The Super Eagles were able to gain maximum points from 2 games as they defeated Liberia and Cape Verde in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 qualifiers. While many expected the Super Eagles to win these 2 games, the manner in which these games were won leaves a sour taste in the mouth.
Against Liberia, the team played decent enough football even though it was boring and not really incisive especially in the second half. The 2 first half goals by Kelechi Iheanacho basically killed the game off as a contest and I want to believe that the players decided not to exert themselves too much as they had the game under control and did not want to risk sustaining an injury or burning out.
But if you can excuse the below average performance against Liberia, what we saw on display by the Super Eagles away at Cape Verde is simply unacceptable for a team aspiring to become champions of Africa.
We often watch friendly games and European/CONMEBOL/ World Cup qualifiers involving countries in Europe or South America and we see the brand of football these teams exhibit, the tactics and the organisation they display be it minnows or the big guns in both continents when there is an international break.
But when it comes to Nigeria, we rarely see this unless the team is playing a high profile friendly game and players have to raise their game. It’s quite disappointing to see players who can’t string 3 passes without giving up possession.
Okay so, the team lost 9 first team players for the game against Cape Verde either due to a false positive Covid test or because most of them play in England where clubs have resolved that their players will not be released to play in ‘red listed’ countries due to the quarantine measures they would need to follow upon their return to the UK if they do play.
I also get that they had to play the game on a synthetic pitch but the line up Gernot Rohr announced was filled with seasoned and experienced first team players save for Chidera Ejuke, Kingsley Michael and Innocent Bonke. Michael and Bonke were debutants and both played in the midfield. Which may explain the lack of good ball distribution, transition and ball retention.
Abdullahi Shehu and Moses Simon were woeful in their crosses often over hitting or under hitting the ball. Ahmed Musa who made his 100th cap for the Super Eagles was anonymous as usual in the attacking midfield, while the defence as a unit was shaky and could have been punished especially in the last quarter of the game when the team was under the cosh as Cape Verde sought an equaliser.
At the end, the Super Eagles after going behind simply capitalised on 2 defensive errors by the ‘Blue Sharks’ to win 2-1 and claim maximum points. Victor Osimhen pounced on an error made by a Cape Verde defender who made a hash of his clearance and their goalie trying to stop the ball from going into the net presented a gift for Osimhen to blast home.
The second was an own goal in the second half as another defender over hit a back pass and the ball sailed over the keeper. The keeper’s attempts to stop the ball from crossing the goal line proved futile.
Apart from these howlers, you would struggle to think of any chance the team created. And that is because this was a disjointed display. Bonke was painfully poor, lost possesion easily under the Cape Verdan press while Ejuke and Simon could not take on the opposing full backs and put in dangerous crosses for Osimhen to latch on to.
Rohr has gotten away with a poor showing here and may well qualify unbeaten for the play offs but if performances like this are repeated during the play offs and we happen to be paired with a half decent team then it is bye bye to Qatar 2022.
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