The unsung hero of Nigeria’s ability to defend properly yesterday has to be Chelsea defender Kenneth Omeruo who was part of a central defence back three for Nigeria in yesterday’s 2-0 win over Iceland.
Omeruo was introduced into the defence by coach Gernot Rohr and the 23 year old who spent last season on loan to Turkish side Kasimpasa proved the decision of the manager right with a near faultless display.
He started the move which led to Nigeria’s first goal with a firm header out of the back and also created the second goal scored by Ahmed Musa with a well hit ball out of the box, which was latched upon by Musa.
Often criticised by Nigerians for his lack of pace and decision making, he was solid in every defensive duty he had to do yesterday, a performance which even Chelsea had to applaud on their official twitter handle.
Below is a statistical fact on how he dominated in the defence of the Super Eagles for the entire duration of yesterday’s win, which moved Nigeria to second in the group.
100% tackles won
63 touches
50 passes
6 aerial duels won
5 clearances
3 interceptions
2 chances created
2 fouls won
1 assist
Osas Mahawi
