The Super Eagles on Thursday already grabbed a ticket to the finals of the Africa Cup of Nations slated for Morocco even before the first kick of the ball in the Group D qualifier against the Cheetahs of Benin Republic.
Nigeria’s qualification was confirmed following Libya’s 1-0 victory over Rwanda in Kigali, a result that mathematically secured the three-time champions a place in the finals. Libya secured the win after Fahd Al-Mesmary fired a goal in the 84th minute to silence the home team.
The Benin/Nigeria match was another issue entirely. I cannot say the Eagles were complacent but it was a poor show by them. The goalkeeper, Stanley Nwabali, will be sorry for himself after watching a replay of the goal he conceded. It was generally poor defending and overall, the Eagles did not come to the party and it was evident that the entire team lacked fitness, cohesion and pattern.
It was a shock to see Frank Onyeka and Moses Simon on the bench. The starting shirt given to Iheanacho was equally a surprise and taking him out was a great idea by interim coach Austin Eguavoen.
The Cheetahs were more direct, more purposeful and getting the first goal was good for them to keep their qualification hopes alive.
Before Victor Osimhen registered the 81st minute equaliser, he had missed a big chance in the closing minutes of the first half when his header went wide.
However, the striker deserves kudos for scoring 23 goals in his 38 matches so far for Nigeria. At 25 years old, he has equalled the goal tally of legendary Segun Odegbami who registered 23 goals in 47 games for Nigeria as a winger and not an outright striker. No doubt, Odegbami was awesome. Osimhen is on course to equal and break the record of Yekini in a couple of years to come. He is aggressive, agile, consistent and focused to become one of the best strikers in world football.
It was not necessary to parade all the array of stars in that encounter, only the NFF can explain why Nigeria will invite 22 foreign-based professionals despite the economic situation in the country. The NFF should have invited just seven or maximum 10 players and blend with domestic league stars and few other fringe players abroad. It was a wasteful venture because it was clear the Eagles will at least pick a point in maximum six in this window.
The uncertainty surrounding Eguavoen is a big issue. As the Technical Director of the federation, he has other duties to perform and the NFF should have taken a stand in the past months about the substantive coach of the Eagles. If Eguavoen is the choice, the NFF should name another Technical Director and give Eguavoen at least a two-year contract. If not, the federation should name a coach whether domestic or foreign because the task ahead in the upcoming year is massive.
Nigeria has six World Cup qualifiers to play in 2025 with the hope of winning all to be on course to participate in the next Copa Mundial after missing out of the last World Cup. The manager of the Super Eagles must be known NOW to enable him to plan for the dicey year ahead of the team.
For the Monday dead rubber game against Rwanda, Eguavoen should roll out his best legs and use this match to understand the Rwandans better because the Eagles will still play them in the World Cup qualifiers next year. This match should be used to study how best the Eagles will handle the Rwandans in the all-important World Cup qualifier. It is sad that with the array of stars paraded again Benin, the team struggled to earn a draw.
The waiting game for a substantive coach for the Eagles should be over by now. A decision should be taken now because the time is so short.
There is so much to be done behind the scene and the margin for error in the World Cup qualifiers has been reduced to almost zero. NFF must act now in the best interest of the football-loving Nigerians.
It will be a shame to lose the FIFA World Cup ticket back-to-back. With the talents in the Super Eagles, Nigeria deserves better and the country should not be struggling in qualifying games. After the massive waste of funds in the current transfer window, the NFF board members should put on their thinking cap and take a decision on the coaching situation of the Super Eagles.
After all, this is the biggest sports brand of the country, so why the delay in decision making which could affect the team later?
