AFCON 2019: Nigeria 1 vs 0 Burundi FT

[truetalk]

Nwakali is not the answer for this Afcon but its also not Mikel and Iwobi.
for this Afcon - we need to try someone else in the current squad in the AM position.

Mikel will be best in the DM role alongside Ndidi...

Thanks a lot Einstein, now that you've told us who isn't the answer, the more important question is who is the answer, cos clearly we need one?

We are stuck with the team in Egypt, so this is moot. We are still good enough to win, but Rohr needs to end this Akpeyi madness asap.

Sometimes, its almost like the entire forum bar a handful has overdosed on brain freeze juice.

So I posted the lineup that should have been invited for the 'meaningless' game against Seychelles at home and was blasted here. Not that it bothered me, since the simple points I was making flew over the heads of those criticising. It was a competitive game, and an opportunity to cap a lot of exciting prospects & get a lot of players into the set up.

Talking about the midfield, we have yet to make a solid move for Ejaria & Onomah. You tell me Ejariah is not a solid AM prospect? Sly Igbonu has been totally shut out from the SE, with insinuations of being Oliseh's boy, but he has been getting on with his career.

Plus, you don't have to play with the traditional AM to be an offensive force, but I won't even start with this coach.

We just don't appear to be very thorough people with our research, analysis, processes and approach to so many things.

Anyway, all the best to the team. Hopefully, Rohr falls into common sense by luck or iteration.

[airwolex]

So for me, here are the pertinent points...

- We have a massive goalkeeping crisis. Akpeyi, our first choice is too jittery, just not the kind of number one that you can count on
- Mikel should not start for us again
- Musa must start and play every minute henceforth
- Chukwueze has some talent but is too damn selfish; we should consider Onyekwuru, Simon or Kalu
- Ighalo is by far our best striking option
- Ola Aina na baller from this game sha
- We have a decent team, but we have a poor goalkeeper and we will struggle to score goals, therefore, have zero chance in this AFCON

[Robbynice]

So for me, here are the pertinent points...

- We have a massive goalkeeping crisis. Akpeyi, our first choice is too jittery, just not the kind of number one that you can count on
- Mikel should not start for us again
- Musa must start and play every minute henceforth
- Chukwueze has some talent but is too damn selfish; we should consider Onyekwuru, Simon or Kalu
- Ighalo is by far our best striking option
- Ola Aina na baller from this game sha
- We have a decent team, but we have a poor goalkeeper and we will struggle to score goals, therefore, have zero chance in this AFCON

I remember the last time we were told we had zero chance in the AFCON...Continue to RIP Coach Stephen Keshi

[airwolex]

So for me, here are the pertinent points...

- We have a massive goalkeeping crisis. Akpeyi, our first choice is too jittery, just not the kind of number one that you can count on
- Mikel should not start for us again
- Musa must start and play every minute henceforth
- Chukwueze has some talent but is too damn selfish; we should consider Onyekwuru, Simon or Kalu
- Ighalo is by far our best striking option
- Ola Aina na baller from this game sha
- We have a decent team, but we have a poor goalkeeper and we will struggle to score goals, therefore, have zero chance in this AFCON

I remember the last time we were told we had zero chance in the AFCON...Continue to RIP Coach Stephen Keshi

With Akpeyi...no chance. Rip Keshi

[pajimoh]

Lets see how the team performs in the next game and team selection. The boys were playing off the back of some bad events.

The first game often is a cagey affair. We've assumed control of the group with the other teams dropping points.

I do agree on Akpeyi though he kept us in the game a few times his name alone gives me the shakes and his performance heart.......

[Gooner1]

Abeg Nwakwali no be am, he like taking pictures on IG

.........of statues called mikel granite

[Gooner1]

I am not one to criticize players but Akpeyi mehn...Bobo go dey shake even for back pass...I mean what da heck..m

No fit catch cross and he go save ball wey dey go far wide of the goal...

.....save wetin?.......for corner he go dash Burundi.....straw handed goalie, rubbish & nonsense

[Its a Goal]

Akpeyi has come under a lot of unfair criticism here. Yes he made some blunders but they haven't cost us. What he needs is assurance and boast. Akpeyi brings a lot to the team top of which is confidence when the ball is at his feet. He is composed when he has to play the ball to a teammate in order to play out from the back rather than hoofing it long. On so many occasions he came out of his 18 yard box to get the ball just to keep the possession going. He made a number of brilliant saves today too. For me he is a better option to Uzoho. Uzoho stays back on his goal line and is not a sweeper keeper.

[maceo4]

Akpeyi has come under a lot of unfair criticism here. Yes he made some blunders but they haven't cost us. What he needs is assurance and boast. Akpeyi brings a lot to the team top of which is confidence when the ball is at his feet. He is composed when he has to play the ball to a teammate in order to play out from the back rather than hoofing it long. On so many occasions he came out of his 18 yard box to get the ball just to keep the possession going. He made a number of brilliant saves today too. For me he is a better option to Uzoho. Uzoho stays back on his goal line and is not a sweeper keeper.

so you want to wait till it costs us first? Kaiii!

[EMIR KONGI JAFFI JOFFA]

So for me, here are the pertinent points...

- We have a massive goalkeeping crisis. Akpeyi, our first choice is too jittery, just not the kind of number one that you can count on
- Mikel should not start for us again
- Musa must start and play every minute henceforth
- Chukwueze has some talent but is too damn selfish; we should consider Onyekwuru, Simon or Kalu
- Ighalo is by far our best striking option
- Ola Aina na baller from this game sha
- We have a decent team, but we have a poor goalkeeper and we will struggle to score goals, therefore, have zero chance in this AFCON

I remember the last time we were told we had zero chance in the AFCON...Continue to RIP Coach Stephen Keshi

Thank you jare. These morons just keep spewing rubbish on both sides of their mouth. Chukwueze is selfish, Mikel shouldn't start, Akpeyi is rubbish etc.. Then find another team to support for jeez sake. You don't have to support SE. No be by force.

[Its a Goal]

Akpeyi has come under a lot of unfair criticism here. Yes he made some blunders but they haven't cost us. What he needs is assurance and boast. Akpeyi brings a lot to the team top of which is confidence when the ball is at his feet. He is composed when he has to play the ball to a teammate in order to play out from the back rather than hoofing it long. On so many occasions he came out of his 18 yard box to get the ball just to keep the possession going. He made a number of brilliant saves today too. For me he is a better option to Uzoho. Uzoho stays back on his goal line and is not a sweeper keeper.

so you want to wait till it costs us first? Kaiii!

As long as he hasn't cost us then I will persist with him. He offers more +s than -s. Even the best keepers in the world make mistakes. Lloris, DeGea and Buffon have had moments to forget at some point in their career.

[Tobi17]

So for me, here are the pertinent points...

- We have a massive goalkeeping crisis. Akpeyi, our first choice is too jittery, just not the kind of number one that you can count on
- Mikel should not start for us again
- Musa must start and play every minute henceforth
- Chukwueze has some talent but is too damn selfish; we should consider Onyekwuru, Simon or Kalu
- Ighalo is by far our best striking option
- Ola Aina na baller from this game sha
- We have a decent team, but we have a poor goalkeeper and we will struggle to score goals, therefore, have zero chance in this AFCON

I remember the last time we were told we had zero chance in the AFCON...Continue to RIP Coach Stephen Keshi

Thank you jare. These morons just keep spewing rubbish on both sides of their mouth. Chukwueze is selfish, Mikel shouldn't start, Akpeyi is rubbish etc.. Then find another team to support for jeez sake. You don't have to support SE. No be by force.

Even the biggest Mikel fans all agree he had a very poor game. Has nothing to do with been partisan with the truth... There is patriotism, and there is telling the truth for what it is.

[9jaMan]

So for me, here are the pertinent points...

- We have a massive goalkeeping crisis. Akpeyi, our first choice is too jittery, just not the kind of number one that you can count on
- Mikel should not start for us again
- Musa must start and play every minute henceforth
- Chukwueze has some talent but is too damn selfish; we should consider Onyekwuru, Simon or Kalu
- Ighalo is by far our best striking option
- Ola Aina na baller from this game sha
- We have a decent team, but we have a poor goalkeeper and we will struggle to score goals, therefore, have zero chance in this AFCON

Mikel should be deployed as cdm,
Musa stays on the bench, thank me later
Chukwueze starts and plays 90 minutes
Ighalo should start and subbed for osimhen
Akpeyi has no business in SE

[1naija]

Akpeyi has come under a lot of unfair criticism here. Yes he made some blunders but they haven't cost us. What he needs is assurance and boast. Akpeyi brings a lot to the team top of which is confidence when the ball is at his feet. He is composed when he has to play the ball to a teammate in order to play out from the back rather than hoofing it long. On so many occasions he came out of his 18 yard box to get the ball just to keep the possession going. He made a number of brilliant saves today too. For me he is a better option to Uzoho. Uzoho stays back on his goal line and is not a sweeper keeper.

so you want to wait till it costs us first? Kaiii!

The point remains, Akpeyi is the best among the 3 goalkeepers we have in the team. If it's blunder you are using to judge him, they have all made costly blunders. None of Akeyi's blunders has cost us in a competitive game. Uzoho's blunder led to a goal against Seychelles. Ezenwa's blunder cost us a goal against Cameroon in the WC qualifier last year. All I know is if Uzoho was in goal today, we would have been singing a different tune by now. Ezenwa is better than Uzoho, but he lacks competitive games experience. Akpeyi plays regularly in a competitive league.

[airwolex]

So for me, here are the pertinent points...

- We have a massive goalkeeping crisis. Akpeyi, our first choice is too jittery, just not the kind of number one that you can count on
- Mikel should not start for us again
- Musa must start and play every minute henceforth
- Chukwueze has some talent but is too damn selfish; we should consider Onyekwuru, Simon or Kalu
- Ighalo is by far our best striking option
- Ola Aina na baller from this game sha
- We have a decent team, but we have a poor goalkeeper and we will struggle to score goals, therefore, have zero chance in this AFCON

Mikel should be deployed as cdm,
Musa stays on the bench, thank me later
Chukwueze starts and plays 90 minutes
Ighalo should start and subbed for osimhen
Akpeyi has no business in SE

Na...Ndidi and Etebo are enough, no need for Mikel.

Musa is not yet ready to be usurped. For all of Chukwueze's skill, you can see that Musa was the one that kept on finding the open spaces when he came in. The guy keeps getting called low IQ but non of the other players know how to free themselves up. Musa should start with Chukwueze in my book.

[airwolex]

So for me, here are the pertinent points...

- We have a massive goalkeeping crisis. Akpeyi, our first choice is too jittery, just not the kind of number one that you can count on
- Mikel should not start for us again
- Musa must start and play every minute henceforth
- Chukwueze has some talent but is too damn selfish; we should consider Onyekwuru, Simon or Kalu
- Ighalo is by far our best striking option
- Ola Aina na baller from this game sha
- We have a decent team, but we have a poor goalkeeper and we will struggle to score goals, therefore, have zero chance in this AFCON

I remember the last time we were told we had zero chance in the AFCON...Continue to RIP Coach Stephen Keshi

Thank you jare. These morons just keep spewing rubbish on both sides of their mouth. Chukwueze is selfish, Mikel shouldn't start, Akpeyi is rubbish etc.. Then find another team to support for jeez sake. You don't have to support SE. No be by force.

You are one bipolar babalawo. You are calling me moron here, yet in other threads saying the exact same thing about Akpeyi and Mikel. Please consult the oracles for a cure for your problem.

[Enyi]

After rewatching the game.... Iwobi was immerse, Chukwueze was great but end product is lacking but he will learn that. We need a mobile striker...someone that can play on the shoulder of defenders then the likes of Iwobi, Chukwueze will shine even more.

Musa came on and provided an outlet....Ighalo will kill smaller teams like Burundi and co... I would like to see Oshimen play, he had a great understanding with chukwueze each time they play together, so I hope the SE will harness that for this team.

[theYemster]

Nwakali is not the answer for this Afcon but its also not Mikel and Iwobi.
for this Afcon - we need to try someone else in the current squad in the AM position.

Mikel will be best in the DM role alongside Ndidi...

Thanks a lot Einstein, now that you've told us who isn't the answer, the more important question is who is the answer, cos clearly we need one?

I did already - 4 posts above. We could try Etebo in the position , that my preferred alternative.

We could play without attacking through the middle and just play from the flanks..

Play through the flanks with players that can't cross and forwards that struggle in the air even if they do cross? Not to mention it makes the team one dimensional. Having a creative AM would complement playing from the flanks.

Etebo isn't creative, his game is more of a CM to support the AM. Anyways sha Nwakali isn't on the team right now so it's moot. Trying Etebo probably has to suffice for now.

[theYemster]

Nwakali is not the answer for this Afcon but its also not Mikel and Iwobi.
for this Afcon - we need to try someone else in the current squad in the AM position.

Mikel will be best in the DM role alongside Ndidi...

Thanks a lot Einstein, now that you've told us who isn't the answer, the more important question is who is the answer, cos clearly we need one?

We are stuck with the team in Egypt, so this is moot. We are still good enough to win, but Rohr needs to end this Akpeyi madness asap.

Sometimes, its almost like the entire forum bar a handful has overdosed on brain freeze juice.

So I posted the lineup that should have been invited for the 'meaningless' game against Seychelles at home and was blasted here. Not that it bothered me, since the simple points I was making flew over the heads of those criticising. It was a competitive game, and an opportunity to cap a lot of exciting prospects & get a lot of players into the set up.

Talking about the midfield, we have yet to make a solid move for Ejaria & Onomah. You tell me Ejariah is not a solid AM prospect? Sly Igbonu has been totally shut out from the SE, with insinuations of being Oliseh's boy, but he has been getting on with his career.

Plus, you don't have to play with the traditional AM to be an offensive force, but I won't even start with this coach.

We just don't appear to be very thorough people with our research, analysis, processes and approach to so many things.

Anyway, all the best to the team. Hopefully, Rohr falls into common sense by luck or iteration.

I agree with everything except the highlighted, at least with regards to this particular team.

This team isn't equipped to play without a traditional AM, at least consistently enough. The wide players can't cross, and our targetmen aren't dominant aerially. That's why Burundi seemed up curtail Samu cos they figured he was always going to try to cut inside. Ighalo mobile but the service is oftentimes lacking. The goal came from a through ball from the fullback.

Versatility keeps the opponent's defence guessing.

[Tobi17]

We should play Musa and Ighalo up top against Guinea, and have Chukwueze and one of Kalu (if fit) or Onyekuru to do the business on the wings.


And oh, Mikel should NEVER be played in that AM position, we've tried that formula before and it was a colossal disaster.

[Damunk]

So for me, here are the pertinent points...

- We have a massive goalkeeping crisis. Akpeyi, our first choice is too jittery, just not the kind of number one that you can count on
- Mikel should not start for us again
- Musa must start and play every minute henceforth
- Chukwueze has some talent but is too damn selfish; we should consider Onyekwuru, Simon or Kalu
- Ighalo is by far our best striking option
- Ola Aina na baller from this game sha
- We have a decent team, but we have a poor goalkeeper and we will struggle to score goals, therefore, have zero chance in this AFCON

I remember the last time we were told we had zero chance in the AFCON...Continue to RIP Coach Stephen Keshi

With Akpeyi...no chance. Rip Keshi

I believe Akpeyi would have been in Keshi's SE mix if not for the fact that we had a world class Enyeama and an able deputy in Ejide.
Anyone else was simply there for 'ceremony'.
Had there been no Enyeama especially, its likely Akpeyi and OMG Agbim would have been our main keepers.
AGBIM was a REGULAR member of Keshi's squads, being in both the 2013 AFCON and Confederations Cup squads. Was he any better then than Akpetyi is now?

So Enyeama was masking a lot of our GK worries and shielded Keshi from the criticism that Rohr is now getting in the GK department.

[Cellular]

Congratulations to the team for the win. The game just reinforced my biases.

[zee]

Goodness me!
What on earth do you guys see in this Nwakali fellow???
This is a dude that cannot even hack it in the Portuguese B league and this is the person to replace Mikel?
I mean, seriously???

Give it a rest, will ya? The guy is seriously overhyped and is absolutely NOT good enough for this SE team. Period!

My 1kobo.

Game showed we can now play to instructions consistently and follow a format aka tactics and stick to it, gone are the days of showmanship and one superstar carrying the team or killing the team.

Aina is a GEM .. no flashiness just pure gem.

Chukwueze is awesome but needs end product be it his passing ( especially his long range ) and decision making , but he is work in progress and man . he will come good , may he be saved from injuries Amen.

Mikel should not play 10 ( and we should have brought Nwakali...)

Iwobi should not play 10 , he loses possession too much in the middle and it always puts us under pressure.

Musa starts over Iwobi for me at the wing - we need to figure out who will play that middle attacking role , I am thinking move Etebo there and play Mikel Behind him alongside Ndidi. ..

THe keeper issue has been flogged but I would suggest we see Ezenwa

Not taking Nwakali is an egregious sin IMO. I know he has issues at his club but he played well against Atleti, and honestly he can't be any worse than playing Mikel on that role. At worst Nwakali can benefit from the experience and be better for it in the future, to Nigeria's benefit, whereas Mikel is on his way to retirement.

I think in the absence of Nwakali, Iwobi is the next best for the role. Etebo just has to support him more as an easy outlet so he's not easily caught on possession. However no one else on that team can create the way Iwobi does. Also the wide player should play a bit inside to provide another way outlet for Iwobi. The more confidence he gets playing in the hole the less likely he is to be careless with possession.

He played that role more impressively against a better quality Atletico Madrid team than Mikel did against Zimbabwe and Burundi.

It's not overhyping by acknowledging that he's a better option than a gassed out Mikel running on fumes and most certainly costing us one sub per game.

The match against AM B team was a bloody..............................CHOOSING GAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!