The performance of the Super Eagles in their last group game against Guinea-Bissau left so much to be desired by Nigerians despite being through to the round of 16 of the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast.
Nigeria beat Guinea-Bissau 1-0 at the Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny stadium on Monday and finished second in Group A with seven points to book their place in the round of 16.
A first half own goal by Opa Sanganté helped Jose Peseiro’s men go past the gutsy Djurtus.
Equatorial Guinea caused the biggest upset of the tournament by beating hosts Ivory Coast 4-0 in the other game, taking them top of the group ahead of Nigeria with a superior goal difference while the hosts, who have only three points, are on the brink of exit.
As the Eagles await their round of 16 opponents — the second-place team from Group C — their performance in the final group game is under scrutiny as they hope to progress in the tournament.
Former Eagles goalkeeper and captain, Peter Rufai said, “I expected a much better result than this but three points is three points. We knew the performance they put up against Ivory Coast, so, we expected them to raise the bar in this game.”
Other Nigerians also shared Rufai’s opinion.
“Nigeria has qualified for the next round of the AFCON but by luck. It’s been such a disappointing performance from the Super Eagles. First match was a lucky goal, second match a penalty and third match an own-goal. The team needs to seriously step it up,” Olawale Awoleye said.
Another fan, Amos Oya, also said, “Not the best performance for me but we qualified for round of 16 and I hope we improve on our finishings.”
“Not impressive performance they can do better and coordinate themselves better on the pitch, show the real Super Eagles,” Stephen Akinola said.
Another fan, Anyarogbu Justin, noted, “These boys are really underperforming. They can do far better than this. I can’t defend this performance again.”
Nigeria’s round of 16 game will come up on Saturday.
Credit: punchng.com
