Coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Eric Chelle has explained the new role given to Samuel Chukwueze in the Unity Cup tournament which his team won by 5-4 on penalties after battling to a 2-2 draw in regulation time.
Chukwueze was deployed in a role in the midfield away from his traditional role as a right or left winger in both games at the tournament. He scored the second goal in the 2-2 draw against Jamaica in the final.
The positioning of Chukwueze in both games took a lot of people by surprise but not Chelle, who has seen that the AC Milan man has what it takes to play in his diamond formation as part of a front two playing very close to the main striker.
” Chelle sees Chukwueze more as a player who can do a lot when he plays centrally. You saw his best game in a long while was against Jamaica. So that number ten role which isn’t quite it when you play in a diamond is where he operates now”, a source told OwnGoalNigeria.com.
” It’s not the first time that he has played him in that role but this is more advanced. What this role does is that it takes away a lot of defensive responsibilities from Chukwueze who isn’t the best in that area but about the best with the ball at his feet. So it’s about getting a role that will bring out the best in him and for the good of the team”, he stated.
Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman