₦airaland Forum

TheGoodJoe:
The best is the person who based on recent evidences has the better potential of having a good game. A player who has the better attributes to deliver a good performance.

So how recent is 'recent' in this context?

TheGoodJoe:
From the best of my knowledge, Awaziem lost his place at Porto after Lopetegui lost his job at Porto. Lopetegui is a Spanish tactician who favors a high possessive style of play. This kind of style requires ball playing defenders and that was why Awaziem who is a gifted and cofirmed baller got the role.

Lopetegui is the current coach of the Spanish national team and his departure from Porto led to a transition in style of play which did not require Awaziem's talent.

From reports, Rohr prefers Ball playing defenders and has drills to pick the best. That is why it is favoring Awaziem and Awaziem might most likely get the nod. A player like Awaziem helps Rohr implement his philosophy holistically.

Because Omeruo was not called to France camp?

Again I saw your preferred line up and I just laughed. You are starting Agu ahead of Onazi. What if Onazi was also in that France camp?

You have just concluded that Agu will do the job better than Onazi without having Onazi too camp.
You did not give Onazi to prove himself dur

TheGoodJoe:
From the best of my knowledge, Awaziem lost his place at Porto after Lopetegui lost his job at Porto. Lopetegui is a Spanish tactician who favors a high possessive style of play. This kind of style requires ball playing defenders and that was why Awaziem who is a gifted and cofirmed baller got the role.

Lopetegui is the current coach of the Spanish national team and his departure from Porto led to a transition in style of play which did not require Awaziem's talent.

From reports, Rohr prefers Ball playing defenders and has drills to pick the best. That is why it is favoring Awaziem and Awaziem might most likely get the nod. A player like Awaziem helps Rohr implement his philosophy holistically.

Because Omeruo was not called to France camp?

Again I saw your preferred line up and I just laughed. You are starting Agu ahead of Onazi. What if Onazi was also in that France camp?

You have just concluded that Agu will do the job better than Onazi without having Onazi too in camp.
You did not give Onazi opportunity to prove himself during 'drills' so we can select the 'best'.

You just quickly chose Agu. Hahaha.

TheGoodJoe:
So far, Awaziem stood out from the defenders. If Omeruo outperforms him in training, he has my full support. If he does not, then it is riskier fielding him. We must look to fielding the best. When Omeruo returned unfit against South Africa, we paid dearly for relying on his experience. Just as we paid for relying on Yobo's experience in the World Cup. In when Omeruo made his last error for the Super Eagles, experience was not there to help him.

Fielding the best player will always be the best solution. As for the young Ajax team, they overachieved. From a team flogged out of the Champions League to a team that gave Manchester United a run for their money.

I have seen numerous experience players make childish errors. Just like Drogba's childish defending in the Champions league finals against Bayern Munich. Lucky Robben missed the penalty. A highly experienced Deimeichelis made repeated Childish errors playing for City. Let me not go to Eguavoen.

We need the best in each role.

Now, that begs the question. What is the definition of 'best' in this context?

tbaba1234:
It is not about them playing. It is whether they will go the full 90. Musa and Shehu was subbed early in the match against Togo. They were the first players subbed.

Some people can play well during the fast but it is not everyone. Hakeem Olajuwon used to have better stats during Ramadan.

All the north African players would only play 60mins then because they are fasting.

TheGoodJoe:
Gernot Rohr deserves full praise for his intuition and vision he showed when it came to identifying future talents of the Super Eagles.

A clear example is Awaziem who Rohr invited earlier, had a look in and was tipped as a promising key player of the side. In recent games, the young man showed exceptional quality. Both in training and during games.

At this time, it is riskier banking on Omeruo in the name of experience instead of quality shown in training and recent games.

If Rohr gives Awaziem the nod, he has my full blessings. As the days goes by, I get impressed by the vision of the Super Eagles team manager.

I hope Alampasu keeps giving 100% in training. He might never know when the German tactician will give him a nod.

Awaziem never made match day squad each time Omeruo and Balogun were in camp.

What makes you feel Awaziem will out perform Omeruo in training?

If you say it is riskier fielding Omeruo then it is 'riskiest' fielding an Awaziem who has never been involved in any competitive international match.

tbaba1234:
Shehu and Musa will be fasting, that might reduce the number of minutes the coach will give them. I do not expect either to start.

Meaning Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Sudan, Mali and Co will not honor their matches?

Was it not also the 'fasting' Musa that scored a brace against Togo?

eterisan:
And for those thinking omeruo will play right back..I can only but smile...please look at the list again we got only 3 central defenders there..shehu has d rb spot on lock down..ebuehi as back up..only d goalkeeper spot m not sure off but I guess we have
Akpeyi
Shehu ekong omeruo echeijile
Ndidi onazi
Etebo
Musa iheanacho iwobi
That is d team I feel rohr will play against sa..barring any last hiccups

You sure know Rohr.

komekn:
In the event that the desirable is not available then the available becomes desirable. That is how I sum up Omeruo.

He played a season for Middlesbrough in the championship he was not outstanding.

If you think he is the best we have? And if that is the best we have well then it's not good enough. We really need to look for somebody else.

I would say Dominic Iorfa is considerably better once his contract long term is sorted out he will play for Nigeria. His Dad is just playing the game can't openly commit to Nigeria just yet otherwise his value will drop.

I am looking long term, but we need to have a clear objective methodology based on performance for team selection.

The discussion is on who partners Ekong against SA.

AIG07:
I get you Sir. You know form is temporary. But don't forget Class is PERMANENT. That is why a national team shouldn't be build around form Alone unless you want to be changing players like underwears...

God bless you.

You understand.

forgiveness:
This is one of the reasons I always cry out for better replacement for each position but many are satisfied with the first eleven.

By now, Rohr ought to have know who should replace who. Abi we never learn reach from 1994 world cup to 2014 world cup. Commot one player and the team go fall yakata.

Now, back to the discussion. Why then did you mentioned 2013/2014 AFCON and wc if you point is the second paragraph?

Performance in training is very important though other factors may be considered.

How many times has Omeruo partnered Ekong?

This is Super Eagles, the players currently inform should be considered ahead of any expired legs.

..better replacement for each position. Abi what were you not trying to say in that first paragraph.

forgiveness:
From you post, you still focused on the first eleven but I am basically interested in who replaces dem 'should incase'.


Of course, we have witnessed many cases a Barcelona, a champions League starter and goal poachers were denied the opportunity to play for their father's land.

That one no be new thing. And I am beginning to suspect and question the rational behind the selection of some players nowadays based on Osimhen, Shehu Abdullahi.

Remove Omeruo from that list, he has past it for.

Like I said, who to replace them and not who better. Comprehend the thing, abeg.

Kai! but you said better replacements.
Abi I no understand grammar again?


If you are talking about backups that is exactly what the coaches have been arranging even with the French camp.

This Omeruo you guys are condemning is a serious back bone of that defense.

I am telling you that he is highly favored to start against SA hate him or love him. Awaziem has only recently proven that he is a good back up in the absence of our regular CBs.

Abdullahi Shehu is our best RB currently in the team. Take that to Aso Rock.

Victor Osimhen, Rohr has said is being groomed for the future. I respect that decision even though I don't completely buy it.

forgiveness:
Are you being mischievous or what?

Where on this thread did I clamour for Ramon Azeez, Babatunde Michael, Sammy Ameobi and Michael Olaitan?

Maybe when Ramon Azeez was still in the La Liga and Olaitan playing for Olympicus in the Champions League which was reasonable as at then.

I remembered I clamored for them in the Olympic thread.

I never fancied Michael Babatunde because I knew Keshi brought him through the back door, d magogo way.

Sammy Ameobi, what? When did I clamor for this one? Maybe when he was playing with Newcastle in the Premier League.

Yes! Ajagun Abdul, Raheem Lawal and Solanke were/are regularly mentioned by me here. Why? Because I believe they deserve to be called.

I am not even done with the role call, they are many, based on their current form.

I know where you are going but... Make I no talk.

Oga you nova answer my own question.

Joebie:
Follow the thread you will see my reason.

I should follow the thread.

AIG07:
can I help him Sir?

Abduljelil Ajagun,
Mickael Olaitan,
Babatunde Michael,
Rahmon Azeez,
Sammy Ameobi,
Dominic Solanke(if not for the ongoing u-20WC). Make I stop here... He'll come to point out the rest.

These ones will make our starting 11 against SA?

Hahaha but I caught the sarcasm in your post.

You are right. Spot on bro. You sabi the problem.

Joebie:
Not everything is intended for argument. Some things posted are just informative for those who want to learn.

So the write up is not connected to the argument on ground? So why did you post it?

Joebie:
Introduction

This guide is going to look in your central defensive set-ups, and how to achieve a cohesive backline. I will discuss your common central defensive pairing.

Central Pair

You have 3 central defensive roles and 3 central defensive duties to choose from. The roles are as follows:

1. Central Defender
2. Limited Defender
3. Ball Playing Defender

and the duties are as follows:

1. Defend
2. Stopper
3. Cover

The roles are fairly similar in most respects, and defensive distribution is the most significant difference in the roles.

The Limited Defender tends to simply clear the ball as far away from goal as he can - ensures you do not get caught in possession at the back, but it does turn over possession to your opponents quicker and can leave you under sustained pressure. A good idea if your team does not possess the skill to keep hold of the ball in the backline.

The Central Defender will distribute the ball to nearby teammates, helping you keep possession in the backline, and to calmly distribute the ball to the midfield. There is the risk of getting caught in possession at the backline, however it can alleviate pressure on your backline by keeping the ball, and building attacks and distributing the ball to players in the midfield capable of influencing the game in the middle and final thirds.

The Ball Playing Defender will look to influence counter-attacking opportunities by playing through-balls in to players wide of, or in front of himself. He can also help the team maintain possession with his superior passing skills and licence, although he must me fairly creative and a good passer, otherwise you can turn over possession if your player tries overly ambitious passes he is not capable of.

PAIR COMBINATIONS:
1. Central Defender & Central Defender
2. Central Defender & Limited Defender
3. Limited Defender & Limited Defender
4. Ball Playing Defender & Central Defender

You can pair Limited Defenders as they do not affect the balance or overall passing structure as they simply play direct, same with a pair of Central Defenders who simply play a short passing game. The Ball Playing Defender however plays through balls, and due to the increased creativity should generally only be paired with just a simple Central Defender - this is because the Central Defender can help maintain possession at the back, passing to his more creative partner instead of hoofing the ball clear like a Limited Defender and his "safety-first" approach. Having 2 Ball Playing Defenders can see your defenders playing with too much creativity, and attempting too many risky passes.

The duties provide the variation in defensive approach, and these can significantly change the way your defence balances.

The Defend duty is the standard approach, aiming to defend merely as guided by team instructions on marking and pressing, holding the defensive line and winning the ball when appropriate. It is a balance of the 2 "extremes" offered by the Stopper and Cover duties.

The Stopper duty aims to step up early to engage the opposition and quickly win the ball back. This can expose your team and open up space for your opposition, stepping ahead of your defensive line.

The Cover duty will drop off to try and catch any players breaching the defensive line. This can leave your opponents more time and space just in front of your defence unopposed, but it can also prevent your opponents from breaking through without a player to cover and track their runs, reducing their chances of getting a clean shot away in behind.

DUTIES COMBINATIONS:
1. Defend & Defend
2. Stopper & Cover
3. Stopper & Defend
4. Defend & Cover

You can play most combinations of duties in the backline, however most importantly you CANNOT play a pair of Stoppers or a pair of Covering Defenders. The Stoppers will expose too much space in behind, and the Covers will gift too much room in front of the defence, and fail to challenge for the ball often enough. Both pairings can badly expose your Offside Trap too, by either allowing room behind the full back's or behind the centre backs, played onside by the full backs. The Defend-Defend pairing tend to stay in line better and are significantly better for shape retention, and playing an Offside Trap. The Stopper-Cover pairing tends to exaggerate the best qualities of each individual, with an aggressive defender to attack the ball early, reducing room for the opposition forwards, and the covering defender can make up for the aggressiveness of the Stopper with his excellent positioning and pace. The Stopper can make up for the Covering Defender's deeper positioning and sometimes lack of aggression by closing down the space in front of the defence. This pairing can cause problems maintaining the Offside Trap with the Defenders in line, allowing gaps for your opponents to exploit.

So from this write up. How do you classify Ekong, Omeruo And Awaziem?

forgiveness:
This is one of the reasons I always cry out for better replacement for each position but many are satisfied with the first eleven.

By now, Rohr ought to have know who should replace who. Abi we never learn reach from 1994 world cup to 2014 world cup. Commot one player and the team go fall yakata.

Now, back to the discussion. Why then did you mentioned 2013/2014 AFCON and wc if you point is the second paragraph?

Performance in training is very important though other factors may be considered.

How many times has Omeruo partnered Ekong?

This is Super Eagles, the players currently inform should be considered ahead of any expired legs.

Better replacement for each position?

As if you replace players as easily as you replace bed sheets on your bed.

You think if we have players better than Iheanacho, Moses, Iwobi, Ndidi, Mikel, Echiejile, Etebo, Balogun, Omeruo, Ekong any where in the world we will not field them?

You think the coaching crew are not interested in improving the standards of the team?

What do you think team building is all about?
You wake up and overhaul a whole team when you have crucial matches all because you are searching for better players?

As far as I am concerned I will give this current coaching crew Excellent in terms of scouting for players for the national team. We had crucial games against Zambia and Algeria that could not be toiled with. With the little time he had after his appointment he maximised the established potentials in the team and came out tops.

We organized a friendly against Senegal of which a couple of players had their debutes.

We organized a France camp and so many untested players were featured in the two friendlies.
I am sure from the 3 games we have played this year the coaching crew has assessed a lot of these players and know which ones are ready for the Super Eagles.

Forgiveness I dare you to mention any player or players playing in any league(s) in this Universe that are better than the ones Rohr is likely to start against South Africa.

Joebie:
As center back? Wait and see

This man you make me laugh with the way you are being so assertive about this.

Don't come here on June 10 and cry fowl o.

Joebie:
Has Omeruo ever performed well as a CB under Rohr?
And some people are talking about him starting as a center back in a crucial game. This is Rohr 2017 my friends.

Hahaha my friend.

Don't say I didn't tell you.

forgiveness:
Played in the past na past tense. If Awaziem performance better than Omeruo during training, he deserves to play.

Dis na me first come dey block road for better players.

Later you will be the one claiming Victor Osimhen na senior player hence no need to bring Abraham to the national team as if say na em buy the jersey permanently.


No bi the same Omeruo wey Ranti give sand chop again!?

This incident is even more recent than 2013 past glory and even Omeruo was the biggest culprit against France in 2014.

Abeg make we live story.

All well and good if Rohr feels Awaziem deserves to start ahead of Omeruo.

But my argument spans from the saying that bc Ekong and Awaziem played CB against Corsica and Togo they have now built a Chemistry so they must start against SA. That is a total fallacy.

And let me chip in that performance in training is not the only criterion for match day selection. I thought we would have learned that by now.


Take it or leave it Kenneth Omeruo is favorite to start against SA.

safarigirl:
defending

We have already discharged Omeruo's second , he's just hanging on these days. Like Joebie said, he's quite rusty in that role

Omeruo's second. That is Efe Ambrose. I know that is where all these is going.

The way you guys bad mouthed Ambrose. Omeruo still holds lots of promises, he is not likely to go the way of Ambrose yet.

Despite the hatred for Echiejile here he remains one of Rohr's favorites. You cannot buy experience from the market. Same goes for Omeruo.

safarigirl:
defending

We have already discharged Omeruo's second, he's just hanging on these days. Like Joebie said, he's quite rusty in that role

Rusty in that role? A role he plays every week in his club? Compared to Awaziem that plays for a Porto B team?

This is why Rohr will always break peeps here's hearts with his match day selections.

He did not rate Musa Mohammed highly even despite our high heaven's praise of the young lad here. Despite his excellent showings in two previous less competitive games he still never had confidence in him.

Where is Musa Mohammed now?

Joebie:
I raised two points.

1. Awaziem's chemistry with Ekong recently
2. Omeruo has not played as CB recently owing to a better Balogun-Ekong partnership, also and when Omeruo did play as CB in the recent past he made costly errors.

Awaziem has proved to be a good replacement for injured Balogun, not only because he is good, but because he has bonded well with Ekong -- Chemistry

What Chemistry?

From just two low profile friendlies?

You are not Rohr and I am not Rohr.

But me will personal take Omeruo for that SA game ahead of Awaziem. Awziem that never made match day squads when Balogun and Omeruo were in the team.

safarigirl:
na the work wey e dey do

Which work?

Joebie:
Central defense parings are very crucial. It is hardly changed if it's working. Awaziem will start alongside Ekong. It is the Right back position that is a toss up between Shehu and Omeruo.

Omeruo won't start as a central defender. He hasn't played that position for us MOST recently.

Awaziem and Ekong played CB against Corsica and Togo and that is enough to push out Omeruo who has played that position from 2013 AFCON to 2014 WC qualifeirs and series of other qualifiers.

You may give Awaziem the nod based on other factors but not based on chmemistry with the other CBs.

safarigirl:
Awaziem

On what grounds?

goldfish80:
I know about Omeruo's abilities. I will always rate him as one of our better defenders.
However, I'm looking at his frame of mind playing against SA again , knowing fully well that the last time he cost the country an AFCON qualification.

All these could be playing on his kind and physiologically, he might want to be too careful this time which would open him up for errors.

Against another opposition, I will start Omeruo but not this one.

These are porfessionals my brother.That may even spur him to perform better.

I don't see any problems here. Defending is a collective effort. If all the back four are in good shape there would be cohesion and no room for slip ups.

goldfish80:
For the Rb/LB I will prefer Shehu/Elderson started.
Throwing Ebuehi straight into the deep end is a huge risk, which won't be a smart decision at all.

That is exactly my point. There is no better RB.

Ebuehi is a back-up to Shehu IMO.

goldfish80:
I don't know if it will be a good idea starting Omeruo against South Africa. The last time he played against them in the same stadium, he was twisted in knots by the Bafana boys.

Physiologically I don't know what his frame of mind will be facing same opposition (Ranti) once again in Uyo.
It's better he stayed out of this one.

Funny.

Shits happen in football. That was one of them. You also recal Omeruo's heroics againts Drogba at the 2013 AFCON? That was then and this is now.

What matters most are his current abilities. Omeruo is a proven player. I would rather start him than start Awaziem against SA.

goldfish80:
He's not a definite starter for Rohr because he plays in Cyprus.
If he moved on to a better league, say the French league, Rohr won't have any other choice than to trust him for the starting role.

His maturity, experience, versatility and ability should be an asset

Who would you rather recommend for the game against SA?

Mickael2:
I think the team chemistry matters a lot and the two of them have been otherwise okay-ish in the last two games. Omeruo is a solid player on his day but mistakes are part of his game almost every match. Personally I'd rather start Awaziem

You did not think of team chemistry when you were criticising Onazi and Mikel midfield combo. Infact you practically disliked that phrase.

E don reach for Awaziem you quick-quick remember 'team chemistry'. See how I dey look you.

We don't forget things here o.

Mickael2:
I think the team chemistry matters a lot and the two of them have been otherwise okay-ish in the last two games. Omeruo is a solid player on his day but mistakes are part of his game almost every match. Personally I'd rather start Awaziem

Haha haha games aginst Corsica and Togo.

"We need the big experience players for the big games" -Genoth Rohr (2016)