By Adebayo Olodan
Nigerians last Friday, waited anxiously for the 2018 World Cup draw with the hope that the Super Eagles will be pitched alongside weaker opponents. At the end of the day, the Super Eagles will have to battle it out with Argentina, Iceland and Croatia for qualification from Group D to the knockout stages.
This will be Nigeria’s sixth appearance at a World Cup – and their third in a row. The Super Eagles have reached the last 16 three times – 1994, 1998 and 2014 – but have never advanced beyond that stage.
Aside Argentina that is a familiar foe, having met them at the group stage of the 1994, 2002, 2010 and 2014 World Cup, the Eagles is yet to play Croatia and Iceland at the senior level.
On all previous occasions that the Eagles have played Argentina at the World Cup, the Argentines emerged victorious though slim margin, with 2-1, 1-0, 1-0 and 3-2 results. The Super Eagles’ triumphs against the South American nation had come in only friendly matches.
In Russia, it is imperative for the Eagles to land their ‘first punch’ on the Argentines by going all out for victory in the final match of the group.
For the Eagles to avoid exiting the tourney prematurely, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and Coach Gernot Rohr must line up a number of ‘Grade A’ friendly matches for the team en route Russia. The Eagles must play against teams that can expose their weaknesses and with similar playing pattern as their Group D opponents.
Also, the issue of indiscipline among players, which has consistently denied the team qualification for the second round or quarter finals must be curtailed. A case that readily comes to mind is the France 1998 World Cup where the players reportedly went partying all night ahead of the second round match against Denmark. At the end of the day, the Eagles got walloped 4-1 by the Danes who exploited the fatigue of their Nigerian counterparts.
For now, the most important match for the Eagles at the World Cup is the group opener against Croatia scheduled for June 16, 2018. The lads need to keep their heads by not only ensuring they secure the three points but they must avoid picking up cards unnecessarily.
Winning the opener will ease the pressure on the Eagles and the result may also count in their favour when they confront Iceland in the second game. The Croatian team is a difficult side though and the Eagles must watch out for Luka Modric, Ivan Rakitic, Ivan Perisic, Dejan Loveren, Sime Vrsaljko, Marco Braozovic, Niko Kalinic and Mario Mandzukic if they are to pick the desired result from the game.
Madzukic, who has represented Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid before joining Juventus will be dangerous from set-pieces where he scored the larger part of his five goals in qualifier.
The game against Iceland will not come easy too with Gylfi Sigurdsson, Aron Gunnarson their biggest stars.
Rohr was emphatic about the need for the Eagles to start on the right note when he said, “It’s the first game and if we start well, we can have a chance to go through. Croatia will be the most important game because they have technical quality and play very good football.
“At the moment, they are one of the best teams in Europe and beat Greece 4-1 in the play-offs so we have to be prepared and ready for them.”
John Obi Mikel as the most experienced member of the squad with 80 caps will be a key figure for the Super Eagles in Russia. Coach Rohr may need to further try the 3-5-2 formation the Eagles adopted in the 4-2 defeat of Argentina in a recent friendly match, in subsequent games. Given the challenge of finding an ideal left-back for the Eagles, the coach may try out Victor Moses in the left wingback role in a 3-5-2 formation, otherwise, he may stuck to his latest discovery, Brian Idowu or Ola Ana.
The coach should look to strengthen the squad by scouting various leagues in Europe for Nigerian-born players. He should also move around the country to scout domestic league players for the team.
Rohr should be magnanimous enough to recall some of the players that have been blacklisted from the team by the NFF or previous coaches.
Areas that presently need some rejuvenation is the goalkeeping department, defence and also the attack. There should be no further invitation to Daniel Akpeyi as he has proven overtime that he can no longer be trusted with the gloves. The coach must as a matter of urgency look at other central defensive options should the duo of William Troost-Ekong and Leon Balogun be unavailable in important matches.
Sylvester Igboun and Kayode Olanrewaju should be recalled to the team to bolster the attack. Also due for consideration is Abduljeleel Ajagun who has been firing in all cylinders in the Belgian league. Above all, the gaffer must combine experience with youths to achieve the desired result in Russia.
With bonuses and allowances of the players already sorted out, the Eagles are likely to break the quarter final jinx if the lads keep their heads low with better preparation.
