Soccer enthusiasts in Abuja have urged the Super Eagles of Nigeria to up their game at the ongoing 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil.
Nigeria thrashed Tahiti 6-1 in their first Group B game of the cup competition, and Super Eagles will next face Uruguay on June 20 in their second group game.
Sanusi Mohammed, NFA’s director of competitions, congratulated the Super Eagles on the victory, but urged the players to keep the win aside and concentrate on the matches ahead.
“They should not think that they have arrived because the team they met today isn’t as strong as the teams they will meet later,’’ he said.
Mohammed said the Eagles must see the victory as a morale booster because they played the least difficult match of all the matches they have at the championship.
“They should not be complacent about the win because the opposition today did not make the match a good test for them because, despite the result, they wasted a lot of chances,” Mohammed warned.
Mansur Abdullahi, the FCT FA organising committee secretary, said the team was improving gradually, adding: “That is a good step in a right direction.
Meanwhile, a cross section of the fans in Abuja, who spoke to NAN expressed mixed feelings over the performance of the team.
Mr Suleiman Abubakar, a fan, commended the Eagles for a job well done, but insisted that the team must improve on its performances to enable them win their next match. He said there was the need for the coach to change his style and approach in their match against Uruguay.
Abubakar said this was necessary to ensure effective coordination among players and to encourage them to display their professional prowess.
Femi Babatunde, a football viewing centre operator, noted, with concern, the lack of team work among the players, a situation he said might affect their chances.
“The players are playing individual game, no team work. They must understand themselves and work as one to enable them win against Uruguay,” he said.
Jerry Tsee, a civil servant, observed that the Eagles squandered many of scoring opportunities.
“I was particularly disappointed at Ahmed Musa. We would have been 10 goals up if Musa and Brown Ideye had taken their chances at goal. They were rather too selfish and always wanted to go for glory all by themselves,’’ he said.
Mr Emmanuel Okoye, a businessman, noted that the Nigeria-Uruguay game would be a different ball game.
“Nigeria’s game against Uruguay and Spain will be crucial for us bearing in mind that they will both be looking to get maximum points off Tahiti. Our next game is a must win if we hope to make it out of the group stage,” he said.
Mr Femi Ajayi, an engineer, said the team was extremely good, adding that without the likes of Victor Moses and Emenike they still performed brilliantly.
According to him, the standard of the team was not low because Tahiti is also a good team to have participated in the tournament, stating that Super Eagles should expect a tough match ahead. He said even though Nigeria had built confidence for the next match, the team must work hard to maintain the speed of play otherwise they would be an underdog.
“We will be the underdogs in our match against Spain if we do not prepare hard against the other strong teams. Even Uruguay is a big team for us, so we have yet to start.’’
