₦airaland Forum

joseph1013:


3 5 2
Kelechi and Iwobi to lead the line.
Moses Mikel Ndidi Ogu/Etebo Tyrone
Omeruo Ekong Balogun

We're not scoring goals.

Kelechi scores goals. We need him to play.

It's a wonder that since we played the 3-5-2 against Argentina, we've not tried to use the same personnel against other teams. We have not been scoring goals.

Those front two are especially important. They know how to score goals for the Super Eagles.

Rohr has to maximize our strength.

Nice, but will Rohr really play V.Moses as a Wing-back coupled with the fact that we need Iwobi's creativity in the middle.

Mujtahida:
no.ndidi wears 4. omeruo wears 22. this are recent pictures. moreover why will they chose to post these pictures now and not before or shortly after the england game

Ndidi wore 13 against Czech Republic.

joseph1013:
We need to find a way to play Kelechi in our team. We're assured of scoring goals, that much is certain.

It is the work of the coach to maximize a team's potential. Let's hope Rohr pull it off.

Which formation will accommodate Nacho without the dropping of either Ighalo,V.Moses or both?

The Super Eagles are the most underated team in this tournament.

Naughtytboy:
completely uzoho is doing well, Leon balogun is exposing the young man too much

Is like u don't know the difference b/w Leon and Troost.

Our back line has always been poor without Leon.

terzurum5:
Before Rohr ruins our World Cup

by Cosmas Odoemena

[img] [/img]

It happened again, the Super Eagles lost their match against the Czechs. Has luck deserted the Super Eagles? What is it that has changed in a team that had a good qualifying campaign?
After several warnings from some quarters against the use of Francis Uzoho as the first-choice goalkeeper of the Super Eagles the manager Gernot Rohr seems hell-bent on using him. To Rohr perhaps, it is Uzoho at all cost.


Our game against England could have easily been a draw if not for the young lad who made a schoolboy error which can happen at his age but which is unforgivable for a goalkeeper going to the World Cup. A ball that should have been punched out for a throwing Uzoho’s first instinct was to punch out for a corner. And that resultant corner kick was capitalized on to give England the lead. The second goal too was cheap.


After the first-choice goalkeeper Carl Ikeme was diagnosed with leukemia, Ikechukwu Ezenwa took Ikeme’s place and Nigeria qualified for the World Cup. But instead of keeping faith with Ezenwa, or looking for more matured goalkeepers he went for a young lad who is third-choice goalkeeper at the La Liga club Deportivo La Coruña, a club that has now been relegated.


I like Uzoho, but he should wait for his turn. He can’t be given a responsibility his young shoulders or rather hands can’t carry. Making him first-choice at the World Cup is just a crazy gamble. Up till now he can’t command his defence. How can he do that when his defenders are well older than him? It’s only natural for him to respect the older players to the team’s detriment. He should still be playing for the U-21.


The senior World Cup is for men, not for boys. Experience usually trumps youth. Even being the youngest team there is a disadvantage.


Well, I don’t know the magic Uzoho performs during trainings but it has yet to reflect during matches. As we say it here “na who pass na him know book.” Besides, we need a goalkeeper who keeps regularly for his club not a bench warmer.


Uzoho has not shown us why he should be ahead of Ezenwa. So much for Uzoho’s height advantage over Ezenwa. Of what good is height when it can’t be used to your advantage? What some goalkeepers lack in height they make up for in good instinct, good vision and good reaction time, positioning and good leadership to help organize their defence.


Uzoho is 19, Ezenwa is 29. I repeat, if Uzoho goes to be number one at the World Cup it means we are placing our fate on a young lad who has not kept in a competitive match, and who is third choice in his club!

Does it mean in a nation of more than 180 million people there aren’t good goalkeepers?
As I once said in a piece on the same issue “Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t know. Ikechukwu Ezenwa helped qualify us for the World Cup. He seems lucky and often trusts his luck in his rosary which he brandishes when we win. Successful teams do need luck too. The Super Eagles will surely need any kind of luck.”


Yes, there is an element of luck in life, football is not an exception. I prefer an “average” goalkeeper who keep regularly for his club and is so lucky that when he is on duty for some reason he is virtually on holiday, to a so-called “good” goalkeeper who when he is on duty he is kept busy all through. And at the end of the match you hear “Ah, if not for him the opponents would have scored 10 goals.”


But Ezenwa did creditably well against Cameroon at home and away. And also showed class against Algeria and Zambia. These are top-rated teams in Africa and moreover competitive matches.
Rohr is fixated on foreign-based players to the detriment of home-based players and our league.


If Ezenwa were playing abroad perhaps he would have been favoured. But remember that Vincent Enyeama was playing at home with Enyimba while he was our number one goal tender. This is the same club Ezenwa is playing for now. Rohr by his action is really affecting the psyche of the home-based players. Enyimba is the most successful club in Nigeria today.



We should believe it can produce at least one first-team player if not more in the Super Eagles as obtains in other great footballing nations.


Almost all the players going to the World Cup for Nigeria are foreign-based. This does not speak well of our league. Come to think of it, how many domestic league matches has Rohr watched? Rohr was nowhere for the CHAN Eagles. In the past it was suggested that any foreign manager that Nigeria contracts must help in developing our league. Those responsible should please advise Rohr before he ruins our World Cup.

Rohr has kept saying he will stick to the team that qualified us for the World Cup yet leaves out Ezenwa. But Ezenwa is the Super Eagles missing link.


Foreign managers have always worked against our league and this is hampering our progress. They use the home-based players for practice and discard them when the real thing comes for the foreign-based players who may be overrated. And we think karma can’t explain our present and past disastrous outings.

Dr Odoemena wrote this piece from Lagos.

www.dailytrust.com.ng

Hw far has Enyimba gone in CAF champions league in the last 2yrs?

terzurum5:
Before Rohr ruins our World Cup

by Cosmas Odoemena

[img] [/img]

It happened again, the Super Eagles lost their match against the Czechs. Has luck deserted the Super Eagles? What is it that has changed in a team that had a good qualifying campaign?
After several warnings from some quarters against the use of Francis Uzoho as the first-choice goalkeeper of the Super Eagles the manager Gernot Rohr seems hell-bent on using him. To Rohr perhaps, it is Uzoho at all cost.


Our game against England could have easily been a draw if not for the young lad who made a schoolboy error which can happen at his age but which is unforgivable for a goalkeeper going to the World Cup. A ball that should have been punched out for a throwing Uzoho’s first instinct was to punch out for a corner. And that resultant corner kick was capitalized on to give England the lead. The second goal too was cheap.


After the first-choice goalkeeper Carl Ikeme was diagnosed with leukemia, Ikechukwu Ezenwa took Ikeme’s place and Nigeria qualified for the World Cup. But instead of keeping faith with Ezenwa, or looking for more matured goalkeepers he went for a young lad who is third-choice goalkeeper at the La Liga club Deportivo La Coruña, a club that has now been relegated.


I like Uzoho, but he should wait for his turn. He can’t be given a responsibility his young shoulders or rather hands can’t carry. Making him first-choice at the World Cup is just a crazy gamble. Up till now he can’t command his defence. How can he do that when his defenders are well older than him? It’s only natural for him to respect the older players to the team’s detriment. He should still be playing for the U-21.


The senior World Cup is for men, not for boys. Experience usually trumps youth. Even being the youngest team there is a disadvantage.


Well, I don’t know the magic Uzoho performs during trainings but it has yet to reflect during matches. As we say it here “na who pass na him know book.” Besides, we need a goalkeeper who keeps regularly for his club not a bench warmer.


Uzoho has not shown us why he should be ahead of Ezenwa. So much for Uzoho’s height advantage over Ezenwa. Of what good is height when it can’t be used to your advantage? What some goalkeepers lack in height they make up for in good instinct, good vision and good reaction time, positioning and good leadership to help organize their defence.


Uzoho is 19, Ezenwa is 29. I repeat, if Uzoho goes to be number one at the World Cup it means we are placing our fate on a young lad who has not kept in a competitive match, and who is third choice in his club!

Does it mean in a nation of more than 180 million people there aren’t good goalkeepers?
As I once said in a piece on the same issue “Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t know. Ikechukwu Ezenwa helped qualify us for the World Cup. He seems lucky and often trusts his luck in his rosary which he brandishes when we win. Successful teams do need luck too. The Super Eagles will surely need any kind of luck.”


Yes, there is an element of luck in life, football is not an exception. I prefer an “average” goalkeeper who keep regularly for his club and is so lucky that when he is on duty for some reason he is virtually on holiday, to a so-called “good” goalkeeper who when he is on duty he is kept busy all through. And at the end of the match you hear “Ah, if not for him the opponents would have scored 10 goals.”


But Ezenwa did creditably well against Cameroon at home and away. And also showed class against Algeria and Zambia. These are top-rated teams in Africa and moreover competitive matches.
Rohr is fixated on foreign-based players to the detriment of home-based players and our league.


If Ezenwa were playing abroad perhaps he would have been favoured. But remember that Vincent Enyeama was playing at home with Enyimba while he was our number one goal tender. This is the same club Ezenwa is playing for now. Rohr by his action is really affecting the psyche of the home-based players. Enyimba is the most successful club in Nigeria today.



We should believe it can produce at least one first-team player if not more in the Super Eagles as obtains in other great footballing nations.


Almost all the players going to the World Cup for Nigeria are foreign-based. This does not speak well of our league. Come to think of it, how many domestic league matches has Rohr watched? Rohr was nowhere for the CHAN Eagles. In the past it was suggested that any foreign manager that Nigeria contracts must help in developing our league. Those responsible should please advise Rohr before he ruins our World Cup.

Rohr has kept saying he will stick to the team that qualified us for the World Cup yet leaves out Ezenwa. But Ezenwa is the Super Eagles missing link.


Foreign managers have always worked against our league and this is hampering our progress. They use the home-based players for practice and discard them when the real thing comes for the foreign-based players who may be overrated. And we think karma can’t explain our present and past disastrous outings.

Dr Odoemena wrote this piece from Lagos.

www.dailytrust.com.ng

Ezenwa would have conceded 4 against England.

Icon4s:
I think Nigerian fans all over the World have cause to worry. And the team deserves all what critisms it will receive from now till 16th June.

Areas to worry about:

The front line is still blunt. Ighalo has underlined his inability to effectively lead the attack. His positioning has always let him down plus he does too much outside the dangerous areas. Nwankwo is like a fresh breath of Air. We need to see more of him. Also Rohr needs to find how to effectively utilize Iheanacho. He also is key to our campaign

The backline is still shaky. There have been occasional moments of indecisions especially between the CBs and also wrong/misplaced passes.Conceding goals in almost every game says alot about the defense.

The midfield is not doing enough to support the attack. Mikel is yet to hit gear.

Rohr feels more comfortable with a back 4 formation but his team seems to play better with the formation that has a back 3. He needs to decide from now till June 16 which he will adopt as the baseline setup as limited number of substitutions affects your tactical switch.


Some positives:

Iwobi: He, and not Mikel or Moses, seem to be the main actor on the pitch. He is the New orchestra leader. His switch from LAM to RAM to CAM and to CM underlines his status as a Super utility player to this team. My hope here may just be that his high work rate does not lead to us losing him to injury.

Ogu: He is a player that can easily switch positions (from DM to CB) when we switch tactics. He spares Rohr one substitution spot. Players like this are always so valuable to a team.

Uzoho: He has continued to grow in confidence and made some important saves in our last few games. His positioning has been his major strength. He, however, needs to do more in commanding his area.

The last 3 results do not look good for us as a team that wants to take the world by storm. But, I still have hopes in this team.

We are Nigeria! And we rise to the occasion when the need arises. That is the naija spirit.

A million likes for this analysis.

TheSuperNerd:
Ighalo had two shots on target in the first half. I give him kudos for especially pulling off that first save from the Cezch keeper. But the best chance he had came in the second half and he played a silly tame shot. He blew it. Ighalo had three shots in all... All on target but one was so weak and silly (that was the third in the second half). In the first half, he did well getting that shot off and his second also was saved before the ref called for an infringement.

Ighalo may have bagged a goal today if Idowu had the sense to feed him on two occasions. Idowu killed off two of our attacking chances. Sad.

But this is not to exonerate Ighalo. He did have chances and could not bury them. Also, he is not mobile enough. I really am scratching my head on him because he is our starting 9 going to Russia... Unless...

This is the second time Ighalo is firing a weak shot on goal, the first was against Serbia.

Am not comfortable with Ighalo as our no.9.

I also think Rohr has a different formation for Croatia.

Iwobi is one of our best strikers but Rohr chose to play him as a deep lying playmaker.

I think Rohr intentionally played Joel and Onazi against England.

All this points to one formation, the formation we used in the second-half of the game against Argentina.A formation without Moses,Onazi,Joel and Ighalo.

Rohr used the friendlies to eliminate any form of question from Nigerians on why Onazi,Joel,Ighalo and Moses didn't feature against Croatia, and his plan worked out as no one will be surprised if any of the above is dropped after a poor performance against England and Czech republic.
If so, he confused our opponents and made his starting XI free from criticism.
Just my thoughts.

Martz101:
i see nothing wrong with ighalo...even the goal against England he hit the bar from a difficult angle before iwobi scored.

with the 4-2-3-1...i have a feeling Mr rohr is playing mind game with our opponent scout.

Ighalo has played 4 games for us without a goal.

If Iwobi was not fast enough the match would have ended 2-0.

It's not like he even has assists in those games.

Rohr has realized that his best midfield combo is Ogu-Ndidi.

The probability that we will play 4-2-3-1 against Croatia is now high since this is our last friendly.

My problem is not even Shehu, but Ighalo starting.

tbaba1234:
Balogun was the only defender playing against England.. Ekong was suspect in the first.

Thanks Bro. I remember one particular shot he blocked with his knee.

Ekoong was poor in the first-half.

komekn:
His Uncle is JJay Okocha he got into the SE before he had played one senior professional game for Arsenal.

However, Sone Aluko, Hope Akpan, with outstanding performances for the SE have been dropped, set aside and forgotten.

Add to that Aina set aside for a player that has failed to meet the standard at low club level..

THATS GREAT INSPIRATION for future Nigerian origin players.

Nigerian origin players know they face discrimination from thier white peers but the discrimination from your own people is much MORE PAINFUL.

NUFF said

Being FB doesn't mean you have automatic shirt,you have to fight and prove you deserve a shirt.

Echiejile played almost all WC qualifiers,dropping him will be injustice.

Aina had his chance against Argentina and DR Congo but failed to prove he deserves a shirt with the Eagle.

Against Argentina, one of the goals came through his wings.Against DR Congo, his tackle caused the equalizer.

Don't forget Aina was brought to the team for the LB position, as Ebuehi and Shehu has taken the right.

Talking about playing Aina in RB is not possible because Shehu must go to WC and Ebuehi is better defensively ,recovers fast
and has good positioning off the ball.

Aina should wait, his time will come.

BascoVanVeli:
The picture only proves that he had to do a lot of unnecessary running because his teammates were not helping.

Whenever Onazi plays as a DM, he exposes the defence.

How can u be out of position and say you are making runs.

Abeg he is a DM not CM.



It's obvious he doesn't play to instructions.

One factor that will determine our success in Russia is Rohr's starting Eleven.

We need to sort out our midfield and the no 9 position in such a way that we can easily switch from one formation to the other.

tbaba1234:
Onazi was not the only player who played poorly against England. Joel obi was poor, Shehu was poor, even Ekong had a dodgy first half.

Onazi has shown maturity and admitted his faults. No other person has done same.

Onazi was very good in the Cameroon double header. Especially in Yaounde, outshined Ndidi twice. He has the ability to play. I think people should cut him some slack.

Outshined Ndidi?

You see,this is what Goodjoe has been saying, he leaves space and expects Ndidi to cover.

My brother be truthful, Is Onazi better than Ndidi?

TheGoodJoe:
Onazi should not make it look like a one day thing. It is a regular occurrence from him. He should get ready to shield and protect the defence or step down.

Well said .

owbabs:
That midfield combo was not stellar in these games but it was still better than the Onazi - Joel combo we have seen recently.

Against Algeria and Senegal they played without Mikel so it's understandable.We have never lost a match with that combo.

We lost against SA and Serbia by two goals to nil with Onazi-Ndidi combo.

I don't know why it's too difficult for us to accept that Onazi-Ndidi combo doesn't yield the best of results and is not better than Ogu-Ndidi.

The test for the two combo is the absence of Mikel.

How have they fared without him?

Martz101:
Ndidi with ogu is just 2 matches....Argentina and Algeria, onazi with Ndidi can you count?

It's 3 including the Senegal friendly where Ogu's introduction turned the game to our favour after Onazi got injured in the 20th minute.

In the first 20 mins, Senegal controlled the midfield till Ogu came on to replace an injured Onazi.

Martz101:
how many matches have Ndidi partner ogu ??
keyboard coach

3 matches, Senegal,Algeria and Argentina.

princfred:
Its the best the team has so far. Any better pairing?

Ndidi-Ogu is the best because we have never lost a match with the combo.

I'll like to see Ndidi-Etebo combo against Czech.

Eligreat247:
Concerning the England Friendly, I think the main aim of playing friendly matches was achieved.
The aim is to see how prepared you are, but it has been crystal clear that we still have so much work to do.
In spite of the defeat what gladdens my heart is the midfield combo of Joel-Onazi; how the duo have been exposed. It is evident that we cannot depend on the duo and this will inform Rohr's decision going forward. See how much playing time Rohr has given Joel since rejoining the team hoping he can get it right.
Another puzzle that this match solved is IWOBI's Midfield role which many people have advocated for on this thread. In as much as he does well as a winger, I think he will do even better in the midfield.... His creativity is top notch. Apart from Mikel, I think Iwobi is next in terms of creativity (I stand to be corrected)

Bottom line:
Joel - Onazi combination is bullshit
Iwobi more essential in midfield

Even Ndidi-Onazi combo doesn't click.

BascoVanVeli:
Who captained against DRC?

My bad,I meant the SA and Serbia games.

TheSuperNerd:
Not so fast with the bolded Mister... I am mad at Onazi but no way am I dropping him from the team. Not happening. At least not now. I only need him to sit up and show us again why we rated him so highly in 2012 when Keshi gave him that chance in that Liberia game before Afcon 2013.


Now, First of all, Onazi is not old. He is just 25-26. He is just approaching his peak years. Right now, he is just not in his mojo zone.

Also, Onazi is still relevant to this team for the time being but I feel complacency has set in somewhat as he feels relaxed. He feels like no matter what happens, he will always make the team. He needs to sit up and understand that as a leader, he leads by example and before he can criticise he must ensure that he himself is doing his own job well.

Double post.

TheSuperNerd:
Not so fast with the bolded Mister... I am mad at Onazi but no way am I dropping him from the team. Not happening. At least not now. I only need him to sit up and show us again why we rated him so highly in 2012 when Keshi gave him that chance in that Liberia game before Afcon 2013.


Now, First of all, Onazi is not old. He is just 25-26. He is just approaching his peak years. Right now, he is just not in his mojo zone.

Also, Onazi is still relevant to this team for the time being but I feel complacency has set in somewhat as he feels relaxed. He feels like no matter what happens, he will always make the team. He needs to sit up and understand that as a leader, he leads by example and before he can criticise he must ensure that he himself is doing his own job well.

How can someone who calls himself a leader try to cause division in camp.

Martz101:
Etebo trump onazi after just one match, shebi na thesame Etebo we all wan kill with mouth...the truth remain that the whole team had a bad game and mikel positioning should be corrected...there is not sacred cow.

mikel was to forward in that match even when we were having issues, was expecting him to come deeper and settle the game with some passes but rather he was even ahead of Ighalo.

Drop deep? What is a player like Joel Obi who starts for Torino doing there? If we are to excuse Onazi that he plays for Trabzonspor.

Experience is really overrated.

We need Ndidi back to starting line-up with Etebo(where pace is necessary) or Ogu make those two wey dey look for who go cover them go rest.

Mickael2:
Finally someone else has seen it.

not to mention that this was an English team that was already two goals up, a poor English team none the less. If we play that same second half again against Croatia we will have nothing to show for it. Everybody is hailing our second half performance as if it was a very good performance but then it wasn't, it was just better than the shitshow we produced in the first half.

Iwobi was already tired by then and need to be subbed by another creative player.

Martz101:
onazi listed among those guys ain't fair...apart from these England friendly, please remind me of a poor game he had.

naming Echiejile,akpeyi and Onazi together is really not fair and makes collin right about us wanting new things always.

Etebo and onazi who is better since Rohr took over or becAuse of one good game he now becomes a saint

Etebo played the CM and DM position well against Algeria in Uyo, but Rohr wanted him as a back-up to Mikel, that's why he played him as a 10 in subsequent matches.

Etebo has never been poor as a CM or DM.

BascoVanVeli:
The last part caught my attention.
Onazi: some people cannot be running for the team while some people are just standing looking.

Onazi is not ready for the WC.

He has also forgotten that we lost the last two matches he captained.

asha80:
is he firing shots at mikel? Hope no crises in camp oo

Onazi should be dropped after the WC.It looks like he wants to cause division in camp.

After our game against SA, I never wanted him to be starting games for us.

We left Etebo and Ogu on the bench to accommodate him.

He expects Mikel to play his position for him.

I'm certain that we wouldn't have beaten Argentina if Onazi ,V.Moses and Joel played.V.Moses because he will hold- on
to the ball instead of passing.

We need to drop most of this old players after WC.

We need a young and hungry team who can play for each other and can accept responsibility for their errors, not blaming someone else.

Onazi's time with the Eagles is Up.

tbaba1234:
He did not get the goal. I am not convinced by his movement.

He was caught offside so many times even from routine passes in the first half. Even though Iheanacho is not best as a CF, I trust him more to get a goal than Ighalo. I hope we get to see Simy against Czech.

Simy is my no.9 in a 4-2-3-1.

Iheanacho and Ighalo has failed many times in that position.