In the Moshood Abiola Stadium in Abuja, the Super Eagles of Nigeria were unable to defeat the Wild Dogs of Guinea-Bissau in order to advance to the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
On Friday, the Wild Dogs defeated the Eagles in a thrilling 1-0 victory.
Due to Guinea Bissau’s victory over Nigeria, the Eagles have lost their position as the group’s top team.
Before to the game, Nigeria had the most points in the group with six, followed by Guinea Bissau with four.
Mama Balde of Guinea-Bissau scored the game’s lone goal in the 29th minute, separating his team from the competition and giving them seven points to take first place in the group.
Super Eagles coach defends team selection
Prior to the Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matchup between the Super Eagles and Guinea-Bissau in Abuja on Friday at the Moshood Abiola Stadium, Super Eagles coach Jose Peseiro expressed confidence in a successful outcome and defended his team selection.
Nigeria is in first place in Group A with six points, and a victory would give the Super Eagles nine points. They will fly to Guinea-Bissau on Tuesday for the return leg in hopes of picking up a crucial three points.
In their opening game, the Eagles overcame Sierra Leone 2-1 before crushing Sao Tome & Principe 10-0. The Djurtus faced Sierra Leone to a 2-2 draw and defeated Sao Tome and Principe 5-1.
Speaking at a press conference ahead of the match, the 62-year-old gaffer says the players he selected for the qualifiers are the best despite some of them not playing regularly for their various clubs.
“It is not easy to build a team or a national team if you change the team every time, because, first of all, we need to have enough practice in the camp about our ideas, our organisation, defensive organization and our spirit also,” Peseiro told ENaija Sports.
“There are many players with quality, if I choose anybody, it is because I believe they can do better than the others. You need to create a spirit within the team.
“I like all my players, I understand everybody, because surely If I ask everybody to choose 20 players, they will choose who they like, but I understand, it is normal. The difference is I am the coach, I choose, in my mind, the best players for our team, but if I ask 200 million Nigerians, they can choose for themselves, but it is my job.
“Of course, I know these players, and we appreciate these players, I visit many players until now. If I choose these players now, it is because I believe in them more than many others, only them.”
Be part of the #BBTitans gist on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Be First to Comment