Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle has admitted that Morocco deserved to go through to the AFCON final after the hosts overcame his side on penalties in Wednesday’s semi-final in Rabat.
After 90 minutes and extra-time ended goalless, Morocco triumphed 4-2 via penalty shootout.
Yassine Bounou was the hero for the Atlas Lions as he saved two penalty kicks while Stanley Nwabali made one save.
It was a game the Moroccans edged in terms of chances created, with the Super Eagles managing just two attempts.
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Chelle said:”We missed a lot of things, the intensity, tactically, the movement, Morocco deserve this victory but our state of mind was good, we fought for every ball, it was not easy for us in this game but the players gave a good response.
Also Read: AFCON 2025: How Super Eagles Rated In Defeat To Morocco
“It is difficult because we lost on penalties again, it’s sad because we worked a lot during the training session but this is football and we have to accept it.”
Commenting on what really went wrong for his team who have been impressive throughout the tournament, he stated:”We played with 4-4-2 diamond and when you play this formation you need to put high pressure because if you don’t do that you could struggle.
“In the first 15 minutes our pressing was good but after that every time we miss one metre, two metres and it was difficult for us because it was difficult for us in the high pressure, technically it was not the same again.”
By James Agberebi in Rabat
15 Comments
You did a good job. Just few players with kids heart let you down.
@Deo, u are quite on point.. I really pity Iwobi cos every time he had the ball 3 or 4 morroccans were on him and being a slow and poor Dribblier there was nothing he could do.. Guys we need a no 10 who can dribble effectively and also keep the ball umder tight situations. Iwobi is good at passing but beyound that he offers nothing else. I cant drive into the opponaents box from misfield. We presented this observation before AFCON yet coach still went ahead and continued relying on Iwobi . We dont have midfielders who can dribble effectively like Okocha, Kanj, Mikel et al . This was the cornerstone of ourvloss to Morrocco. Nigeria would hv won that match within 90 minutes it this ingredient was present in our midfield.
Never a truer word spoken as, indeed, Morocco , the hosts, were the better side on the night. Better are creating chances, better at limiting our chances, much better at taking their chances in penalties.
The Super Eagles didn’t disappoint though. Far from it. They made the game a fascinating spectacle, a semi final to remember in how a number of our players stood up to be counted.
Count Nwabali whom many had grave concerns about, who flipped the script to produce excellent saves in open play and a decent penalty save which gave birth to hope that was swiftly aborted with poor returns from our penalty takers.
Count Bassey whose single-minded devotion to his craft made a mundane center defensive role look like a ballet.
Count the the entire Super Eagles team who, once again, faced up against an opposition playing better than them, dragged the match all the way to the trenches and mud-house of penalty kicks – Chelle’s Super Eagles will always fight to the last man!
I am happy, I am unhappy. Happy that, once again will are among the top-dogs of African football but unhappy that we came short of last tournament’s accomplishment.
Chelle started with his signature 4-3-1-2 which initially rattled the Moroccans but the North Africans grew to suppress this formation effectively. Our strikers were tightly marked, our passing lanes cut off, and our full backs put under pressure m
Chelle then changed tack, removing Onyedika for Simon to now make it a 4-2-3-1, more so after Dele Bashiru came in to play right attacking midfield. But things didn’t improve.
Morocco’s low block pressing meant, all night, the passing lanes that Iwobi found to punish previous opponents were effectively block with traffic. Hence, the passing routines we had used to blow previous opponent defences out of the water were nowhere in sight.
What happens when rehearsed routine that have worked previously become a broken record because of how tight, compact and focused your opposition is? This riddle, Chelle was unable to solve on perhaps the biggest night of his managerial career.
What man can do, woman can do better.
SUPER FALCONS lifted WAFCON CUP on Morroco’s soil.
SUPER EAGLES, go and learn from the ants.
“In the first 15 minutes our pressing was good, but after that every time we missed one metre, two metres, and it was difficult for us because it was difficult for us in the high pressure, technically it was not the same again.”
Indeed, no truer words can be said
But what did you in response….? What did you do to salvage the situation…….NOTHING. Absolutely NOTHING…….. except to even make matters worse by asking Akor to play as a right winger…..LMAOooo. It was bad enough that Akor was burnt out by the 70th minute and u didnt do anything about that, it’s even worse that you shoved him to the wings till way into extra time…….LMAOooo. A tired CF forced to operate as a winger when you had 4 or probably 5 substitution slots you hadnt used.
For 105 minutes, you were tactically shackled and were not any different from the spectators seated in the stands. Oh, sorry, at least the spectators paid up to $1000 in some cases to get into the stadium, while you got in free of charge, chauffeured into the stadium in a luxury bus. From being the highest scoring team in the tournament so far, your team was reduced to 1 shot on or off target for 90 minutes.
Every football match is divided into 6 sectors for a 90-minute game and 8 for a 120-minute game. You got silenced like a slave in a sugar cane plantation from the 1st of 8 sectors. While Lookman was being pocketed on the pitch, you choose to ‘look-men’ suffer and run endlessly for the entire match.
At least do something….tactically. Do something. That is what sound coaches do. Once they see their players labouring in vain for 15 minutes, they dig into their hats of tactical wisdom and DO SOMETHING………..Go back to the 4-3-3 that has wowed the entire continent in the last 3 or 4 games, switch to a 3-5-2, and seize control of the midfield again, reshuffle to a 4-2-3-1 and let Lookman (on the left), Chuks (on the right) force things through the flanks, utilize Bassey’s long ball skills and Osimhen’s ability to hold the ball upfront and bring his teamates into the game to take pressure off your defence……..JUST DO SOMETHING since plan A has failed.
Am I surprised…absolutely NO. Is this the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd time this has happened…..absolutely NO. It had been a recurring decimal. It only seemed to subside at this AFCON.
I have never been carried away by your plan A. It is what you become whenever your plan A fails that has earned you my vote of no confidence all these while. And you never disappointed in this regard.
I envisaged it would happen by the Q-finals of the tournament, that was why I didn’t hope beyond the Q-finals as long as you are leading us to this AFCON. Well, congratulations for at least disappointing me on that.
Tunisia is offering you double your current pay and a lifetime opportunity to coach at a World Cup because I doubt you can ever qualify for one. They are offering you an organized FA, salaries as and when due, a working nation, one of the best leagues on the continent, proper facilities, and other perks. Please seize it and go have a good life. But I can bet you won’t. Tunisia does not have an Osimhen that you can rely on to help you keep your job for longer than its normal gestation.
But, at least, I beg you, please do us the favor of making it to the podium just before you leave…..If not for your own career, for your lackeys who have been itching to crown you their lord of lords
Of course Chelle needs to be more tactically flexible with the right tactocs and players on the field.
He is still by far holds the best record in official matches by any SE coach in the past 2 decades.
He is yet to.loose an official match for SE under normal regulation. There was another coach that could not win a single game in a year, i’m talking about the one with the record of losing a 4 goal lead in an official match and that of home loss in a decade of official match.
Hahahahha….the one that didn’t win a game in a single year and threw away a 4 goal lead met 100% of the targets set for him by his employers…..Need I also say IN FLYING COLOURS.
The world record holder has failed in 3 out of 3 assignments given to him by his employers………..LMAOOoo…..of course, after also failing in all the assignments given to him in his home country
Of what good is your fine handwriting when you are a perpetual failure…….LMAOOooo
Larry,
Truth be told, there is no shame in losing to a team like Morocco, World Cup semi finalists, Afcon hosts, high fliers in FIFA ranking, a supremely technical team. And that technicality came to the fore for Morocco in their toughest encounter this tournament.
Larry, isn’t it funny how thunder struck twice. Another series, another team that defeated Cameroon in open play, hook line and sinker (just before the opposition played Nigeria), despite Cameroon playing slash and burn, flawless, flamboyant, alluring, beautiful, gorgeous, glorious brand of football (that tends to sweep shallow minded observers off their feet) , the same opposite was stretched to their limits before the cold feet of penalties bailed out the opposition.
It happened against Congo, it happened against Morocco, it speaks to how stubborn and compelling Chelle’s brand of football is.
You can slap Cameroon about and score goals to win in open play, but Chelle’s Super Eagles? You go sweat blood from your hair before you win.
But, I agree with you Larry, stubborn is not enough. Football is a game of fine margin, fine-tuning his in-game management will take Eric Chelle far.
NFF are fools, fools to have given us a manager who is still learning the ropes. So, Eric Chelle is using us to make mistakes and then use another team in future to make the lessons he learnt for us make that team great. So this is what NFF has reduced us, the mighty Super Eagles into: a training ground for an up and coming Coach.
But I like Eric Chelle sha.
Chelle is smart, Chelle is learning, Chelle is growing. Chelle, I think, will become a truly remarkable coach if he continues with this trajectory. He has good ideas which just need to be tweaked here and there to be the full refined package.
What will really be disappointing is if the Super Eagles leave the tournament empty handed. I think Chelle and his boys have done enough to earn enough, enough to leave the tournament with at least a bronze.
Good luck to them on Saturday, we will be rooting for them!
Thumbs up! Deo.
Chelle deserved our praises and support. He is the best we can afford under the present nff.
Chelle always make one silly mistake, why sub. Osimhen 2 minutes to the end of extra time e when PK is almost certain? Against drc u failed to introduced ur PK taker and captain Ekong, against Morocco you substitute ur captain and PK taker for both country and club. Yes in both matches we didn’t embarrassed ourself but we shd have done better against this Moroccan side, why dished ur attacking style ?
This is true. Osihmen is the best.
Osimhen, he said, had a knock on his ankle that was limiting his pace. Onuachu was a perfect foil for him even as he excelled in penalty practice too
A knock won’t prevent u from taken PK or prevent u from finishing the match, he got substituted abt 3 to 5 minutes to the end of the extra time, if we’ve used all our substitution won’t he stay on the pitch to finish the match? Immediately the Moroccan first shooter missed, Paulo scored, Moroccan second shooter scored, that our second PK to keep been untop shd have been played by a season PK taker like osimhen who has been taken it for both club and country.
@Femi, Chelle was asked about his choice of PK takers at the post-match press conference, and he said the team practiced penalty shootouts and that the 5 he selected were the best and sharpest shooters in training. I guess that’s why he introduced Onuachu, Dele Bashiru, and Chukwueze with 3 minutes to the end of the game.
I, too, wondered at his choice of PK takers. Bruno hasn’t scored before, and Chukwueze’s conversion rate of chances is poor. But all that aside, Chukwueze’s body language before the PK didn’t match the occasion. It was a bit casual. But again, chewing gum and looking casual is how some people mask tension and handle pressure.
outcome of d game, we need diz guys to have tournament experience that will be beneficial in d future. Who cares about bronze medal, lets blood in diz young players now in tournament atmosphere and see how they fare. Nff if una like una go fire Chelle, just expect nothing to come from SE for d next 5yrs. To me d fact that Chelle was able to salvage our worldcup hope considering where we were at meant he exceeded expectation, he can’t go score penalties for d team. He took d team to the semi final with an excellent brand of football dat we’ve been craving for, took almight Morocco to penalties, same Morocco dat has defeated major european juggernauts and we say he is not good enough. Who is good enough for d SE then? Pep abi Slot abi Zidane or Ancellotti? Sport Minister do d needful and extend d man contract sharp abeg. Just my take