The Super Eagles were finally knocked out of the World Cup by perennial nemesis Argentina 2-1 at the St Petersburg stadium after a late strike by Argentina's Manchester United defender Marcos Rojo to give Argentina the dramatic winner in a thrilling encounter.
This defeat extends a run of 4 previous straight defeats for the Super Eagles at the hands of Argentina at the World Cup group stage. It is a run dating back to the 1994 World Cup in the USA.
This game though was a good opportunity for the Super Eagles to end this miserable run and get one over Argentina who have become somewhat of a bogey team for Nigeria at the World Cup. Unfortunately, they fell short again against a chaotic and ageing Argentina squad.
The Super Eagles yet again started this game cautiously and showed little attacking intent as they accorded Argentina too much respect as they failed to threaten the Argentine defence in the first half.
One begging question remains: why has Gernot Rohr failed to arrest what has become a theme for the Super Eagles since the England friendly- their lack of an attacking threat in the first half of games?
Is it plausible that the team are simply following the game plan Rohr has set up for them?
Lionel Messi gave Argentina the lead in the 14th minute. An organised and well drilled team would not give Messi the kind of room he was afforded to wreak havoc so early in the game.
Had the team been better organised as a defensive unit at the start and prevented Messi from grabbing that early opener perhaps the uncertainty that has bedevilled this Argentine squad in this World Cup could have given the Super Eagles a psychological advantage.
Credit where credit is due though, the team did very well in ensuring that Messi didn't have a sniff for the rest of the game as they continually crowded him out and won the ball off him.
The Super Eagles as usual turned up in the second half and grabbed an early equaliser after Javier Mascherano brought down Leon Balogun in the penalty box. Victor Moses stepped up to Coolly convert the resultant penalty.
Nigeria however failed to put the game to bed as Odion Ighalo who had come on at the start of the second half as a substitute for the ineffective Kelechi Iheanacho wasted 2 gilt edged chances to make an Argentina comeback an uphill task.
In earlier posts on this blog, I have been critical of Odion Ighalo's scoring record for the Super Eagles. It has ultimately determined Nigeria's fate at this World Cup. One of Gernot's Rohr's failings has been his inability to scout for prolific strikers for the Super Eagles instead he has put his faith on a misfiring striker.
As harsh as this is on Ighalo, there is a reason why a 29 year old striker who supposedly should be in his prime is plying his trade in China. No decent team in the top leagues in Europe would have Ighalo as their first choice striker. He is simply not clinical.
Iheanacho deserves a special mention too. He had a poor first half against Argentina and was subsequently hooked at half time. I have been an advocate of his instead of Ighalo. He as well failed to live up to expectation.
Rohr in his press conference after the Argentina game admitted that Iheanacho was not fully fit so this probably explains Iheanacho's display against Argentina. However, should Rohr have started him considering the fact that we had other fitter attackers?
Alex Iwobi was ineffective on the wings in the first game against Croatia but we have seen in times past how effective he is when he plays centrally especially in the friendly against Argentina last year where he scored twice. Could Rohr not have used him ahead of an unfit Iheanacho to partner Ahmed Musa in attack?
Marcos Rojo eventually restored Argentina's lead in the 86th minute and they were able to manage the game till the final whistle leaving all of us to wonder what might have been had we taken the chances that fell our way and managed the game excellently at the latter stages.
Game management- a strategy that only a coach can instill in a team is one of the reasons why Nigeria lost this match. Rohr apparently failed to do this. Because if he had, he would have known that results elsewhere were going in our favour and we didn't have to win at all costs and leave our defence exposed.
There is simply no reason why the Nigerian defence should be light at the back so late in the game such that a defender would come so far forward and have all the time and space in the world to convert a volley unmarked! Victor Moses was at fault here as he failed to track the run of Marcos Rojo on time.
Rohr then went on to make substitutions that turned out to be too little too late. Rohr again failing to make the right calls. Couldn't he have made some of the substitutions earlier when Nigeria was on top while Argentina were disjointed?
Had he made the right calls perhaps some of the tiring legs would have been removed so that the fresh ones would keep the game tight in midfield or defence thus preventing the space Rojo had to score Argentina's winner. Small margins.
What does the future hold for Gernot Rohr? Should he keep his job? Common sense dictates that he should since he has built a good team already. And with some tweaks in midfield and attack we should see Nigeria rise again.
His future of course will be decided by the NFF. But it is clear for all to see that Rohr made some mistakes with some of the personnel he took to this tournament, how the team approached games and getting the best out of his squad. This is hoping he learns from this experience if he is retained.
What Next For The Super Eagles?
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) elections come up in a few months time. Fingers crossed Amaju Pinnick and other key executive members of the NFF board will be re-elected into office so that the good foundations that have been laid by this current crop of NFF leadership continues to be built upon.
Nigeria has never had it so good for decades in terms of the visionary and exemplary leadership exhibited by Amaju Pinnick and other board members. Their continued presence in steadying the ship will ensure the giant strides they have made continues to bring success long term.
The African Cup of Nations qualifiers resumes later this year. This team cannot afford to miss out of it next year if they are to go on and become a force in world football. Nigeria started the qualifiers with a 0-2 home loss to South Africa. We need to get back on track quickly if Nigeria is not to miss out of AFCON for the third time in a row.
Rohr, if he keeps his job, should as a matter of urgency find a dependable striker(s) who will bang in the goals. Enough of the wastefulness up front. The team survived in the World Cup qualifiers because goals were spread throughout the team but when that seized we have struggled.
Rohr should also look at our midfield and see what alternatives the team can have to captain John Obi Mikel. This is not to forget that he needs to play these players according to their strengths and not shoehorn players in order to accommodate favourites.
One positive though from this early ouster is that it appears we have a settled defence and a decent deputy to Carl Ikeme in Francis Uzoho who hardly put a foot wrong in this tournament.
This Super Eagles team certainly has potential and could rule Africa in no time if the coach is not sacked but allowed to continue to improve the squad and correct the mistakes he made at this World Cup.
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