Two African fellow football teams, Nigeria and Cote d'Ivoire are going to compete for a semifinal berth?in Qinhuangdao, east China,?on Saturday.

The U-23 African Super Eagles drew with favorites Netherlands 0-0 in their first group match, and upset Japan and the United States with two 2-1 wins. Nigeria now shifted their focus on the Cote d'Ivoire.

The 1996 Olympic champions, Nigeria, presented great individual skills in the group stages. However, the team as a whole must make some improvements if they wanted to go any further.

"I feel like a defeated man," Nigeria head coach Samson Siasia said after winning over the U.S. in the last group match. "Without tactical discipline, we will continue to have problems. Our players need to play to instructions."

That is exactly the Super Eagles' problem - outstanding physical abilities and technique gifts do not guarantee a winning result.

"A team that wants to win the gold medal does not play the way we are playing presently. The Atlanta '96 team that won the gold medal played to instructions. We need to imbibe that same culture here if we want to go far. It is either we shape up or we are shipped out," Siasia said.

They have apparently noticed their deficiencies. The question is how quickly they can transform to a more disciplined team, and whether they can defeat equally strong and skillful Cote d'Ivoire.

On the other hand, the young African Elephants are determined to make a big impression with their first Olympic appearance.

They easily downed Serbia 4-2 before edging Australia 1-0. In the only 2-1 defeated, when they met the favorite Argentina in the opener, the brave young elephants were not any weaker than Argentina but almost fought out a draw.

Sekou Cisse's crucial goal that leveled Argentina 1-1 in the 53rd minute was also the South Americans' first goal against in the Olympics since the 2004 Athens Games.

The two African teams are possibly to give a wonderful attacking game in front of expected more than 30,000 on-spot spectators.

"We are a good team that is capable of beating any team. All we just need to imbibe is discipline," Siasia said.

(Xinhua News Agency August 15,2008)