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Kelechi Iheanacho says he is fully ready for action after his short injury layoff, reports Completesports.com.
Iheanacho is yet to make an appearance for Nigeria at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
The 27-year-old arrived Abidjan on the eve of Nigeria’s opening fixture against the Nzalang Nacional of Equatorial Guinea after recovering from a muscle injury.
The Leicester City star was named among the substitutes in the game.
Read Also:AFCON 2023: Senegal Coach Cisse Hospitalised After Win Against Cameroon
Iheanacho was also an unused substitute in Nigeria’s 1-0 victory against hosts Cote d’Ivoire on Thursday.
Ahead of the Super Eagles next fixture against Guinea-Bissau, the forward insists he is hundred percent fit and ready to make his first appearance in the competition.
“I’m hundred percent fit at the moment. I’m good to go,” Iheanacho said at a media parley in Abidjan.
“I was lucky that it was just a Grade A muscle injury.”
By Adeboye Amosu in Abidjan
27 Comments
Nice1 and thank God seniorman is back though we’re expecting you to prove that on the pitch. Up Eagles!!!
I hope to see iheanacho in action tomorow, he should come in for chukueze as that wing continue to slack, moses simon should take saidu sport in the left wing back, i expect him to give more assistant to lookman from that left attack than saidu, the supereagles is here to win the cup, if we must return to 433 then saidu can keep his place, kelechi should always start ahead of chuk , chuk can come in later sub, i think pesero will play onyedika and onyeka behind iwobi against guinea, bruno may debut for saidu.
Expected formation against guinea in 433
Nwabali
Osayi ajayi bassey bruno
Oyka oydika
Kel iwobi lookman
Osimen.
In a 442 formation
Nwabali
Osayi ajayi bassey bruno
Kel oyeka iwobi lookman
Moffi osihmen
I partly agree with you. That Zaidu guy has zero technique, passing, crossing and ball skills. Aways panicking even before he receives a simple pass. Chukwueze should be benched. His decision making is poor. He can disturb defenders but his final decision is always awful.
Nice one @ COLLINS ID. But we must be careful not to change too many things. Two or at most 3 changes in terms of players and your formation will make sense.
We must maintain the central defence pairing of Ekong and Ajayi;very very important for synergy/chemistry going into the knockout phase. Maybe bring Osayi for Aina, to help Aina recover. Then keep Bassey on the left to start while looking to bring Bruno in later on to pocket some game time so we can see what he’s got to offer.
Iheanacho to replace the wazza dazzler chuzzy and Onyedika to join onyeka in the double pivot behind IWOBI. Second half, more changes can be effected both in players and tactics.
For me, I will go with
Nwabali
Osayi. Ekong Ajayi. Bassey
Onyedika
Onyeka
Iwobi
Iheanacho. Lookman
Osimene
@Glory
Sincerely prefer your lineup.
I think we should push Iwobi further upfront to completely enjoy him. While he is doing his best in the middle, he is being stiffled as a CMF. He should play as an AMF or at the right wing in the attacking side. Then we will see the best of Iwobi. That could also assist in Osimhen getting fed much more with Iwobi,Lookman and hopefully, Iheanacho around him. I think that will bring more goals.
So I will go with
Nwabali
Aina Ekong Ajayi Bassey
Onyedika(Yusuf if fit) Onyeka
Iwobi
Iheanacho(Samu) Osimhen Lookman
Or to maintain consistency, we could stick to 3-5-2 or 3-4-2-1 to sustain familiarity and momentum. We did create chances with that formation and had defensive solidarity.
Nwabali
Ekong Ajayi Bassey
Aina Onyedika(Yusuf) Onyeka Zaidu
Iwobi Lookman
Osimhen
Mr Hush, you have actually corrected a misconception. Peseiro doesn’t play 3-4-3. Owing to how deep Lookman and Chukwueze’s starting positions were, I think it better resembles 3-4-2-1.
Because Lookman and Chukwueze were already deep, it make it easier for them to slot adjacent to the 2 midfielders when the formation becomes 5-4-1 in defence.
Exactly @Deo
I think this formation suits us well going forward.
It gives room for fast attack play ,which our boys are good at and make us formidable defensively.
And I noticed our boys played it to T. against the Ivorians, so it means ,it is a formation they feel comfortable with and can adapt to. We just need to sustain the momentum and only tweak when necessary.
Thank you DEo and Hush. I think we should just stick to the same line up and formation. I agree with you that what he actually used resembled 3421. Yes we are playing guinea bisau but remember that they beat us in Lagos. We also need this match. This match is very important too.
We can’t afford to concede one useless goal and we start chasing losing goals. That happened when they beat us in Nigeria.
We have to win to top the group.
I believe pesero will still use the same formation and tactic. His team has been battered and disgraced since he started coaching us due to one useless mistakes in defence.
Zaidu is a top professional with lots of champions league experience. He will come up with his performance. If I have my way we should retain the same players and tactic.
Kel should come in for chukuwueze later.
Chuks can be wasteful but his aggression and the way he helps out in the midfield is good for the team. A moment of magic can still come from him.
I suspect Peseiro will revert to 4-3-3.
His line up will likely be:
Nwabili
Aina Ekong – Ajayi – Onyemaechi
Onyeka
Osayi-Samuel – Iwobi
Iheanacho – Osihmen – Lookman
@Deo, u are spot on
Welcome back senior man, kudus big brother is back and roaring to go.
We keep saying feed osimhen and feed osimhen, modern day football permit anybidh to score, osimhen is missing those chances bcos of too
Many pressure on him, let the defenders eyes shift from him a bit by allowing lookman and others contribute to goals as well.
The telepathic understanding between Osimhen and Lookman upfront is a joy to watch. I just need them to capitalize more on their chances. If you guys notice Lookman is always close to Osimhen whenever a long ball is coming. That will always distract the defenders and most likely lead to goals like our first goal against EG.
We had the same opportunity in the second half of that game but the ball didn’t bounce kindly for Lookman and he missed the chance. I don’t maybe it’s the nature of the pitch. In fact we had many chances in that game that I began to question how we didn’t win that match after watching the replay. That’s why sometimes you need the element of luck to win certain games.
I will continue with same front three to start against Guinea Bizza Bizza. Chukwueze Lookman and Osimhen are a joy watch whenever we have the ball and the speed in which they switch defense to attack keeps defenders honest. I can bring Kelechi on in the second half to ease him in gradually to replace Chukwueze in the front three.
I will go for the 4-3–3 we used against EG. Osayi Ekong Ajayi Bassey. I will rest Zaidu and Aina but that’s up to the coach otherwise it will be the same back four as the opening match. Onyedika will come in place of Yusuf as I will prefer him sit out this match to be fully ready in the knockout stage. Onyedika Onyeka and Iwobi in front of them.
Warra Warra Bizza Bizza goals against Guinea Bizza Bizza.
Aina has been the best player for the Super Eagles so far, Zaidu is doing grear on the left.
The only changes needed are dropping underperforming Chukwueze for Moffi or Nacho in the last line-up. If Iwobi fails to show-up in the first half, then he should be yanked off from the starting 11 for Aribo or Onyedika. The same applies to Osimhen and others. National team is no one’s property.
Larry,
You are spoilt spot on. Perhaps it will be a worthwhile experiment to start Paul Onuachu ahead of misfiring Osihmen. Onuachu has been impressed coming on as a substitute.
I do agree with you. If Osimhen fails to deliver within 65mins, Onuachu/Nacho/Moffi should replace him.
This competition should be used to evaluate all players and underperformers should be dropped to the bench.
Ekong is now delivering because he is aware of the presence of Bassey.
Onyeka is now balling cuz Yusuf is on his mind
Aina is now spectacular cuz Osayi is pulling weight
I wish Boni and Awo were available to get Osi fired up.
No player is indispensable!
3-4-2-1
3-4-1-2
Both formations are VARIATIONS of 3-4-3.
At Bayer Leverkusen, Alonso alternates between 3-4-2-1 and 3-4-1-2.
His basic template is 3-4-3.
Peseiro in his interview said he used 3-4-3. The match commentators said 3-4-3. Even Google has the formation as 3-4-3.
Whatever formation Peseiro decides to use next, the team’s priorities now are:
1) Keep our strong defensive foundation intact.
2) Get our misfiring attack firing again.
The 4-3-3 against EG worked pretty well. We created chances, and dominated the game.
But when we play 4 at the back, we’re not as defensively solid as when we play 5.
If we go with 4-3-3, it should not be a random decision. It should be because Peseiro has analyzed GB, and believes 4-3-3 is the best formation to subdue them.
A formation adjustment will likely be needed against a different opponent.
3-4-3 or 4-3-3 are not a ONE-SIZE-FITS-ALL solution. Each match presents a unique problem, and Peseiro must RESPOND TACTICALLY in coming up with solutions.
True word @ brodaman Hush, I totally agree with you on IWOBI. He’s been made to sacrifice his creative abilities to accommodate our defensive FRAILTY, reason we don’t get to really appreciate his huge presence. Only those with great understanding of football, will appreciate the very unattractive role IWOBI is being made to for this team.
Maybe like you said, with the introduction of Onyedika to pair Onyeka, we can now push IWOBI very close to Osimene, setting him in that free role, roaming midfield position ; especially in matches like this, if only to see how effective other tacticals options can be for us.
Thumbs up Brotherman Glory. Iwobi does a lot more than the naked eye can appreciate. He has been the engine room of this team.. He continues to be as hard working as ever.
Thanks brodaman @ Deo. I wasn’t surprised Rohr noticed it too. That position I personally have always hated because it obscures you from the highlights. Way too robotic for a creative player and if not well manage can snuff off every motivation to play. Same thing IWOBI suffered in Everton.
3-4-2-1
3-4-1-2
Both formations are VARIATIONS of 3-4-3.
At Bayer Leverkusen, Alonso alternates between 3-4-2-1 and 3-4-1-2.
His basic template is 3-4-3.
Peseiro in his interview said he used 3-4-3. The match commentators said 3-4-3. Even Google has the formation as 3-4-3.
Whatever formation Peseiro decides to use next, be it 4-4-2, 4-2-4, 5-5-0, 5-0-5, 4-2-1-2-1, 4-1-4-1, 4-0-6, 5-1-4, whatever! The formation selected MUST BE A TACTICAL RESPONSE TO THE OPPONENT WE ARE FACING.
The team’s priorities now are:
1) Keep our strong defensive foundation intact.
2) Get our misfiring attack firing again.
@Glory @Deo
Totally agree on Iwobi.
He needs to be played in role that suits his capacity and I believe it is in the attacking third.
@Pompei
Respectfully,
3-4-3 on paper could be 3-4-2-1 in the field of play when attacking or even 5-4-1 when defending. It is all semantics.
Like I have always stated; it is not about the formation on paper, it is the application on the pitch that matters.
Two teams could be playing similar formation but different application.
I propose we build a formation best suited to our players,one they are comfortable with,so we dictate the play and as we do that,be flexible enough to tweaking when necessary in accordance to the opponents.
That said, I do agree with your last 2 points;
Priorities should be focus on buidling a formidable defence and getting our attackers to taking their chances.
Whatever the stance we take, it is for the good of our Eagles. It can only get better.
Ọmọ Na formation extravaganza we Dey OOOO! Lmao!! Peseiro you don cause Kasala OOO!! No be only you me sef I’ve been studying the Pythagoras theories behind Peseiro’s formation variations. Lmao!! I’ve been vividly evaluating the hypotenuse role in the stability of Peseiro’s formation behind the angle of defense. Peseiro Senkan. Lmao!!
I still believe Iwobi needs to exert more presence on the field of play. He is a senior member of the team ahead of even Osimhen.
His non-challant and butter play was responsible for the only goal conceeded so far. Let’s be honest, use same criteria for all players. If we could criticize Zaidu, Simon, Chukzy, and Osimhen, no need overlooking Iwobi’s errors. He needs to step-up! Imagine the debutants Lookman, Bassey, Yusuf, Nwabali have continued to raise the stake.
It happened in the last AFCON against Tunisia, hopefully he steps-up, otherwise the coach should act and move him to the bench.
@Larry
Your point is very understandable.
But you should realise that the reason we don’t criticise Iwobi as much as we do the rest mentioned is because we do understand his bane. He is simply become a victim to his ‘blessings’, being the humble utility player that the coach believes can handle any role in the midfield and attack. Unfortunately, that has made him become a jack of a trade ,master of none. Since he has been played out of position so many times that he is simply underutilised and haven’t had the longterm opportunity to perfect his craft in role and it tie down.
Simply put,playing Iwobi as a CMF is a disservice to him and Nigeria. While he can manage, he wouldn’t thrive as much. He doesn’t have the strength to play that role,neither does he have the long pass ability to handle things there.
It is like playing Osimhen in the wings and expecting him to perform because he is fast and has long legs.
We should always play players to their strengths to get the best out of them. And based on precedence, Iwobi’s strength lies in the attack as an AMF or Rw attacker.
To Iwobi’s credence, though he made an error leading to goal against EQ Guinea, He did make a nice through pass to Osimhen, which the striker fluffed. That could have been a good assist and we would have been singing a different tune about Iwobi.
Believe me, I will be the first to criticise an Iwobi as I do others when the need arises. We have no bias , they are all playing for the flag and have our appreciation.
Hahaha, Peseiro don cause big wahala for here.
Pipo dey PARA like PARALLELOGRAM because of formation.
Orisirisi!
Meanwhile, DRC is making Morocco look ordinary. Game is tied at 1-1, and DRC is on the front foot.