Former Nigeria international, Etim Esin, has warned the Super Eagles ahead of this weekend’s crucial 2018 World Cup qualifying match against the Desert Foxes of Algeria.
In a chat with PREMIUM TIMES, the former player fondly referred to as the ‘African Maradona’ in his playing days said it will be suicidal if the Eagles become over-confident simply because they defeated Zambia away in the opening fixture of the qualifying series.
“My major advice to the team is that they should not be over confident,” he said. “For the fact that we won away in Zambia means Algeria can also come here and get a good result. So I’d say they should keep their composure and focus on getting three points. It shouldn’t get into their head that winning at Zambia could make things easier against Algeria.” Esin warned
Esin said with the right attitude as well as maximum support from the fans, the Super Eagles should be able to scale the Algerian hurdle on Saturday.
“As long as they have that at the back of their minds plus the confidence of playing at home, I think they will get the result.” Esin concluded
Meanwhile, to highlight the importance attached to this game, all the players invited by Coach Genort Rohr have already arrived in camp even as the team have already undergone two training sessions.
The Nigerian players looked sharp in training on Tuesday, and the Algerians certainly will have a mountain to surmount in Uyo on Saturday.
The Super Eagles go into the match on a four–match winning streak, going back to the summer when they defeated Mali 1-0 in Rouen, France and spanked Luxembourg 3-1 in Luxembourg City. Both were friendly matches.
In September, the Eagles piped Tanzania 1-0 in a 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Uyo, before edging Zambia 2-1 in Ndola at the start of the 2018 FIFA World Cup race on October 9.
Interestingly, Manchester City of England’s youthful forward Kelechi Iheanacho scored in all four matches.
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