Super Eagles of Nigeria defender Chidozie Awaziem has played down Tuesday’s 2–1 defeat to the Pharaohs of Egypt, Soccernet.ng reports.
The Nantes defender insists the friendly served its purpose as a valuable test ahead of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.
The Pharaohs edged the contest at the Cairo International Stadium to put an end to a nine-year winless run against Nigeria despite a spirited display from the visitors.
Awaziem, who scored Nigeria’s equaliser in the first half, revealed the match was more of a test, with head coach Eric Chelle using the game to assess new players ahead of the 2025 AFCON.
The friendly was Nigeria’s only scheduled warm-up before AFCON, with the Super Eagles now shifting focus to their tournament opener against Tanzania.
Awaziem: Result secondary to preparation
Speaking after the match, Awaziem described the encounter as a necessary examination of the team’s readiness, despite the disappointing outcome.
“I think it was a good test for us,” the defender said. “Egypt are not an easy team to play against, and they have a number of quality players.
“The purpose of the game was to test ourselves ahead of AFCON and also to allow the coach to try new players and different tactics as part of our preparations.”
Nigeria briefly hauled themselves level through Awaziem after Mahmoud Saber had opened the scoring for Egypt, but Mostafa Mohamed’s second-half strike sealed the win for the hosts.
Focus shifts to positives and AFCON challenge
Awaziem stressed that the coaching crew will take encouragement from Nigeria’s overall performance, particularly their control of large spells of the match.
“Although the result wasn’t what we wanted, the main focus was to see a different structure and assess newly invited players to understand what they can contribute to the team,” he added. “I think the coach was able to see that.
“Now we take the positives from the game and move on. We dominated possession, pushed them back, and created several chances. It was a good test for us, and we’ll build on it going into AFCON.”
Watch Chidozie Awaziem's post-match reaction vs Egypt
The Super Eagles currently have 27 players in camp, boosted by the arrival of Moses Simon, with Victor Osimhen expected to join the squad ahead of Nigeria’s departure for Morocco as preparations intensify for AFCON.
