AFCON: S’EAGLES MUST FOCUS ON ANGOLA, SAYS PESEIRO
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The Super Eagles of Nigeria’s coach, Jose Peseiro, has acknowledged that the AFCON quarter-final match against Angola will be difficult than the Cameroon game.
Remember that on Saturday, Nigeria defeated longtime rivals Cameroon 2-0 to advance to the Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinals as Ademola Lookman scored both goals.
Following their triumphs in 1980, 1994, and 2013, Nigeria will now play Angola in the quarterfinals on February 2 in an attempt to win a fourth continental title.
In response to the team’s 2-0 victory in the AFCON round of 16 at the Félix Houphouët-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan, Peseiro praised his players but also mentioned that the boys had been given two days off before returning to work to prepare for the crucial quarterfinal matchup with Angola.
“I think my players know that. We are playing with a fantastic spirit now, but we must be focused on the target and train more before the next match,” Peseiro said.
Peseiro, who was evaluating each player’s individual performance, stated that even though Victor Osimhen did not score on Saturday, he had an excellent game and that stopping the prolific Napoli striker is extremely difficult.
“He (Osimhen) is a fantastic player for our team, we have very good players, he will win the ball, hold play until our players arrive,” Peseiro said.
However, the Portuguese revealed that selecting the first 11 for each game has been very difficult and complicated.
Meanwhile, Gelson Dala increased his AFCON goal tally to four with a brace for 10-man Angola in a 3-0 last-16 triumph over Namibia in Bouake on Saturday.
Angola, who had only four wins in 26 AFCON games, was expected to finish third at best. Instead, they won a group that included Burkina Faso, Mauritania, and surprise losers Algeria.
On Friday, February 2, at 9 p.m. (Nigerian time), Nigeria will play Angola in the AFCON quarterfinal at the Félix Houphouët-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan.
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