By Johnny Edward:
Super Eagles midfielder, John Ogu, has pleaded with Hapoel Beer Sheva’s fans to be patient with the team after they extended their winless streak in the Israeli Ligat Al to five games this season, reports Completesportsnigeria.com.
Hapoel Beer Sheva who clinched the Isreali title three times in a row, have endured a miserable start to the 2018/19 season, crashing out of the UEFA Champions League and the Europa League competitions.
In the league, they drew goalless with Hapoel Ironi Kiryat Shmona, Bnei Yehuda, Tel Aviv FC and Maccabi Haifa FC. They also lost 1-0 to FC Ashdod and played out a 1-1 draw with Maccabi Tel Aviv FC in their opening five league games.
“It has not been easy, we understand what the fans are going through. I must tell you, we will work harder to ensure we get to kick-start our season,” Ogu who has played four games and scored one goal told CSN.
“I just want to urge the fans to be patient with us.”
On whether it’s the change of tactics or the departure of some notable players that has held Hapoel down, Ogu says that it’s difficult to explain.
“We train hard, but the efforts put into the game hasn’t yielded wins but I believe we will pass through this bad phase,” Ogu said.
Hapoel Beer Sheva are now 11th in the Israeli Ligat Al with four points from five games.
The Camels will play away at Maccabi Petach Tikva who are third in the table in their next game on Saturday and Ogu is bullish that they can get a positive result from the game.
“Of course, its possible, but we have to keep doing what we are doing well,” he enthused.
The former Academica and Uniao de Lieria star also expresses delight at his call-up to the Super Eagles for this month’s double-take 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying fixture against Libya’s Mediterranean Knights.
He is one of the four midfielders Gernot Rohr called up for the game. Others are Wilfred Ndidi, Oghenekaro Etebo, and Ogenyi Onazi.
“It’s an opportunity for me to serve my fatherland and I can’t wait to rejoin my teammates and consolidate on our win against Seychelles,” Ogu stated.