13072019 - Buhari on new cabinet: I’ll never appoint ‘strangers’ again

SATURDAY Vanguard, JULY 13, 2019—45
Ex Internationals urge Super Eagles to show
more character against Algeria
As the Super Eagles pre
pare to battle the Desert
Foxes of Algeria in the AFCON
semi final in Cairo tomorrow,
ex internationals have spoken
on the need of the team to up
their game in order to overcome
the north Africans.
Speaking on a Brila 88.9 FM
programme, Sports Machine
monitored from Cairo, the
former Super Eagles players
were of the opinion that the
Gernot Rohr tutored side must
do more than they have done
so far in the competition.
Henry Nwosu whose goal
Oboh urges Eagles to be clinical
Aformer WBA internation
al, British and
Commonwealth light
heavyweight boxing champion
Peter Oboh has congratulated
the Super Eagles for their
fantastic victory over South
Africa in the quarter final of the
2019 AFCON in Egypt.
He praised the efforts of the
team but warned the Gernot
Ruhr-tutored team not to rest on
their oars.
Said he, “with the maxim that
says a man should not count his
chicks before they are hatched,
I urge the Eagles to work even
harder until they win the
trophy. The coach should work
more on strategy and
confidence. They should also
concentrate on how to utilise
every given opportunity that
comes our way”.
He advised the Eagles to put
behind them, their hard-earned
victory over South Africa and
rather focus on tomorrow's semi
final match. “We can build a
pedigree from that marvelous
victory and strive for better
results,” Oboh said, reminding
the players that President
<strong>Buhari</strong> and indeed, the entire
nation are awaiting their return
with the trophy
He pointed out that there were
still some gray areas in the team
that needed urgent attention
before tomorrow's semi final
match.
“The only gray area I saw
during the match against South
Africa was our failure to utilise
the various scoring
opportunities we had but the
good news is that we secured
the victory and silenced the
loquacious South Africans on
the night.”
against Cameroon in the AF-
CON final in 1988 in Morocco
was disqualified said the
Eagles must tackle the Algerians
who are very fast man for
man.
"The Super Eagles must take
on the Algerians man for man
because they are very fast",
Nwosu advised.
Former Eagles and Bendel
Insurance winger, Friday Elaho
believes that "it is going to
be 50-50 situation and the Super
Eagles need to be more aggressive".
Another ex player and an inhouse
analyst on Brila FM, Ifeanyi
Udeze agreeing with
Elaho on the game being a 50-
50 chance said "the Eagles
must show some character, if
they add a little bit of the character
they put up in the last
game against South Africa, I
assure you victory will be
theirs".
The Super Eagles have had
a better head to head advantage
over the Algerians in recent
years especially during
the 2018 World Cup qualifiers
as group mates.
Oboh said a Super Eagles
triumph at AFCON would have
a multiplier effect on the
country's economy as apart from
those industries directly
connected with football, bars
and restaurants will witness an
upsurge in traffic.
“Nigerian's are very generous
when it comes to jubilation that
comes from Nigerian victory in
sports specially super Eagles.”
•Oboh
How Eagles can
beat Algeria
– Okpala
By Jacob Ajom
Former Assistant coach of the
Super Eagles, Sylvanus
Okpala has urged Coach Gernot
Rohr to do everything possible to
ensure Nigeria beat Algeria in
tomorrow's semi final match of the
2019 AFCON in Egypt.
Okpala, a former Nigeria
international who was part of the
1980 AFCON-winning Nigerian
squad, later teamed up with late
Stephen Keshi to win Nigeria's
latest title in South Africa 2013.
The former international said,
having reached this level, the rise
or fall of the team depends on the
technical prowess of Rohr.
“When you get to this stage in a
tournament, matches are won by
the coach because he would have
by now known the weak and
stronger parts in the team and
provide the necessary solution. He
selects the team and should not
bow to external influence in his
decision making process.”
The former Rangers coach
observed that though the Super
Eagles began the tournament on a
not too promising note, they have
been able to raise their game. He
went memory lane, “In 1982 World
Cup, Italy failed to win a single
game at the group stages; they drew
with Cameroon, Mexico almost
beat them and if I remember
correctly, Peru was in that group
too. They struggled initially, but
went on to win the World Cup. The
Eagles can go all the way, even as
they started poorly.”
Okpala said the Super Eagles
match against South Africa was a
massive improvement on their
previous outings in the
tournament but added, “Rohr
would have had no excuse if they
lost to South Africa, having
watched them against Egypt. After
the Egypt match, the Bafana
Bafana had nothing to hide again
as they gave in their all in that
match. Rohr had time to study
them very well and I am sure that
paid off handsomely.”
Okpala said he was surprised at
As the 2019 AFCON reaches the
crucial stages, most Egyptians
are ‘praying’ that the two Maghreb
countries left in the competition,
Algeria and Tunisia don’t get to the
final.
If per chance any of them get to
the final, they are praying that they
don’t get to win the Cup on
Egyptian soil.
No north African country has
won the Nations Cup in another
north African country except Egypt
who won the inaugural edition in
1957 when Sudan hosted and only
three countries, Sudan, Ethiopia
and Egypt participated.
The Egyptians were vociferous
in their support for Côte d’Ivoire
against Algeria who they love to
hate and never hide it.
During the shoot out after the
match ended 1-1 even after the
extra time, a bar tender named
Khalid was praying for the
Ivorians, blowing his vuvuzela
when they converted their kick and
hissing when the Algerians scored
theirs.
Rohr's decision to confine Samuel
Chukwueze to the bench after the
first match against Burundi. “I
could not reason with him why he
kept the boy on the bench. To me
he was Nigeria's best player
against Burundi. I kept asking
why! But see what he did against
South Africa. He would have been
a better player by now if the coach
had been using him all along.”
Against Algeria, the former
Nigeria international said, “the
Eagles have a big fight on their
hands as the Algerians are a very
good side. They like holding on to
the ball and they are very fast.”
However, Okpala had some tips
for Rohr.”Nigerians play athletic
football. For you to show that
athleticism, you need space. They
must create the space by adopting
bolt marking and counter attack.
“When you adopt bolt marking
you don't give your opponents
space to operate. Put fast men
upfront who will counter attack
when your opponents lose
possession. Luckily Rohr has the
likes of Ahmed Musa, Samuel
Chukwueze, Odion Ighalo and
Moses Simon. If they adopt this
method, they can punish Algeria
with fast breaks from the
midfielders.”
But he insisted that to achieve
results, the Eagles must practice it
and perfect the act. “They have to
train, apply it and perfect it.”
Okpala observed that Algeria
started very well but showed signs
of fatigue in their last match
against Ivory Coast. “In the early
stages of the tournament they were
near perfect, but against Ivory
Coast I saw a team that was
getting tired. I was not impressed
as they almost lost it against Ivory
Coast. Should they repeat that
against Nigeria, then they will be
in trouble.”
He said this year's AFCON semi
finals between north and West
African teams potentially points to
three scenarios: an all-north
Africa final, all-west Africa final
or a final between north and west
Africa.
Egyptians pray against Algeria, Tunisia
Asked why he was against his
fellow Maghreb brothers, Khalid
said in smattering English “me no
support Algeria, they must not win
in Egypt”, without expatiating.
Even during the last quarter final
game between Tunisia and giant
killers, Madagascar, the Egyptians
equally showed bias for the Indian
Ocean boys but were not as
vociferous as in the Algerian-Cote
d’Ivoire game.
Except Egypt and Morocco who
have won the Nations Cup outside
their base, Algeria and Tunisia
have only won at home. Algeria
once in 1990 and Tunisia also once
2004.
Morocco won their only Nations
Cup outside their base but in
Ethiopia in 1976 and Egypt four
times, 1957 in Sudan, 1998 in
Burkina Faso, 2008 in Ghana and
2010 in Angola.
None of the Maghreb countries
have won on another’s soil, so the
Egyptians are praying against
Algeria and Tunisia.