Alex Iwobi struck a brace after Anderson Esiti’s opener to give the
Super Eagles a 3-0 win in their Practice game against NPFL side Plateau
United in preparatory to Sunday’s World Cup qualifier in Zambia. Iwobi
crowned a superb individual display when in the 54th minute he combined
well with Manchester City forward Kelechi Iheanacho to double the Eagles
lead.
He fired his second goal on the stroke of full time off a rebound. His
father; Chuka, watched with glee from the stands. Gent of Belgium
defensive midfielder Anderson Esiti opened scoring in the 36th minute
following a fine solo run. Esiti’s fellow holding midfield colleague
Shehu Abdullahi was solid for the Eagles.
After a cautious start by both sides, Rangers forward Chisom Egbuchulam spurned the first clear-cut chance after nine minutes.
Plateau United, who finished 11th this past season, played more as a
team than the Eagles with winger Bright Silas and overlapping defender
Kelechi John outstanding for the Jos club.
The Eagles struggled to impose themselves on the match up to the first
half an hour, before they upped their game. Upon resumption from the
break, what looked like the starting XI for Sunday’s match were
introduced wholesale with right-back Musa Mohammed the only survivor
from the first half.
It was a better contest after the interval with a lot more intensity.
However, Olympiacos striker Brown Ideye was wasteful in front of the
Plateau goal, while Joshua Obaje and Kabiru Umar posted a more assured
performance at the other end of the pitch.
There were a few slips between Eagles central defenders Kenneth Omeruo and William Troost-Ekong