While Mystic Marcus, a supposed psychic pig, has picked the Super Eagles as one of the semi-finalists of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, August 3, 1996, still remains the biggest date in Nigeria’s football history.
It was the day the U-23 team beat Argentina’s U-23 team 3-2 to win Olympic Games gold. The nucleus of that winning team was forged, coincidentally at the 1994 World Cup, which was also hosted by the USA.
When Emmanuel Amuneke swung his left boot at a free kick taken by Wilson Oruma in the 89th minute – all attention turned to the centre referee, Pierluigi Collina, as the Argentina players raised their arms in unison, assuming an offside would be called.
Collina pointed to the centre circle – the goal was given and Nigeria was crowned champions of the world, albeit through the Olympic route.
Many Nigerians would want an epiphany – but this time on the World Cup stage. It can be dreamed but can they achieve it? Many did not believe the 1996 squad was going to win any medal whatsoever, but they accomplished far beyond what many projected they would be able to achieve.

What made that team so successful?
Continuity – from the coaching perspective, Johannes Bonfrere had been an assistant under Clemens Westerhof before being handed the reins of the team when Westerhof departed after the 1994 World Cup. Bonfrere knew the players and they trusted him in return. Gernot Rohr built his own team, discovered players and instituted his own way of playing, assisted by an NFF, who for once have provided all of the team’s needs. Though he is not yet two years on the job, Rohr’s ability to command the respect of all the players is something that bodes well for the group.
Attacking numbers
Looking at Celestine Babayaro’s average positioning [he started at left back] throughout the tournament and you see that the team was not afraid to attack because the left-back was always close or inside the opponent’s box on many occasions. The major challenge this 2018 set has faced is not creating enough goal scoring chances and that boils down to not having numbers in the opposition box. Even though the Eagles scored four against Argentina last November, analysis of the moves to score the third and fourth goals revealed the Eagles had two players in the Argentine box on each occasion – not enough!
Technically astute changes
Let’s say almost all the substitutions made by Bonfrere in Atlanta paid off. Victor Ikpeba, Wilson Oruma, and Garba Lawal came into the team at one stage and added to the output. That is one area in which Rohr has shown strength – but that still needs to improve. In the opening match between Russia and Saudi Arabia, players that came off the bench scored three of the five goals.
Great Stamina
They just kept going and never gave up. It could have been easy for the team to believe they had achieved a small victory by coming from 3-1 down to equalise against Brazil in the last minute of normal time. But in extra time, they were pressing and fortunately, Nwankwo Kanu scored that golden goal that took the team to the final.

Unity of purpose
Even when, on the eve of their departure to the Olympics, the team lost 2-0 to Togo in Lagos, the focus did not change and neither did the team implode due to infighting – they were together through the good and the bad. This class of 2018 is said to be the most united Super Eagles’ squad in many years – they need to show that unity on the pitch by giving of themselves to one another.

that pig must be drunk