Niger Tornadoes Shots On: 6-2 Shots Off: 8-3 Corners: 7-1 Offside: 3-3 Yellow Card: 0-1 (Ebenezer Odeyemi) Red Card: 0-0