₦airaland Forum

daveP:
Let me just say this here



Im seeing some rather dismissive posts about the performance yesterday. I know we can't all agree on how that game seemed but all these excuses and sidelining or overlooking is not helping this team. This is the peak of Nigerian football.


They're now absent from b2b World cups, and why we know some factors off pitch contributed, i think it is high time we demand even more from everyone that wants to wear this jersey. PLEASSSEEEEEEE.


Demand a higher standard in performance. Let's stop all these "eh. They still try. They still kept the scoreline at 2-1 against a fifa top team" and all that other pseudo-supportive tripe.


The anger felt at the 2022 WC miss at Abuja still lingers. The team knows they've let hundreds of millions down and have highlighted that in their press talks several times. But here we are once again!!


The bar has to be raised, everyone!!


Yes we have some lapses in the midfield but this team still relies heavily on individual brilliance, and some players that complain when not given the chance got it and fluffed it. Why should Ndidi who is way older be balling way better than an u30 player in the first place.?


We'll be fine but let's raise this bar. It doesn't mean we are harsh. They deserve anything they get for any mess up, especially for those that waste glaring chances and take things with levity.

See what CIV played France days ago. Habaa!!!


We need to raise the bar pls. Henceforth, IMO, im not going to be lenient whatsoever as regards performance. There's even a way you'll play and you'll lose but fans will know you gave your all on that pitch for 90mins. Yesternight was not such a night. It wasn't.

💯 after a brilliant Afcon performance we should be seeing better performances from the boys! If Ronaldo had converted his chances all these dem try no go Dey. Maybe a team should whitewash the eagles so we can admit the inherent flaws that still exist in the team

TheSuperNerd:
Somalia's Omar Artan, Africa's best referee was prevented from getting a US entry visa for the 2026 WC.

Today, he has been announced by UEFA as Center Referee for the Uefa Super Cup match between PSG and Aston Villa.

Compensation.

Which yeye compensation after embarrassing the man for nothing! But for career purposes he should have just rejected the yeye compensation, rubbish

lbrichman2:
Yes he did
Gave the ball away a few times
But he's appreciated because we all saw how he was trying to get the team going with his runs..

Fredrick, Nwaiwu and Bruno are the other defenders who can run with the ball like that..
Aina and Osayi too..

That's what we needed our midfield and wingers to do..
Hold the ball, beat the press, run at their defence sometimes

Exactly just like against Morocco he was trying to ginger our midfield!

Dude understand the mentality for big games

lbrichman2:
Same thing against Morocco at the AFCON
This is where you need midfield drivers to take the game by the scruff of the neck, like Bassey was trying to do..

Lookman too would have done that though

That’s why we needed all our players in this match it would have been a massive test for all our players but unfortunately we missed out on the opportunity.

Mujtahida:
Bassey plays like a Generalissimo. Since the day he single handedly stood like the wall of Gibraltar against Morocco na im I fear that boy. Kai Kai. He plays with swagger, finesse,speed and courage.

Bewene is good oo. He has confidence. I like him.

Na Bassey get mind pass for that team, he’s the undisputed leader. But for seniority he should be captain

lbrichman2:
My bro...
Just said it as it is
Our midfield work never complete o
LBs too
We are adequate in other positions

Once Iwobi can’t get his rhythm we are cooked

TheSuperNerd:
Chukwueze messed up this chance with his first 2 touches. He was meant to knock the ball forward with his 1st touch and away from the last defender (relying on his pace) or play Moffi in with his very first 2 touches. Decisions and moments. Should be 2-2. But it is fine. We move

.
Decisions and moments are key, as that can be a major decider in a crucial game. Our players needs some lessons on this

lbrichman2:
My major take in this game is how limited we are in the midfield..
The Portuguese, swarmed us, pressed us into submission and blocked passing lanes..
Iwobi couldn't find any line breaking passes today..
Even our goal came from route 1 Football.. Okoye to Akor
Same thing with the chance that Chukwueze squandered
The search for players must continue..
Let's prioritize LBs and technically adept midfielders abeg..

This midfield cannot take us to the next level
Portugal showed us that next level and we folded
That we still remained competitive is a testament to the good work Chelle has done on this team

💯 your head Dey there, I like honest assessments

Lawag3:
Funny thing we had no shots in the second half the first half was more balanced between the sides.

Portugal had six shots two on target to our five shots two on target.

Anyway it's just a friendly we did well plus Chelle experimented that's what friendly matches are for.

If we had put in more decent effort in the second half I would have given the team a pass! I expected more especially from the players who came in the second half but they were disappointing

Kog45:
Injury na dem dey go World Cup ni baba Goke

😂 I just Dey find answer for you ni

lexyman:
Some of the odds were moving up and down before the match, but the bookmakers still gave the Super Eagles odds of 1.28 against Portugal, which basically suggested that we had little or no chance of winning.

Personally, I believe one area the team still needs to improve is its mentality. Showing too much respect to so-called "big teams" is not a good thing. The Super Eagles need more players with the mentality and courage of Bassey and Frederick—players who are fearless and willing to compete regardless of the opponent standing in front of them.

I point this out because I've noticed this attitude in many of our big matches . We cannot become a world-beating team if we continue approaching "elite opponents" with a sense of inferiority.

That said, I have to give credit to Chelle. He has done an excellent job turning the team around. For the first time in a while, the Super Eagles are playing with a clear identity, and the fans have far more confidence in the team than they did before.

Before the match, I told a friend that Portugal would not score three goals against this Super Eagles side. The team has grown beyond that stage, and that's a positive sign. We may still have areas to improve, but the progress is undeniable, and the foundation being built is encouraging.

God bless you o, you see that mentality thing na our starting point be that! Even big games in Africa we Dey dull! We need the spirit of Bassey on the average eagles player

Odunayaw:
The stats are secondary to the eye test really. We didn't play ultra defensive, could have done better with possession when we had it but generally we had times we played our own game, twice lost a definite goal scoring counter attack chance, all while playing against Portugal.

Calling it terrible is a stretch. In fact, that we actually think we could have done better tells me we actually did decently.

Bro if all those chances Ronaldo threw away two or three had entered our conversation may be different o just saying

TheSuperNerd:
Nnadi was exhausted today. Should not have played 80mins. He did great today but we really do need extra beast options in the middle.

💯 this is where facing the likes of civ, Senegal or Morocco will bite us in the face if we jam them in an Afcon semi final or final! We got to be more beastly in midfield

Kog45:
I just discovered something today about Moffi and Onuachu,they are not fighters,a defender fell down and still won a lose ball over Moffi.

😂 maybe they don’t want to get injured you never know

Odunayaw:
Terrible performance for your unrealistic expectations I imagine.

Games like this are for learning purposes and to compare with other games. You can check stats posted above and assess

Dannyxy:
I don’t think it was a terrible performance, if we had osimhen and lookman, we could have won, Iwobi was not even fit…

On this pitch, if we had our two guys, plus Azeez this match we win. It’s not a terrible performance at all, first half was almost even matched

We were poor in the second half, first half yes we were trying to settle in but we should have done better after half time.

Again this match has exposed why we can’t win in the big and decisive games. Our players need to up the pressure in big moments only Bassey seems to have that big game mentality.

Hmmmm!

minfelix:
If it ends 2-1 kudos to Eric Chelle abeg

Respectable score line but terrible performance

We need solutions for big games

Clint02:
So Chukwueze nor fit run with ball! My God

e shock me gan would have ran away with a draw in this match despite our performance

minfelix:
Osimehn go see that wey chukwueze and not use it well?….omo Osimhen and Lookman no try jare🤦🏽‍♀️

Goals plenty for both players in this match it’s a travesty they are not here

TheSuperNerd:
Christantus Uche needs to be reborn in his natural midfield role and David Ozoh needs to be seen as well.

We need pure beasts in our midfield this light touch can’t help us in big games and that’s an issue we need to fix asap

Wetin be this chuks 😂

Jao Felix ogini? 😂

We need a Bassey kind of player in midfield with a big heart to drive ball forward abeg

ThunderFireAgba:
Emöt.ional Unstable Males (EUM)
Bunch of Du.m.mies

Please stop, what’s bringing all these nah

We are playing a world class team abeg we don try 😂

What a goal! It’s been long coming

minfelix:
Hope you guys noticed Eric Chelle ring of changes has changed the course of the game…we are no longer been pegged back to our defense again

Our coach sabi na execution by the players be the problem

The goal Akor scored reminds me of the confusion between Ndidi and who again I can’t remember against DRC Congo. Credit must be given to bashiru for his quick reading of the situation

minfelix:
make una advice Ronaldo to retire naaa…im just feeling for him

He’s a Retired player still in service 😂

FiveFootNinja:
It's a miracle we haven't conceded again already. I can feel it coming.

We are so lucky

Again this is why we should be playing more of these games

Clint02:
Why these people dey misplace passes anyhow na. This is rubbish.

It’s an eyesore bro