₦airaland Forum

Happy Chukwueze is showing his quality in the EPL. Like Patrice Evra stated, the Serie A made him feel like he was on a holiday while playing for Man Utd.

Chelle needs to exploit the apathy towards this AFCON by commencing a gradual rebuild looking at possibly a 5 year plan. Most of the current players will be past their prime by then.

NFF should revive our cadets teams U_13s, U_15s etc else when the real slump will come by the 2030s, the SE will need calculators to qualify for AFCON.

F

elyte89:
Where him Dey against Congo

Na dis line I go talk till next World Cup 😏😏😏😏

What do we gain from these kind of performances if the players will watch the WC just like the fans?? These guys bottled their best chance to leave an indelible mark.

Omo this thread sha. Title don change to 2030 world cup in 2025 🤣. The team will need calculators and a strong Sangoma by then.

The upcoming AFCON promises to be an interesting one from a neutral perspective though.

I think the sensible thing to do is to begin a rebuild using the next 2 AFCONs to keep the team competitive and relatively young by 2030 else the story will remain the same.

Sarsaparilla524:
Una don see this news..

Even if true, these SE players will bottle the intercontinental playoffs. No need creating more false hope. Let them enjoy the world cup as viewers just like the fans.

The capitulation of the team on the grand stage has more to do with the mentality of this set of SE players than their actual abilities.

JP complained that the team did not show their level against CIV in the last AFCON final. Same thing under Chelle. Apart from Osimhen and perhaps Bassey, most of the players don't come across as mentally strong. As a collective it gets worse.

This is a generation of nearly men not a golden generation.

.

A team that couldn't utilize the lifeline offered by the playoffs doesn't deserve to be at the world cup.

The passion for the SE is going to dwindle to a point where people would start boycotting SE games if the decline continues (as expected). See how quiet this place is on a Saturday.

The next NFF board should revive the U_13s and 15s. Sad that this generation of players will be remembered as nearly men.

Sarsaparilla524:
VO9 will be out for about 5-6 weeks.
AFCON is in 40 days.
Ekong might have quit international football.

Na Osimhen I feel for pass all the players. Man gave his all. He must be really gutted.

The funny thing with Naija is that I can almost bet that the team will still need calculators come 2029. Our attention span is limited. The NFF board/NSC will carry on like nothing happened.

This should go down as one of the biggest failures in our sporting history. An expanded world cup with possibly 10 participants from Africa doesn't have a Nigeria!!!!

The Super Falcons are the ones turning up lately.
Tipping them to get to a word cup semifinal before the men do.

The SE midfield has never been the same since 2018 when Mikel's decline began. We have so many runners, tacklers etc but no genuine CAM/CDM that can control the tempo of a game. Until we get a genuine replacement, teams with superior midfields WILL ALWAYS expose the limitations of this team. I think it is high time Akinsanmiro and others are given a chance to prove themselves.

Naija mentality of relying on sheer talent while de emphasizing adequate preparation and planning has come back to hunt us.

This generation may end been remembered as a set of underachievers, not necessarily due to their own making.

More worrisome is the fact that the youth teams are now also faltering. I still maintain that the SE will face a steep decline from 2030.

Desabre is the first coach to outfox Chelle on the continent so far with the SE. On the balance of play DRC are deserved winners.

The absence of a genuine midfield controller was apparent for large spells yesterday. DRC were on the front foot for most of the match.

Sadly, this team misses out of a world cup in their prime. Naija may qualify for 2030 but by then, the squad will be aged and declining. What an anti-climax!

Fatigue getting to the Congolese now. A goal in this second period seals the game for either team

DRC finishing CMR within 90 minutes has given them a big physical advantage today.
This may go to penalties if the team sees our extra time successfully. Fingers 🤞

Our Frenemies on the continent (SA, Bredas etc)will be watching this match keenly hoping the SE falter😅. May the all be disappointed.

Naija needs to be at world cup come 2026. Naija has been in the rebuilding stage for close to a decade ( the spine of this team still has the U-17s from 2013 and 2015 and the FB players).

This team is entering it's peak. In four years time, the team will need some rebuilding with many players past their prime. 2026 - 2028 is the prime of this team. By 2030 the spine of this team will be past their best years.

Whatever kind of win will against DRC. Go Naija!!!

Yekini's tally could have been higher if we didn't boycott AFCONs 96 and 98,.. particularly 96 even though the goal king was already in the twilight of his career at that time.

Tipping osimhen to get over 70 goals before he retires. His commitment to the national team is exemplary and hopefully we don't miss out of tournaments.

CMR vs DRC was like an audition for Senegalese wrestling (Lamb).
DRC have these big tall players and appear to pose a threat with set pieces. We conceded too many corners against Gabon in the second half.
Sunday promises to be an exciting but physical game. I hope we come home with the victory and hopefully no injuries.

Osimhen has an extremely strong mentality. Those misses during the game would have completely dampened the spirits of most players. Man soldiered on till he got his goals.

TheSuperNerd:
Zaidu Sanusi.... another solid performance from the LB. Loads of defensive contributions from Zaidu. He stood his ground & made his wing impassable for Gabon's tricky wingers. Also contributed going forward by providing an extra passing option in the middle when we recycled possession and looked to break forward in vertical fashion.
Was involved in the lovely passing sequence that led to Ndidi's assist for Ejuke.

He would be key vs DRC

Zaidu is underrated. Man defends well and has a solid tank..He maintains a certain energy level just like Bassey. Really feel bad for Aina's absence. That backline would've been more balanced.

NGA vs DRC

This SE team have found a rhythm under Chelle scoring 4 goals in consecutive games.
Naija to pip DRC. Any goal margin will do.

kodded:
same ref that gave us a lifeline by not awarding garbon penalty

He leaned towards Nigeria for that big call but he did the opposite in quite a number of other circumstances.

Watching CMR vs DRC shows just how physical the final is going to be. Leniency with rash tackling could lead to injuries to key players.

This SA ref has made some dodgy calls.

What a silly decision to card Onyeka when he was obviously on the end of very bad tackles.

Hopefully he has no business officiating in this playoffs

Playing in the MLS shouldn't be the sole criteria to measure a player's quality.

A key battle our defenders will face against Gabon will come from Bouanga who is an MLS player.

Osimhen is carrying this current SE team.

There are other good players but he is clearly in a different class.

All our opponents will center their tactics around keeping him quiet which isn't easy.
We need some of his teammates to step up when the going gets tough.

A good number of players have contrasting form for Club and Country.

Osimhen deserves all the praise he gets because the man turns whenever and wherever.

Lookman has arguably performed better at Club level. His national team output has been decent but can be way better.

Nehruvia:
The way people here and on Twitter are downplaying Gabon is crazy. They're actually the deadliest team en route to our spot in the World Cup. Don't be fooled by the game against Benin. We still had plenty of defensive lapses in that game. We gave Benin lots of spaces. Benin were just not clinical and that's why they didn't punish us severely.

Gabon is the game that will make or break the Eagles in the playoffs. If we beat them, we are very likely going to the World Cup.

Gabon and DRC are the strongest teams in the playoffs based on the performances and results during qualification.
The SE have pedigree and momentum which counts during tournaments. It will be an interesting game but definitely not a walk over.

Ihenzy:
Bro, can you identify zaidu when you see him?

Because I'm beyond shock seeing your take. That man was solid. Even with his injury scare Chelle still choose to keep him until he could no longer play.

Abeg make we dey talk true sometimes sha

Sad to say this but quite number of peeps view players through the ethnic lense. Bruno hasn't been able to match Zaidu's defensive displays.
Big issue with Zaidu is his crosses when he overlaps.

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/17AsZvRkmb/

Watched this interesting piece from Fabregas.

I think Chelle made this error against Lesotho. Bringing on defenders for midfielders/strikers to defend a slender lead invites pressure on the team which could be costly.

mank1234:
Summary

JP's team only clicked fully during AFCON when he switched to 3-5-2 formation which suited his personnel at that time.

Finidi had no business coaching the SE. If NFF acted swiftly after AFCON to appoint someone better suited, we should be celebrating qualification now not playoffs.

minfelix:
Though that system favoured us, but so unfair to many teams oo🤣🤣….CAF/FIFA going forward need to look for another way to balance things…Steve Yago is nearing his career end with grudges….this guy go soon comot cloth inside bathroom swe@r for CAF/FIFA just like Joe erico and Oliseh did to super eagles🤣🤣

I feel his pain cos we could be on the wrong end of this rule at some point in the future.

CAF should ensure all the last games of the WCQ are played at the same time for fairness.