GUYS, WE GOT PROBLEMS...

[Igugu]

I will take Ebuehi any day over others on the right defensive spot for the team. He is more intelligent on the ball and crosses better than any I have watched. If he is fit and injury-free, stick with this man. He is better than what Rohr has ever presented to us.

[vancity eagle]

Anyone who's saying Aribo didn't play well, surely didn't watch this game. They are just riding on hearsay.

i dont know what the agenda is but he had a good game.

the only SE player to get a passing grade IMO. Everyone else was below par.

[deanotito]

I completely disagree on Aribo. You yourself correctly identified our weakness at CB. The more defensive work Aribo puts in, the less pressure that is brought to bear on our weak CBs. I will take a hardworking player any day. Hard work saves headaches. And please keep Ndidi where he is.

I agree with you on shot/pass selection in the final third, but then this is where the coach should earn his pay. Not much evidence of that, I'm afraid.

You know one of the reasons we don’t shoot more in the final third? ARIBO.

Nigeria - due to Rohr’s conservatism - does not practice team attack. With Osimhen and Iheanacho in the box, the only player around the box is usually Iwobi - or whoever is playing his position…then there is a gap, before you hit Aribo. So there’s only one person to shoot - Iwobi. If Aribo was worth his stones, he would close that gap. But he ain’t…

Aribo has more goals than all of our midfielders other than Iwobi and you are blaming him for lack of goals. LOL

Did he steal your wife ?

Have you mentioned Simon ? Who is a wing forward who has played virtually every single match over the last 2 years and does not have one goal or one assist, has he ever even created a scoring chance ? but blame Aribo, LMFAO.

Una don high finish? Did I mention Moses Simon? Did you read the first post on the thread???

Aribo is a waste of a spot. Waste

[deanotito]

I will take Ebuehi any day over others on the right defensive spot for the team. He is more intelligent on the ball and crosses better than any I have watched. If he is fit and injury-free, stick with this man. He is better than what Rohr has ever presented to us.

KPOM^2. That boy is a baller. It’s amazing he doesn’t seem to have Rohr’s respect. Amazing

[bret- hart]

Aribo, Simon, Abdulahi, Collins all need to go. These guys are crap. Sack **** now please for fuuks sake.

[Enugu II]

Dean,

I generally agree with your take but some, I hesitate or diagree....

1. If Rohr gets fired- and its increasingly looking a case of when, not if - the pictures of Moses Simon and Joe Aribo should be put in the media stories describing the reason why. They are DEAD WEIGHT. Simon cannot run, cross, dribble or make a decent pass in the box. Aribo always shirks responsibility, constantly passes the ball to teammates in bad situations just so he is not blamed, and produces nothing offensively. The only thing either of them have going for them is that ephemeral quality coaches call "hardworking". I said the same after the last set of games (viewtopic.php?f=1&t=305945&hilit=SIMON). Any decent coach should be able to see past Simon's defensive work and see he has zero offensive production. The short term solution for Aribo is easier. Ditch the conservatism, leave Ndidi as the sole defensive cover (like Leicester) and get a couple of offensive midfielders to partner him. If we cannot play an Ndidi-Iwobi-Ejuke midfield against Cape Verde, Liberia and CAR, then the SE is doomed. Just forget it against better opposition. We CANNOT be stuck with Aribo because of the defensive work he does. To think they gave him the #10 jersey....???

Not for this game. Aribo played his best game against African opposition than I can remember. Usually against African opposition, he shrinks but that was not the case today.

2. We have a Center Back problem. Some would say a HUGE one. Balogun (a historical fave of mine) is old and somewhat mistake prone. Troost is shaky, bad with the ball at his feet and mistake prone. They are a disaster waiting to happen. The short term solution is to push Ndidi back to CB and pair him with Awaziem. We have other players that can play DM (not as good as Ndidi) but good enough for the Afcon. Leicester has done this on occasion and it has worked. Its not the greatest thing for Ndidi's career, but is the quickest fix for us. Troost and Balogs don't work and are easily exposed. Also, Rohr - for the love of grace, CALL BACK EBUEHI! He's better than Collins by a mile

This has been evident for a while. I have mentioned how underwhelming that pair is especially when thinking about Nigeria's strength in those positions historically.

3. We need to shoot at goal from outside the box more. In simple terms, the eagles have sold out to an attacking style of play that they are at best, average at. They neither time their attacking passes well or have the close control necessary to pull off their intentions. Due to the fact that they seldom shoot, defenders just pin back, choke the box and wait for them. One quick way to mess up that defensive plan is to shoot A LOT more from outside the box...that will draw the defenders out and create space in the box. We don't need to score. We just need to be on target. When defenses know we have that quality, they will open up more space in the box

Point well taken. I think Iheanacho gave away the fact that this team weas working on especially this need (see his interview with AllNigeriasoccer.com. I thought the interview was quite revealing that I posted it and then did a deep dig to unravel my thoughts behind his words. Unfortunately, it is shocking that what the team practised was not p[ut to action in a real game.

4. First game in quite a while that Awaziem has impressed me. He needs to play more. He can at least play a long ball, and was 2x the midfielder Aribo was.

Awaziem has been like this for a long while. He clearly is more talented than any of the Nigerian defenders -- in the air, with the ball, 1 v 1 situations, name it. The problem is that as you well know he does develop brain freeze (LOL) from time to time.

5. I am struck by how on a 1v1 basis, players that play in much lower divisions look every bit the technical equal as the eagles. Whether it be CAR, Cape Verde or Liberia, when I watch them - technical ability vs technical ability - I generally see equivalence. I don't know...Is it that our players really aren't that good? Or what?? I don't see a gulf in class.

I keep mentioning this. This division thing is not a 100% determination of player quality because of a variety of reasons. Even beyond that, the differences are quite minor and not as huge as discussants make it. A lot of times, it is simply about minor issues in decision making and not necessarily on-the-ball skill.

6. I'm convinced that the Iheanacho-Osimhen partnership is not great. I'm not sure what pairing is ideal, but more tinkering from the coach is needed. Osimhen has to play....but I think he needs a different partner. Or different tactics. Not sure, but those 2 no be am.

Perhaps, you are correct but understand that the pairing even though was not definitive. Note that at times, Iheanacho was required to play deep to help the midfield. Perhaps, it was to support Rohr's natural lack of confidence in being on the front foot. Always afraid, always deferring, always protecting....always....

Enugu, Aribo is a try-hard player. All he brings is hard work. Let me ask you this? Who is better? Onazi (of course, before the injuries) or Aribo?

Aribo is a stealthy zero for Nigeria. He can deceive a lot of people. But a coach should be able to see through this.

Dean,

TBH, my view of Aribo is similar. I actually refer to him as Eteboisque -- loves to touch the ball and give it up like a hot potato (lots of 1-2s with the nearest guy). However, this is his best game for the SE against an African opposition if you ask me. At least, he did not recoil into a shell.

[naijaguy]

Anyone who's saying Aribo didn't play well, surely didn't watch this game. They are just riding on hearsay.

i dont know what the agenda is but he had a good game.

the only SE player to get a passing grade IMO. Everyone else was below par.

I equally think Osimhen had a good game.

[naijaguy]

I will take Ebuehi any day over others on the right defensive spot for the team. He is more intelligent on the ball and crosses better than any I have watched. If he is fit and injury-free, stick with this man. He is better than what Rohr has ever presented to us.

I really don't know why they keep neglecting Ebuehi. Maybe cos he has a small body. They probably feel he's not suited for African football. But then, he has never had a bad game for he SE.

[Benedict Iroha]

Anyone who's saying Aribo didn't play well, surely didn't watch this game. They are just riding on hearsay.

Aribo and Chukwueze should both start the next game.

[deanotito]

Anyone who's saying Aribo didn't play well, surely didn't watch this game. They are just riding on hearsay.

i dont know what the agenda is but he had a good game.

the only SE player to get a passing grade IMO. Everyone else was below par.

I equally think Osimhen had a good game.

He had an okay game. Not bad, but certainly not great. It’s Osimhen v Liberia…We expect him to shine like a million stars. He didn’t. Kele’s game was bordering on bad though. Heavy touches every other ball interaction.

[deanotito]

I will take Ebuehi any day over others on the right defensive spot for the team. He is more intelligent on the ball and crosses better than any I have watched. If he is fit and injury-free, stick with this man. He is better than what Rohr has ever presented to us.

I really don't know why they keep neglecting Ebuehi. Maybe cos he has a small body. They probably feel he's not suited for African football. But then, he has never had a bad game for he SE.

That’s the kind of criticism I would expect a fan on the street to have, but a COACH? What has Rohr been looking at? I mean, his game is so obviously good, you wonder why he isn’t getting an invite.

My best guess is that Rohr received feedback (NFF, other players) that our defense was too oyinbo. And since he was partial to the ‘oyinbo wall’, he decided to freeze out Ebuehi…i.e. this is a non-footballing decision

[Enugu II]

I will take Ebuehi any day over others on the right defensive spot for the team. He is more intelligent on the ball and crosses better than any I have watched. If he is fit and injury-free, stick with this man. He is better than what Rohr has ever presented to us.

I really don't know why they keep neglecting Ebuehi. Maybe cos he has a small body. They probably feel he's not suited for African football. But then, he has never had a bad game for he SE.

That’s the kind of criticism I would expect a fan on the street to have, but a COACH? What has Rohr been looking at? I mean, his game is so obviously good, you wonder why he isn’t getting an invite.

My best guess is that Rohr received feedback (NFF, other players) that our defense was too oyinbo. And since he was partial to the ‘oyinbo wall’, he decided to freeze out Ebuehi…i.e. this is a non-footballing decision

Dean

I doubt that it directly comes from the NFF although there may well have been chatter. Note that much earlier, even Rohr publicly talked about whether Ebuehi had the toughness to play in the African competitions. That toughness is a REAL ISSUE. Note that Iwobi had a difficult time adjusting to it but has now become adjusted. Aribo had similar issues earlier on getting into those crunchy contacts. It was an earlier issue for Ebuehi. However, I have to state that after his return from the long lay off, I saw him mix it up in one of the games for the SE. However, was that enough to demonstrate that he is ready for the rough and tumble contests in Africa?

[deanotito]

I will take Ebuehi any day over others on the right defensive spot for the team. He is more intelligent on the ball and crosses better than any I have watched. If he is fit and injury-free, stick with this man. He is better than what Rohr has ever presented to us.

I really don't know why they keep neglecting Ebuehi. Maybe cos he has a small body. They probably feel he's not suited for African football. But then, he has never had a bad game for he SE.

That’s the kind of criticism I would expect a fan on the street to have, but a COACH? What has Rohr been looking at? I mean, his game is so obviously good, you wonder why he isn’t getting an invite.

My best guess is that Rohr received feedback (NFF, other players) that our defense was too oyinbo. And since he was partial to the ‘oyinbo wall’, he decided to freeze out Ebuehi…i.e. this is a non-footballing decision

Dean

I doubt that it directly comes from the NFF although there may well have been chatter. Note that much earlier, even Rohr publicly talked about whether Ebuehi had the toughness to play in the African competitions. That toughness is a REAL ISSUE. Note that Iwobi had a difficult time adjusting to it but has now become adjusted. Aribo had similar issues earlier on getting into those crunchy contacts. It was an earlier issue for Ebuehi. However, I have to state that after his return from the long lay off, I saw him mix it up in one of the games for the SE. However, was that enough to demonstrate that he is ready for the rough and tumble contests in Africa?

Again, I say that that is a sophomoric impression, best suited for the street, and not from the mouth of a coach. You prove toughness on the field and I have never seen Ebuehi shrink.

I would rather take a smart, gifted player, who has never played in Africa, over some grass cutter who grew up in Ajegunle, but whose only contribution to the game is knowing how to take a crunching tackle.

It would be one thing if his performances weren’t good. Who toughness don help? Okay, let him go and pick his players from the NPFL…they are plenty tough. You say what? Oh, they don’t have quality? Really.

Tosh!

[Enyi]

I completely disagree on Aribo. You yourself correctly identified our weakness at CB. The more defensive work Aribo puts in, the less pressure that is brought to bear on our weak CBs. I will take a hardworking player any day. Hard work saves headaches. And please keep Ndidi where he is.

I agree with you on shot/pass selection in the final third, but then this is where the coach should earn his pay. Not much evidence of that, I'm afraid.

You know one of the reasons we don’t shoot more in the final third? ARIBO.

Nigeria - due to Rohr’s conservatism - does not practice team attack. With Osimhen and Iheanacho in the box, the only player around the box is usually Iwobi - or whoever is playing his position…then there is a gap, before you hit Aribo. So there’s only one person to shoot - Iwobi. If Aribo was worth his stones, he would close that gap. But he ain’t…

Maybe the problem you guys are missing is the coach….

Aribo is not a DM, Onyeka is…but the coach won’t play him.

Aribo is a CAM, that’s where he plays for Rangers and puts up MoTM performances week in week out….

Iheanacho is not a good partner for oshimhen and the coach keeps playing him…..

What is Chukwueze, Ejuke doing on the bench?

Why is Ighalo picked and the third best striker in Germany dropped only for Ighalo not to make the team squad…?

All excuses lies on Berti (Vogts) Rohr’s feet….

[Enyi]

This coach keeps going to Germany to watch German games and he tells us that the likes of Udohkahi will switch and nothing…..

We are mugus and people like Emir kongi swallowed his load - hook line and sinker

[Cellular]

I didn't watch the match but the Aribo assessment is interesting. Some people say he was MOM some others that he is deadweight.

We actually need more players like Aribo.

Guys who can pass the ball to teammate's feet, show for ball, and know exactly what to do with the ball.

It will take injury for **** to change things up and accidentally discover who can play for him.

The CD partnership is below par. The midfield formation (alignment) and personnel contribute to why the team hardly creates enough chances.

BTW, we need to move the ball a lot faster... the plodding play is tiresome.

[The YeyeMan]

AFCON is two months away, the World Cup is 13 months away.

Una get 1 month to fire this your Rohr and replace am. Clock dey tick.

[nemi2002]

The oyibo wall wasn't impressive yesterday. They seemed jittery, almost like one mistake away from letting in a goal.