GUYS, WE GOT PROBLEMS...

[deanotito]

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....???

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

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

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.

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.

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.

[The YeyeMan]

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

One is a right back and the other a left back...

I'd advise against pushing Ndidi to CB - he's the only real bonafide talent we have in midfield.

We're very weak at CB for sure - Awaziem included.

[EMIR KONGI JAFFI JOFFA]

If u lose na wahala, if u win na wahala. Which one is it? SE are not yet a world team to be thrashing teams in style. 443 na wahala,352 na wahala. Jeeeezzz!

[deanotito]

If u lose na wahala, if u win na wahala. Which one is it? SE are not yet a world team to be thrashing teams in style. 443 na wahala,352 na wahala. Jeeeezzz!

Bros, you mean you watched that game and the last 5 we've played, and you're not worried??

[Bigpokey24]

If u lose na wahala, if u win na wahala. Which one is it? SE are not yet a world team to be thrashing teams in style. 443 na wahala,352 na wahala. Jeeeezzz!

Bros, you mean you watched that game and the last 5 we've played, and you're not worried??

Don't waste your time

[airwolex]

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

[Undertaker]

The team is very poor and not good to watch! This team will not make the WC unless they get a very easy team in the 3rd round! Too many below average players. The stupid Coach waited so late to make a sub? Terrible team!

[Scipio Africanus]

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.

[vancity eagle]

LOL

You are putting the offensive responsibility on a central midfielder ?

Aribo played well, I dont know what game you watched.

I agree on the defence though. Disaster waiting to happen, but the answer is not Ndidi

We have Akpoguma and Ajayi, not to mention Awaziem who is also jittery but at least a much better ball handler.

The "oyibo wall" must be torn down. Time is up.

Moses Simon is such an ineffective offensive player. His "hustle" cannot be a substitute for his primary responsibility.

[Dammy]

LOL

You are putting the offensive responsibility on a central midfielder ?

Aribo played well, I dont know what game you watched.

I agree on the defence though. Disaster waiting to happen, but the answer is not Ndidi

We have Akpoguma and Ajayi, not to mention Awaziem who is also jittery but at least a much better ball handler.

The "oyibo wall" must be torn down. Time is up.

Moses Simon is such an ineffective offensive player. His "hustle" cannot be a substitute for his primary responsibility.

The "oyinbo wall" has to be broken down. Troost and Balogun always make that mistake of turning their backs to the ball and it could rebound favourably for an opponent, just like in the game against CAR. Awaziem keeps his eyes on the ball and is more composed. I believe the experienced Balogun should partner Awaziem going forward. Nkoulou appears to have benched Ekong at Watford, so I don't see how he can be starting for Nigeria if he sits on the bench in his club.

[delisyomie don]

The team is very poor and not good to watch! This team will not make the WC unless they get a very easy team in the 3rd round! Too many below average players. The stupid Coach waited so late to make a sub? Terrible team!

WE MIGHT NOT EVEN MAKE IT TO 3RD ROUND,THEY WAY EAGLES ARE PLAYING JUST LIKE THEY ARE ON TRAINNIG ,COMES ON TUESDAY THE TEAM THAT WANT IT MORE WE MAKE TO 3RD ROUND AND I THINK CAPE VERDE ARE MORE SERIOUS THAN EAGLES.

[Cito]

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

Bros, those saying he was MOM are either high on some strong ish or trying to be controversial on purpose. The guy have had just one above average game that I could remember in the SE.

[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....

[deanotito]

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

Man of which match?? Bruh, there was no one on the entire field that deserved any accolade.

[deanotito]

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.

[deanotito]

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

Bros, those saying he was MOM are either high on some strong ish or trying to be controversial on purpose. The guy have had just one above average game that I could remember in the SE.

They must be high.

[deanotito]

The team is very poor and not good to watch! This team will not make the WC unless they get a very easy team in the 3rd round! Too many below average players. The stupid Coach waited so late to make a sub? Terrible team!

WE MIGHT NOT EVEN MAKE IT TO 3RD ROUND,THEY WAY EAGLES ARE PLAYING JUST LIKE THEY ARE ON TRAINNIG ,COMES ON TUESDAY THE TEAM THAT WANT IT MORE WE MAKE TO 3RD ROUND AND I THINK CAPE VERDE ARE MORE SERIOUS THAN EAGLES.

The strange thing is that, in Rohr’s first 3 years - with generally the same players - the team played much better. Now, it’s like I’m watching a Man United team that is trying to get Ole fired. You keep thinking, surely these guys can play better than this. If I didn’t know better, it looked like sabotage

[deanotito]

LOL

You are putting the offensive responsibility on a central midfielder ?

Aribo played well, I dont know what game you watched.

I agree on the defence though. Disaster waiting to happen, but the answer is not Ndidi

We have Akpoguma and Ajayi, not to mention Awaziem who is also jittery but at least a much better ball handler.

The "oyibo wall" must be torn down. Time is up.

Moses Simon is such an ineffective offensive player. His "hustle" cannot be a substitute for his primary responsibility.

I’ve been saying for at least 4 years that Ndidi is worth 2 players. The only people who really listen are successive Leicester managers…who essentially leave Ndidi to do all the defensive mid work and bomb away offensively. NIGERIA SHOULD DO THE SAME. Aribo is dead weight. I’ll say it till the chickens come home because I can see it. Keeping him on the field to help the defense is just harming your team.

[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…

[vancity eagle]

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.

[Benedict Iroha]

Guys like Moses Simon should not be on this team.

[vancity eagle]

Guys like Moses Simon should not be on this team.

Just imagine.

Starting virtually every game for 2 straight years.

0 goals
0 assists
0 chances created
0 successful crosses

but Plenty of "hustle"

Rohr's type of player.

Then some clowns will tell us Lookman is not needed and cannot displace Simon. LOL

[naijaguy]

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