Hatayspor midfielder Fisayo Dele-Bashiru is convinced that Nigeria's loss to the Benin Republic during the June World Cup qualifiers was down to a loss in concentration, Soccernet.ng reports.
The Super Eagles started on the front foot and took the lead through Club Brugge star Raphael Onyedika following good play from Samuel Chukwueze.
However, Benin fought back to score twice in ten minutes to turn the tie around and claim a memorable 2-1 victory over Nigeria.
Dele-Bashiru did not feature in the match due to injury but he felt his teammates had a drop in concentration in the match that handed the Cheetahs the advantage.
“We started the game strongly and were 1-0 up,” Dele-Bashiru told The Punch.
“But from that point on, I think the team just lost concentration or we became overly confident that we were going to win the match, and that’s how we conceded the first goal.
“After that, the game opened up a little bit and again, we lost concentration from the setpiece and once a team losing goes 2-1 up, it will be difficult to score them.”
The injury that kept Dele-Bashiru out of the Benin game was suffered in the clash with South Africa three days earlier.
The Manchester City product was Nigeria's most outstanding performer on the day, producing an all-round display that was capped by a fine goal. However, Dele-Bashiru's first international goal only helped Nigeria pick up a 1-1 draw with South Africa.
While the 23-year-old admits it was a proud moment to get his first Super Eagles goal on his competitive debut, he expressed his disappointment at the goal not being enough to earn a win.
“It was a proud moment for me (to score for Nigeria),” Dele-Bashiru added.
“Of course, I have been slowly introduced into the team and I have had to be patient and I am just happy that it paid off; I mean, the coach’s trust in me paid off. I am happy I made my family proud and a lot of Nigerians also.”
Dele-Bashiru added: “Of course, I was disappointed with the result, the goal is to win as many games as possible, and with the squad we have, I think we have the quality to beat any team in Africa. We are disappointed that we didn’t get the three points.”
Shortly after his goal, Dele-Bashiru was hacked down in the South African danger area but the referee waved away Nigeria's penalty shouts.
The Hatayspor midfielder insists the man with the whistle got his call wrong.
“In the moment, I felt it was a penalty,” Dele-Bashiru said.
“It was a very hard tackle and I still have marks on my leg from the tackle. In games like that, I feel there should be VAR and that should help the referees make the right decisions.”
Dele-Bashiru is reportedly close to leaving Hatayspor as he nears a move to Serie A giants SS Lazio.
