Football Nigeria -- Eagles Etcetera

Alexandria, EGYPT -- Nigeria suffered a 0-2 shock in its encounter with Madagascar. Going into this game many expected Nigeria to take all three points when only a tie was needed. Yet, Nigeria neither accomplished a win nor did it split the points on a tie. Instead, the shock loss denies Nigeria the top position in the group and condemns Nigeria to a tougher Round of 16 match-up. An early blunder by John Ogu and then Balogun's lack of awareness or failure to protect the ball resulted in a gift goal to Madagascar. Bouyed by the goal, Madagascar defended stoutly and presented problems in a few counters. While it seemed Nigeria's frenetic play after going behind was going to earn them at least a tie, it was another error that pushed Nigeria further back early in the second half. This time it was a poor pass by Etebo back into his area that forced Ndidi to foul a Madagascar forward. The resulting free kick deflected off Ndidi and wrong footed goalkeeper Ezenwa for the second goal...

Alexandria, Egypt -- Nigeria moved comfortably into the elimination phase of the 2019 African Cup of Nations with a deserved 1-0 win over Guinea, securing maximum points in two games with a game left to play. It was a deserved win. Nigeria provided very few opportunities to the Guineans who relied on phantom fouls to create any meaningful opportunities. The opening half was largely even with Iwobi granted a free role, which he took with relish. However, he did make some poor decisions on his passes but overall his involvement covered a lot of space. Behind him, Ndidi was having one of his best games for Nigeria giving Naby Keita fits in the middle. Nigeria's midfield was indeed authoritative until Iwobi was taken off for Chukwueze. The goal came from a set piece after Simon's corner kicks were wide off the mark. This time, in the 73rd minute, his kick found Omeruo who struck a sharp header beyond the Guinean goalkeeper. It underlined Nigeria's dominance in the game...

Alexandria, EGYPT -- Nigeria took all three points today with a 1-0 win over Burundi. That is what mattered as the Super Eagles' AFCON campaign commenced. However, the reality was that Nigeria was expected to crush the Burundi team. Nigeria dominated most of the game but the final play was lacking and the Burundians defended stoutly. One also has to wonder if the reported multiple illnesses and injuries in the Nigerian camp had its effect. In any case, the objective was achieved with Nigeria taking all three points. Samuel Chukwueze and Alex Iwobi were the most impressive Nigerian players going forward but it was Ighalo's clinical finishing from Ola Aina's superb assist made the difference. One shock was the performance of Nigerian captain Mikel Obi who was well below par until the manager rescued him with a deserved substitution after 57 minutes of work. The team was playing very quick with Chukwueze at the head of the spear, turning the Burundi defenders inside ...

In this blog piece I have collated Nigeria's records at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). What is clear is that some of those records would have been more impressive if maximum dictator Sani Abacha had not withdrawn the team from the 1996 tournament and also caused Nigeria's absence in 1998 due to suspension. But also the team's failure to qualify for the 2012, 2015, and 2017 tournaments cost players like Vincent Enyeama and Mikel Obi some individual records as well.  Nonetheless, with the 2019 AFCON at hand, it has become clear that few or perhaps none of Nigeria's records presented in the table below are under any serious threat. The records are categorized under team and individual. Team Records The 1980 tournament, which was the first AFCON won by Nigeria, remains the most efficient with four wins and just one tie leading to an efficiency of 0.867. It is unmatched by any tournament performance before or after. The wins of 2013 and 1994, in comparison, pr...

Although Odion Ighalo has not exactly been revered by Nigerian fans he  has opportunity to establish himself as the unquestioned choice as Nigeria’s top striker this summer. Ighalo has been despised by a section of Nigerian football fans because of his awful goal scoring record during the early part of his national team career. But his performance during the qualifiers for the 2019 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) has bolstered that record. Presently, his record of 0.407 goals per game is ahead of reputed goal scorers such as Yakubu Aiyegbeni (0.362) and Ikechukwu Uche (0.396), and not far behind Obafemi Martins (0.419).          Ighalo is a late bloomer, the new Emmanuel Emenike. By his 22nd game he was not remarkable but then surged in the AFCON qualifiers with seven goals. This is more like what Emmanuel Emenike had done during the period he played for Nigeria. Emenike started his first nine games scoring just once. However, he exploded at the 2013...

As the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) approaches, Nigeria's squad for the tournament appears to be set in stone. Ordinarily, this should not be a surprise. After all, teams counted as favorites to for the cup are those that have settled squads. Nigeria is one of those favorites. But there is something that strikes as unsettled with this Nigerian team. This team went to the World Cup and left with a few holes and with the retirement and questions surrounding a few key players, it appears that there is space for new talent. However, Manager Gernot Rohr is not a manager given to adopting significant changes. For him, the wheel of change rotates very slowly. The Push to Change the Squad Youngsters Samuel Chukwueze and Victor Osimhen are pushing for a place in the squad. They have been stellar for their European clubs, which is a prerequisite that Rohr has set for making the squad. However, both have barely registered as part of Rohr's team during Rohr's tenure. Osimh...

The 2019 Summer African Cup for Nations (AFCON) will most certainly be a referendum on Coach Gernot Rohr's tenure as manager of the national team of Nigeria. Here we use the word referendum as an imaginary given that it is the NFF that will ultimately make the decision. Nonetheless, the larger public is watching and as their emotion tilts from one end to the other, so also will be the emotion of the decision makers. Make no mistake about that. Rohr is currently in his fourth year in charge. He began his tenure in 2016 and his fourth straight year as manager ranks him, already, fifth longest-serving manager tied with two others (Ember and Chukwu) out of 29 managers who have managed at least five Nigerian games consecutively. Rohr is ahead of Otto Gloria and Shuaibu Amodu. Gloria won the AFCON and Amodu qualified the team to the World Cup two times and finished in the medal rounds of the AFCON. The only managers ahead of Rohr's longevity are Westerhoff, Tiko, Keshi, and Les C...