Nigeria Desperate To Showcase Their Quality
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The biggest losers in this weekend’s round of 2010 World Cup qualifiers were in fact a team who drew.
Nigeria have a special place in the history of the African game, having produced some wonderful players over the years.
They are desperate to show they are still one of the giants of the continent by booking a place at the World Cup in South Africa – the ultimate celebration of the African game.
But the 2-2 home draw with Tunisia on Sunday now makes that look unlikely, as qualification is certainly Tunisia’s to lose with a two-point lead at the top of the table over the Super Eagles and a home match with Kenya and away fixture in Mozambique to come.
The blame from within Nigeria will inevitably fall on coach Shaibu Amodu, but the players need to take responsibility for the result.
To take the lead and then concede within a minute is criminal. It is an old-fashioned cliché in football that you are never more vulnerable than when you have just scored and the loss of concentration suffered by the players in the euphoria of their goal is Sunday League stuff.
But worse was to come as they took the lead again with 10 minutes to go, but could not hold on, looking flustered and hesitant at the back, to allow the Tunisians to equalise once more.
Qualification for the World Cup finals is tough and it needs to be earned. If you commit basic errors as the Nigerians did in Abuja, you will be punished.
What’s worse, these errors are coming from experienced internationals, which makes it all the more galling. Nigeria have to believe they can still qualify, but they also need to take a long hard look at themselves and wonder if they are doing Amodu and the Nigerian people disservice.
They must look at the manner in which Ghana secured qualification, and also look to sides such as Cote d’Ivoire, and wonder whether they really can claim to be a top African team for the moment.
Time will tell, but the odds are now that they will have to wait until 2014 to prove it.
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