Semi Ajayi has said it was important the Super Eagles made amends for the surprise defeat to Guinea-Bissau in Abuja in Friday.
A first half goal by Moses Simon from the penalty spot sealed a 1-0 win for the Eagles on match day four of the 2023 AFCON qualifiers on Monday.
The win saw José Peseiro’s side reclaim top spot as they take their points tally to nine while Guinea-Bissau are second on seven points.
And Ajayi who played for 90 minutes in Bissau described it as a crucial win for the Eagles.
“Very important result in terms of our qualification towards AFCON, it puts us back on top of the group and in pole position,” Ajayi said in a video interview on NFF TV.
“We know we let ourselves down on Friday and it is important we put that result right and come away with a win.“
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Ajayi expressed delight that he got the opportunity to feature and help the Eagles secure the three points.
“It’s a blessing anytime I’m called to play for my country whether it’s one minute or 90 minutes, it’s something I don’t take lightly.
“I’m always blessed to be given opportunity to represent my country and the fact that I was able to start and help the team and pick up a valuable win was all that matter to me.“
And speaking after the win, Alex Iwobi admitted that it was a difficult game for the Eagles.
“It was a very difficult game we knew it wasn’t going to be easy playing away from home. Guinea-Bissau wanted to defend what they had but we got the one goal that we needed they came out from their defence and tried to attack us but we were resilient and kept the clean sheet and got the win.
“We couldn’t be complacent obviously we’ve seen the threat that they have upfront and I was not going to say it was 100 per cent in the bag but I trusted my teammates that if we kept to the plan we will be able to get the result which we did.“
