Nigeria climbed to second spot in their AFCON 2019 Qualifiers group after a comprehensive 4-0 thrashing of dethroned group leaders Libya in Uyo yesterday.
Owngoalnigeria.com witnessed the game live at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium and our correspondent reveals the five things he noticed about the Super Eagles in the course of the win over the Mediterranean Knights.
1. Jamilu Collins Should Be Eagles First Choice Left Back- He is what Nigerians have been crying out for. A quick left full back who can defend, attack and also contribute to team balance. Barring a criminal loss of form, the Paderborn left full back has no doubt cemented his spot as first choice at left back for the Super Eagles.
2. Alex Iwobi Is A Classic Number 10 – Playing alongside creative players like Aaron Ramsey, Mesut Ozil, Henrikh Mkhitaryan among others has helped his decision making particularly this season under Unai Emery. He operated as a classic number ten as he was not just assured in possession, he picked his passes at the right time and also executed them with minimum fuss.
3. Ekong Is Most Improved Player Under Rohr- If there’s an award for the most improved Super Eagles player then Ekong should win it. His growth is phenomenal both at club level and at international level where he is now one of the captains of the team. Yesterday’s game showed how well he has matured from 2013 when he first played for Nigeria.
4. Samuel Kalu Is A Mix Bag Of Pleasure & Pain – Never has a player integrated so fast into the team like Kalu has in such a short time but his decision making is stil a big worry. The Bordeaux forward is usually caught in between shooting or passing and more often than not he took the wrong decision during yesterday’s game. He still has it in him to come good.
5. Uzoho Is Nigeria’s Best For Now – Francis Uzoho wasn’t quite troubled yesterday by the Libyans but his save in the first half played a big role in the 4 -0 win because if the first half header which he saved had gone in Libya would have draw level. The decision to make him the first choice goalkeeper of the Super Eagles appears to be settled for now.
