The Super Eagles of Nigeria defeated 10-man Mozambique in Portugal but still looked shaky on several fronts, leaving fans dissatisfied.
Goals from Terem Moffi, Frank Onyeka and Moses Simon secured a win for the Super Eagles, but their performances were far from convincing, showing that Peseiro’s men need to work harder ahead of the 2024 AFCON tournament.
Here are four takeaways from the encounter;
1. The Super Eagles goalkeeping crisis continues
Coach Peseiro urged Nigerians to show more support to the goalkeepers in his post-match conference after the draw against Saudi Arabia, referencing Francis Uzoho’s error, but the Omonia SC goalkeeper didn’t help himself either.
With the mistake that led to Nigeria’s absence from the 2022 World Cup still lingering fresh in the minds of Nigerian football fans, Uzoho has made errors leading to goals in two consecutive games, and questions are beginning to arise concerning the coach’s choice.
Maduka Okoye is yet to get a minute of game time this season, both in club and country and Peseiro has refused to allow either Enyimba’s Olorunleke Ojo or Adebayo Adeleye to prove themselves in recent times.
2. Peseiro’s 4-4-2 formation leaves the midfield empty
Today’s game against Mozambique was mostly end-to-end, despite the opponent playing with a man less. For the most part, Nigeria had four attackers running towards the opponent’s goal, with no one in the midfield to break between the lines.
There is little to no ball retention, and the Super Eagles will be easily carved open should they come up against tougher opposition.
3. Onyemaemachi and Moffi are hungry for starting spots
Boavista’s Bruno Onyemaechi had another superb performance at left-back and is proving he can rival Porto’s Zaidu Sanusi for the spot.
With Iheanacho and Osimhen away, Terem Moffi showed he doesn’t want to play a limited role in the attack, capping his performance with a goal.
4. The Super Eagles finally win a friendly game
Many expected Nigeria to have an easy win, but it didn’t turn out to be so, and with the team winless in fifteen previous friendly games, dating back to 2019, the dressing room would have been filled with sighs of relief, and they will hope to continue in this vein as time goes on.
