The year is 2000, The title heads to Lagos. New Millennium, same juggernaut. Peter Ijeh, formerly of NITEL had done the number, scoring 14 League Goals for Julius Berger, now Bridge FC confirming a second title in nine years.
Is there any chance Kenneth Omeruo will finally suit up for Chelsea as a first team player?
Nigeria’s defeat to Madagascar wasn’t soo much a set back – because the team had already booked its passage to the next round of the 2019 AFCON – however, it was a bruise on their ego; and should be if the players don’t already feel so.
The other implication to that loss is the Eagles have potentially put themselves in a fix by finishing as runners up in group B, with the bracket in the knockout stages looking deviously fraught for them.
Nigeria’s qualification through to the round of 16 at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations has come as swiftly as expected with the Super Eagles picking up maximum points from their two group games against Burundi and Guinea.
In 1991 Nigeria made its first appearance at the Women’s World Cup and on that stage every player in teh team etched their names in the history books, some going on to become Legends.
Austin Okocha was arguably Nigeria’s most exciting player, a member of the Golden Generation, but as a the centerpiece of the Super Eagles he never really reached Olympus with the teams.
So was Okocha as unlucky as Lionel Messi has been with Argentina?
2018 started off as one of the toughest years for Ahmed Musa since he turned professional, but he flipped it and on Monday night at the Eko Hotel and Suites Convention center, that determination to succeed was rewarded as he clinched the award for Nigeria’s best player.
The journey of the Super Eagles of Nigeria in Russia began on a hopeful note of possibly surpassing the round of sixteen which hitherto has been our biggest achievement at this stage came to an abrupt end.
Having lost her opening match against, Croatia, and defeating Iceland in the second game, Nigeria was primed for qualification with just a point from its third game.
However, that was not to be as we lost to our perennial world cup foes, Argentina. Opinions were divided on why and how Nigeria lost the game.
As is always the culture when a team fails, the blame game comes up. Many football fans and analyst have apportioned blame to the technical crew, while some others have outlined some players as culprits in the game.
However, in my opinion, I think what we had a lot of positives to build on between now and the next world cup in Qatar 2022.
For the Super Eagles coach, Gernat Rohr, his team was on an experience-gathering mission at the World Cup in Russia.
He had impressed it on every heart that his team would be ready by 2022. Based on this, what then can we take away from our participation at Russia 2018?
A young Team: Based on statistics, Nigeria had the youngest squad at this world cup. In the Nigerian team, we have a young group of players who showed they have the heart to go to battle. It is hoped that they would step up their game to the level in which they would be competing at the highest level in the competitive leagues they find themselves. From all indications, the world cup is the believed to be for the matured.
Organization: This world cup went down in history as one competition Nigeria participated in and there wasn’t any disagreement about money, bonuses and other sundry issues. Though everything could not be an aid to be perfect, it was a marked improvement over the years. We expect that the improved organization seen at the world cup from the administrative side could be translated to the team and everything that surrounds it.
Preparations: Our preparation for this world cup might not have been perfect but it was an improvement over the previous editions we have been to. Since we now have the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers coming up in September, Nigerians would expect that in going forward our preparations for the qualifiers would witness improved preparations.
The pool of Talented Players: Apart from the players who made it to Russia, there is an avalanche of players who could come into the team to make it better and stronger. The Super Eagles team that played against Athletico Madrid in a friendly before the world cup is a testament to this.
The immediate task before the football federation and the Super Eagles team would be put to good use the experience garnered from the world cup in ensuring they qualify for the AFCON, and then possibly go on to win it. By then Nigerian’s would start believing again that the team is focused on doing well at Qatar 2022.
The World Cup, Russia 2018 was over for the Super Eagles of Nigeria when they fell, albeit gallantly to a Lionel Messi-inspired Argentina side in the city of St Petersburg.
The Eagles only needed a draw to go through to the second round but conceded a second goal in the dying minutes of the game.
Although the Super Eagles were the first African country to qualify for Russia 2018 even with a game to spare, a spate of poor results in the run-up to the World Cup did realistic lower the expectation of the fans.
The Eagles beat Argentina in 2017 by four goals to two, in the next match against Poland, they won by a lone goal scored by from the penalty spot by Victor Moses.
Despite the win, it was evident that the Super Eagles lacked finesse and were not in shape for the big stage. Then came the England challenge at Wembley in the eve of the tournament.
Gernot Rohr’s Eagles looked lethargic in the first half of the game but managed to get back into the game in the second half when the coach changed the formation from the regular four-four-two to a three-five-two.
That switch showed that potentially the Super Eagles could regroup and do well even against bigger teams as they reduced the deficit by a goal scored by Alex Iwobi.
There were other losses against Serbia (in March) and against the Czech Republic (in June) as well. Nevertheless, fans believed that at the tournament proper it will be different as a lot will be at stake to motivate the players to do well.
The first game at Russia 2018 for the Super Eagles in the city of Kaliningrad against Croatia exposed the Super Eagles as slow starters.
Even though, they did not play poorly like they did in the first half against England at Wembly, the Eagles could not create chances.
Odion Ighalo who was playing as a lone man upfront was scarcely fed the ball and was isolated for the whole time he was on the pitch.
The Super Eagles team was playing Alex Iwobi on the wings instead of in the middle where he could have used his pace against the ageing Croatian midfield with the likes of Rakitic and Mandzukic dictating the pace of the game.
The loss to Croatia was only because they Super Eagles could not create to hurt to the Croatians. In the entire duration of the game, the scoreline did not actually reflect the dominance of the Croatians.
Even though they scored two goals against Nigeria. The first was an own goal scored inadvertently by Etebo. The second goal was from curious penalty conceded by Troost-Ekong.
In the entire duration of the game Croatia did not score from a shot on target against Nigeria. This shows that playing against the very best in the world, the Super Eagles defence was great but for the few flaws.
The loss to Croatia was a shortcoming from the bench. The formation was wrong, and so was the selection of players for that game.
Shehu Abdullahi was great during the qualifiers but had lost form. His performance during the friendly games showed that he was not having his great moments, but the coach kept fate with him.
It meant that Victor Moses had to run down the flanks and track back to defend since Abdullahi was just so poor on the night.
Team captain, Mikel Obi was playing as the creative man for the team, but he lacked the pace to move forward. Iwobi was playing on the left side of the midfield but did not have a good game either.
Despite the loss, the industry of OhenekaroEtebo was noticeable. At the heart of the defense, Balogun was in charge and showed great aerial qualities as well as ability to marshal the defense.
Apart from conceding a silly penalty, Troost Ekong also had a good game. The partnership between Balogun and Troost-Ekong was justified on the night by their displays.
While the Super Eagles lost their first match to Croatia from the bench, the second game was won from the bench. Coach Rohr effected a change of formation to a three-five-two.
The game was very important for the Super Eagles as a loss against Iceland (a country whose population is about five times or even more less than Lagos) will mean that the Super Eagles cannot advance to the round of 16.
Two goals from Ahmed Musa were all that it took to give Nigeria hope of qualifying for the second round of the World Cup.
The team started the first half poorly but gained confidence in the second half. The introduction of Tyrone Ebuehi as the left winger added more vibe to the attack of the Super Eagles from the left flank.
Omeruo’s introduction in the three-man central defence team also turned out to be a right choice by the coach.
Playing Argentina in the last group D game was going to be a huge task as the Messi-inspired Argentina side required an outright win to advance to the next round while a draw was okay for Nigeria provided Iceland did not win Croatia by a heavy margin.
Surprisingly, Coach Rohr left out Alexander Iwobi and opted for the trio of Mikel, Etebo and Ndidi who are all defensive midfielders.
The Super Eagles lacked that creativity and could only manage to cancel out Messi’s one-goal lead courtesy of a well-taken penalty by Victor Moses.
A chance for Nigeria lead by a second goal was scuttled by OdionIghalo’s poor effort. Argentina broke the heart of Nigerian fans when Manchester United’s Rojo hey scored to give his country the lead in the dying minutes of the game.
It ended 2 goals in favour of Argentina and one goal for Nigeria. The Eagles, where were the best-dressed team to Russia out of the 32 participating countries, were on the way home and unlike the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, the Eagles were not going to the round of 16.
I will not consider the performance of the Super Eagles in Russia as poor. The boys played beyond expectations. Out of the 23 players of the Super Eagles in Russia, only Victor Moses is a regular started in a top club in Europe.
The other player in a top club, Alex Iwobi does not command a regular shirt at Arsenal. The current crop of players in the Super Eagles showed that they can up their game when the occasion demands.
However, there were certain players who should not have joined the party to Russia. This really affected the team as there were no game changers that could be sent from the bench or it could be that the coach did not know what to do as he often left his substitutions for the dying minutes of the game.
Ogenyi Onazi, Joel Obi, OdionIghalo, Kelechi Iheanacho, Shehu Abdullahi and Brian Idowu were not at their best form.
We did not get to see much of Simmy Nwankwo or John Ogu. In fact, Ogu, a natural left-footer ought to have been given some game time as the Eagles lacked threat from the left side of the play.
One must not forget the positives from the Super Eagles team. The goalkeeper, Francis Ozoho was brilliant in the three games. He was not at fault for any of the goals Nigeria conceded. He also showed great reflexes and put up several saves.
He has a great height for a goalkeeper and since he has age on his side, as he continues to mature, he will be pivotal in the strengthening of the team.
The box-to-box midfielder, Oghenkaro Etebo was superb in all the matches he played. I feel he should have waited for the World Cup to be over before signing the dotted lines for Championship side, Stoke City FC.
He surely will be a midfield dynamo for Nigeria. Players like Balogun, Troost-Ekong, Ahmed Musa, Tyrone Ebuehi and Alex Iwobi are the future of the Super Eagles.
I believe that Rohr is getting to know the team better even though I had expected him to learn more from the friendly games. He is a coach that listens to criticism.
Keeping him will ensure a smooth transition for the team. The team will learn from the experience at Russia and bounce back.
By,
Augustine Arimoro
When the Spanish national side dominated Europe and World international soccer, 2008 until 2012, it was made up of 70% of Barcelona players coached by a certain Pep Guardiola. They played a fluid passing game ridiculed with ball possession and tactical awareness. [sic]
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