As you read this, the first, and perhaps the second and final leg of the Quater World Cup play-off between traditional rivals – Nigeria and Ghana, would have ended and the winner known.
That’s a certain scenario for some fans, who’d be hoping strongly that the Super Eagles triumph over the Black Stars and pick the lone ticket for the World Cup in this group. However, Nigeria should beware of the Black Stars. Always a jinx team for Nigeria, they’ve been our nemesis on several occasions in the past.
Coach Otto Addo’s side hold a better record over the Super Eagles, winning 21 games, drawing 18 and losing just 10. They’d be coming to this first match with this record in mind, but times have changed. The Super Eagles are now a different outfit altogether. The Ghanaians would be meeting a Nigerian team with a different mentality. Technically strong, talented and, on a good day, highly efficient on the ball.
This Ghana team can’t dismiss this set of Super Eagles players; if they do, it would be to their own peril. Nigerian teams are known to perform when fans least expect. Despite the usually hostile setting of the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi, where Nigeria have fallen in the past to the Black Stars fire power, our boys could go there and win.
Whichever way the result goes on March 25th, the two teams have another chance four days later to upturn the result in the reverse fixture. Like Nigeria, Ghana are also rebuilding.
After their dismal performance in AFCON 2021 in Cameroon, they have an interim coach Otto Addo, who’s trying to instill discipline into the team. However, he doesn’t really have an abundance of talents like in the past. Most of the present crop of Black Star players are not playing for top European clubs. Apart from Thomas Partey (Arsenal), Issahaku Fatawu (Sporting), Jordan Ayew (Crystal Palace), Felix Afena Gyan (Roma) and Iddrisu Baba (Mallorca), all the others are playing for mid-table teams or in second tier leagues abroad.
In effect, Otto Addo’s teams are not so formidable. Although, most of our boys, too, play their trades in the second tier leagues in Europe, we have lethal strikers like Victor Osimhen, Ahmed Musa and Umar Sadiq who can trouble Ghana, without players of equivalent qualities on their side.
At the moment, Nigeria’s problem seems to be with goal keeping. Since Carl Ikeme’s exit due to a major illness, we are still in search of a reliable shot stopper.
Maduka Okoye isn’t yet a finished product, he’s still developing. Daniel Akpeyi and Oghenekaro Etebo are also not there yet. One only hopes that goal-keeping won’t be Nigeria’s albatross in these crucial play-offs.
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