Post-SHOCK analysis
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Post-SHOCK analysis
Having watched the game with a calmer mind after the shock of the result here is my analysis of the match:
The game was one of two halves.
In the first half, Nigeria met a very young, fast, hungry, determined and organized Moroccan side. Morocco fought for every ball and ran rings around Nigerian defenders, at almost every opportunity. Their speed clearly was a problem for ALL Nigerian defenders not just Okoronkwo or Yobo.
Morocco was unlucky to score early on from a cross that was headed wide.
Defensively, Morocco was superb and did not allow the Nigerian 4-2-4 formation to even get off first gear. They had obviously watched Nigerian tapes and like Argentina in the WC knew that the best way to make Nigeria stumble was to put pressure on them when they had the ball.
It worked.
Nigeria pushed the ball here and there in the midfield without any idea for moving the ball forward. Kanu's inability to keep pace meant he had few opportunities to create. Okocha had 2 men on him almost every time he touched the ball and he was forced into working extremely hard to hold on to the ball and deliver it forward. He could not move with the ball so he opted to lob it forward.
This kicking of the ball up to the attack was Nigeria's response to pressure and made no impact because in the middle Nigeria met with a very strong central Moroccan defence and on the wings, Morocco effectively nullified Aiyegbeni who drifted wide left and could not beat his man and Utaka who was largely invisible.
Aghahowa had a few good touches in the center but was for the most part without much service. However, Aghahowa towards the end of the first half, manged to turn to receive a well placed pass from Kanu and slam it into the goal but the Moroccan defence had read the play well and it was ruled offside.
Second Half.
Nigeria knew they had a fight on their hands. The team seemed determined to be more aggressive and more attack-minded.
The left and right backs of Abbey and Babayaro who had played more defensively in the first half began to play more like wing backs and were instrumental in moving the ball up the wings and sometimes crossing it in. Yet the opportunities and space they created for the forwards were largely wasted.
In the middle, Okocha still had problems moving with the ball, confronting two men at every turn. Kanu was virtually non-existent both offensively and defensively. Once again, the creative midfield never got off the ground.
The Nigerian attack was equally as blunt with poor chemistry between Aghahowa and Aiyegbeni. Aghahowa who should have been the main striker decided to play support striker since Aiyegbeni was largely unable to create plays for him. As a support striker he created several opportunities for Aiyegbeni which the latter was not good enough to take advantage of.
Utaka who played wide on the right, also lacked the ability to cross, create or play with the other two strikers. He tried at one point to go it alone and met 3 Moroccan defenders who shut him down very quickly.
While the Nigerian offence struggled, the young Moroccans started to get bolder in attack especially when Youssef Hadji came on. Their goal resulted from a misread pass into the box, reaching Youssef Hadji who was standing totally unmarked.
Nigeria who had substituted Ikedia for Kanu earlier came alive with most of its attack now mounted from his wing. His speed and dribbling created space and he was able to cross several times into the box for the forwards. But they were unable to get onto any of them.
Aiyegbeni's substitution for Agali changed little in the chemisty of Nigeria's striking partnership. Aghahowa once again was left on his own trying to do much with extremely little.
Morocco almost had a second goal before full time with a strike that was only saved by the post.
As the final whistle blowed, it was obvious that despite the fact that Nigeria held most of the possession they met a young Moroccan side that not only snuffed out their attack but looked much more dangerous going forward than the Eagles.
Player Ratings:
Enyeama: Was not really threatened for most of the game because of his solid back line. Could not prevent a well-taken strike but managed to save Nigeria a 2-0 embarrasment. 5/10
Okoronkwo: Strong at the back. Struggled to keep up with the speed of the young Moroccans but played a solid game including marking his men. 8/10
Yobo: Strong at the back. Struggled to keep pace with the young Moroccans but played a solid game. Did not do well in marking his men. 6/10
Babayaro: Best game in a while. Not only defended well but also moved the ball forward extremely well. Struggled with the speed of the Moroccans. 9/10
Abbey: Extremely well poised right back who defended well and moved the ball forward well. Was the only back who kept pace with the Moroccans. 9/10
Olofinjana: Was an extra defender who did not particularly standout in his play. May get better with time. 5/10
Okocha: Worked extremely hard and held the ball well. Was not given room to move or create. Had he had that room the outcome of the match may have been different. 6/10
Kanu: Aside from a nice through ball to Aghahowa, could not keep up with the Moroccans or create much. For such a talented player, yet more disappointment. 4/10
Utaka: Largely invisible as an attacker and weak as a winger. Did not do much in either role. Definitely has the skills but it seems he is being played out of position. 4/10
Ikedia: Made a few darting runs on the wing that actually opened up the Moroccan defence. Still, his crosses were not well placed or received. 7/10
Aghahowa: Was in tip-top shape and once again brought his A game. His speed opened up the Moroccan defence. But with poor partners in attack his efforts were wasted. The few times he was on the receiving end of passes he was Nigeria's ONLY credible threat. 7/10
Aiyegbeni: A poor player against Morocco. He CANNOT and SHOULD not play support striker for Nigeria. He did NOTHING with Aghahowa's attempts to free him. 3/10
Agali: Did not have much time to prove himself up front. No rating
Coaching & strategy:
Chukwu played a traditional 4-4-2 formation, that DID NOT WORK because his midfield and forwards were not 4-4-2 material.
In the midfield, the creativity of Okocha and Kanu could not get going because of a serious lack of defensive midfield support. As a result, there was no creativity that was sorely needed to free up Nigerian attackers. Olofinjana was overwhelmed as a DM and Utaka was non-existent in defensive mode.
The Nigerian back four held firm despite this and was the ONLY OUTSTANDING aspect of Nigeria's team.
The forwards aside from Aghahowa were poor and invisible. There was NO chemistry in the attack between Aghahowa and the supporting players. There was no creativity behind the strikers to open up the Moroccan defence. Wing play was weak and without Babayaro, Abbey and Ikedia, there would have been NO WING PLAY.
This game showed that you can play 4 forwards and you would still have a BLUNT attack if there is no system of attack. Nigeria lacked such a system and it showed because while they had possession they could do VERY LITTLE with it.
Christian Chukwu's job is certainly on the line. In attack, he has not shown an ability to play players in roles that will get the best out of talents like Okocha, Kanu, Utaka and Aghahowa.
Kali.
The game was one of two halves.
In the first half, Nigeria met a very young, fast, hungry, determined and organized Moroccan side. Morocco fought for every ball and ran rings around Nigerian defenders, at almost every opportunity. Their speed clearly was a problem for ALL Nigerian defenders not just Okoronkwo or Yobo.
Morocco was unlucky to score early on from a cross that was headed wide.
Defensively, Morocco was superb and did not allow the Nigerian 4-2-4 formation to even get off first gear. They had obviously watched Nigerian tapes and like Argentina in the WC knew that the best way to make Nigeria stumble was to put pressure on them when they had the ball.
It worked.
Nigeria pushed the ball here and there in the midfield without any idea for moving the ball forward. Kanu's inability to keep pace meant he had few opportunities to create. Okocha had 2 men on him almost every time he touched the ball and he was forced into working extremely hard to hold on to the ball and deliver it forward. He could not move with the ball so he opted to lob it forward.
This kicking of the ball up to the attack was Nigeria's response to pressure and made no impact because in the middle Nigeria met with a very strong central Moroccan defence and on the wings, Morocco effectively nullified Aiyegbeni who drifted wide left and could not beat his man and Utaka who was largely invisible.
Aghahowa had a few good touches in the center but was for the most part without much service. However, Aghahowa towards the end of the first half, manged to turn to receive a well placed pass from Kanu and slam it into the goal but the Moroccan defence had read the play well and it was ruled offside.
Second Half.
Nigeria knew they had a fight on their hands. The team seemed determined to be more aggressive and more attack-minded.
The left and right backs of Abbey and Babayaro who had played more defensively in the first half began to play more like wing backs and were instrumental in moving the ball up the wings and sometimes crossing it in. Yet the opportunities and space they created for the forwards were largely wasted.
In the middle, Okocha still had problems moving with the ball, confronting two men at every turn. Kanu was virtually non-existent both offensively and defensively. Once again, the creative midfield never got off the ground.
The Nigerian attack was equally as blunt with poor chemistry between Aghahowa and Aiyegbeni. Aghahowa who should have been the main striker decided to play support striker since Aiyegbeni was largely unable to create plays for him. As a support striker he created several opportunities for Aiyegbeni which the latter was not good enough to take advantage of.
Utaka who played wide on the right, also lacked the ability to cross, create or play with the other two strikers. He tried at one point to go it alone and met 3 Moroccan defenders who shut him down very quickly.
While the Nigerian offence struggled, the young Moroccans started to get bolder in attack especially when Youssef Hadji came on. Their goal resulted from a misread pass into the box, reaching Youssef Hadji who was standing totally unmarked.
Nigeria who had substituted Ikedia for Kanu earlier came alive with most of its attack now mounted from his wing. His speed and dribbling created space and he was able to cross several times into the box for the forwards. But they were unable to get onto any of them.
Aiyegbeni's substitution for Agali changed little in the chemisty of Nigeria's striking partnership. Aghahowa once again was left on his own trying to do much with extremely little.
Morocco almost had a second goal before full time with a strike that was only saved by the post.
As the final whistle blowed, it was obvious that despite the fact that Nigeria held most of the possession they met a young Moroccan side that not only snuffed out their attack but looked much more dangerous going forward than the Eagles.
Player Ratings:
Enyeama: Was not really threatened for most of the game because of his solid back line. Could not prevent a well-taken strike but managed to save Nigeria a 2-0 embarrasment. 5/10
Okoronkwo: Strong at the back. Struggled to keep up with the speed of the young Moroccans but played a solid game including marking his men. 8/10
Yobo: Strong at the back. Struggled to keep pace with the young Moroccans but played a solid game. Did not do well in marking his men. 6/10
Babayaro: Best game in a while. Not only defended well but also moved the ball forward extremely well. Struggled with the speed of the Moroccans. 9/10
Abbey: Extremely well poised right back who defended well and moved the ball forward well. Was the only back who kept pace with the Moroccans. 9/10
Olofinjana: Was an extra defender who did not particularly standout in his play. May get better with time. 5/10
Okocha: Worked extremely hard and held the ball well. Was not given room to move or create. Had he had that room the outcome of the match may have been different. 6/10
Kanu: Aside from a nice through ball to Aghahowa, could not keep up with the Moroccans or create much. For such a talented player, yet more disappointment. 4/10
Utaka: Largely invisible as an attacker and weak as a winger. Did not do much in either role. Definitely has the skills but it seems he is being played out of position. 4/10
Ikedia: Made a few darting runs on the wing that actually opened up the Moroccan defence. Still, his crosses were not well placed or received. 7/10
Aghahowa: Was in tip-top shape and once again brought his A game. His speed opened up the Moroccan defence. But with poor partners in attack his efforts were wasted. The few times he was on the receiving end of passes he was Nigeria's ONLY credible threat. 7/10
Aiyegbeni: A poor player against Morocco. He CANNOT and SHOULD not play support striker for Nigeria. He did NOTHING with Aghahowa's attempts to free him. 3/10
Agali: Did not have much time to prove himself up front. No rating
Coaching & strategy:
Chukwu played a traditional 4-4-2 formation, that DID NOT WORK because his midfield and forwards were not 4-4-2 material.
In the midfield, the creativity of Okocha and Kanu could not get going because of a serious lack of defensive midfield support. As a result, there was no creativity that was sorely needed to free up Nigerian attackers. Olofinjana was overwhelmed as a DM and Utaka was non-existent in defensive mode.
The Nigerian back four held firm despite this and was the ONLY OUTSTANDING aspect of Nigeria's team.
The forwards aside from Aghahowa were poor and invisible. There was NO chemistry in the attack between Aghahowa and the supporting players. There was no creativity behind the strikers to open up the Moroccan defence. Wing play was weak and without Babayaro, Abbey and Ikedia, there would have been NO WING PLAY.
This game showed that you can play 4 forwards and you would still have a BLUNT attack if there is no system of attack. Nigeria lacked such a system and it showed because while they had possession they could do VERY LITTLE with it.
Christian Chukwu's job is certainly on the line. In attack, he has not shown an ability to play players in roles that will get the best out of talents like Okocha, Kanu, Utaka and Aghahowa.
Kali.
Last edited by Pemba on Wed Jan 28, 2004 6:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Okoronkwo: Strong at the back. Struggled to keep up with the speed of the young Moroccans but played a solid game including marking his men. 8/10
Abbey: Extremely well poised right back who defended well and moved the ball forward well. Was the only back who kept pace with the Moroccans. 9/10
LOL did you watch the game?
Immortal Technique will destroy your religion you stupid *Nice Lady*/ You're faker than blue-eyed crackers nailed to a crucifix/
not isaac. Abbey played well but not isaac.
Ayton Senna wrote:On a given day, a given circumstance, you think you have a limit. And you then go for this limit and you touch this limit, and you think, 'Okay, this is the limit.' As soon as you touch this limit, something happens and you suddenly can go a little bit further. With your mind power, your determination, your instinct, and the experience as well, you can fly very high - Ayton Senna
FORZA JUVE
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Chief Ogbunigwe
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Kali, did Chukwu play 4-2-4 or 4-4-2? It seemed like 4-2-4 to me!
you wrote:
you wrote:
then later, you wrote:Defensively, Morocco was superb and did not allow the Nigerian 4-2-4 formation to even get off first gear.
Chukwu played a traditional 4-4-2 formation, that DID NOT WORK because his midfield and forwards were not 4-4-2 material.
Last edited by Chief Ogbunigwe on Wed Jan 28, 2004 6:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.
AFCON 2019 sweet o
Barren for 37 yrs no good o
New member and Titled Chief, Distant Gunners Consortium.
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Barren for 37 yrs no good o
New member and Titled Chief, Distant Gunners Consortium.
"This is an island surrounded by water, big water, ocean water."
Sharrap dia short man. At least I am not as biased as your ho-like follow follow of political backstabber Onigbinde who played a two left legged, player from your area whose best game was his beard.Another biased opinionated and extremely crap report, just like the SE really. Thank God you are not coach.
Sharrap and go trim down that big fat belle of yours.
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sunshinestar
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Re: Post-SHOCK analysis
Okoronkwo: Strong at the back. Struggled to keep up with the speed of the young Moroccans but played a solid game including marking his men. 8/10
Did you watch the match at all?
Did you watch the match at all?
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theYemster
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Re: Post-SHOCK analysis
kali, I think your 'SHOCK' analysis would be much better than your post SHOCK analysis.
Okoronkwo 8, Babayaro 9, Abbey 9?
I guess in your eyes, I must've scored a 7 for just watching the game in my crib?
Okoronkwo 8, Babayaro 9, Abbey 9?
I guess in your eyes, I must've scored a 7 for just watching the game in my crib?
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theYemster
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Docky that's what you get after being subjected to as much kumburization and oruemburization as Chukwu has subjected us to; you become a confused fan.Chief Ogbunigwe wrote:Kali, did Chukwu play 4-2-4 or 4-4-2? It seemed like 4-2-4 to me!
you wrote:then later, you wrote:Defensively, Morocco was superb and did not allow the Nigerian 4-2-4 formation to even get off first gear.Chukwu played a traditional 4-4-2 formation, that DID NOT WORK because his midfield and forwards were not 4-4-2 material.
O-Qua Tangin Wann! Die with memories, not dreams.™
© ɹ ǝ ʇ s ɯ é ʎ ǝ ɥ ʇ" ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
© ɹ ǝ ʇ s ɯ é ʎ ǝ ɥ ʇ" ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
An ok analysis with lousy player ratings
"I hear Glenn Hoddle has found God. That must have been one hell of a pass." Jasper Carrott
"Mind you, football is not really about winning, or goals, or saves or supporters. It's about glory. It's about doing things in style, doing them with a flourish. It's
about going out to beat the other lot, not waiting for them to die of boredom."
Danny Blanchflower
"Mind you, football is not really about winning, or goals, or saves or supporters. It's about glory. It's about doing things in style, doing them with a flourish. It's
about going out to beat the other lot, not waiting for them to die of boredom."
Danny Blanchflower