Super Eagles Head Coach, Jose Peseiro, has unveiled his starting line-up for the side’s 2023 Africa Cup of Nations semi-final clash against the Bafana Bafana of South Africa.
Peseiro made one change to his starting line-up following Zaidu Sanusi’s absence due to injury.
Bright Osayi-Samuel will take Sanusi’s place in the starting X1 for the encounter billed for the Stade de la Paix, Bouake.
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Osayi-Samuel is making his second start of the competition.
Goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali, Ola Aina, William Troost-Ekong, Semi Ajayi and Calvin Bassey also keep their places in the starting line-up.
Reliable duo, Frank Onyeka and Alex Iwobi will take charge of the midfield.
Talismanic striker Victor Osimhen will lead the attack, while Ademola Lookman and Moses Simon will operate from the wings.
Super Eagles Line-up vs South Africa
Stanley Nwabali
Ola Aina, Bright Osayi-Samuel, William Troost-Ekong, Semi Ajayi, Calvin Bassey,
Alex Iwobi, Frank Onyeka, Moses Simon, Ademola Lookman, Victor Osimhen
33 Comments
WHY NOT BRUNO ONYEACHIE?????
YOU JUST GOT IT WRONG YOU WILL SEE BECAUSE IT’S VERY VERY BAD OF YOU COACH WHY CAN’T YOU STARTS BRUNO ONYEACHIE IN THIS MATCH
See as you carry person matter for head like gala, are you the one seeing them or training them to know who is better suit for him? I’ve been clamoring for Aina to play the LB, we saw what he did when he played there against GB, opponent underrate his left foot and he could cross with that leg real good even better than zaidu. So chill and watch the game, SE winning is sealed and confirmed already.
My guy i wonder oo people are just like i don’t really know
Thank you, @Rohr. You see what I’m saying about the coach? Bruno Onyemaechi is the perfect player for the job, not Aina or Zaidu.
We can see that Super Eagles lacks what is called creativity in the middle, and the coach has confirmed that too.
The only positive thing about the coach and the entire team is that we are winning, and it has never been easy for any team to run over Super Eagles.
All it is matter most at thus point is the trophy. If the gaffer win the trophy nobody will complain except Oga Rohr followers whose has refused to support coach Paseiro and his boys forgetting that what Oga was unable to attained in six years, Oga Paseiro may achieve it in just two years. That doesn’t mean those people should keep wishing Super Eagles bad just because of Oga Rohr.
Lastly, my prediction goes like this, 3:0 if our players take their chances, but 2:0 if they are wasteful in front of a goal. God, let us carry the day. Ire o. God bless Nigeria!!!
@Omo9ja…
You’re talking as if you like peisero…. Aren’t you the one that said indigenous coach is better than a foreign coach?
When you were here with your cohort praising eguavoe to the heavens…. Oh, you think we’ve forgotten???
Success has many sisters, brothers and even aunties and uncles.
We rohr fan and foreign coach fan choose them because we don’t use calculator when they’re in charge as compare to our EX footballers.
We’re not saying if an indigenous coach perform well we won’t support him…. We’ll give Him the best support Just the same way we gathered and supported late keshi.
We’re not like you that speaks from both ends….
A fair weather super eagles self acclaimed fan like you.
If peisero fail now you’ll be the first to crucify him.
Change your life this is 2024.
***SHALOM***
What has Iheanacho done for never play him at all in this competition? The Oga coach owns us an explanations ooooooo
He does not owe anyone any explanation as long as he keeps winning.
Wow, I am happy to hear this from you Golden Child. As someone who showed little to no faith in this coach, his selection and tournament chances, I am glad to see you are now a believer.
I have my view about the coach. He knows what is doing in this competition. The fact he change the weak link in super eagles zaidu shows he knows the stenght and weaknesses of the team.
Zaidu is injured, sir. E for change nothing.
@Omo9ja…
You’re talking as if you like peisero…. Aren’t you the one that said indigenous coach is better than a foreign coach?
When you were here with your cohort praising eguavoe to the heavens…. Oh, you think we’ve forgotten???
Success has many sisters, brothers and even aunties and uncles.
We rohr fan and foreign coach fan choose them because we don’t use calculator when they’re in charge as compare to our EX footballers.
We’re not saying if an indigenous coach perform well we won’t support him…. We’ll give Him the best support Just the same way we gathered and supported late keshi.
We’re not like you that speaks from both ends….
A fair weather super eagles self acclaimed fan like you.
If peisero fail now you’ll be the first to crucify him.
Change your life this is 2024.
***SHALOM***
Senior man for final to give us amunike 2024. I’m sure he will have some minutes today or probably God willing at the final, the reason most of our attacking force have not been playing was because we mostly playing to defend a single goal lead, hence the coach introducing defenders or midfielders mostly, we’ve not been really chasing any game so far since the start of the AFCON and for me at this moment all that matter is the AFCON coming home to where it belong.
Because he has better options in his position and also late fitness too.
So if u are teacher and u hv teaching strategy that makeup students pass, will u change it? I mean they are all passing ur subject, will u change the method?
Bright Osayi Samuel should be warned never to be selfish with the ball today. This is knock out so it doesn’t matter who scores, we have come this far so we shouldn’t be out to one player’s selfishness.
I remember in one of the games when he was foolishly running with the ball when he should have passed to a better positioned player.
Ha ya ya ya ya ya … God isn’t gonna. come down to play football for He gave them legs to distinguish themselves. Looking at the coach’s principles, he’s after merit based selection. Lookman is very hot so is Simon, so where others come in na?
Why release your lineup 3hrs to the start of the match though?
PESEIRO, what has Bruno, and co done to you??? Do I sense tribal discrimination here??? Hope it doesn’t backfire. Bruno is a natural left footer, strong and firm both defensively and offensively…. What have they done????
Let’s first of all thank God that Victor Osimhen is available for today’s selection. He will start the game for the Super Eagles with his other mates. Expectedly, Simon Moses and top scorer Ademola Lookman willing assist him to attack the Bafanabafana, worry their defence as Jose Peseiro is expecting a win.
The 3-4-3 formation Peseiro has reverted to, has William Troost-Ekong, Semi Ajayi and Calvin Bassey shielding Nwabali in defence.
Ola Aina and Bright Osayi will operate on the flanks adding more attacking attributes, while Alex Iwobi and Frank Onyeka will occupy the midfield with a sense of suplying injury free passes to the forwards. With this crop of players, there is certainly no escape root for the Bafanabafana.
Musa should have started this match. He knows how to deal with South Africa. Chukwueze and Aribo should have replaced Iwobi and Lookman. This line up is suspect.
I smile betrayed here,@Nnamdi West why Musa now or Aribo for the stating line up
I have my view about the coach. He knows what is doing in this competition. The fact he change the weak link in super eagles zaidu shows he knows the stenght and weaknesses of the team.
Zaidu is not a weak link sir. He made valuable contributions to the Super Eagles success stories thus far. Yes aspects of his performances were rough around the edges but overall Zaidu was a consummate team member – and this is what is most important.
@deo,what fans don’t realise is,zaidu has tremendous speed which gives him advantage when he is on one to one with an attacker or has to chase an opponent who is behind him.
Zaidu also has a gas which makes it easy to run the full length of the pitch.People don’t see these qualities.His end product is what comes to mind i understand he has being disappointing with his deliveries which needs improving.
I don’t think one would be a bad player and still maintains a starting berth at top Portuguese side Fc Porto.
Zaidu is a natural left-back and quite competent playing with a flat-back four. Unfortunately, the 3-4-3 formation requires fullbacks to act as wing-backs, attacking from the wings like wingers and defending like full-backs. The skill of a wingback involves going past your marker and crossing the ball. Zaidu has not distinguished himself in the last few games with these abilities.
This year Afcon semifinal has been decorated for the music Giants of Africa ,
Its amaizing to see how Africa music is shaping into colaboration with Africa football, every black Africa teams in this turnament have always excorted their convoy with the sounds of music, the Africa sounds that vibrates motivations and inspiration to fight for your country with high sense of pride and self exteme, though the native Africans have always used vocals and sounds to create a highly emotional vibration, that propels their confidents into battles, war, challenges, festivals and cases where faith and patient becomes their option to preserve life, for Africans music is the opposite of death (no music no life) that is why they often beat drums and sing songs in most social activities in their culture, they even sing to the dead in cases of funerals, they can force the dead to dance by moving the corps around to create a sense of living in them before been finaly put to parmanent chilling, that is how much music represents life in Africa culture.
Traditionaly Afcon have always paraded fans with africa costums and musical groups among spectators, but this can hardly be said to have reached teams players and their dressing rooms in previous events,
This music mix football festival have become the order of the days in cotedvoir, as we have seen journalists throwing off their cloths and tools to dance out their emotions in cases of victories, is it because cotedvoir is a renoun musical giant in Africa(coupe de cale) or it is an evolution in African entertainment industry,
most teams have taken music chants from team buses to the field of play, making the turnament more interesting and entertaining, infact teams stop singing when they are been knocked out of this adoroble Africa biannel football mix surugede festival.
Coincidentaly victories happens to favour the loudest voice in Africa music as been observed so far.
Now that the table have been left for the first four Africa music giants, which are Southafrica(amapiano)
Nigeria(afrobeat)
Congo(makosa)
Ivorycoast(coupe de cale)
i will use the loudest voice (currently) as my tool of prediction,
AFCON PREDICTION(afrca music survinir)
Amapiano vs afrobeat?
I think amapiano is making waves but afrobeat is still louder than amapiano at the moment, afrobeat 4 amapiono 0
South africa Vamus, Nigeria got this one.
Mokosa vs coupedecale?
This is quite debatable but i think mokosa still have a little edge over coupe de cale in the current africa music industry( i stand to be corrected by the francophons)
Makosa 2 coupe decale 1
Cotedvoir vamus Congo got this.
Bronze battle
Amapiano vs coupedecale
I think cote divoire got Bronze here, as coupedecale sounds louder than amapiano lol
FINAL GOLD BATTLE
Afrobeat vs Makosa?
I guess you know the loudest sound of Africa,
Nigeria will bring the cup Home.
I don’t really trust this Osayi guy, but I’m not in camp with them. The coach have his tactical reasons. Let’s go SuperEagles!!!
Nigeria has never lost to SA in an AFCON KO
Nigeria is getting better with every game in this AFCON. Nigeria has individual players (Osimhen, Moses, Lookman) that can rise to the occasion even if the day is turning bad
SA League is good, but I do not see how an African team with 90% home-based players will beat us in such crucial match. Qualifiers? Maybe. But not an AFCON SF.
But we should watch out for these
SA morale is high, we cannot afford to be complacent or lose concentration
The SuperEagles should stick to the defensive style, every player needs to mark hard, we should be wary of in-game penalty or freekick from dangerous areas. We should not allow SA to dictate the game.
SA have beaten us in the past, including at home in Uyo. So they see us as very beatable. Can surprise happen? Yes. But I will put our chance of winning during duration time at 75%. But if the game goes into penalty, it’s anybody’s game from there.
Honestly i am not comfortable with osayi coming into this game and aina switching formation for osayi, osayi is not effective and his wrong dicisions are too much, wrong decisions in football is as equal as diffensive blunders, it can slowly kill your game indirectly as you will not see it as potential danger, but if chances that are supposed to bring goals are wasted by foolish multiple inrelivant touches that osayi and chuks/saidu have been doing so far, you will end up drawing a match like we say against guinea bisau, that wing was constantly exploited by gunians, bringing osayi for me is worst than having saidu in the field, at list saidu do looks up sometimes and does the normal things, but osayi look like someone struggling and trying to back up with speed and aimless runs in the wing he is not too famaliar with, this team is too loaded to want to force a switch, bruno is good to play there, the guy is a natural left and plays that position for boavista i have a feeling he will do better than saidu, another option is bringing in omeruo and push bassey to sanusi position, he can also throw onyedika who is also a left footer to that wing, the guy can run and can deffend too, he.is also.creative, my last option.is aribo, aribo been a left footer can give us what gabal lawal gave us in tunisia 2004, aribo have played left back for rangers before, i can only bring in osayi when aina is not available.
@Collins Id… Please don’t mention Joe Aribo name here just like Chuwlkwueze, these players have not shown capacity to take their game to the next level. We just dey for manage with those two including Osayi Samuel… But yes, Bruno has the level to do better than Zaidu! Let’s wait and see the joker Peseiro is trying to pull… Up Nigeria… Up Super Eagles!
But the very same guy gv us the only penalty that we converted against guinea Bissau during afcon or world cup qualifiers
@Ezomo… forget Aribo, he can’t play at level needed in this competition. My warning today will be that our midfielders should learn to screen our defence properly because it’s shown that we have been vulnerable to through-pass threaded into our area and also cutbacks… Iwobi is the suspect here, today he has to bring it and not keep ball-watching and escorting opponents anymore!
Jimmyball osayi will surprise you today just like Simon surprised everyone during the last match. Just onyeka has surprised even himself so far
The long awaited hour has come and tension has increased but a winner must emerge today. South Africa will give us serious wahala. If we score before half time we will win comfortably but if it drag on we will still win with a slim margin. Lets go boys. Osimhen will win this for us. Watch out this space