The newly appointed coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Jose Peseiro has explained what he thought made the senior national team of Nigeria lost their round of 16 game at the Africa Cup of Nations 0-1 to Tunisia.

Peseiro speaking at the media conference ahead of today’s AFCON 2023 qualifiers against Sierra Leone said the Nigerian team was the better them at the AFCON but lost due to a situation that was out of their hands.

He said the red card to Alex Iwobi was not deserved and it played a role in the final outcome of the game. He said even with one man down , the Nigerian team still played better than Tunisia. Simply put he felt poor officiating was partly the reason why the team lost.

“In the last AFCON I think our team was the best there but bad luck in that moment. That crazy red card. The VAR discovered in this moment made a red card for nothing because even against Tunisia”, he said.

”The team was better than Tunisia even with ten men they created enough opportunity to score and win the match. Of course you the people, the fans sometimes you can not see that because of the emotion close your eyes but for me I saw in that moment. I don’t speak about the match against Ghana but against Tunisia”, he stated.

The captain of the senior national team of Sierra Leone Steven Caulker has explained why he switched nationality from England to Sierra Leone depsite playing for the former at senior international level.

Despite playing for England at several youth levels and making the step up to the main team, Caulker last year accepted a call up to represent the Lone stars and was a part of the team for the Africa Cup of Nations which was their first appearance in 25 years.

Explaining his decision, the 30 year old while responding to a question from OwnGoalNigeria.com senior editor Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman said it was a very easy decision owing to his ties with the country of his grand father.

He said he always felt Sierra Leone is a part of his life and when he was contacted to play for the country for the first time last year, he felt it was the right thing to do as he last played for England ten years ago. A timely message players of Nigerian descent who fancy playing for England ahead of Nigeria.

“The transition was actually quite smooth. It just about timing I haven’t been asked to play for Sierra Leone until last year so when the call came in it was phone call originally from the football association. Read through their interest. I was told Sierra Leone were interested in bringing me inside and I have some conversation with John and the FA President”, he explained .

“I felt it was the right step for me. I always felt Sierra Leone is a part of my life , I have been there and built schools. I had a connection to the country from my grand dad so when I was asked to come and play and represent them it felt like the right thing to do.

“I played for England ten years ago so it’s a distant memory for me and coming to Africa to play here is very different as the coach mentioned from Europe to here is completely different football but I enjoy it here because we play with a lot of passion, a lot of spirit inside our camp. I feel like we playing for the right reasons. It was nice to see the joy we brought to the nation during the AFCON was special to me. I hope to build on that connection”, he concluded.

The main reason why Leicester City forward Kelechi Iheanacho isn’t in the sqaud of the senior national team of Nigeria for today’s Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers has been made known to OwnGoalNigeria.com.

Iheanacho’s name was conspicuously missing from the list of players for the two friendly games against Mexico and Ecuador respectively. He still wasn’t considered when the coach rejigged the squad for today’s AFCON 2023 qualifiers against Sierra Leone.

His omission led to talks of a possible bleak future for the left footed forward in the senior national team of Nigeria under new coach Jose Peseiro but we found out it’s far from it as adminstrative issues kept him out of the team.

We gathered he is due for UK citizenship and subsequently submitted his Nigerian passport for the process around same time it was needed for the trip to the United States of America and Nigeria for the qualifiers.

He is expected to be back in the team once the process is completed. A team source exclusively revealed to this portal on the condition of anonymity insisting that Peseiro is aware of the reason and ready to call him up for future games.

The captain of the senior national team of Nigeria Ahmed Musa says the pressure of playing for the senior national team of Nigeria weighs heavily on young players coming into the team.

Musa made this known while responding to questions from journalist at the pre match conference ahead of tomorrow’s 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers game against Sierra Leone in Abuja.

He said the pressure most times kills the morale of young players calling on the fans and the media not to pressure the coaches into playing young players who are sometimes not ready to cope with the pressure.

” I have to say something. Which is the pressure we put on young players to start playing for the senior national team of Nigeria. It’s a gradual process just like me I started by playing ten to fifteen minutes before getting to the level where I am now”, he explained.

” The Super Eagles is not U20, U23 or U17 where players can be said to be growing. The pressure of delivering instantly gets to these young players especially when they fail to deliver and get attack from all corners. We have to be patient with them because as young players they need time to adapt and get used to the pressure” he concluded.

The coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Jose Peseiro has given his take on inviting players from the Nigeria Professional Football League to be a part of his team.

Peseiro called up eight players from teams in the Nigeria Professional Football League for his first two games as coach of the team but ahead of his first competitive game against Sierra Leone tomorrow, only two were listed in the sqaud.

Asked if he dropped the rest due to lack of quality, the Portuguese coach said it’s about getting the right players who can help the team get the desired results after the AFCON disappointment and the failure to qualify for the World Cup.

He said he will call up home based players if he watches them and see that they have what it takes to improve his team. He also made it clear that the senior national team isn’t for players development rather for players who are at the peak of their game.

On Home Based Players

You know in the senior national team it’s not possible you improve individual performance of players. It’s not our work, it’s not our job. We can of course, if I put some player, young player in our team if they do well, so he can grow up in his career. What I can do is to improve our team. In five to six days you can not improve the fitness of one player. You can not improve the technical, the tactical. We don’t have too much time for that.

You can of course around two years if you repeat the same organization. The same talent, the same situation. The same mode of physical process you can improve them but more of it is that you can improve in 90 percent collective tactics. For that I need to choose we’ll depending on the kind of match. This guy can play in that position, this guy cam play in the other position. We don’t have a program to improve the players but we have a program to improve the national team because I believe with the quality of this player what they need is organization.  They need to know what I want to do on the pitch. They come from different teams, different situations, different ideas. They come from all over the world. When they come here , we need to build one system which they feel comfortable.

We need to see because we want to do our job. We want to introduce some new players not just local players , it’s step by step but the problem of our national team isn’t players of quality, that is wrong. It’s possible we call to the team players of quality.

For that I will be here to see the match or my assistant but you have players in 22, 23 or 24 here who can play here for the next ten years which is big quality. Why not this moment is because national team is about result. We didn’t go to the World Cup, we didn’t win the last AFCON. These players are not good? For me no. I came not because I didn’t see the local players but I see the national team players. I see the players who belong to the national team now. Of course like in life, one will go, some players will go and other players will come but our best players belong to outside the country & if we want more, we will invite.

The new coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Jose Peseiro says his idea of how his team should play stays same regardless of the tactics he decides to use in games.

Peseiro made this known while responding to questions during the team’s pre match press conference ahead of tomorrow’s AFCON 2023 qualifiers game against Sierra Leone in Abuja.

OwnGoalNigeria.com senior editor, Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman sought to hear from the coach which tactics is his favourite as he has so far used two different formations in just two games in charge of the team.

Super Eagles started the game against Mexico which they lost 1-2 playing in a 5-3-2 formation before switching to 4-4-2. A move which the coach explained was due to the players available to him.

He explained that regardless of the system he plays, he want the Super Eagles to play an attacking brand of football and dominate teams both offensively and defensively.

“We played 5-3-2 not because I like playing 5-3-2 but you know the players who are there. You know I adapt our model, our tactics to the players who came with us there. Local players but first of all I try to put in the pitch, the normal players in the national team. After that I put young players in the field. For creating that team for the eleven that will play, I use the characteristic of the players to play 5-3-2”, he explained.

In my mind I have to manage the players. We could not play 4-3-2 or 4-4-2 because I didn’t have all the players there. More defensive players than in attack, more defensive players than midfield players only that. You can play 3-5-2, 4-3-2 or 4-3-3. It’s not about the model, the main thing is the principle.

I like to attack, I like to play with high pressure, I like to command the game with the ball. I can do it with 5-3-2, 4-4-2, 3-4-3 like you want but with little training of course and you need time for that but I know I have players with quality, who can learn quickly. It’s different when you train Nigeria than other teams who don’t have qualities like our players. What I know is that they learn quickly”, he concluded.

The coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Jose Peseiro had his first full press conference with the Nigerian media ahead of his first competitive game as coach of the team.

OwnGoalNigeria.com witnessed the session and here are what the Portuguese coach said about playing games in the Moshood Abiola Stadium Abuja in the wake of reports that he criticised the playing surface, also his favourite tactis and his target of winning the next Africa Cup of Nations.

State Of Abuja Pitch

I don’t know, I didn’t complain. I didn’t speak with anyone about the pitch, about the stadium nothing. I don’t know about how come this news because I didn’t speak to any journalist. I speak to journalists at this press conference instead only that because our focus is the match. For us is about my team playing very well tomorrow and beat Sierra Leone.

It’s my life, my career and I am okay with my career but it’s okay. I accept the critics, I accept the protagonist. I accept everything but now for me only think I can advice you or what I can say to you is you must evaluate my job here.

Winning Next AFCON 

Why did you think I told the president of the NFF that I want to come here? Why did you think I said I want to win the next AFCON, Why? Can you tell me? Because I believe in the players like you congratulations (laughs).

Of course i believe in them. I am not a crazy guy. I came here because I want to work. If I don’t work, you are going to kill me. I have confidence and myself as well. I can choose a good way with them. All of my career I build on the idea, super idea. Modern day idea , training ideas and about many things for many years. Of course that idea in me and my staff you need to share, you need to join with my players in this environment for them to learn also because it’s possible something that I want, I like but I can’t not do here.

I need to adapt to them. In this moment you start in stages. Start to see, to hear and to feel what I can do here. For that I spoke with the players, I spoke with the staff. I spoke with everybody. Step by step I will go to learn more about this context, about this environment, about the characteristics of my players not only in the video because I saw so many videos but I will know better when I go to the pitch and train with them.

Along the few days we did some exercises, I must see if they adapt, if they like my tactics for tomorrow. It’s one process but you must win tomorrow. We have time for that but first of all I want to win and we must win.

Favourite Tactics 

We played 5-3-2 not because I like playing 5-3-2 but you know the players who are there. You know I adapt our model, our tactics to the players who came with us there. Local players but first of all I try to put in the pitch, the normal players in the national team. After that I put young players in the field. For creating that team for the eleven that will play, I use the characteristic of the players to play 5-3-2.

In my mind I have to manage the players. We could not play 4-3-2 or 4-4-2 because I didn’t have all the players there. More defensive players than in attack, more defensive players than midfield players only that. You can play 3-5-2, 4-3-2 or 4-3-3. It’s not about the model, the main thing is the principle.

I like to attack, I like to play with high pressure, I like to command the game with the ball. I can do it with 5-3-2, 4-4-2, 3-4-3 like you want but with little training of course and you need time for that but I know I have players with quality, who can learn quickly. It’s different when you train Nigeria than other teams who don’t have qualities like our players. What I know is that they learn quickly.

The senior national team of Nigeria are close to rounding up preparation for tomorrow’s game against Sierra Leone which is their first in the race to be at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

New coach Jose Peseiro has been taking the team in training with two friendly games against Mexico and Ecuador ending in 1-2 and 0-1 losses respectively. Sierra Leone will be his first competitive game in charge.

It appears he is keen on playing a system that accommodates two strikers in attack as he used same formation in both friendly games. He paired Cyriel Dessers with Terem Moffi.

However that hasn’t been the case so far as he has in the last two session of the team used the pair of Victor Osimhen and Sadiq Umar in attack with the former slightly ahead. The coach had a private session with the duo yesterday and that has added more to the idea that they might start tomorrow.

Peseiro is also leaning towards a new central defence partnership with the duo of Semi Ajayi and William Troost Ekong. He has had them play with the team that looks likely to start tomorrow. Also his assistant Acacio Santos did several drills with the duo.

The one area where the coach still remain undecided is the area of left full back. It’s a straight fight between Calvin Bassey and Zaidu Sanusi. Bassey slightly ahead but he might be drafted to play in central defence if Peseiro decides to play with the 3-5-2 formation.

The recent outcry over the continual presence of captain of the senior national team of Nigeria Ahmed Musa in the team’s set up took a different turn after he made a u-turn on his decision to retire from international football.

Musa said the last Africa Cup of Nations will be his last tournament but he has backtracked on that statement and he is presently in the camp of the team getting set for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers game against Sierra Leone.

He went further to say he is looking forward to the tournament as well in Cote d’Ivoire next year. Clearly making a statement that he is going to be around for the foreseeable future. The big question is if he deserve to still be in the team.

OwnGoalNigeria.com senior editor, Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman takes a look at why he is still in the team beyond the fact that he wears the captain armband or as some will like to ignorantly assume represents a power bloc in the hierarchy of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF).

In all of these, one thing people against the presence of Musa in the team fail to see is that he isn’t stopping anyone from getting a look in or starting games. He is not even a starter the past two years. As many as six players have started games ahead of him within that period under review.

Again Musa’s presence isn’t why Samuel Chukwueze who is still ahead of the 29 year old in the pecking order hasn’t delivered as expected. He started like a house on fire but these days many feel he isn’t even suppose to be in the team, how much more starting games.

Samuel Kalu is another who at a time was preferred ahead of Musa. However Kalu’s club form became so bad that his move to Watford from the bench of Bordeaux came as a suprise to even the player himself. At Watford he isn’t seen as an option with injuries and fitness his biggest issue. You can’t blame Musa for that.

Then there was Chidera Ejuke, He blew everyone away with ease. Dribbles like he bought boots for the defenders. But after six to seven games with little or no impact in goals or assists. His spot in the team became a huge debate and today he is out of it completely. A case of not taking your chances when you had one. Blame Musa? I know you rather not.

Emmanuel Dennis readily comes to mind. He had a very good season at Watford with eleven goals to his name. But if not for the sack of Gernot Rohr he might still be in the wilderness of international football. It wasn’t about ability, it was about indiscipline. That kept him out for so long.

When he eventually got his chance. He decided to skip the Africa Cup of Nations to focus on his club career. How is that Musa’s fault? After the AFCON, he came back for the game against Ghana. Aside from giving space and time to the player who laid the assist for Thomas Partey’s goal which ended Nigeria’s World Cup hopes. One can’t remember what he did for the around 70 minutes he was on the pitch.

Musa came in as a substitute in same game and showed the kind of passion, dedication and commitment that the team lacked, it was however a little bit too late for him to decide the game. One thing is you can’t say Dennis wasn’t given his chance. Another player picked ahead of Musa. Are you still with me?

Then there is Ademola Lookman. It took almost forever to sort his switch of nationality from England to Nigeria. You can’t blame Musa for that. He became available and played just once. Still has time to prove if he is capable of keeping Musa out. Again he was picked twice ahead of Musa. So Musa’s presence had no effect on his stay in the team.

Many forget so soon that Alex Iwobi was the go to guy from that position which Musa stole the heart and soul of the world at the World Cup. Infact Musa didn’t start the first game of the tournament. Iwobi did but when he was handed his chance, he made the difference against Iceland. True?

Now Iwobi prefers to play in the midfield not because of Musa but he sees that position as his area of strength. Should we blame Musa for that?

All the players mentioned above haven’t stepped up as expected. It’s worthy to note that at their age Musa was already a serial match winner for Nigeria. Again what’s the debate about the inclusion of a player who played 31 games last season? How many players in the team played that much last season? Very few. Oh please shut up. Musa deserve his spot.

Coach of the Nigeria U17 team Nduka Ugbade earlier today released a list of 20 played who will represent Nigeria at the WAFU B Championship in Ghana. The coach also places five players on standby.

OwnGoalNigeria.com takes a look at five top players in the team who will likely take the tournament by storm underway when the opening proceedings against host Ghana.

Richard Odoh- A very promising goalkepper with very good reflex and a firm grip. Claims crosses with ease and also very good at stopping penalties. One to watch out for in the tournament.

Yahaya Danjuma Lawali – The vice captain of the team who operates as a right back or left full back. Good and assured on the ball and very good in tackles. His energy enables him to join attack with ease where he is also not bad at delivering crosses.

Emmanuel Michael – Came to the camp as an attacking midfielder. Drafted to the left back after the two options in that position failed the Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) test.

Since moving to left back he has not only distinguished himself in defending. He has also proven to be deadly from set pieces. He scored at least four free kicks in test games. The Simoiben Academy talent is among the first name on the team’s list for games.

Ebube Okere – A workaholic midfielder who can operate anywhere in the middle of the pack. Tackles and uses the ball very well. Blessed with an eye for a pass. Certainly holds the key to the team transiting from defence to attack with ease.

Precious Williams- His performance has already led to talks of the forward having a better ceiling than Victor Osimhen at same level. Scored around 40% of the teams goal at the tournament in test games. He is the captain of the team and expected to lead their chase for goals.

GOLDEN EAGLETS FOR WAFU B U17 CHAMPIONSHIP IN CAPE COAST

Squad list

Goalkeepers: Richard Odoh, Hameed Balogun, Pascal Uzoho

Defenders: Jeremiah Olaleke, Emmanuel Michael, Tochukwu Ogboji, Yahaya Lawal, Miracle Ogwor

Midfielders: Basil Mbata, Ebube Okere, Tochukwu Ogbabido, Richard Uche, Ozor Okeke, Raphael Oyebanjo

Forwards: Umar Abubakar, Kevwe Iyede, Light Eke, Abubakar Abdullahi, Jubril Azeez, Precious Williams

Standby: Utibe Silas, Abdullahi Buhari, Abubakar Shaibu, Tijjani Mohammed, Stephen Emmanuel