NIG 1 vs 1 CPV: A poor second coming for Ighalo as Osimhen shines in Super Eagles' drab draw

Odion Ighalo delivered a poor performance on his Super Eagles second coming after almost 3 years of absence as Osimhen outshone him to help Super Eagles play a 1-1 draw against Cape Verde to qualify for the final round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifier in Lagos on Tuesday (16 November 2021).  

Odion Ighalo is expected to lead the youthful Super Eagles attack with his experience but rather he struggled o match the pace of the younger Super Eagles led by Victor Osimhen. 

The Napoli FC striker took the initiative from the first minute to give the Super Eagles the lead only for the Blue Sharks to fight back in the sixth minute to restore parity.  

The lanky forward delivered a man of the match performance as he was torn in the flesh of the Cape Verde defence line, running down channels with the ball on his feet and taking up good positions off the ball. 

However, he lacks the support of Odion Ighalo who is supposed to be the second striker. 

Ighalo is always behind Osimhen, providing little or no support and this made going forward difficult for the team as the Super Eagles returning player faded with time as the match progressed. 

The highlight of the Al-Shabab FC striker performance on his Super Eagles return was the two scoring chances he missed in flying colours. 

The first was a sitter in the 25th minute after he was set up in the box only for him to shoot at goal but missed the ball. 

The second was in the air when he failed to connect a free header in the 33rd minutes when he was picked out by Victor Osimhen.

The two chances that he could have easily converted to give the Super Eagles a two-goal lead going into halftime and ease the pressure off the team.

It was a surprise that Ighalo could last one hour and a quarter minutes on the pitch as he was absent throughout the second half till he was subbed off in the 75th minute. 

His performance shows he might have seen his best time in the Super Eagles and it will be more honourable for him to have his testimonial match and concrete on his club career. 

He played a total of 35 games for the Super Eagles scoring 16 goals before he declared his retirement from the Super Eagles only for him to accept the coach's offer to rescind his decision to help the Super Eagles secure a playoff qualification in Qatar 22 race.

Prince Okumagba Birthday: Super Eagles Supporters Club ( SESC) describe him as Leader of Leaders

The Super Eagles Supporters Club wishes to congratulate the President of the most prestigious club Prince Vincent Okumagba on the occasion of his birthday celebration.  

Today, like always, we celebrate the impact of your rich life on the lives of so many others, within and outside SESC. Having dutifully followed your trajectory since the club was formed, we take cognizance of the influence of your courageous leadership on the human and material development of our dear Club. 

As you add a new year on earth, the leadership role you have continually played which has over the years produced more leaders easily attest to your unmatched ability to discover, harness and develop potent ls. On behalf of the teeming excos and members of defined, we are grateful to have a leader like you  in the space of SESC and Nigeria which have largely define the stability of our dear Club. 

It is our firm conviction that your birthday presents a unique opportunity to once again thank you for the sustained opportunities you have given to the weak and the powerless to also aspire to greatness. For being the inspiration and hope of many, we say thank you.

We thank you for your brave and selfless leadership over the years, and for always working hard and diligently on our behalf. We are very proud to call you our leader and role model, and we pray you have many more healthy years to keep up the good work.

Happy birthday celebration, Okumagba Gbera! 

102 caps: How Ahmed Musa added a new feather to his Super Eagles Legendary status

With another appearance for the Super Eagles, Ahmed Musa hits another career milestone in Nigeria football history as he added a feather to legendary status in style. 

Ahmed Musa came in the 85th minute during the 2022 World Cup qualifier between Nigeria and Liberia in Tangier, Morrocco to become the first Nigerian ever to play 102 international games for the Super Eagles. 

The captain of the Super Eagles surpassed the 101 appearances of former captains of the JosephYobo and Vincent Enyeama. 

He did it style, by scoring his 16th International goal in the match, the goal secured the three points for the Super Eagles as the Lone Stars of Liberia bow to the Superior firepower of the Super Eagles by 2-0. 

Musa coolly converted from the penalty spot in the 93rd  when Victor Osimhen was hacked down by the Liberian goalkeeper. 

He added this new feather to his legendary status in Nigeria football, a career spanning over thirteen years at the highest level and he has never stopped breaking and setting new records. 

The 29-year-old winger is the first player to score 18 or more goals in the history of the professional football league in Nigeria. 

He achieved this feat in the 2009/2010 season when he 18 goals in 25 appearances for Kano Pillars to break Ishaya Jatau haul of 17 goals in a season which was standing for ten years (1990) before Musa's broke it in 2010.

The talismanic winger also holds the record of being the only Nigerian to score two goals in a match at the FIFA World Cup. 

 He set the record in 2014 when he first appeared at the Mundial when he scored the two goals in the Super Eagles 3-2 loss to Argentina at the 2014 FIFA World Cup which took place in Brazil. 

He repeat the feat at the Russia 2018 edition when his two goals helped Nigeria to defeat Iceland by 2-0, which is coincidentally the only game the Super Eagles won at the World Cup.  

The four goals he scored in the two matches remained the highest number of goals scored by any Nigerian in the history of the FIFA World Cup.

This makes him arguably the most valuable Nigerian player ever to play at the FIFA World Cup judging by his extraordinary performance at the two world cups he attended. 

The Faith Karagamuk FC player is no doubt at the twilight of his career but he is not done yet with setting the records as he is in line to extend the number of his international caps. 

Furthermore,  he also stands a chance to become the first Nigerian to win the AFCON twice if selected for the 2021 African Of Cup Nations billed for Cameroon in January 2022, having won the competition in 2013 in South Africa. 

Ahead of CAF Confederation Cup: Enyimba hosts Rivers United in a friendly

 Nigeria representatives in the 2021/2022 CAF Confederation Cup will face off in a friendly as Enyimba FC host Rivers United at the Enyimba International stadium by 4 pm on Sunday ( 14 November 2021).  

The two remaining Nigerian sides will size up themselves in readiness for their upcoming crucial encounters in the CAF Confederation Cup ( CAFCC) as Enyimba will face Al Ittihad of Libya and Rivers United squares up Al Masry of Egypt.  

The first leg will be on November 28 while the second leg will hold on December 5. The winner of the games over two legs will proceed to the group stage of the competition. 

The friendly in Aba will be the second friendly between the two sides since the 2020/2021 season of the Nigeria Professional Football League ended with no resumption date in sight. 

The first which was played on October 10 2021 ended goalless at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium in Rivers State. 

Though it's just friendly, the two sides will love to go all out as bragging rights and prides is at stake as it will also serve as an exercise for both teams to be in a competitive mood ahead of the crucial CAFCC playoffs 

The rivalry between the two club side's was taken to another level during the 2019/2020 season when the season ended abruptly due to COVID-19 and the organiser favours Enyimba ahead of Rivers by adopting the weighted Point Per Game, (WPPG) format instead of Points Per Game (PPG ) which favours Rivers United,  hence allowing Enyimba FC pick up the last CAF Champions League ticket while Rivers United lost out.

2022 WCQ: 3 problems the Super Eagles coach must solve to avoid a slip versus Cape Verde in Lagos

The Super Eagles coach, Gernot Rohr still have some problems to be solved in the Super Eagles despite a 2-0 victory over Liberia to avoid slipping up against Cape Verde in Lagos. 

Nigeria and Cape Verde won their respective penultimate matches to set up a winner take all decider in Lagos on Tuesday, (16 November 2022) by 4 pm. 

The Super Eagles stay on top of Group C with 12 points, two points ahead of Cape Verde, who are on 10 points leaving them with " beat the Super Eagles in Lagos" as the only to qualify from the group.  

Recent Slip-Ups 

Though that looks like a tall order recent results have shown that the Super Eagles are susceptible to occasional slip-ups especially when it is least expected. 

For example, just a year ago in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers, the Super Eagles threw away a four lead against lowly rated Sierra Leone. 

Also less than two months ago, the Super Eagles in Lagos in the 2022 World Cup qualifier lowly rated the Central Africa Republic by 1-0.  

The Decider  

Nigeria was able to turn the corners during those slips because there were more games left to make amends. 

There is no margin for errors in the match against Cape Verde on Tuesday as a loss will throw Nigeria out of the race to Qatar 2022.  

Hence, the problems noticed in their match against Liberia needs to be addressed immediately to avoid stories that touch the heart. 

The problems 

Shaky central defence 

The Super Eagles were lucky to keep a clean sheet against Liberia as the central defence of the Super looks shaky for the whole of ninety minutes. 

The pair of William  Ekong and Leon Balogun have so far failed to pull up a solid cover for the goalkeeper since the beginning of the qualifier and that Cape Verde will explore that weak link in the Super Eagles defence to hurt the team is an open secret.

The coach needs to work out something fast to ensure the central defence is solid avoid the mistake of matchday two during the qualifier when errors from both players lead to the defeat of the Super Eagles against the Central Africa Republic in Lagos.

A poor final ball through to attack from the midfield 

The Super Eagles got better against Liberia with the return of Wilfred Ndidi, Alex Iwobi as Joe Aribo also upped his game. 

Nevertheless, the final ball through to the attackers was always a problem throughout the match as Alex Iwobi miscued almost all his decisive passes to the opponent or put in a wrong foot which made goal scoring a bit difficult for the strikers. 

Though Chidera Ejuke was able to manage the situation better than Alex Iwobi by not losing the ball to the opponent. 

 

However, the link passes from him to the strikers was missing apart from his occasional dance and dribble on the ball that leads nowhere but a back pass to the defenders.  

Gernot Rohr must continue to work on the engine room and ensure they can locate the strikers with the passes that matters and Nigeria will beat Cape Verde on Tuesday in Lagos.

Set pieces 

The conversion rate of the Super Eagles when it comes to set-pieces is abysmally low as 99% of the team goals in the qualifier came through open play despite the high volume of free kicks and corner kicks the team do get especially when playing at home. 

The Cape Verdians may likely sit back and wait to break down the Super Eagles on a counter.  

This ploy implies that the Super Eagles will enjoy the lion share of possession but penetration may be a problem as the opponent may likely commit fouls in the dangerous areas. 

The easiest way to beat this tactic is to score from one of the resulting free kicks as this will open up the game for the  Super Eagles to wreak more havoc. 

So the coach must find a way to ensure corners kicks and free kicks in dangerous areas are converted to goals on Tuesday when the Super Eagles host Cape Verde in Lagos so that everyone can jubilate and celebrate after the 90 minutes on Tuesday.

Liberia 0 vs 2 Nigeria: Why Odion Ighalo was left out - Gernot Rohr

Coach Gernot us happy that Ighalo returns to the Super Eagles but he was left out of the matchday squad as Nigeria defeated Liberia by 2-0 in Tangier 

The Super Eagles coach, Gernot Rohr has explained why the returning Super Eagles striker was left out of the 2022 World Cup match between Nigeria and Liberia played in Tangier, Morrocco on Saturday (13 November 2021) evening. 

Nigeria defeated Liberia by two goals to nil courtesy of two penalties scored by Victor Osimhen and Ahmed Musa in the 15th and 93rd minute to ensure the Super Eagles left Morrocco with all the three points at stake, without Odion Ighalo in the matchday squad.  

In the post-match conference, Gernot Rohr told journalists present that the Al -Shabab FC forward played no part in the game despite coming out of international retirement because of his late arrival at the team's camp in Morrocco and he is expected to play the game the next game against Cape Verde in Lagos on Tuesday.  

Rohr said:  "We are happy to have him back, he only arrived on Thursday that's why he couldn't participate in this match.  

"I hope that in the next match next Tuesday he will be able to help us much more." 

When he was quizzed on why Odion was forced out of retirement even though Victor Osimhen has successfully filled the void created by his absence, the coach has this to say 

"No, the reason why we asked Ighalo to come back is that we have such a young team, they are very young 22, 23, 21," Rohr said. 

"Our strikers are all very young, Ejuke is coming now, Chukwueze is coming back from injury.

"Everybody is young, we need somebody to help them with his experience in the striker position and he's a good goalscorer we know it." Said the coach.  

Nigeria the after five matches with 12 points while Cape Verde follows with 10 points after defeating the Central Africa Republic by 2-1 on Saturday evening. 

The Super Eagles need a point against Cape Verde in Lagos to qualify for the final of the qualifying series. 

The final round will have all the 10 group winners square up to form a pair of 5 fixtures and the winner of each of the fixtures will represent Africa in the Qatar 2022 World Cup.

LIB vs NIG: Super Eagles' coach is ' confused' with choices as Ighalo, Ndidi, Iwobi, Chukwueze return

With Odion Ighalo, Wilfred Ndidi, Alex Iwobi, Samuel Chukwueze, back in the team Coach Gernot Rohr is 'confused' with choices as he selects the starting eleven against Liberia in the 2022 World Cup qualifier on Saturday. 

All is set for matchday 5 between Liberia and Nigeria in the CAF 2022 World Cup qualifier as Liberia host Nigeria in Tangier Morrocco on Saturday, (13 November 2022) by 5 pm.  

The Super Eagles has the full complement of players invited for the encounter as the team has been preparing hard for the game all through the days leading to the weekend. 

Odion Ighalo joined on Thursday after accepting the offer from the Nigeria Football Federation ( NFF) to rescind his international retirement decision. 

Other players that also returns to the team after a bout with Injury are Wilfred Ndidi, Samuel, Alex Iwobi and Samuel Chukwueze, making the team stronger than ever in the qualifiers on paper, hence making the selection of the starting eleven a sweet headache for the coach.

Nigeria needs a victory and hope that Cape Verde failed to beat the Central African Republic to book a place in the final round, hence there is no margin for error starting from starting eleven.

The team has been charged by the NFF led by the president, Amaju Pinnick to avoid errors after their last training on Friday as it will put pressures off their shoulders going into the final game in Lagos, against Cape Verde on Tuesday, (16 November 2022).

" The spirit is great and I believe you will do the job tomorrow. Let us leave very few rooms for mistakes; in fact, no room for errors at all" began Amaju Pinnick

"The three points are important and we should put them in our bags as we fly back to Nigeria tomorrow night", Amaju concludes.  

So the job starts with the coach, by ensuring he picks the best from the pool of fantastic players he has in camp and armed detailed match plan to get the needed result. 

Here is our predicted eleven based on the situation report from the Super Eagles camp in Tangier, Morrocco.

Predicted lineup 

The coach needs to outdo his Liberian counterpart in the tactics and strategies game and ultimately choose the best combination of players that can get the job done. 

The coach may likely adopt a 3-5-2 formation based on the strength of the players and their performance in camp, according to reports. 

Goalkeeper 

Maduka Okoye will keep the number one hand glove as he remained the safest hand in the team.  

Defence 

The defence line may likely stand on the tripod stand of William Troost Ekong, Leon Balogun and Chigozie Awaziem. 

Reports have it that Awaziem is one of the central defenders in camp and he is one of the reasons the coach may switch to three the accommodate the versatile defender. 

Midfielders 

Ola Aina is in contention for a starter shirt as a right wing-back and he is in pole position to get the coach's nod for a place on the right side of the wing. 

Zaidu Sanusi is in contention to return to the team after he missed out on the last two games due to poor form. 

The Porto FC defender is likely to be the man on the left wing-back for the team, ahead of Jamilu Collins due to his speed and higher recovery rate. 

Wilfred Ndidi will be anchorman through the middle, and may likely play behind Alex Iwobi as both players to the squad after matchday one of the qualifier against Cape Verde in Lagos. 

Chidera Ejuke is also in line to get the nod on the left side of the midfield, continuing from where he stopped at the last qualifier where he shone like a diamond in the sky.  

While Ahmed Musa and Samuel Chukwueze may likely start from the bench according to our camp source who witnessed the team's tactical training on Thursday.

Attack 

The two-man attack favours Kelechi Iheanacho playing behind Victor Osimhen, 

While Odion Ighalo may likely start from the bench as his late coming has greatly reduced his chances of starting ahead of any of the two. 

The Possible Line-Up 

Maduka Okoye, Ola Aina, Chigozie Awaziem, Leon Balogun, William Troost Ekong, Zaidi Sanusi, Wilfred Ndidi, Alex Iwobi, Chidera Ejuke, Kelechi Iheanacho, Victor Osimhen.