Super Eagles manager-in-waiting Jose Peseiro is seemingly not too impressed with coach Austin Eguavoen-led side that crashed out in the Round of 16 even as the Portuguese reckoned that the semi-finalists cast of Burkina Faso, Senegal , Egypt and hosts Cameroon were the tournament’s best four teams.
In a report by Egyptian news outlet, King Fut, Peseiro who was announced by the Nigeria Football Federation(NFF) as a replacement for sacked German coach Gernot Rohr , was quoted as telling Egyptian TV channel , that the 2021 AFCON which climaxed this weekend was not for the faint-hearted.
“The Africa Cup of Nations is a very strong competition between strong teams, including Nigeria, who were the best in the group stage, but after all, the four strongest teams throughout the tournament have reached the semi-finals,” the 61-year-old said. “Egypt didn’t do well against Nigeria, but after that, they showed their true abilities, their players gave a great performance against Morocco, they have what it takes to win the tournament.”
Incidentally, the second semi-finals of 2021 AFCON holds tonight as hosts and five-time Champions Cameroon face off against seven-time record winners Pharaohs of Egypt complete with their talismanic captain , Mohammed Salah.
“Egypt vs Cameroon will be an amazing game, Cameroon are hosts, they have that advantage, but as you know, Egypt have a very strong team as well, “ Peseiro equally noted. “The team that makes fewer mistakes will win the game. I hope Egypt can put on a great show, like the one they put on the quarter-finals (against Morocco).
“Egypt have an organized team, Queiroz is doing well with the team, they are improving from one game to the next.
“When you have a superstar like Mohamed Salah on your team, you have to talk to him, he should be your way to establish a connection with the other players, especially when he’s the national team captain,” Peseiro added.
Meanwhile, the NFF may have jettisoned the idea of hiring the former FC Porto manager with words rife that interim-manager to the AFCON, Austine Eguavoen, would be announced as the team’s
substantive trainer in the coming days.