Guinea-Bissau Head Coach, Baciro Cande, has attributed their 1-0 victory over Nigeria at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium Abuja in their 2023 AFCON qualifier to the resilience and determination of his Djurtus [Wild Dogs], Completesports.com reports
Cande said during a post-match Press Conference that they took time to watch clips of Super Eagles matches and did a proper analysis of each of the players and how to keep them quiet and get a result.
The coach who had boasted in a pre-match exclusive interview with Completesports.com that they were in Nigeria to avenge their defeat to the Super Eagles at AFCON 2021 in Cameroon, says beating the Super Eagles will stand out as one of the best moments of his coaching career.
Also Read: 2023 AFCONQ: Peseiro Blames Bad Luck For Super Eagles Shock Loss To Guinea-Bissau
“We did a thorough analysis of the Super Eagles players and how the coach usually sets up his team and the boys did the rest by sticking to our game plan with resilience and determination. It paid off with Balde scoring what proved to be the winner,” Cand me said gleefully.
“For the second leg, we shall go back to plan how best to play Nigeria. Of course, we will be going for another victory. We still respect the Eagles despite our victory today [in Abuja on Friday].”
Also speaking at the post-match conference, Wild Dogs captain, Braima Nogueira Jorge said football is not a respecter of big names or big countries. adding that they confront the Nigerians as equal rivals.
“Nigeria are blessed with talented players who are well known all over the world playing for top clubs. We scored a goal and defended well to frustrate Nigeria. It is a good win and we want to return home to complete the job, ” Jorge said.
The Wild Dogs will host the Super Eagles in the reverse fixture at the Estadio 24 de Setembro in Bissau on Monday, March 27 2023.
Guinea-Bissau currently top the Group A of 2023 AFCON qualifiers with seven points from three matches, one point ahead of Nigeria who place second with six points. Sierra Leone are third with two points, while Sao Tome and Principe are bottom of the group with one point.
By Richard Jideaka in Abuja
20 Comments
Yep! This was the headline I was waiting with bated breath for.
“How We Defeated Nigeria”
*Eight Observations Of The Loss*
The Super Eagles fell 1:0 to Guinea Bissau at home in this week’s 2023 Afcon qualifiers fixture. This was by far the Super Eagles’ worst performance under Coach Peseiro. For me, my five observations are listed below:
1, Communication: Akpoguma and Bassey failed to gel as a unit leading to the only goal of the match.
2. Anticipation: Uzoho’s inability to sense danger from the route one football meant his movement was suspect which led to the goal.
3. Pitch: The turf was awful which didn’t allow Peseiro’s brand of football to flourish.
4. Team shape: Again, like during Eguavoen’s reign at times, the shape looked like 4-2-4 which left the midfield of Ndidi and Iwobi overrun, overstretched and unable to lift the team in critical periods. Iheanacho doesn’t cover enough grounds to augment the midfield. It begs the question as to whether he is a suitable Support Striker for this sort of formation that clearly requires a workaholic that covers a wider blade of grass (like Peter Olayinka).
5. Ndidi: I said it before that, even in his best form, there is no place for Ndidi in Peseiro’s 4-4-2 formation. It relies on sharp, quick thinking, box to box midfielders who are exceptional with ball-to-feet and are offensive minded. Ndidi’s skillset doesn’t tick the box.
6. Predictability: The Super Eagles were way too predictable which made them to be easily neutralized by Guinea Bissau. When Onuachu was introduced, the quality of service to him was predictable and below par which rendered him ineffective.
7. Suitability of Flat 4-4-2: When playing in the horrible, horrific and horrendous pitches that the NFF shamelessly provides the Super Eagles, perhaps a more pragmatic 5-4-1 formation would suit the Super Eagles. They could hardly express themselves yesterday on grass and the formation of 4-4-2 only served to compound their woes. Playing in such a surface clearly contributed to some of the shocking home results under Gernot Rohr. It seems we never learn.
8. Less Dribbling: I see Nigeria players like Chukwueze and Osihmen still trying to bludgeon their way through a wall of opposition players without success ; yet they try and fail several times over. Ordinary Central Africa Republic players (with all due respect) easily curtailed the new Jay Jay Okocha (Chidera Ejuke) in a World Cup qualifier last year or so. I think African players have worked out this aspect of Nigeria’s play and it’s time to try out something else, something fresh.
Points 1,2 and 3 rewritten:
1, Communication: Akpoguma and Bassey failed to gel as a unit leading to the only goal of the match. Their pairing needs time to be finetuned whilst cracks are beginning to show in certain aspects of Calvin Bassey’s game but he will get better.
2. Anticipation: Uzoho’s inability to sense danger from the route one football meant his movement was suspect which led to the goal. The Cyprus based gloves-man has endured some rather horrific periods between the sticks for Nigeria of late. Perhaps it’s time to give another goalkeeper a chance.
3. Pitch: The turf was awful which didn’t allow Peseiro’s brand of football to flourish. I recommend the setting up of an independent body to independently inspect, approve or reject pitches put forward by the NFF for Super Eagles’ matches.
I didn’t want to comment but after reading your elegantly written post I’ve decided to add something to it and it’s on the formation side of things.
I think Jose peseiro got his team composition wrong with the 4-4-2,iheanacho is an able support striker in a 3-5-2 meaning he’s not going to be an extra Midfield body cos he’s neither a forward nọr an attacking midfielder so he doesn’t provide a progressive passing option when the Midfield is two due to his half turn style of play. All peseiro would have done would be to add an extra Midfielder from the start by deploying a 4-3-3 which in turn would have outnumbered our opponents in that area.
You see these 3 you mentioned? Uzoho, Bassey, and Akooguma, I really don’t understand how they get the nod ahead of their competition in the SE. Never been impressed with any of them.
Uzoho has no cat reflexes like a natural-born goalkeeper. He just likes to make himself big to block shots. How did he miss the long pass and come out late? Whenever I watch Uzoho in goal, I remember Oliseh who abruptly retired some of our best legs and safest hands and disrupted smooth transition from experience to youth. We saw how Shorunmu seamlessly passed the baton to Enyeama who took time to learn a few things from the older goalkeeper.
As for Akooguma, the less said, the better. He’s uptight and his play is rigid He doesn’t have the physic of a natural defender, not rugged, and no last-minute, goal-saving tackles like Bright Osayi Samuel or Balogun does He tires out quickly, doesn’t want to get dirty, and rarely gels with his partner.
Bassey is just too inexperienced. Flashes of brilliance every now and then, but out up an experienced striker against him and Bassey will always be beaten.
But how come NFF never gets their hiring right? How do they hire? From Rohr (who was fair, but not the best) to Salisu to Bosso to Eguavoen to this technically bereft trainer? I don’t get it. I just don’t get it.
I pity Paseiro and NFF in the event that SE doesn’t win on Monday. Next FIFA ranking should see Nigeria outside CAF 10 if we fail to win on Monday. But I’m hopeful just as we immediately avenged CAR’s shock defeat under Rohr at home.
It was a big mistake with this dumb coach. I never see any of his technical and coaching quality since day one. He doesn’t look like who can take Nigeria to glory
I am tired of criticizing but the truth is every country should look for an innocent local coach that will honestly pick the best talents in their country to do them proud. Most foreign coaches are lost in their job except a few experts like Renard and a few who tend to prosper because of their Honest judgement in carrying out their duties. Peseiro is not only influenced by NFF but he is not technically sound….
You don’t expect anything less. The SE are a reflection of the woes the country is going through. The positive is that in this game, they couldn’t rig it.
Congratulations NFF!!!
Well said Tega: on point. nothing to add.
Tell me how can anyone be surprised after what we saw yesterday?
I am not concerned about what the GB coach Cande said – He can say all he likes now with legitimate licence and no body can dare challenge what he says – anyone who does now after the game runs the risk of being labelled a mad man, however what I will say is that run your mouth all you want Mr Cande – you have earned the right
Ah ah – even Steven Wonder will tell you that after yesterday’s game Nigeria, Peseiro and the Super Chickens have no legs to stand on nor mouth to complain with, anyone making excuses now or tendering mitigation or trying to condone what went on under any circumstances is a prime case for the mental asylum given that Nigeria must have had between 8 to 10 very good and clear chances to score yesterday and took zero of those chances! Even if they had taken just 20% of their chances (which is still a very low percentage and one that would equal a clear failure in an exam) they would still have scored at least 2 goals and we would not be here chatting all this nonsense today abi na lie?
Look at what happened- those djurtus or whatever they call themselves had maybe 2-3 chances and put one firmly away! – they scored from a break away after a hopeful lump up field and somehow the attacker ran through our headless Chickens defence and managed to prod the ball under that useless excuse for a goalkeeper who for some strange reason our so called coach insists on using as the number 1 goal keeper – lol, I am sorry but even that fact in itself shows what kind of palava Nigerian football is in.
Look, I know I may sound like a broken record, but it’s not even just the football that is suffering from moronic judgement and decisions and occurrences like that, but the whole entire nation is
Imagine, there is one MUMU on here calling himself shuaib mahmud or what TF ever who is challenging me because I am pissed off about things like this happening in a county that I love dearly because he belongs to the group of depraved hell seekers who are the major instigators of the problem-
All I can say is long live(for a short while longer) the keyboard warriors like mahmud shuaib – death and destruction is coming to you and all malos in that country to include all (and) every other beast whether you’re malo or not who have collaborated and added to the destruction unleashed on that poor country – keep on running your mouth still – while you can, I cannot stop you it’s not your fault, it’s the fault of a mad SYSTEM- brought about by an evil ruling power from the past that has pervaded that country and ruined it and still has a hold even today – but rest assured that nothing not even evil like this can last forever and things will soon fall apart and pure anarchy and vengeance will be visited on all the perpetrators with no mercy – believe me, no quarter will be given at the appointed time!
Im out!
Nigeria is too predictable when we play at home cos we cannot resist the temptation of having arrays of goal scorers, we will always go forward carelessly, in fact it is easier to beat the super eagles at home than at away.
Watch it Nigeria will beat GB on Monday, this will confirm my submission.
Any good tactician will not always curtail us at home,they will spring surprises at us no matter their ranking.
As a digression, we should stop using MKO ABIOLA stadium for our football matches.
One last thing on this topic I forgot to add in my last rant 🙂
We have another opportunity to make ammends for this (Thank God) and that opportunity is not far away at all – It is onlly on Monday, the Pesiero and the boys need to go to that away game in Morroco or wherever it is to be played and tear into those Djurtus – Rip them a new one! and leave no doubts in their minds about the difference between Khaki and Leather.
Beat them by 3 goals to nil at least in their own “home” and wash their hands clean of this mess – I know they can because they have the ability to do so, it’s whether they will do as the’re meant to do that is a concern but I think they will
So until Monday – the pain may tarry, but there’ll be no trace of the stench left after Monday, I hope.
Shalom!
Hmmmmmm.. please l beg of you not to add to your brokenhearted from this match by trusting or expecting this same predictable coach to thinkers out a pattern tactics with his benchwarmers to give you a victory. Don’t think the GB’s coach would be stupid not to know that Nigeria will be coming for a revenge and not to twit his tactics. The best result will be a draw if not another batching. In the meantime an uttered record has been made by the GB team.
WE DEY WAIT FOR MONDAY!
I said something about this coach when he was hired that his pedigree, his a.k.a, his middle name (if l may say) is 1-in-10 meaning he’s known to win one match in every ten matches. He has never won any laurel as a coach. With clubs he never completed a season before being fired. Never coached any national team for more than one year before being shown the way. He’s the cheapest foreign coach ever as well as the poorest coach. He has a losing Personally l never have an atom of confidence in him. Same thing goes to the super Falcons coach.
The worst is yet to come with this coach in charge
However l avail myself to be proven wrong anyway.
Truth is 9ja no get coach and Finidi na ordinary ball boy!
Make una dey chill Finidi was not even in the dugout yesterday……Peseiro has never respected his Nigerian assistants, and this is the result of such shambolic result…. How can any coach play Ndidi Infront of Iwobi…..That is mental illness.
Nigeria will not qualify for this AFCON. Forget it guys. Their coach knows the Nigerians inside out. They will surely beat the hall out of Nigeria on Monday, believe me. The Nigeria coach is a guy we called pupuman. He is a-shit and a know-nothing-man. God will certainly punish him. I will not watch or support Nigeria team again until they change the bloody coach. Pinnik, Omo9ja, Ugo this is what you all have brought to us
Good morning to all Nigerians, football game is our pride in Nigeria, nepotism, tribalism and sectionalism are the main reasons I we always failed in must of our games, sE deserve the best and technical individual to lead them, as a coach, we need best legs in the defense and midfield, we have alhassan Yusuf from Belgium topplight, even our former coach egavong admit that, he is a box to box midfielder, but bc of tribalism, he refused to give him a chance, if truly we want to produce a formidable team, we must do the needful, I wish SE all the best,
I still recommend either Sunday olise or emmenuel emonike to transform the SE to grateness, without tribalism or bias, if the will select players on merit and give all sections of this country a sense of belonging, we can truly be Africa best, our main problem is goalkeepers, we need strong hands to be our goalkeepers to serve us on dangerous situations,
I think you are right in your observation