₦airaland Forum

Our players set out from Fez to Marrakesh to Rabat and finally to Casablanca, where they will play the 3rd place match

Na only them waka come? how many venues in days chai

minfelix:
even we sef for 2000 we really acted “suegbish🤣”, how did we just allow Cameroon come steal Afcon in our backyard…we are too nice to other nations in this africa simply becos we love football and we are built mentally to be fair in football matters…..im sure you will see Nigerians blasting ref or feeling petty when ref support us over our opponents on our own soil.

you will hear talks like
“why will ref cheat them na”
“we dont deserve this win, the ref was so bias with us”

na overconfidence kill us for 2000 until Cameroon started scoring in the final match, a game that shouldn't have entered extra time, again raising our game in moments that matter.

Chelle, for all his good works, may need a good match reader; either he's making too early substitutions or making them late. I observed after the Tunisia game that he was never in a hurry, as before, to make substitutions, which means he's a good listener, but I feel the NFF technical committee needs to work with him more to get a good match reader for him. Okpala Sylvanus was Keshi's match reader when NFF wanted to frustrate him; they simply remove sylvanus, and the rest they say is history .

Chelle needs help with reading our games, but an incredible job so far from him

Make Kenya and Tanzania strategise how to win as hosts o, if one of them no win dem be suegbe

Morrocans think say Nwabali dey do juju

So something happened yesterday before the penalty shootout…
Nwabali dropped something near the goalpost, but a Moroccan steward took it away.😲😳
Did anyone else notice this?👀🤔
pic.twitter.com/XBFlY31u3r

— Cleverly 💐 (@Cleverlydey4u) January 15, 2026

TheGoodJoe:
@TheSuperNerd

Been on X going through videos of those who were in the stadium for the game and I see your point.

With how atrocious the officiating was, it was hard for our players to get into the frame of mind to really push for an intense pressing game.

I also agree that even the Super Eagles of old would not cope under such terrible officiating.

It was a disgrace.

Idah Peterside said after Senegal won, he knew we were in trouble as the organisers would never want an all-West African final in a north African country.

Mujtahida:
Not to diminish the effort of the other players like Ajayi, Bruno and Bright in the defense. They fought valiantly but my word, Bassey, Kai Bassey was a beast. In the air, on the ground, every duel, every tussle, while being tugged at and shoved, he shone like a million stars. At a point, it was as if it was him alone against the entire Moroccan attack. And they never bested him.


It's like the scene in epic movies where the protagonist takes a lone stand against the horde of the enemy and runs against a troop.

Bassey put up an incredible performance. It would go down in annals of Nigerian football history as one of the best individual performance of a Super Eagles player.

Some foreign analysts believe Bassey is a contender for the Man of the tournament. What a player! Despite having a yellow card, he was going to have no nonsense from anybody papa! I see why him and Iwobi are regular starters for Fulham, dem no dey take them play at all.

ThunderFireAgba:
Hmm... people dey get mind o. Davido stake USD50k on Nigeria vs Morocco game and lost. Him no get extended extended family members that need the money or even buy 100kw solar battery that can power a community is not up to USD23k ?
Some People dey get mind sha..

We are a wasteful people, later we go complain say govt wan collect tax, when we no know wetin we wan do with money again

Mujtahida:
It might be extreme but that's my opinion and of course I might be wrong but many people echo my sentiments. I've seen many gaffes from our players but there was something different about this. And I'm drawing my conclusions not just from the match.

Oga Delaw make we leave chuks alone shebi na im career e dey destroy. Let's move past him abeg. Chuks has always had inconsistency as his middle name, and it's high time we focus on our more consistent players. He's not even a starter anymore, so let it go, please.

na God say make we no win the beating these content creators for collect? shebi we warn them make dem cmot for street after the game

The moment Moroccan fans disrupted a Football Fans Tribe post-match interview. pic.twitter.com/4DuAk7Rpp0

— @𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗷𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗯𝗼𝘆 (@OneJoblessBoy) January 15, 2026

minfelix:
omo bro just calm down go watch
Afcon 2006 penalty shoot out with Tunisia,(martins,Taiye Taiwo,Nsofor,Mikel)
Afcon 2010 penalty with Zambia(Nsofor,Martins,Mikel)
Afcon 2023 penalty with SA(Moffi,Ekong)

These guys go use shot tear ya eyes…noting concern them with skillful paneka

That's why I like those Lookman goals against Tanzania and Mozambique, blast the hell out of the thing inside the net. He tried one yesterday in the first half (which the keeper saved) from a pass from Iwobi, which was our only shot on target of the two shots we had. Laliaga and tikitaka dey spoil our game, I know oga joe go come for me now

minfelix:
One person say they should retire Iwobi after this afcon

Without Iwobi, we won't reach anywhere for this AFCON. Moroccans blocking Iwobi yesterday was the reason osihmen no see ball much o. We just need to be grooming younger players to be understudying Iwobi and Ndidi

Another takeaway from this Afcon is for us to be cautious with the way we manage our most experienced players. In our last afcon semi final win against SA, we had experienced players like Ekong, Omeruo, and Iheanacho taking pks. I believe Ekong still has a role in this present Afcon, especially with his performance at the last Afcon. Let's ensure we are not too quick to retire our very experienced players who could still offer some benefit to us. We may still need Ndidi and Iwobi for the next three or more years if they are still fit. Simon can go, Chuks, we can still manage.

lbrichman2:
We have so much vitriol as a people..
Normally Osimhen for rough am
But dude thought to himself, these people no worth am
Especially after all the backlash he received after the Lookman saga

The way we cancel players as though they never did anything good in the past, is not good

Now everybody dey praise Bassey, make he score own goal or cause penalty wey cost us the game, everyone go turn around abuse am..

We won't get our best players especially FBs to play for us, if we keep this up

That's true, that's why I won't join anyone blaming any particular player now, but lessons must be learnt. The Eagles raised the hopes of Nigerians too high, only to be dashed again. Perhaps we should be managing our expectations better. For me, I was satisfied after our game against Algeria.

minfelix:
Like brooooo i agree with you…people easily paint agenda so quickly eehnnn…nothing wey anyone wan tell me
i still calmly watch Omeruo penalty, bro he was lucky we beat SA with that moomoo thing he played as penalty and we qualified to the final, that penalty if caught by Williams, una go cook him life for here and say he deliberately sabotaged the team, cos he was not even playing at that tournament…he came from the bench and played that secondary school boy penalty🤣🤣🤣

But make our players stop this panaeka nonsense, I agree with Bovi, shoot the damn thing to tear the net, this La Liga play no follow for this African game, na wetin affect Akor and Osihmen yesterday where dem dey find each other instead of taking shots.

Dem no dey see Senegal, imagine Mane no shoot that ball! This our team has done excellently, but lessons must be learnt well.

minfelix:
make i raise small dust again…when people came up with agenda that Osimhen was jealous of Lookman, i no how dis place take vibrate🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣😅😅🤣….now people don dey search round social media to look for peoples view that aligns with their agenda that Chukwueze sabotaged the team deliberately…

Simple he played a weak penalty and unfortunately the keeper went that direction and calmly caught it….i will still stand and say “If Bono had wrongly read his direction and went the wrong way, we go call am sweet placing”…

anyways all blame goes to Chukwueze for not adding power to his shot…
all this “he was smiling and chewing gum okocha did worst at france 98 vs Denmark(shey okocha purposely sabotaged the team?🤣)
Ayegbeni missed open net for 2010 world cup and start to chew gum dey smile…was it deliberate?🤣🤣

You now see why Lookman and osihmen no go play penalty 😂 na to avoid wahala like this o

If you no get liver better avoid am

They keep leaving our aunty behind but still she doesn’t get the memo 😂

I have sacked Robert Jenrick from the Shadow Cabinet, removed the whip and suspended his party membership with immediate effect.

I was presented with clear, irrefutable evidence that he was plotting in secret to defect in a way designed to be as damaging as possible to his… pic.twitter.com/zoSzFp0cKq

— Kemi Badenoch (@KemiBadenoch) January 15, 2026

TheGoodJoe:

They all tried though, irrespective of what later happened. Football is a game of luck especially when it comes to Penalties and someone must definitely lose or kick the ball wrongly just as Chewing gum Chukwueze did.......We just have to move on pic.twitter.com/6QDeLKSvXT

— iamkolawole (@Kolawole93) January 15, 2026

Chukwueze, let me not talk.

Omo bovi just explained our football heritage to these guys that no coach can’t even do!

I had so much faith in this current eagles to shut up so many mouths of critics finally but it’s what it is. The eagles have turned us to Arsenal fans e go better club 😂

Foreign analysts are asking where were our best players during the pks.

This is a lesson for our coaches we can’t ignore no matter how we feel!

Papi85:
behind the scene that man single handedly qualified SA for the World Cup. He played a major role to achieve that

Our NFF help am too 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

If SA host Afcon under his watch dem go win wella 😂 e go be like AI

Papi85:
behind the scene that man single handedly qualified SA for the World Cup. He played a major role to achieve that

Our NFF help am too 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Won’t be surprised if he’s loading our nff with cash especially with the way Amaju keeps frolicking around

Papi85:
don’t be surprised that Nigeria may be compensated with qualifying for the World Cup ahead of DRC

My thought though 👊😊

Motsepe is a billionaire bringing all those dirty boardroom tactics into football. Mhen it’s terrible

Papi85:
unconfirmed rumor though from a reliable source claim that the Moroccan government lobbied CAF to win the competition with millions of dollars

The reason been that they have to win in order to have something to show to the citizens for their heavy investment in football in the country so some years now

They argued that they need to be compensated with winning the trophy the same way CIV hosted and won at the last edition

And with the role current SA president played during the World Cup qualifiers to favor his country to qualify I had every right to believe the rumor. The reason I said he may emerge as the most corrupt Caf president ever to exist

In addition the CAF referee committee chairman was removed just before the competition

Issa hayatou na apprentice for where motsepe Dey! 😂

TheSuperNerd:
Afcon history have never been kind to us whenever we come up against a tier 1 host nation.

Algeria in 1990 - Final

Tunisia in 2004 - Semis

Ghana in 2008 - Quarter final

CIV in 2024 (Afcon 2023) - Final

All laced with controversies especially with 1990 and 2004 being far worse.

2025 edition vs Morocco we witnessed one that tops the rest.

For me it’s so clear why the North Africans always dominate club football in Africa for all the talk about their sports facilities and organisation na dark arts these folks they deploy to dominate especially when in club football you got to play at home. So if countries like Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco don’t host Afcon their chances of winning is zero. Rubbish and to think it’s like 6 nations just holding the rest of the continent ransom is most ridiculous

lbrichman2:
Even Osimhen
E get one ball he trap finish
Wipe shot!
Guy go pass ball
Omo
I shout

Morocco that had 15 shots, no be outside shot Dem dey play?
Plus all those dubious free kicks

Experience matters a lot! I hope dude will see this as a major lesson next time!

Na where oliseh go Dey yab osihmen be this 😂

In all this was a successful Afcon for us in the light of a woeful wcq series. I never gave this team so much chance like that and they delivered excellently.

But lessons must be learnt especially by our players as for nff I have no hope but let the players know that moments redefine their careers. I see players like Bassey making a big move soon and that’s what great performances brings. Nwabali deserves a better club he’s that good.

Papi85:
bro the Moroccans didn’t allow our players hv a sniff of their goal post especially Lookman who they know has the ability to shot with both legs

There were moments our attackers had the ball in the box but they were still looking for each other for that kind of combo against Algeria whereas the Moroccans were faster. Sometimes you got to be dynamic. This is why we had like just one or two shots at goal haba

minfelix:
one of these guys will score after that Morocco miss to give us a 2-1 advantage

Make we talk through 😂 Lookman and osihmen no get liver for pks remember a penalty miss was the beginning of lookman’s problems at Atalanta.

But it’s time to step up if they are still in the national team. We can’t continue like this

lbrichman2:
Osimhen, Akor and Lookman should have played those Pks

And we need to learn to shoot from outside the 18
That's one area I'm not too happy with Osimhen for

Apart from Lookman no other eagles player attempts to shoot from outside the box even the one from onyedika was too woeful. Make our players Dey more adventurous. If Oliseh didn’t shoot from outside the box we won’t have beaten Spain in France 98.

Even look at mane goal against Egypt it was from outside the box after another teammate has attempted initially and mane hit it again after the initial one was blocked.

lbrichman2:
This team is becoming hard to score against
We played the number 1 team on the continent, on their home turf and against a biased referee, and yet still didn't concede..

Bruno, Osayi and Ajayi stepped up massively 🔥🔥
With the returning Frederick, we would become even stronger
Our defence didn't panick yesterday
No anxious moments
My heart no even skip any beat..

You need to listen to foreign analysts they are praising our players especially our defenders and midfielders for keeping the Moroccans at bay! They are even blaming our strikers for not taking enough shots at goal when they had the ball.

Some are now asking where was our experienced players and strikers during the spot kicks

minfelix:
After Onuachu scored, walai na Bassey or Simon for step up next..PTSD no gree those baba come front..
Penalty is any man’s game ooo….but these guys will likely 95% convert their pks for us to win this game…
Lookman
Osimhen
Bashiru
Akor
Onuachu

Morocco coach knew why he left one of Hakimi and Diaz….you cant just yank off senior men when you know pk is nearing…..

imagine the last afcon pk against SA
1. Terem Moffi scored/Mokoena missed (1-0)

2. Omeruo scored(infact almost same style with chuks pk)/Mayambela scored 2-1)

Aina missed(same type of Bassey miss against DRC)/ Magkopa missed (2-1)

3. Ekong scored/Mvala scored (3-2)

4. Iheanacho scored (4-2)

pls let’s not blame chuks that much…same way Omeruo scored his PK against SA was same way chukwu was gonna score his own if Bono had gone the wrong way..

Chuks is one of our most experienced players that’s the issue!

If Fisayo could convert what was chuks problem. These are the little moments that matter! It changes everything

Sarsaparilla524:
In whatever capacity that you have been called to serve your country, see it first as a privilege.

Some stupid Nigerian players need to know this.

Some of them never still understand our football heritage! Just allowing some of our ex players to keep talking rubbish and taking them for granted and they are even better than some of these ex players o