Nigeria suffered one of their heaviest defeat in ten years by losing 0-4 to Portugal yesterday in an international friendly game played at the Estádio José Alvalade in Lisbon.
OwnGoalNigeria.com picks five lessons learnt during the course of the defeat.
Players Struggling To Interpret Tactics – Coach José Peseiro wants the team to play in a 4-4-2 formation that becomes a diamond with Ademola Lookman required to tuck in and not stay wide when the team attacks. In the midfield he is keen on building from the back with a lone defensive midfielder. It has become apparent that the team don’t have players who can execute that role perfectly.
Lone DM Not Working – Innocent Bonke, Raphael Onyedika and now Wilfred Ndidi have all struggled in that role. As a matter of fact only Oghenekaro Etebo in the game against Sierra Leone and Sao Tome and Principe interpreted the role perfectly. Frank Onyeka can be said to have given it his best as well yesterday but he still doesn’t have the passing range to make the role work.
Osayi-Samuel Is A Breath Of Fresh Air – He had a debut to remember. Strong in tackles, commanding in possession and also daring. The right back spot of the team will now be a straight battle between himself and Ola Aina, but for now he seems to have an edge over the Torino man. They will no doubt give Peseiro a pleasant headache when it comes to selection.
Super Eagles Need Better Options In Defence – It was clear that Kevin Akpoguma wasn’t at his best level but wasn’t taking off as coach José Peseiro had little or no faith in the options he had on the bench. In this case Chidozie Awaziem, who hasn’t quite convinced his ex coach at FC Porto that he deserve to be given a look in.
Confidence Crisis – The team at the moment appears not to be confident of their abilities or what they can do. They are lost in between trying to be pragmatic and also explosive at the other half. That confusion hasn’t allow them to properly exert their authority in games bar the win over Sao Tome and Principe.
