We Are Ready To Beat Ethiopia -Mikel Obi

Nigeria midfielder,Mikel Obi has expressed confidence that the Super Eagles will beat  Walya  Antelopes of Ethiopia in Sunday’s first leg of the 2014 FIFA World Cup play-off tie at the Addis Ababa stadium.
Speaking at the team’s Bolton White Apartment camp in Abuja,Mikel said the players know the enormity of the task at hand and will give it the necessary focus it deserves.
Mikel admits victory will not come easy on Sunday but the
Chelsea enforcer remains confident the Eagles are ready to battle whatever obstacles the Ethiopians throw their way on and off the pitch.
‘We are not deceived that Sunday’s game will be a walk in the park for us.We know the Ethiopians are very good in passing the ball around and will want to take advantage of the altitude to run us out of gas but we are ready”,said Mikel,adding that the pitch,said to be rough and bumpy wont be a factor on Sunday.
”Playing on a bad pitch may favour them more but it wont give them any real advantage because we have played on the same surface before and we only need to remember how we used to do it then.”
Mikel is delighted the match won’t hold on an artificial turf which he says he doesn’t like playing on because it makes him get easily injured.
“I dread playing on astro turf (artificial pitch) because aside from slowing me down, I get injured easily on such turf. So I try not to play on such pitches. Since Addis Ababa stadium does not have an artificial  pitch,we can manage the rough or bumpy patches,’he said.
The Chelsea star also revealed that the Eagles are specially motivated for this game because majority of them have not been to the world cup and this is a chance of a lifetime.
‘Only three of the players in the present squad have been to the world cup and the hunger to be in Brazil is driving the squad to deliver the ticket.”
‘Apart from wanting to play at the world cup,we also want to do it for the good people and government of Nigeria who have supported us since the start of the campaign.