₦airaland Forum

MallamSpicey:
As far as midfield goes, these are the players that should form the core and depth of our MF going forward. Enough of the daft habits of recycling the same 3 or 4 midfielders every time who offers us absolutely no creativity.

1. Iwobi- I honestly don't really rate him that highly as I feel he has fallen off but he still offers experience at least. But to be fair to Iwobi, Peseiro played him out of position at the AFCON and nullified his attacking qualities with all the defensive pivot duties he was tasked with...Iwobi IS NOT A DM, and can't thrive in a 2 man midfield system where he has to press ,Iwobi isn't that guy.

2. Ndidi- The impact of Ndidi can't be emphasized enough, he was sorely missed at the AFCON especially with his experience and improved ability to press high thanks to his Leicester form...An Onyeka/Ndidi anchorship would have given Iwobi more freedom to influence his creative duties more.

3. Frank Onyeka- I believe he announced his name in a big way at the AFCON, absolute Trojan workhorse who gives his all for the team and does the dirty work like no other...Ndidi will find joy pairing with him since he loves to bomb forward to join the attack and can trust Frank the Tank to mop up any mistakes behind him.

4. Michael Folrunsho- Needs no introduction, this is one player who will give you work-rate and a good eye for passing abilities, I don't know why NFF haven't approached and capped him yet when he is still in the fringe radar of Italy.

5. Nwakali- somewhat of an enigma as much as a fan's favorite, in the eyes of many he's supposed to be our own Pirlo...I personally think Nwakali would have fit so perfectly like a glove in that 343 formation Peseiro used at the AFCON...especially when you factor in his set piece abilities and good passing IQ (seems like an opportunity missed).

6. Fisayo Dele-Bashiru- This lad should be tried out as that under-study to Iwobi, not only does he have a good creative ability to his game, he offers work rate as well and can actually pop up with goals here and there. I don't know we never saw more of him after his last cameo in the Mozambique friendly game last year.

6. Tim Iroegbulam- I have watched this kid and he is definitely a baller, he's a perfect modern day Box2Box midfielder who can dribble well and pass brilliantly as well, now back to Aston Villa from loan and he's one to watch...read somewhere he's not far off the radar of an international call up to Nigeria soon.

8. Ifeanyi Matthew- When you want a very cerebral and composed midfielder who plays with the finesse of a prime Mikel, look no further than this lad. I daresay the ONLY reason he has not been called up yet to the SE is because he plays in the Swiss league, and has no connection to "Top Ogas in the NFF" that he can bribe.

Fringe players to be looked at: Daniel Daga, Ebenezer Akinsanmiro, Victor Eletu, Obinna Nwobodo, Ibrahim Olawoyin and Tochukwu Nnadi.

Whoever will be the coach whether Peseiro or not will have to start building our midfield around these players if he really wants to succeed. The only reason we lost that final to Ivory Coast was down to a paper thin and overworked midfield, and we had no bench to balance it out.

Notice how I didn't include Aribo, cause I honestly think he's currently not good enough to be a mainstay player in that team. Aribo needs to fight his way back at his club to prove his hunger cause a division 2 bench warmer who gets sparse minutes every now and then isn't deserving of a place in a serious nation team.

A nice take.

God bless you.

Kelechi Nwakali, Alex Iwobi and Ifeanyi Mathew should be starting in a midfield three, If personal interests are to be set aside.

ChrisKels:
You go just dey talk rubbish. Na you carry Partey go AFCON? Ibrahim Sangare that flopped so bad he got benched by Seri? Oga go and sit down because it is obvious you didn’t watch any of the AFCON matches except maybe the ones played by Nigeria

I mixed up Partey's name, i was actually profiling all the midfielders in Africa, touching also the midfielders that featured in the AFCON. You should have easily seen this, because Nwakali was also in the mix, but you are quick tempered like a child that refused to be bridled by the parents.

Thomas Partey, Lamine Camara, Pape Matar Sarr and Ibrahim Sangare are the midfielders who were present in this just concluded AFCON, whose style of play impresses me the most.

You know what? Kelechi Nwakali impresses me more than the aforementioned. He is a game controller, and he creates more chances. To control a game you need a good level of technique, this is where he and Thomas Partey towers above the midfielders that I have mentioned.

do4luv14:
It's not about a good Coach bros, And I think that's the reason Pinnick appointed both Randy and JP as managers respectively,

And if you look closely, you will notice those 2 coaches going through same pattern of results

Tell me what it is all about, if it is not about a good coach.

safarigirl:
You get?

I don't know why empathy is such a foreign concept to fans.

Do they think they're more affected by the loss than players themselves? These tournaments are part of the players careers, they are used in their profiles and used to judge the success of the career. You wey no dey pitch, no fit dey more interested in the win than the people who give 90 minutes of their sweat on that pitch, so, to pile on them on top their own feelings of failure is wicked.

The players gave their all. Peseiro made the selection of players. Peseiro decided the game plan and managed the game. Peseiro can't give what he does not have. The NFF takes the whole blame. Let them right their wrongs by giving us a good coach and paying salaries when due.

It is not just that the Ivorians won, rather it is in the manner we were beaten. The Ivorians made us look like amateurs, we had only one shot on target.

Curtisaxel17:
Nwabali is not who we think he is. He has potential, but we are not out of the woods yet in terms of our GK search. That first goal wouldn't have happened if he was correctly positioned.

The search must continue.

The pressure was much.

TheSuperNerd:
Ndidi was at the last Afcon and we saw where his game of passing got us to.

Ndidi is no better passer than Iwobi yet Iwobi was atrocious tonight just as he was against SA.

Iwobi is not in the mould of Nwakali, i have always said that Nwakali, Ndidi and Osimhen are very vital to this team, i did not include Iwobi for some reasons. However the torchlight is on Onyeka and Ndidi, Onyeka has the advantage of speed, but Ndidi is better at duels, passing etc, Ndidi is actually a better midfielder, but that doesn't mean Onyeka is not good. Ndidi that was paired with Aribo, what do you want him to do. Again, Eguavoen tactics is similar to Peseiro's tactics, the midfield is not central or celebral to how the team plays, the defense and attack are.

MetalJigsaw:
Iwobi that has a better "passing range" what did he do? Is he not supposed to compliment Onyeka's inabilities as the "main man" in midfield?

Onyeka did the things he was expected to do and he did very well all through the competition... Who even gave him a chance?

The coach's game plan limited Iwobi. Peseiro's plan was to loop the ball from the defense to attack and the midfield to try recover the ball when it didn't get through, that might be the reason Onyeka had a more advanced role: to recover the ball and make forward drives, since he has more pace and is also better defensively. Iwobi's role wasn't as loud, that's why many didn't notice.

Those heaping blames on Iwobi don't actually see, if there is any cohesion in the team, Iwobi and Bassey are notable figures. Nwakali and midfielders like Ifeanyi Matthew are what this team needs, plus good coaching. Nwakali started only one game at the last AFCON, what do you expect from such meagre minutes.

Nwakali plays in the lowly Chaves, and yet guys from Mamelodi Sundows were knocking our super stars around, and we were lucky to escape.

kennysville:
Inverted wingers

Anyways, i get you, but they need to do more in ball control and passing.

I have seen the midfielders that this AFCON has paraded and none is as good as Kelechi Nwakali. Nwakali trumps these Ivorian midfielders even in what he does defensively, the defensive aspect may land on some as a shocker, but it is the truth. It may land as a shock because many don't actually see.

I said it before that none of our wingers will start at Royal Antwerp, considering how Royal Antwerp likes to play.

TheSuperNerd:
Ndidi is not a controller either. None of the midfielders in this team to CIV 2023 is a controller. None.

This team needed an Nwakali but Jpes kept playing dumb and stubborn.

Ndidi isn't a pass master himself.

Ndidi is way ahead of Onyeka in the game of passing.

forgiveness:
Oga, the battle was lost in the midfield.

I know, but defensively he is not as strong as the others. Today he was put to the real test against an elite winger and his slack revealed. Aina's presence was to help a very limited midfield that can't hold its own.

Negative football will always lack the cutting edge.

TheSuperNerd:
Aina.... I don't understand him today. Brilliant all tournament game after game but has struggled against Adingra today. Unfortunate.

Aina is not defensively astute. Awaziem should have been brought in his stead.

TheSuperNerd:
Onyeka didn't make us miss Ndidi. He was a fantastic cover.

It is Iwobi's role that was sorely missed. A player who could play that role is the one missing.

Ndidi was missed. Onyeka covered good defensively and was fantastic with his forward drives, but his passing range is a let down. He is also not a genuine controller.

CornOak:
LET US HEAR WORD.

Regardless of what happened, these boys tried.

They tried actually, just that they can't give what they don't have. The team is tactically not balanced.

Pack your team with poor passers of the ball and what do you get.

Ndidi is sorely missed.

Bright Osayi's game against the tactical ingenuity of Hugo Broos was eye catching. We have more depth in the fullback role than in any other.

codemaniacs:
Which Osimhen do you know

The Osimhen i've watched at Napoli needs only 1 chance to score a clean goal even with his offside issues...


He should better go to Edo and bow down to the Bini Goddesses and Gods..

He should be wearing a vest with the image of bini dieties to clear his lack of confidence and self belief.

I know I have seen Obafemi Martins with a pendant of Oduduwa.

This is in contention to be the dumbest post ever to hit this thread. Imagine Osimhen bowing down to things that can't help him and has never helped anyone.

codemaniacs:
Which Osimhen do you know

The Osimhen i've watched at Napoli needs only 1 chance to score a clean goal even with his offside issues...


He should better go to Edo and bow down to the Bini Goddesses and Gods..

He should be wearing a vest with the image of bini dieties to clear his lack of confidence and self belief.

I know I have seen Obafemi Martins with a pendant of Oduduwa.

Rubbish.

Barryseal:
After Iheanacho's pk, a random dude hugged me so tight that he cracked my Samsung screen which was in my pocket. Went to the repairers for screen replacement today, they said its 250k

Sorry.

We are no longer defending in numbers

Curtisaxel17:
If not for our defence's solid performances, people would have been forced to ask Victor Osimhen some very frank questions.

Some people make it look as if the SE was struggling to score goals before Osimhen came on the scene and improved our goalscoring prowess.

In reality, the reverse has been the case. Ighalo played with this same team in AFCON 2019 and won the Golden ball. Osimhen took charge and gave us only one goal in five matches plus plenty of offsides and big chances squandered. Same team o.

The only thing saving him is that our defence is pulling us to the finish line. Any day the defence stops working, Nigerians will analyze Osimhen without emotions.

Osimhen is a vital part of our team's defensive character. Our defensive exploits are not just down to the defenders, the team's structure and character as a unit plays the most part.

drDoom3:
It is not sustainable. That is the issue.

Once we meet a team that can hold sustained pressure in our attacking third towards the end of games, or we fail to score first in a game, we will struggle.

Good observation. Peseiro's game management can make this a possibility, or not a possibility.

Mujtahida:
So they won us because they talked loudest? Which kind amala logic be this Bro?

Amala is good food, and so is my logic. It will be wonderful, if you can grasp the importance of words especially when charged with emotions.

theophilusj31:


The way the Angola players have been bragging ehnn those guys are scared to death,their boasting has fear underneath it . ....our players and coach have been unusually quiet,..no bragging,no chest eating,...... A wealth of experience has taught our players that it is better to wait till after the match b4 u talk,the Tunisia saga of the previous afcon still fresh in our memories. .

We should start talking, even louder than them. That's how Ghana bragged and talked and qualified for the world cup instead of us.