The Super Eagles registered their second disappointing result in four days as they could only manage a 1-1 draw with Zimbabwe at the Huye stadium in Rwanda on Sunday afternoon.
Here are Soccernet.ng‘s takeaways from that game:
Napoli forward Victor Osimhen scored ten of Nigeria’s 22 goals in six games during qualification to help Nigeria book a spot at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations tournament.
In his absence, the Super Eagles have found the back of the net only two times in two games and missed loads of scoring chances to leave the country’s World Cup hopes in jeopardy.
Nigeria indeed boast several exciting attackers in Europe, but none of Victor Boniface, Umar Sadiq, Terem Moffi, and Taiwo Awoniyi could come to the team’s rescue when needed.
Safe to say, Nigeria stand no chance of impressing at Ivory Coast 2023 if Osimhen is not in the team.
At Fulham with Marco Silva and the national team with Jose Peseiro, there is a deliberate effort to convert Calvin Bassey from a left-back to a centre-back.
However, results across the board show that the transformation, no matter how brilliant it seems on paper, is not working on the pitch.
Bassey gets his positioning wrong almost all the time, strikers make runs past him easily, and he does little covering for his centre-back partner. He still thinks and plays like a left-back.
The Super Eagles have conceded first in the four games Bassey and Semi Ajayi have started in defence.
This experimentation has not worked during the World Cup qualifiers and will not have been perfected before the AFCON kicks off.
Peseiro would do well to consider how unstable the Super Eagles’ defence looks against Lesotho and Zimbabwe and how happy that would make the Ivorians, Egyptians, and Senegalese.
Nigeria have traditional centre-backs in Kenneth Omeruo, William Troost-Ekong, Chidozie Awaziem, and Semi Ajayi, whatever their deficiencies are.
It would be a smart move for Peseiro to find a suitable pair among those.
Many of Peseiro’s decisions, especially his team selection, have been illogical.
Peseiro left out Paul Onuachu and Alhassan Yusuf, who are having the best time at Trabzonspor and Royale Antwerp, but called up Joe Aribo and Umar Sadiq, who are both struggling at Southampton and Real Sociedad, respectively.
Aribo has started just one match for Southampton this season, but straight he goes into the first eleven in a crucial away game.
Kelechi Iheanacho was Nigeria’s best player in Uyo, but Peseiro benched him in Butare.
Nigeria is a country of about 200 million people, and Francis Uzoho cannot be the best goalkeeper, even from his home state of Imo. Still, Peseiro would rather have a tortoise in between the posts than play somebody else.
After securing only two points from two games, Nigeria will need a Moses-parting-the-Red-Sea kind of miracle to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup with Jose Peseiro in charge of the national team.
Across ten grueling qualifying matches, the Super Eagles, as constituted under Peseiro, cannot match South Africa and Zimbabwe in Group C.
Peseiro’s team lacks passion, shows zero creativity, and possesses no tact, grit, guts, or composure.
The three-time African champions were sloppy and sluggish inside the Huye Stadium and were second-best to Zimbabwe for the best part of the afternoon.
With two points in two games, Nigeria will go four points behind South Africa should the Bafana Bafana beat Rwanda on Tuesday.
It will require a monumental comeback to overtake the South Africans from that point onwards.
This post was last modified on November 20, 2023 1:24 pm
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Good that Nigeria was able to get a draw in this match against Zimbabwe who came more prepared. l would have been happy if Zimbabwe had won this match if only to teach those block-headed morons running the NFF a lesson.
Nigeria was very lucky again to have "escaped " with a draw. The super chickens could not even win their first home match against Lesotho, meanwhile, some were already boasting that the Eagles will win the next African Cup of Nations.
Few months ago, the same Super chicken struggled and drew against Saudi Arabia - The same team that Mali smacked 3 - 1.
Rather than looking for a good coach to tinker the Eagles, (there are many good trainers in Holland who are ready to work with far less pay) Amaju Pinik and his gang of criminal decided to draft in a coach who doesn't know his right from his left. l am sure that some people in the NFF got some cut from his pay, as usual. And, does it mean we don't have good Nigerian coaches that are better than this half-backed one who has been forced on Nigerians?
How come for the first time , Nigeria is struggling to qualify for a competition? And the football ⚽️ administrators think all is well.
We LOVE ❤️ FOOTBALL. Nigeria eat and breath football. lf those block-headed people running NFF don't get get to grips with reality and act urgently to throw away this coach and the Basket Uzoho in the dustbin, l see Nigeria not going to the next World Cup the 2nd time - And that will be truly disastrous!!!!!!!!!!
The problems is not with the coach Peseiro but with the NFF. In serious and ideal state , Peseiro would have been forgotten as a coach in Nigeria . NFF Ineptitude, lack of vision and corruption from administration to administration is what is killing football in Nigeria. Lethe coach be removed immediately for a change.Bello
If the NNF president is a moron, is our Sport minister stupid too. Why are they wasting tax payer money. We have better local coaches than this coach. Super Eagles is a big brand that needs first class coach but not the like of Pesero. Please engage the like of Amunike. Finidi George and other ex international coaches, if we don't have funds to engage first class coach for the team.
its u unfortunate to be in this kind of senerio. i blame the coach for still stcken to this half baked player's, many people have no business in that team. he should have bring half foreign and half home base to competite. This is the only solution becos no passion from thr foreign players.
I said it from our first game against Lesotho that so many things were wrong in the team. It is very hard for Nigeria yo qualify to the World Cup or do something extraordinary at the Nations Cup with the same mindset. Something urgent must be done to rescue the situation before it is too late. You don't need a football expert to tell you some players are not fit for the national team but somehow they are included. For GOD'S sake, must OZOHO be Super Eagles goalkeeper? The guy is not good at all. Imagine that freekick he conceded against Zimbabwe? I am saddened and fed up with those running football administration in this country.
I believe Nigerians, especially football lovers will soon revolt in this country. I am short of words to describe the stupidity displayed by these so-called professionals. The coach should go immediately. Let our local coaches takeover. Some players should be dropped from the team for now, especially the goalkeeper, UZOHO. It might be difficult for Nigeria to qualify to the World Cup if nothing is done.
What do expect from a coach without a good resume? What do you expect from a broken glass house ? From the onset it was obvious that Nigeria hasn't learnt any lesson from the disappointment of not qualifying for the last world cup in Qatar.If this country was serious it would have gone for a world class coach to take the national team to the desired levels we all need.But in their usual manner,they chose to go the way of mediocrity.When Pesiero's contract ran out,I thought the present NFF Chairman would get us a better coach, but he toed the old retrogressive path of his predecessors.How can we watch these nonsensical attitudes being displayed by the administrators of the game, killing the joys of tax payers in this difficult time that we need some relief through good football?The earlier this coach and his crew are sacked the better for the game.I don't see Nigeria qualifying for the next world cup with this coach as the head.
Uzoho, do you even have shame? lf the whole country is saying that you don't deserve to be there, why not respect yourself and say, "Coach, thank you for the faith you have in me, but please, l'd rather you give someone else the opportunity this time around." Most of the situation and results people are seeing now is the carry over residual legacy of Pinnick. A man l remember more for looking like a "daft he goat" than for his ability, excellence, fitness for the job or execution of his duty for the good of the nation's football, on the world stage. And here Nigeria is, in the hands of a coach without pedigree or legacy to warrant his appointment. Good luck, Nigeria!
The problem am realising from Nigerian fans is that you are not accepting that Africans are now playing at the same level accross the continent and the world in general.Its the physcological preparation and player attitude that brings results not the coach as such,since all players called for duty are professionals who are expected to share their massive experience not names.There is no one in this group who can claim the ticket now coz Benin is not a walk in the park for Nigeria,RSA ,Zim and Lesotho.SA maximized their chanced well at home,so will every member do.Both RSA & NIGERIA will loose points along the way.Zim is simply taking each game as it come and the end will suprise us all.If Nigeria is to qualify they must change their attitude and respect its opponents like what Ghana,Ivory coast,Egypt and Cameroon are doing.
Well said!
Like the Druggie prezzdent like the NFF!
Shame on them.