Gernot Rohr, the coach of the Super Eagles has been speaking about how he plans to ensure the survival of his squad at the fast approaching FIFA World Cup tournament in Russia.
He said that the team’s structure in Russia will be decided by how their opponents line up.
The French-German tactician has experimented 3-5-2, 4-1-2-1-2 and 4-2-3-1 formations in recent friendlies and training sessions. While the team is blessed in attack with the likes of Alex Iwobi, Victor Moses, Kelechi Iheanacho, Odion Ighalo and Ahmed Musa, the defenders and goalkeeper have to rise up to the occasion.
“Our offensive is well-known, that’s right. But I think we are already balanced,” said Rohr to welt.de.
“Our style of play also depends on the opponent. We beat Argentina 4-2 in a friendly in November. It is not just about the results, but also about the appearance of the team.
“We want to give a good picture of the African continent – together with Senegal we are the only black African team in the tournament.’’Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Group D opponents: Iceland and Argentina have flown to Russia ahead of their opening matches at the 2018 World Cup.
The Nordic nation has the least population of all the countries that will be playing in Russia this month, with an estimated 335,000 people.Iceland, playing as underdogs pulled off a major shock at the Euro tournament in 2016 where they beat England 2-1 enroute to advancing to the quarterfinals in that competition.
The Heimir Hallgrimsson-led side finalised their preparations for the competition with a 2-2 draw with Ghana last Thursday, with Kari árnason and Alfreð Finnbogason scoring the goals for the team.The Argentine Football Association few minutes ago tweeted that the national team has departed for Russia.
English Premier League stars Marcos Rojo, Nicolás Otamendi, Sergio Aguero and Willy Caballero plus Lionel Messi, Gonzalo Higuaín and ángel Di María were part of the traveling party, as River Plate’s Enzo Pérez replaced West Ham’s Manuel Lanzini, who suffered a ruptured anterior knee ligament injury during training on Friday.Eagles will be seeking their first win in their opening game of the World Cup in 20 years when they clash with Croatia next Saturday.
Packaged by Lanre Olabisi
