₦airaland Forum

andrewbaba44:
None of midfielders are intelligent like Parejo Baba

Ndidi is class but not creative ,maybe only iwobi can do that .

Our midfielders are more brawny than brainy. We have none on Parejo's level presently.

Kog45:
Andrew baba,Yes coach and No coach.

Question to ask do we really have the synergies possessed by the teams our players features week in week out,check out our quality in the midfield and compare it to that of Villarreal or Leicester team.

Andrew,until we address the real issue which is our midfield,no coach will succeed with Ndidi,Etebo,Aribo formation .When Jay jay left Mikel was able to fit in though not as Okocha does it.Time to have real midfielder to dictate the pace....am not really sold on Aribo again cos he was damn too poor against Ghana and his performance in Afcon was average and Iwobi is on and off player cos on a good day by now Iwobi should be our real man in the midfield with Ndidi.

Check out,Calvin Bassey performance against Lyon,Iheanacho against man utd,Osimehn recent scoring spree,Awoniyi performance this season,Onuachu always on headlines,Sanusi doing it with Porto,Maduka good with Rotterdam,Iwobi recent form,Sadiq scintillating performance this season,Chuckwueze net a winning goal against Bayern but these guys and the rest performances in GWG always poor.

Imagine a team with Victor Osimehn,Paul Onuachu,Taiwo Awoniyi underperforming just due to bad midfield,no clear cut chances from our midfield,damn disjointed on the field,always playing like strange fellows.

In coming coach must sat down and find lasting solution to the sorry state of our midfield.How I wish Iwobi can come alive and shoulder the responsibility just like he is doing in Everton of late.

Excellent points Sir.

Mikel appeared on the scene at the twilight of Okocha's career just like the Ikeme and Enyeama situation.

Even if Pep or Klopp opt to coach the SE today, there will be very limited improvements. We don't have the right distribution of talented players at the moment. The CAM or CM role is still void. Goalkeepers are struggling.

There should be extensive and transparent scouting for the next U-17s and U-20s unlike what we saw the last time. The next Okocha or Mikel will most likely be homegrown.

Whilst it is important the NFF gets it right in their pursuit of a new SE coach, the cadet level is where the main issue lies.

Our national teams have benefitted immensely from products of privately managed football academies with very little intervention from the Sports Ministry or the NFF.

The NFF should look in the direction of establishing an equivalent of the French Clairefountaine for elite talent amongst teenage footballers to ensure our best youngsters get elite level coaching very early.

A good number of our players still show deficiencies that could have been polished by better coaching at youth level. This rubs off on the SE in the long run.

Subzero47:
They dare not go to court, if one third of what Nwakali said is true then they are done for

Though from a distance, Nwakali's allegations appear to have some substance.

Spanish clubs especially in lower tiers typical have financial issues so it isn't surprising to hear about such underhand tactics. I doubt if Huesca will go to court.

Huesca has debunked the allegations in Nwakali's statement questioning the "veracity" of his claims . The club is also hinting on pursuing litigation.

Would have preferred to hear their side of the story.

TFLASHOGEE:
ikpeba was actually doing what you said in your last paragraph on TV only for cruise mistress to bring it to victor and you know he his now a knight in vawulence community he gave it to ikpeba wotowoto osimehn no get joy

Osimhen has a brash way of responding to issues which he needs to work on. It is better some of these legends advise the players privately in some cases rather than on camera.

TFLASHOGEE:
Omo vawulence dey everyone body we wey they community elders forum just they try put more pressure to increase the vawulence osimehn and oshoala self put ikpeba for middle dey give am wotowoto osimehn will be summoned to council meeting for explanation

Players are usually advised to take fewer touches during derby games cos the marking is extremely tight.

Osimhen was marked closely in both legs. The bicycle kicks weren't out of place. These pundits should profer solutions for the future and stop the blame game.

A consistent Iwobi is a huge asset but his form is difficult to predict.

Good to see him back on track after a poor AFCON.

daveP:
This guy has dethroned Oliseh on this ego throne. What's he feeling like?

I think he believes he's own hype.

Keshi and Amodu are in a class of their own when it comes to local coaches.

Let him take up a job in a different country, instead of waiting to pounce on vacancies in Nigeria. Amuneke and Oliseh have worked outside Nigeria with some measure of success. He should do same.

It's interesting to see how Eguavoen went from looking like the missing part of the SE puzzle to being a major part of the problem itself.

Eguavoen takes some of the blame as the coach but let us also remember how a lot us, asked for him to continue post AFCON. If Peseiro was hired and came short against Ghana, the NFF would have been roasted by fans.

We need to admit that this crop of players aren't as special as we think.
This is not a golden generation, just regular naija footballers. That's how we kept naming every Olympic team after Atlanta 96.. "Dream Team" ..even when na dreamers full the team in some cases.

It is pointless clamouring for certain names when we find it easy throwing them under the bus when things go sour. The NFF should do a thorough job in choosing the next coach...a coach that is a fit for the current set of players we have not necessarily the fantasy of fans and pundits.

Okocha ------ Mikel ---------

All the midfielders touted to follow in that path upon Mikel's retirement are levels below the standard.

We need to take our cadet teams seriously, from the U-13s to U-20s.Our cadet teams have been badly managed during the tenure of the present NFF board..... they prefer the shortcut of begging Anglo-Nigerian players to switch.

Our cadet teams would produce the heir to Mikel....it will be extremely hard convincing a foreign born player with that level of talent to play for us. I hope the NFF have learned their lesson.

Eguavoen's missteps has inadvertently blocked the door to local coaches in the SE for a very long while.

It is better some of these talented local coaches take up jobs overseas to further build their expertise and profiles so that it becomes easier to get the job in the future.

Even the Sports Minister would find it hard to insist on hiring a local coach given the recent happenings.

I sincerely hope we get it right this time around.

daveP:
Thank you o.


One good example is in boxing. The boasting or not is no big decider.

Sam Peter:I'll cut down this tree(to Klitschko)

We know who fell like flower


Tyson Fury: by the time I'm done with ya, you won't know what hit ya

He won



Nigeria has always used that stale line of respecting opponents Asif it's a thing in football. I just see it as Insurance for failure which has been with the team due to complacency.

The most important thing is whether the cockiness matches the actual ability.

The examples you gave buttress that point.

Fury is a generational talent and yeah, he is cocky... can we say the same about Samuel Peter?

Mujtahida:
What is all this talk about humility? Is it defeat their bends you peoples' minds abi na wetin?

Between Nigeria and Ghana, I can tell you that Ghana were so full of braggings. Nigerians largely kept quiet hoping the results would favor them and then they'd have unleashed venom on the Ghanaians but alas it was not to be.

So humility, how?
Someone said we did not respect our opponents. Mumu baseless talk.

Right from Afcon where I watched all Eguavoen's pre and post match pressers, one word he turned into an anthem was respect. He kept on and on about how we must respect our opponents down to when we faced Sudan and Guinea Bissau.

Now go watch Amuneke interview by NFF TV, he was realistic and measured in his statements.

So why is it been that so many of you come here and stress on the need for us to be humble as if it was because we lacked humility that we lost?

There are many factors that contribute to a team's success. It's simplistic or naive to say humility alone guarantees success.

The context of my statement was a response to someone who mentioned that a coach like Quiroz is too defensive for the attacking talents we parade.

We presently have decent players but not in the right balance. Too many forwards...a very lean midfield...fairly Okay defence.... an ongoing goalkeeping crisis.

A pragmatic coach might just be what we need now. The proponents of Jogo Bonito have adopted a more pragmatic approach in recent times which I think in part is due to the lack of players in the class of their golden generations.

During the 90s, we produced four different winners of the APOTY award.
Only one Nigerian has come close to winning the award in the last 18 years. Perhaps this is only indicative. Nigeria of the 90s was dominant and set a benchmark in terms of results and performances which I think might be difficult to replicate with our current set of players.

My opinion.

Mujtahida:
Lies at the bolded. I mentioned before the first leg how subdued Nigerians were and how boastful the Ghanaians were. I for one sensed it that we would not qualify.

The bolded was referencing the mood before the return leg.

I watched the pre-match press conference before the match in Abuja.

Eguavoen was with Simon Moses. You could see the arrogance in the response from them, especially Simon Moses....in contrast, Otto Addo mentioned the probable effect of the away goal and reiterated that Nigeria wasn't levels above Ghana as insinuated by many.

The draw in Kumasi dampened the expectations of the Ghanaians before the return leg in Abuja.

jihday:
not happening. 1. Egypt paid him 90k/mo, I’m not sure Nigeria have that. 2. His style is boring and very defensive , una go start to dey cry that he’s not utilizing our ‘World class’ players very well.

I know he won't come cheap. A consurtium of business men usually pay the Pharoahs Coach..that arrangement had been there for a while..can't say if that is still the case. If we want a moderate budget , ..we can't get a first grade coach. There is still a lot of room for private sector investment in our sports generally but we need the right organization and transparency to make it work.

True his style is boring but I must admit we need some humility now. We have decent players (don't like using the word "average" but then we would have to accept the need to sacrifice beauty for efficiency. Even the mighty Brazil isn't as exciting to watch as they were during their golden era.

gustav25:
Stop being drunk My friend.... Don't take April's day literally

My good friend Gustav....enjoy...this is your time.

andrewbaba44:
Our team go compose sha ,But don’t expect us to score much sha

Be ready for haram football with good results though

I think what we need right now is a coach that can get us results irrespective of the style of play..his teams are usually gritty with good organization..Iran were a very tough nut to crack then. not like we some star studed team...wing play , wing play see where the thing end us.

I really admire the job done by Carlos Quiroz with the Iranian team and the Pharoahs.

A good candidate for the SE job.

andrewbaba44:


Warey you are winning

Just pray you past the group stage oooo

But the thing is that you are a nigerian and many don’t know

LMAO

Very true..Gustav is most likely a frustrated Nigerian living under a bridge in Lagos.

gustav25:
Windscribe , bring Aboniki balm let's rub it in well ... This one is in denial and severe pains

Hahaha.

Severe pains indeed.

Football is just a game o.

Gustav the troll ... keep up the good work.

Windscribe:
Samba boys kind of hype with San Marino performance.

No need rubbing it in.�

I think this failure ranks as one of the most painful since our loss to Italy at US 94. So close...yet so far. We were clear favorites against what looked like a shitty Ghana team but still managed to bungle it.

There should be an inquest if those at the helm have an iota of responsibility.
England missing out of the Euros in 2008 ultimately benefitted them with critical adjustments. They went on to dominate age grade FIFA tourneys and even performed excellently at the last world cup. Their young players presently are a lot more technical than is usually expected.

This is Nigeria, after a while, we would carry on like nothing happened then sooner or later.. we could find ourselves in the same situation again...sighs.�

typicalgamer:
If it’s osimehn it’s sickening but if it’s the goalkeepers it’s fair to throw them under the bus
Double standard

I never came down heavily on the goal keepers at any point in time.

If you want to hold players responsible for this tie.... Simon Moses should be first on the list and he is hardly mentioned here. He missed the clearest chance of the entire tie that would have given us a precious away goal.

Naming and shaming players would do us no good but it is understandable since fans frustrated at the moment.

typicalgamer:
You can’t beat Ghana who do you expect to beat there. ?
R16 material

Read the last paragraph carefully

It's sickening that Osimhen is getting so much stick after the game. He is still a work-in-progress but it is difficult to question his commitment and application on the pitch. He is in fact, one of the reasons I felt bad about the loss.

I still maintain my previous stance. The tie was about bragging rights between NGA and Ghana, nothing more. This tie has produced one of Africa's weakest reps in Qatar.

Our bredas should be proud if their team manages to get a point before heading home....not like NGA would have fared any better though.

Can't wait for Pinnick to leave too. He has done a lot in terms of branding but has made gaffes in key areas. His decisions put us in this mess.

Age grade teams are now a mess with mediocre coaches.

Can't trust him to hire a first grade coach like our African counterparts. He will probably travel to Manchester for a chat with Guardiola this time around to recommend a coach.

If the motives aren't sinister, why would employers travel to scout for employees when they can simply advertise and screen applications in a straightforward manner?

Appointment of new coaches should be handled by the new board.

The NFF's biggest regret is the FIFA windfall for qualification that they would have received to misappropriate.

CaptainStephen:
The most painful part was the lack of urgency in our play.

Like don't these guys know what it means to wear the super eagles shirt?

The coach and players showed some a lot of overconfidence or arrogance like it's a birthright for them to win the game. Ghana showed humility, determination and grit and deservedly are through.

I mentioned here earlier that the away goal will hurt us particularly if Ghana score first and they did just that...Simon Moses missing that big chance in Kumasi and the penalty decision rescinded were the key moments of this tie from the Nigerian perspective. I saw a lot of chestbeating here like the Ghanaians wouldn't be able to score in Abuja.

There is a certain killer instinct that this team lacks...which I think is mental. A new coach would have to fix that too.

Supporting Senegal at the mundial.

Hope this set of teranga lions can replicate or surpass the heroics of Diouf, Diao, Bouba Diop (RIP), Henry Camara, Tony Silva etc.

No need for the insults flying around.

It should be more difficult for Nigeria to miss out on an expanded world cup from 2026 onwards except things go horribly wrong.

Sadly, I think Eguavoen should return to his previous role.

The NFF should try to get a first grade foreign coach and give him a free hand with set targets.

Due to the scientific nature of modern football at the highest level, our best local coaches are still light years behind their European and South American counterparts.

The away goal became our undoing.

In games like this ...you need the away goal. ...the missed opportunities in Kumasi have come back to hunt the team.

Another observation, this team is greatly imbalanced. So many forwards...very few midfielders. I can recall Guardiola saying that having midfielders with different qualities helps with tactical adjustments...our coach threw in all the forwards.lol.

Sad for Osimhen and the lads, but the NFF need to get their acts right...no need for knee jerk decisions.

2026 will come quickly.....

Shitty Ghana qualify in the end. What an irony!!!!

caprikon:
With away goals rule, Nigeria can't be comfortable until the team opens up a two goal lead in Abuja.

Any score draw will see our bredas fly their wack players to Qatar to make up the numbers.

Would have felt a lot better if we had at least an away goal.

Away goals hurt!

Rockyrascal:
I remember when thierry Henry took the coaching job at AS Monaco. Before then he won every game as a pundit and often Criticize the tactics of other struggling coaches until his failure at Monaco...what about Gary Neville and his short spell with Valencia too, it was the same outcome.

That's true. Not forgetting our very own Sunday Oliseh that was speaking so smoothly with such good qualifications until they gave him the SE job.