Super Eagles of Nigeria would be under severe pressure to win when they confront Sierra Leone senior national team in the reverse fixture of the 2022 Africa Cup of Nation qualifier scheduled for this evening in Freetown.
These were the submission of former Coach of Messiah Football Club of Lagos, Ushurhe Anthony in a telephone chat with our correspondent early today.
Anthony who is currently handling the U-16 Arsenal football team that are playing in the Junior Premier League in USA said he was disappointed with the lackluster performance of the senior national team by allowing their opponents to come from behind and ended the encounter with 4-4 in the first.
He said that with the draw the visiting team picked in Edo, the country senior national team are in big trouble.
“ We are going to play under severe pressure today because Nigerians football fans back home and in the diaspora are not happy with first leg match. Eagles must win convincingly today in order to make their fans happy again.
“It is going to be a tough match because Sierra Leone players have a destiny in their hands and they also want to go to the Nations Cup so we are in a dicey situation. When I watched the first leg, we played better in the first half but things began to fall apart when we resumed the second half. There was no coordination between defence line and midfield department and I observed that most of the players were not hungry for success and time has come for the coaching crew to overhaul the team and bring in some players who are ready to give their best for return leg tie.
“Failure to do this, let forget 2021 Africa Nations Cup tournament and prepare for future continental competitions because we cannot continue to do the same thing and we would continue to get the same result. If hands are on deck, we may come out victorious today but the players at this juncture need to sacrifice everything they have to qualify the country for Nations Cup” he said.
Despite the uninspiring performance Eagles display in the first leg, Anthony who doubles as football manager advised the coaching crew led by Gernot Rohr to stick with the pattern they used in the first half, the better for the team.
Meanwhile, Gernot Rohr and his men squandered a four-goal lead in Nigeria to play a 4-4 draw on Friday as they look to redeem their image in their Tuesday fixture against the Leone Stars in the make or mar Africa Nations Cup Qualifying match.
