France 1 - 0 Nigeria FT

[txj]

The problem with the excessive focus on the refs is that it often distracts from our own failures.

While the team was clearly improved, it still fell far short...

Which team does not have failures?
Did the French team not have its own failures?

You can account for (and address) your failures, but not biased/poor officiating.

It cannot be biased officiating if its based on the rules.

All the teams and GK coaches were well apprised of the rules ahead of the tournament.

We lost as a result of our weaknesses and failures and I'd rather focus on our failures and leave Frances' to the French; unless you happen to be one

The part in bold is very very stupid.

The letter of the law is exactly how bias is codified. Nearly all laws allow for some discretion by the persons charged with enforcing them. It is within those discretion that the genuinely prejudicial hide with brazen openness.

It cannot be bias if it is a universal rule and if it was correctly applied.

People need to stop thinking from their ar$es...

[jette1]

The problem with the excessive focus on the refs is that it often distracts from our own failures.

While the team was clearly improved, it still fell far short...

Which team does not have failures?
Did the French team not have its own failures?

You can account for (and address) your failures, but not biased/poor officiating.

It cannot be biased officiating if its based on the rules.

All the teams and GK coaches were well apprised of the rules ahead of the tournament.

We lost as a result of our weaknesses and failures and I'd rather focus on our failures and leave Frances' to the French; unless you happen to be one

The part in bold is very very stupid.

The letter of the law is exactly how bias is codified. Nearly all laws allow for some discretion by the persons charged with enforcing them. It is within those discretion that the genuinely prejudicial hide with brazen openness.

It cannot be bias if it is a universal rule and if it was correctly applied.

People need to stop thinking from their ar$es...

There are Too many khaki short pullover bow tie wearing Negroes

[Thunder]

I don't think anyone is ignoring the deficiencies no one has. But it seems we like to dwell on these while not acknowledging the gap that has to be bridged.

I had the argument with someone, we have made progress in the last 20 years or so, progress that have come not because it was planned for xrsther because the players are determined. We down play the obstacles these girls have faced, they started attending world Cup when there was no league, I don't even know where they got the first batch from. Over that period we have tried to form a women's league which at best is still at its infancy stage.

Many of these girls probably don't play any organised football until late in their teens, and they have to face still cultural opposition to do so. I can imagine some of them telling their parents they want to go and play football.

So let me get this, we ignore this part, where most probably have their first coaching or organised football games late into their teens. Even when they do it is under some substandard condition...

And then you bring them to the world Cup to come and play against girls that have been playing since 4 years old and have played for clubs with grade A facilities. I tale my kids for football here, our national team cannot boast of the facilities they have.

We ignore all of theae and expect our girls or athletes to perform miracles.

Our progress has been slow, but giant steps are being made. Our girls are being scouted and taken abroad, where they will be exposed to better training facilities.

Aside from that, the exposure will also serve as enlightenment for parents back home, it is educational. Men's football in Nigeria began its ascendancy towards respectability when we won the u17 in 1985,suddenly parents no longer view playing football as the past time of miscreants.

We cannot blame these players, rather like pace setters they are we need to commend them. We may feel disappointed because we want them to do well, but anyone who has done sports to a reasonable level must factor these things.

A team got walloped 8 nil last year and got beat by a lone goal today and we still chose to rip into them? Are they anywhere near the two teams they lost to in this tournament?

Oloye,

Well stated. It is annoying when you have people thinking that you can only acknowledge great performance when a team wins the title. What a ridiculous way to think. There is no occupation in this world where success is measured by only being #1. It is like stating that the richest person is the only successful person in the world.

The girls have overcome so many odds and you have eloquently described some of those odds. Here is a team almost forgotten for the entire calendar year by the NFF and some are here blaming them. For me, this team has done well thus far and I hope that they get to the Round of 16. I am impressed by what they have done so far even though there is clearly more work ahead for us to get to the point where the talent of these girls should take them.

I wonder if anyone has ever asked how Aunty Ebi has managed to keep herself fit for 20 years, I would like to know. 5 wc ain't no joke and she looks super fit. All I see is personal sacrifice and love for the game, she deserves respect hence I call her Aunty Ebi not because she is older than me, it is my own way of saluting her achievements.

People like her have stayed in the game out of the love for the game to guide the young ones in, God bless her. We have come a long way. Aunty Ebi can walk into any European team, he defending is top notch. But I ask again what club does she play for, what training facilities is available to her? I can guess, she probably just works her arse off in a crude way devoid, devoid of any scientific monitoring until she probably shows up in camp again.

We compare our athletes with these European teams but ignore the facilities that produced the players we are comparing... So much for the African intellectual... My Prof I don tire ojare

The efforts of these ladies are highly commendable. Though the fan in me wants them to be able to compete with the US, but that’s wishful thinking in our current dispensation. The US organizes one week training camps at least six times a yea for different age groups from u14 & for both genders. They’re constantly scouting and bringing in different players to camps. While the USWNT played ten friendly matches & tournaments between January 9, and May 26, 2019 we hurriedly called these ladies together within a month, or less and expect a well oiled machine. To compare the two is so unfair. However, we can close the gap by holding weekend training centers, a la US at different locations to identify players, and camps every three months, for those thus identified. This way, the coaches are aware of the players and their fitness levels, and the players, the coaches philosophy and the system of play required. And this should be applicable to all the teams; u14M/W to the MW national teams.

[Oguleftie]

I don't think anyone is ignoring the deficiencies no one has. But it seems we like to dwell on these while not acknowledging the gap that has to be bridged.

I had the argument with someone, we have made progress in the last 20 years or so, progress that have come not because it was planned for xrsther because the players are determined. We down play the obstacles these girls have faced, they started attending world Cup when there was no league, I don't even know where they got the first batch from. Over that period we have tried to form a women's league which at best is still at its infancy stage.

Many of these girls probably don't play any organised football until late in their teens, and they have to face still cultural opposition to do so. I can imagine some of them telling their parents they want to go and play football.

So let me get this, we ignore this part, where most probably have their first coaching or organised football games late into their teens. Even when they do it is under some substandard condition...

And then you bring them to the world Cup to come and play against girls that have been playing since 4 years old and have played for clubs with grade A facilities. I tale my kids for football here, our national team cannot boast of the facilities they have.

We ignore all of theae and expect our girls or athletes to perform miracles.

Our progress has been slow, but giant steps are being made. Our girls are being scouted and taken abroad, where they will be exposed to better training facilities.

Aside from that, the exposure will also serve as enlightenment for parents back home, it is educational. Men's football in Nigeria began its ascendancy towards respectability when we won the u17 in 1985,suddenly parents no longer view playing football as the past time of miscreants.

We cannot blame these players, rather like pace setters they are we need to commend them. We may feel disappointed because we want them to do well, but anyone who has done sports to a reasonable level must factor these things.

A team got walloped 8 nil last year and got beat by a lone goal today and we still chose to rip into them? Are they anywhere near the two teams they lost to in this tournament?

Oloye,

Well stated. It is annoying when you have people thinking that you can only acknowledge great performance when a team wins the title. What a ridiculous way to think. There is no occupation in this world where success is measured by only being #1. It is like stating that the richest person is the only successful person in the world.

The girls have overcome so many odds and you have eloquently described some of those odds. Here is a team almost forgotten for the entire calendar year by the NFF and some are here blaming them. For me, this team has done well thus far and I hope that they get to the Round of 16. I am impressed by what they have done so far even though there is clearly more work ahead for us to get to the point where the talent of these girls should take them.

I wonder if anyone has ever asked how Aunty Ebi has managed to keep herself fit for 20 years, I would like to know. 5 wc ain't no joke and she looks super fit. All I see is personal sacrifice and love for the game, she deserves respect hence I call her Aunty Ebi not because she is older than me, it is my own way of saluting her achievements.

People like her have stayed in the game out of the love for the game to guide the young ones in, God bless her. We have come a long way. Aunty Ebi can walk into any European team, he defending is top notch. But I ask again what club does she play for, what training facilities is available to her? I can guess, she probably just works her arse off in a crude way devoid, devoid of any scientific monitoring until she probably shows up in camp again.

We compare our athletes with these European teams but ignore the facilities that produced the players we are comparing... So much for the African intellectual... My Prof I don tire ojare

The efforts of these ladies are highly commendable. Though the fan in me wants them to be able to compete with the US, but that’s wishful thinking in our current dispensation. The US organizes one week training camps at least six times a yea for different age groups from u14 & for both genders. They’re constantly scouting and bringing in different players to camps. While the USWNT played ten friendly matches & tournaments between January 9, and May 26, 2019 we hurriedly called these ladies together within a month, or less and expect a well oiled machine. To compare the two is so unfair. However, we can close the gap by holding weekend training centers, a la US at different locations to identify players, and camps every three months, for those thus identified. This way, the coaches are aware of the players and their fitness levels, and the players, the coaches philosophy and the system of play required. And this should be applicable to all the teams; u14M/W to the MW national teams.

You do not follow women's football.

[theYemster]

Why are our star players (Oshoala, Ordega and Oparanozie) are not having a good tournament?

Sometimes it happens like that. There are many reasons:

1. it could be pressure to perform. The team puts it on them and demand that they perform. Sometimes, they put it on themselves and feel like they must perform.

2. The opponents have spent months scouting and planning for them.

Asisat was especially poor, I'm suspecting maybe she was having her period or something. She just didn't seem to be in it.

nah equal pay oooo...dude go ahead and DM her..indare you to ask her people kai
.period

What a moronic comment.

Why do I need to ask her anything, it's not my business to know if that's the real reason. I don't need or want to know. That's why I didn't ask if that's the reason, instead what I did was suggested that it might be a possible reason. Big difference.

Do you ask all the male players about many of the critical, and oftentimes dumb things you say about them?

All of you acting like it's something negative or sexual, many people here for years practically sexually molested all the female CEs away from the forum, admiring the Falcons players, calling them your wives and whatnot; someone even referred to them as "babes" in this thread, and now y'all are pretending to be some kind of PC police. We're discussing the player's performance and suddenly it's taboo to acknowledge she might be going through a natural health related event which could explain her performance. What if a player that recently just had a baby, played and had a poor game, so we can't observe that the childbirth might have affected her? Ooooo, it's so bad we can't mention it. One would think we're all matured men here. I bet some of you will see breastfeeding as some kinda mating call.

I stand by what I posted, if you or anyone don't like it that's your business, you of all people that posts the dumbest things here. First that 1diot txj called me stupid and I overlooked it, and now you. Abeg keep it moving.

Pfft!

[Cmoke]

Best 4 third place

China Group B 4 points

Group C
Australia with 3 points, 0 GD
Plays Jamo who must beat them by 3 for us to leapfrog Australia.
Unlikely

Group D
Argentina 1 point -1 GD
Scotland 0 point -2 GD

A draw in Scotland v Argentina our only hope here

Group E
Cameroon 0 point-3 GD
N Zealand 0 point-3 GD
A draw or 1 goal win by N Zealand puts us ahead
1-0 win by Cameroon ties us and anymore goal scored by them even in 1 goal win screws us

Group F

Chile -5 , o point now i wished USA made that penalty
Thailand -17, 0 point

A win by Thailand by less than 19 goals
A draw
Or a Chile win by less than 3 goals


So prayer warriors where una Dey

Cmoke

[waka-man]

It’s so sad to know that there are rabid sexists on this site.
How dare you bring up a woman’s period as a reason for her supposed under-performance. In 2019. Jeez!!
Some of you need to go to re-education camps or move in with Donald Trump.

[marko]

The amount of resources made available to these top nations, even right down to grassroot levels, for example, there are a few girls from my son school, aged 7-8 that are already playing female football every weekend, training twice a week, games every weekend, Sweden professional league for ladies are well established, same applies to most European and North/ South American nations

Africa does not have such facilities and organization, including funding at grassroot levels, so we will always be at a deficit when going into major tournaments, Within Africa, Nigeria for example might be the champions but when they have to come up against their peers amongst the elite nations, they will always be found wanting

It is only right and fair that the investment you make towards anything in life, you should see the dividends at some point, and for those who do not make the necessary investments, the results should reflect what you put into it

Football is Nigeria national game, meaning the government should identity this and put all the resources or make resources available for the sporting sector, right now, Nigeria should be taking world class teams to every major tournament

The money is there, they dont have to spend like their foreign counterparts to achieve the same results but at least the basics should be provided, planning for major tournaments start at least 4 years before the actual competition

Nigeria by now should boast of a well established domestic league for both male / female, sponsorship, government backing and what not, football is huge business, these other countries like France dont mess around

we have a habit of going into these tournament with half baked teams and expecting them to perform like their peers, Yesterday, it was obvious the coach set them up to play defensive and use the counter attack, perhaps that explained why, anytime they received the ball, they could not string 2 passes together because there was hardly anyone to pass to or the French did their homework well and just tracked back and blocked any avenue Nigeria was looking for

In the first 45 minutes, Nigeria lost the ball 47 times! in the 2nd half, they were slightly better with no end product, they had to resort to fouling the French to stop them from going into goal scoring opportunities

France deserved to win the game, it was only fair how they set out to play the game, they dominated Nigeria in every aspect around the pitch, the foul that led to the penalty was always going to happen, the use of VAR, though debatable, well these are the rules! did Nigeria lose because of a bad VAR decision? i will say no, based over 90 minutes, the French did everything to win and were the only positive side on the pitch

yes it is tough, but the truth has to be told irrespective of the thoughts of others in here, every 4 years, we have some that are already lining up the usual excuse for shoddy preparation, if its not the referee, its something else, diverting attention from the poor football we play, if such a person has an opinion different from the norm, you will be called white man slave, inferior complex or whatever nonsense these people say, to support mediocrity is criminal and yes i will call anyone out without fear of retribution from the usual suspects, your opinions dont really count to me, just like my opinions should not really bother anyone, as far as i stay within the rules of CE, then i am entitled to my opinion, its that simple, someone said my password should be changed and why??? does the truth hurt or ?

Like i said, if you want to see what Nigeria is like as a country, watch its football, believe over 90 minutes, you will see everything that is wrong about the society!

Respect to the Nigerian players for playing irrespective of the resources at their disposal, that is what i give them respect for!

[Goldleaf]

Opranozie seems so out of this game..like shes too heavy

I don't know why the coach keeps fielding her. She is madam in that field. Half way thru the first half she was exhausted. The second half she was just strolling in the middle of the field. Most times she make a half hearted run and really not taking on any opponent.

In my opinion, she should not even be on the bench.

Her hustle was far more than the static Asisat Oshoala.

[Cellular]

Overall, the ref actually performed very well....

No.

She fluffed the two big key decisions of the game and her performance directly impacted the result.

The second yellow card for the penalty was silly and unnecessary - she should have applied common sense.

The retaken penalty and the booking for the keeper - let us not even get into those ones.

Yes, the Nigerian's women's game has room for improvement; and yes the referee's actions led to Nigeria's defeat today.

The ref did rather well.

Remember she waved the play on and was only reversed by VAR. The rules of the game calls for a card. She didn't make the rules. She was aided by VAR and if VAR says it is a penalty you have to also follow with a card. So I don't understand blaming her. Blame the rules.

In the first half, she let the game flow. And our ladies did well avoiding fouling and kept the French at bay.

2nd half was a different matter... as the French pressure was too much. It was a valiant effort from the ladies... legit PK.

Ps., how about the Euro Nations cup... a team gets a potential PK. but the delay in reviewing the play resulted in a PK being given to the opposite team. Was that bias as well?

[oloye]

Overall, the ref actually performed very well....

No.

She fluffed the two big key decisions of the game and her performance directly impacted the result.

The second yellow card for the penalty was silly and unnecessary - she should have applied common sense.

The retaken penalty and the booking for the keeper - let us not even get into those ones.

Yes, the Nigerian's women's game has room for improvement; and yes the referee's actions led to Nigeria's defeat today.

The ref did rather well.

Remember she waved the play on and was only reversed by VAR. The rules of the game calls for a card. She didn't make the rules. She was aided by VAR and if VAR says it is a penalty you have to also follow with a card. So I don't understand blaming her. Blame the rules.

In the first half, she let the game flow. And our ladies did well avoiding fouling and kept the French at bay.

2nd half was a different matter... as the French pressure was too much. It was a valiant effort from the ladies... legit PK.

Ps., how about the Euro Nations cup... a team gets a potential PK. but the delay in reviewing the play resulted in a PK being given to the opposite team. Was that bias as well?

Of course it was, the Portuguese in the stadium protested and heckled the decision. I have used that incident in my argument against VAR. Does the foul that occurred about a minute before negate the current play? I am sure they can see the foolishness in it, but sheer arrogance won't allow it to be addressed.

[Oguleftie]

The amount of resources made available to these top nations, even right down to grassroot levels, for example, there are a few girls from my son school, aged 7-8 that are already playing female football every weekend, training twice a week, games every weekend, Sweden professional league for ladies are well established, same applies to most European and North/ South American nations

Africa does not have such facilities and organization, including funding at grassroot levels, so we will always be at a deficit when going into major tournaments, Within Africa, Nigeria for example might be the champions but when they have to come up against their peers amongst the elite nations, they will always be found wanting

It is only right and fair that the investment you make towards anything in life, you should see the dividends at some point, and for those who do not make the necessary investments, the results should reflect what you put into it

Football is Nigeria national game, meaning the government should identity this and put all the resources or make resources available for the sporting sector, right now, Nigeria should be taking world class teams to every major tournament

The money is there, they dont have to spend like their foreign counterparts to achieve the same results but at least the basics should be provided, planning for major tournaments start at least 4 years before the actual competition

Nigeria by now should boast of a well established domestic league for both male / female, sponsorship, government backing and what not, football is huge business, these other countries like France dont mess around

we have a habit of going into these tournament with half baked teams and expecting them to perform like their peers, Yesterday, it was obvious the coach set them up to play defensive and use the counter attack, perhaps that explained why, anytime they received the ball, they could not string 2 passes together because there was hardly anyone to pass to or the French did their homework well and just tracked back and blocked any avenue Nigeria was looking for

In the first 45 minutes, Nigeria lost the ball 47 times! in the 2nd half, they were slightly better with no end product, they had to resort to fouling the French to stop them from going into goal scoring opportunities

France deserved to win the game, it was only fair how they set out to play the game, they dominated Nigeria in every aspect around the pitch, the foul that led to the penalty was always going to happen, the use of VAR, though debatable, well these are the rules! did Nigeria lose because of a bad VAR decision? i will say no, based over 90 minutes, the French did everything to win and were the only positive side on the pitch

yes it is tough, but the truth has to be told irrespective of the thoughts of others in here, every 4 years, we have some that are already lining up the usual excuse for shoddy preparation, if its not the referee, its something else, diverting attention from the poor football we play, if such a person has an opinion different from the norm, you will be called white man slave, inferior complex or whatever nonsense these people say, to support mediocrity is criminal and yes i will call anyone out without fear of retribution from the usual suspects, your opinions dont really count to me, just like my opinions should not really bother anyone, as far as i stay within the rules of CE, then i am entitled to my opinion, its that simple, someone said my password should be changed and why??? does the truth hurt or ?

Like i said, if you want to see what Nigeria is like as a country, watch its football, believe over 90 minutes, you will see everything that is wrong about the society!

Respect to the Nigerian players for playing irrespective of the resources at their disposal, that is what i give them respect for!

Does not explain that the players that come to successive world cups have no improvement in skill sets.

[Cellular]

Overall, the ref actually performed very well....

No.

She fluffed the two big key decisions of the game and her performance directly impacted the result.

The second yellow card for the penalty was silly and unnecessary - she should have applied common sense.

The retaken penalty and the booking for the keeper - let us not even get into those ones.

Yes, the Nigerian's women's game has room for improvement; and yes the referee's actions led to Nigeria's defeat today.

The ref did rather well.

Remember she waved the play on and was only reversed by VAR. The rules of the game calls for a card. She didn't make the rules. She was aided by VAR and if VAR says it is a penalty you have to also follow with a card. So I don't understand blaming her. Blame the rules.

In the first half, she let the game flow. And our ladies did well avoiding fouling and kept the French at bay.

2nd half was a different matter... as the French pressure was too much. It was a valiant effort from the ladies... legit PK.

Ps., how about the Euro Nations cup... a team gets a potential PK. but the delay in reviewing the play resulted in a PK being given to the opposite team. Was that bias as well?

Of course it was, the Portuguese in the stadium protested and heckled the decision. I have used that incident in my argument against VAR. Does the foul that occurred about a minute before negate the current play? I am sure they can see the foolishness in it, but sheer arrogance won't allow it to be addressed.

Dean, it will keep evolving until we get it right. Even in America, where they use Instant Replay for the heavily betted NFL games they still get it wrong... with people asking "what is a catch?" "...what is a Pass Interference? "Tuck rule?" etc, and these are guys that have been experimenting and tweaking Video Replay for years.

As someone or a group of people at the end of perceived bias, I welcome VAR.

I want their bias to be obvious especially when the human element comes into play and the go against VAR.

[Cellular]

The amount of resources made available to these top nations, even right down to grassroot levels, for example, there are a few girls from my son school, aged 7-8 that are already playing female football every weekend, training twice a week, games every weekend, Sweden professional league for ladies are well established, same applies to most European and North/ South American nations

Africa does not have such facilities and organization, including funding at grassroot levels, so we will always be at a deficit when going into major tournaments, Within Africa, Nigeria for example might be the champions but when they have to come up against their peers amongst the elite nations, they will always be found wanting

It is only right and fair that the investment you make towards anything in life, you should see the dividends at some point, and for those who do not make the necessary investments, the results should reflect what you put into it

Football is Nigeria national game, meaning the government should identity this and put all the resources or make resources available for the sporting sector, right now, Nigeria should be taking world class teams to every major tournament

The money is there, they dont have to spend like their foreign counterparts to achieve the same results but at least the basics should be provided, planning for major tournaments start at least 4 years before the actual competition

Nigeria by now should boast of a well established domestic league for both male / female, sponsorship, government backing and what not, football is huge business, these other countries like France dont mess around

we have a habit of going into these tournament with half baked teams and expecting them to perform like their peers, Yesterday, it was obvious the coach set them up to play defensive and use the counter attack, perhaps that explained why, anytime they received the ball, they could not string 2 passes together because there was hardly anyone to pass to or the French did their homework well and just tracked back and blocked any avenue Nigeria was looking for

In the first 45 minutes, Nigeria lost the ball 47 times! in the 2nd half, they were slightly better with no end product, they had to resort to fouling the French to stop them from going into goal scoring opportunities

France deserved to win the game, it was only fair how they set out to play the game, they dominated Nigeria in every aspect around the pitch, the foul that led to the penalty was always going to happen, the use of VAR, though debatable, well these are the rules! did Nigeria lose because of a bad VAR decision? i will say no, based over 90 minutes, the French did everything to win and were the only positive side on the pitch

yes it is tough, but the truth has to be told irrespective of the thoughts of others in here, every 4 years, we have some that are already lining up the usual excuse for shoddy preparation, if its not the referee, its something else, diverting attention from the poor football we play, if such a person has an opinion different from the norm, you will be called white man slave, inferior complex or whatever nonsense these people say, to support mediocrity is criminal and yes i will call anyone out without fear of retribution from the usual suspects, your opinions dont really count to me, just like my opinions should not really bother anyone, as far as i stay within the rules of CE, then i am entitled to my opinion, its that simple, someone said my password should be changed and why??? does the truth hurt or ?

Like i said, if you want to see what Nigeria is like as a country, watch its football, believe over 90 minutes, you will see everything that is wrong about the society!

Respect to the Nigerian players for playing irrespective of the resources at their disposal, that is what i give them respect for!

Does not explain that the players that come to successive world cups have no improvement in skill sets.

That's not factual.

The game has changed and evolved for both sexes.

[marko]

The amount of resources made available to these top nations, even right down to grassroot levels, for example, there are a few girls from my son school, aged 7-8 that are already playing female football every weekend, training twice a week, games every weekend, Sweden professional league for ladies are well established, same applies to most European and North/ South American nations

Africa does not have such facilities and organization, including funding at grassroot levels, so we will always be at a deficit when going into major tournaments, Within Africa, Nigeria for example might be the champions but when they have to come up against their peers amongst the elite nations, they will always be found wanting

It is only right and fair that the investment you make towards anything in life, you should see the dividends at some point, and for those who do not make the necessary investments, the results should reflect what you put into it

Football is Nigeria national game, meaning the government should identity this and put all the resources or make resources available for the sporting sector, right now, Nigeria should be taking world class teams to every major tournament

The money is there, they dont have to spend like their foreign counterparts to achieve the same results but at least the basics should be provided, planning for major tournaments start at least 4 years before the actual competition

Nigeria by now should boast of a well established domestic league for both male / female, sponsorship, government backing and what not, football is huge business, these other countries like France dont mess around

we have a habit of going into these tournament with half baked teams and expecting them to perform like their peers, Yesterday, it was obvious the coach set them up to play defensive and use the counter attack, perhaps that explained why, anytime they received the ball, they could not string 2 passes together because there was hardly anyone to pass to or the French did their homework well and just tracked back and blocked any avenue Nigeria was looking for

In the first 45 minutes, Nigeria lost the ball 47 times! in the 2nd half, they were slightly better with no end product, they had to resort to fouling the French to stop them from going into goal scoring opportunities

France deserved to win the game, it was only fair how they set out to play the game, they dominated Nigeria in every aspect around the pitch, the foul that led to the penalty was always going to happen, the use of VAR, though debatable, well these are the rules! did Nigeria lose because of a bad VAR decision? i will say no, based over 90 minutes, the French did everything to win and were the only positive side on the pitch

yes it is tough, but the truth has to be told irrespective of the thoughts of others in here, every 4 years, we have some that are already lining up the usual excuse for shoddy preparation, if its not the referee, its something else, diverting attention from the poor football we play, if such a person has an opinion different from the norm, you will be called white man slave, inferior complex or whatever nonsense these people say, to support mediocrity is criminal and yes i will call anyone out without fear of retribution from the usual suspects, your opinions dont really count to me, just like my opinions should not really bother anyone, as far as i stay within the rules of CE, then i am entitled to my opinion, its that simple, someone said my password should be changed and why??? does the truth hurt or ?

Like i said, if you want to see what Nigeria is like as a country, watch its football, believe over 90 minutes, you will see everything that is wrong about the society!

Respect to the Nigerian players for playing irrespective of the resources at their disposal, that is what i give them respect for!

Does not explain that the players that come to successive world cups have no improvement in skill sets.

Individually, Nigerian players have the necessary raw talent to excel, saw that in one of 2 players yesterday, that was are only likely option to get anything from the game, individual skill, they totally marked out our dangerous player and the rest was history, if the game was played for 5 hours, the results would have stayed the same, for us to excel, we need to first ask ourselves if we should even be in that company in the first place? are we there just to make up the numbers? we should study the efforts of the other top nations and ask if we can compete with them, they have well established leagues, funding, everything needed to succeed at this level, they have it all plus more!

sorry we simply cannot compete at this level, The Europeans and the Americans have taken the game out of reach, they know how to beat African teams, its easy for them, sometimes i think its in their DNA not to lose these types of games, the way they prepare for games, we are simply not on that level yet

we need to invest and this usually takes years to see the benefits

[Cellular]

Marko you and Oguleftie are funny lots.

The difficulty is at ALL level of our sports, not just football not just female football, male football especially.

You get what you put in...

There was an 18 month period where the NFF didn't give a damn about the women. Meanwhile, their opponents were training and playing games... not owed basic allowances.

[Oguleftie]

The amount of resources made available to these top nations, even right down to grassroot levels, for example, there are a few girls from my son school, aged 7-8 that are already playing female football every weekend, training twice a week, games every weekend, Sweden professional league for ladies are well established, same applies to most European and North/ South American nations

Africa does not have such facilities and organization, including funding at grassroot levels, so we will always be at a deficit when going into major tournaments, Within Africa, Nigeria for example might be the champions but when they have to come up against their peers amongst the elite nations, they will always be found wanting

It is only right and fair that the investment you make towards anything in life, you should see the dividends at some point, and for those who do not make the necessary investments, the results should reflect what you put into it

Football is Nigeria national game, meaning the government should identity this and put all the resources or make resources available for the sporting sector, right now, Nigeria should be taking world class teams to every major tournament

The money is there, they dont have to spend like their foreign counterparts to achieve the same results but at least the basics should be provided, planning for major tournaments start at least 4 years before the actual competition

Nigeria by now should boast of a well established domestic league for both male / female, sponsorship, government backing and what not, football is huge business, these other countries like France dont mess around

we have a habit of going into these tournament with half baked teams and expecting them to perform like their peers, Yesterday, it was obvious the coach set them up to play defensive and use the counter attack, perhaps that explained why, anytime they received the ball, they could not string 2 passes together because there was hardly anyone to pass to or the French did their homework well and just tracked back and blocked any avenue Nigeria was looking for

In the first 45 minutes, Nigeria lost the ball 47 times! in the 2nd half, they were slightly better with no end product, they had to resort to fouling the French to stop them from going into goal scoring opportunities

France deserved to win the game, it was only fair how they set out to play the game, they dominated Nigeria in every aspect around the pitch, the foul that led to the penalty was always going to happen, the use of VAR, though debatable, well these are the rules! did Nigeria lose because of a bad VAR decision? i will say no, based over 90 minutes, the French did everything to win and were the only positive side on the pitch

yes it is tough, but the truth has to be told irrespective of the thoughts of others in here, every 4 years, we have some that are already lining up the usual excuse for shoddy preparation, if its not the referee, its something else, diverting attention from the poor football we play, if such a person has an opinion different from the norm, you will be called white man slave, inferior complex or whatever nonsense these people say, to support mediocrity is criminal and yes i will call anyone out without fear of retribution from the usual suspects, your opinions dont really count to me, just like my opinions should not really bother anyone, as far as i stay within the rules of CE, then i am entitled to my opinion, its that simple, someone said my password should be changed and why??? does the truth hurt or ?

Like i said, if you want to see what Nigeria is like as a country, watch its football, believe over 90 minutes, you will see everything that is wrong about the society!

Respect to the Nigerian players for playing irrespective of the resources at their disposal, that is what i give them respect for!

Does not explain that the players that come to successive world cups have no improvement in skill sets.

Individually, Nigerian players have the necessary raw talent to excel, saw that in one of 2 players yesterday, that was are only likely option to get anything from the game, individual skill, they totally marked out our dangerous player and the rest was history, if the game was played for 5 hours, the results would have stayed the same, for us to excel, we need to first ask ourselves if we should even be in that company in the first place? are we there just to make up the numbers? we should study the efforts of the other top nations and ask if we can compete with them, they have well established leagues, funding, everything needed to succeed at this level, they have it all plus more!

sorry we simply cannot compete at this level, The Europeans and the Americans have taken the game out of reach, they know how to beat African teams, its easy for them, sometimes i think its in their DNA not to lose these types of games, the way they prepare for games, we are simply not on that level yet

we need to invest and this usually takes years to see the benefits

No improvement in skill sets by individual returning players year after year after year after 4 years after 4 years contradicts the bold & underlined. The team goes as the individual players go.

[Lolly]

I don't think anyone is ignoring the deficiencies no one has. But it seems we like to dwell on these while not acknowledging the gap that has to be bridged.

I had the argument with someone, we have made progress in the last 20 years or so, progress that have come not because it was planned for xrsther because the players are determined. We down play the obstacles these girls have faced, they started attending world Cup when there was no league, I don't even know where they got the first batch from. Over that period we have tried to form a women's league which at best is still at its infancy stage.

Many of these girls probably don't play any organised football until late in their teens, and they have to face still cultural opposition to do so. I can imagine some of them telling their parents they want to go and play football.

So let me get this, we ignore this part, where most probably have their first coaching or organised football games late into their teens. Even when they do it is under some substandard condition...

And then you bring them to the world Cup to come and play against girls that have been playing since 4 years old and have played for clubs with grade A facilities. I tale my kids for football here, our national team cannot boast of the facilities they have.

We ignore all of theae and expect our girls or athletes to perform miracles.

Our progress has been slow, but giant steps are being made. Our girls are being scouted and taken abroad, where they will be exposed to better training facilities.

Aside from that, the exposure will also serve as enlightenment for parents back home, it is educational. Men's football in Nigeria began its ascendancy towards respectability when we won the u17 in 1985,suddenly parents no longer view playing football as the past time of miscreants.

We cannot blame these players, rather like pace setters they are we need to commend them. We may feel disappointed because we want them to do well, but anyone who has done sports to a reasonable level must factor these things.

A team got walloped 8 nil last year and got beat by a lone goal today and we still chose to rip into them? Are they anywhere near the two teams they lost to in this tournament?

Enough said.

And some of those castigating the girls have not even played football to any serious level. E no easy. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

[Cellular]

No improvement in skill sets by individual returning players year after year after year after 4 years after 4 years contradicts the bold & underlined. The team goes as the individual players go.

You and your hyperbole.

So are the current Super Eagles more skilful than the former Super Eagles?

Game has evolved from ball juggling bro... leave that ish for Choosin.

[marko]

Marko you and Oguleftie are funny lots.

The difficulty is at ALL level of our sports, not just football not just female football, male football especially.

You get what you put in...

There was an 18 month period where the NFF didn't give a damn about the women. Meanwhile, their opponents were training and playing games... not owed basic allowances.

I have said exactly the same thing about Nigeria sports in general, especially when Olympics approach and the sportsmen/ women dont have funding, look at the last Olympics in Brazil where Mikel had to fund the team due to the inability of the NFF to provide the needed expenses and what not

I have been very vocal here about the lack of government interest in sports, only there to reap the rewards! so based on your comments about no planning for 18 months, why on earth were some Nigerians in here angry about the outcome of the match? they are privy to the same information you just mentioned but expect miracles on the pitch, I think its fair that the countries who invest heavily into sports reaps the rewards, no shortcuts to success, am glad yesterday was another wake up call to the Nigerian government to catch up with the other top nations!

[Lolly]

Marko you and Oguleftie are funny lots.

The difficulty is at ALL level of our sports, not just football not just female football, male football especially.

You get what you put in...

There was an 18 month period where the NFF didn't give a damn about the women. Meanwhile, their opponents were training and playing games... not owed basic allowances.

I have said exactly the same thing about Nigeria sports in general, especially when Olympics approach and the sportsmen/ women dont have funding, look at the last Olympics in Brazil where Mikel had to fund the team due to the inability of the NFF to provide the needed expenses and what not

I have been very vocal here about the lack of government interest in sports, only there to reap the rewards! so based on your comments about no planning for 18 months, why on earth were some Nigerians in here angry about the outcome of the match? they are privy to the same information you just mentioned but expect miracles on the pitch, I think its fair that the countries who invest heavily into sports reaps the rewards, no shortcuts to success, am glad yesterday was another wake up call to the Nigerian government to catch up with the other top nations!

Don't expect any drastic changes until you start to jail officials for diverting and stealing commission funds.

[kajifu]

Shame on you all saying the girls were poor,also shame on those who said ref did a good job,she was supporting those French.Her ex boy friend is French,so he might have influence this ref.
I hope Buhari call the girls to encourage them that they did the nation proud.

[Thunder]

I don't think anyone is ignoring the deficiencies no one has. But it seems we like to dwell on these while not acknowledging the gap that has to be bridged.

I had the argument with someone, we have made progress in the last 20 years or so, progress that have come not because it was planned for xrsther because the players are determined. We down play the obstacles these girls have faced, they started attending world Cup when there was no league, I don't even know where they got the first batch from. Over that period we have tried to form a women's league which at best is still at its infancy stage.

Many of these girls probably don't play any organised football until late in their teens, and they have to face still cultural opposition to do so. I can imagine some of them telling their parents they want to go and play football.

So let me get this, we ignore this part, where most probably have their first coaching or organised football games late into their teens. Even when they do it is under some substandard condition...

And then you bring them to the world Cup to come and play against girls that have been playing since 4 years old and have played for clubs with grade A facilities. I tale my kids for football here, our national team cannot boast of the facilities they have.

We ignore all of theae and expect our girls or athletes to perform miracles.

Our progress has been slow, but giant steps are being made. Our girls are being scouted and taken abroad, where they will be exposed to better training facilities.

Aside from that, the exposure will also serve as enlightenment for parents back home, it is educational. Men's football in Nigeria began its ascendancy towards respectability when we won the u17 in 1985,suddenly parents no longer view playing football as the past time of miscreants.

We cannot blame these players, rather like pace setters they are we need to commend them. We may feel disappointed because we want them to do well, but anyone who has done sports to a reasonable level must factor these things.

A team got walloped 8 nil last year and got beat by a lone goal today and we still chose to rip into them? Are they anywhere near the two teams they lost to in this tournament?

Oloye,

Well stated. It is annoying when you have people thinking that you can only acknowledge great performance when a team wins the title. What a ridiculous way to think. There is no occupation in this world where success is measured by only being #1. It is like stating that the richest person is the only successful person in the world.

The girls have overcome so many odds and you have eloquently described some of those odds. Here is a team almost forgotten for the entire calendar year by the NFF and some are here blaming them. For me, this team has done well thus far and I hope that they get to the Round of 16. I am impressed by what they have done so far even though there is clearly more work ahead for us to get to the point where the talent of these girls should take them.

I wonder if anyone has ever asked how Aunty Ebi has managed to keep herself fit for 20 years, I would like to know. 5 wc ain't no joke and she looks super fit. All I see is personal sacrifice and love for the game, she deserves respect hence I call her Aunty Ebi not because she is older than me, it is my own way of saluting her achievements.

People like her have stayed in the game out of the love for the game to guide the young ones in, God bless her. We have come a long way. Aunty Ebi can walk into any European team, he defending is top notch. But I ask again what club does she play for, what training facilities is available to her? I can guess, she probably just works her arse off in a crude way devoid, devoid of any scientific monitoring until she probably shows up in camp again.

We compare our athletes with these European teams but ignore the facilities that produced the players we are comparing... So much for the African intellectual... My Prof I don tire ojare

The efforts of these ladies are highly commendable. Though the fan in me wants them to be able to compete with the US, but that’s wishful thinking in our current dispensation. The US organizes one week training camps at least six times a yea for different age groups from u14 & for both genders. They’re constantly scouting and bringing in different players to camps. While the USWNT played ten friendly matches & tournaments between January 9, and May 26, 2019 we hurriedly called these ladies together within a month, or less and expect a well oiled machine. To compare the two is so unfair. However, we can close the gap by holding weekend training centers, a la US at different locations to identify players, and camps every three months, for those thus identified. This way, the coaches are aware of the players and their fitness levels, and the players, the coaches philosophy and the system of play required. And this should be applicable to all the teams; u14M/W to the MW national teams.

You do not follow women's football.

I know you sabi plenty. But how did you arrive at your conclusion, sir?