Super Eagles head coach Jose Peseiro has defended Francis Uzoho after the goalkeeper committed another error in the team’s friendly against Saudi Arabia on Friday night.
The Super Eagles were held to a 2-2 draw by Roberto Mancini’s men.
Uzoho was at fault for Saudi Arabia’s opening goal scored by Salman Al Faraj on the hour mark.
The Omonia Nicosia shot stopper diverted Al Faraj’s cross into his own net.
Peseiro however accepted responsibility for Uzoho’s mistake.
” I like all my players, when they make mistake, I take responsibility for it .I don’t why in Nigeria they criticise the goalkeepers so much,” Peseiro said after the game.
“When I arrived, there was much talk about the goalkeepers, a lot of people wanted me to change the goalkeepers.
Read Also:How Super Eagles Rated In Friendly Against Saudi Arabia
” I spoke with all the goalkeepers, none of them feel comfortable because the fans always attack them.
“So, If they make mistake it is my responsibility. I will take the blame for it.
Peseiro also reflected on the performance of his players against Roberto Mancini’s men.
“I think it was a very good game. In the first half, we could have scored three, four, five goals,” Peseiro added.
“In the second half also, we have more players against their defenders in some situations but we didn’t decide well.
“In the end, we did a good job, it was good match against the last team that beat Argentina. They tried to beat us too.
“We started with 4-4-2, tried to see if we can play with same formation all the time . To see if we can create organization within the team and have more balance. I’m happy with the performance, but not the result.”
The Super Eagles will face the Mambas of Mozambique in their next friendly on Monday.
By Adeboye Amosu
16 Comments
This same goalkeepers will finally run you down.No good goalkeeper makes same mistakes consistently. This keeper doesn’t know how to build a wall,same thing Maresh capitalized on in AFCON semi finals to score us. You are not a good coach,if not you will not call those idiots who are not first choice in their teams. The NFF cabal is the cause,the make sure certain players are consistently called because they pay their way through. What is Ebuehi or so doing there;Aribisala is a match misfit any day.Chukwuemeka should be in under 20 even though he is much older not super eagles I beg
COACH PASEIRO SHOULD MAKE A RISK BY GIVE SEBASTIAN OSIGWE A TRIAL.
Uzoho does not have the reflexes of a natural-born goalkeeper. If not for his height, I’d actually prefer Adeleye. If we go to Arcon with Uzoho as no 1, then all the striker’s efforts will be wasted.
If all we can offer as the best goalkeeper in Nigeria is Uzoho we are in a deep mess. I was one of his fanatics when he made his debut against Argentina. I said Nigeria might’ve found a solid goalkeeper for at least a decade. He went to the WorldCup and did admirably well. However, since his club football has been fluctuating he has lacked confidence.
How do you depend on a goalkeeper that hasn’t played a single minute of club football since May? That seems to be trend of our goalies this days. Maduka is back up to Silvestry, only Adeleye seems to be getting some game time, but there’s crisis in Israel and people are already worried about his lack of height.
We’re not going to win the AFCON with our current goalkeeper scenarios. We sure can reach the semis though, but without an assured presence between the sticks FORGERABOUTIT!!
When i asked of ajiboye the last time, una do like say una never hear that name before, bendel insurance goal keeper ajiboye, and anyangbozo, these three goal keepers should go to afcon, ahiboye is a goal shrine you need miracle to score that guy, despite age he is still the best we have, i watched how he powered remo stars to league second place last season, insurance keeper is another active goalie, he is very good in area and dead balls, anyangbozo is to grow with them. Before our home base keepers use to be sure bet i dont know why coaches are now ignoring them.
Arrange friendly game with good team from Africa.. start from Nigeria Egypt den clubs in Europe den u know the strength of ur team . For now they are playing table soccer.
The team stil dint know wen to attack or defend.they just want to run round the field,pass the ball round.
Lost the ball at will.
By the time this team meet a good team dey might find it difficult to know the formation to play.
Apart from the howler commuted by uzoho, I will say it was a fantastic game from the SE, like seriously it seems you guys watch a diff. Game, we created more scoring chances against a team coach by the most expensive and experience coach in Mancini, players who now play week in week out with the best stars in there league. Common give Peseiro and the lads their flower.
We obviously don’t have a goalkeeper and a formidable defense wall. We need to look for a goalkeeper in the local league and groom same,Uzoho is another disaster waiting to happen at AFCON.Peseiro need to take charge or leave.I don’t have any respect for this chap, he doesn’t have what it takes tactically.
What kind of flower? Over the mediocre football we played right. Wait till better teams expose us…
Uzoho dunked the ball into the net like an NBA Superstar; what a disaster of a goalkeeper?!
Pesseiro, shine your eyes and do the needful.Out of the current GKS, only Adeleye is qualified to be invited to the team.
It’s time to freshen up the GK dept with young and talented GKs:
Arthur Okonkwo, Joshua Jolayemi, Noah Atubolu, Mark Ugbo,and Owen Goodman.
Also, Tella and Igho need to be considered for the attacking and defensive positions.
Besides, I need folks to go see Ndidi’s reaction to Uzoho after the howler. The guy vex and looked at Uzoho like “get out of here, you again, you come spoil my captainship vibes”
I’ve always said it, Ndidi and Balogun have good leadership traits.
You don’t see Ndidi get involved with politics, olosho thing, and making toktok or YouTube in camp.
With the right tactics, selection and leadership, the super eagles can become a force to reckon with again.
Hmmmm! Na wa o!
For once, I will break from convention by refusing to slam goalkeeper Uzoho on this occasion. If what I read on owngoalnigeria.com is anything to go by, then this is the time to wrap my hands around all our goalkeepers – Uzoho, Okoye and Adeleye.
The pain of crashing out of the Afcon and failing to qualify for the 2022 Qatar World Cup largely due to goalkeeping shortcomings is still fresh in my mind. The fact that those lapses continue to manifest themselves from both goalkeepers 20 months later is undeniably worrying.
But I think this has the tendency to blind ones eyes to the progress these goalkeepers are trying to make in the intervening months. I have to say it as I see it: Uzoho should have done better with the first goal Nigeria conceded yesterday. But that is just a blind spot of game that has sadly shown up time and again as needing improvement.
What are the goalkeeper trainers doing to help him plug this gap?
Anticipation, timing, positioning, movement and inadequate technique in dealing with tricky long balls is the single most damaging shortcoming plaguing Uzoho and Okoye. They are pretty decent in other aspects of goalkeeping.
It’s very possible to find a goalkeeper better able to repel long range strikes but lacking in other areas where Uzoho and Okoye are known to shine.
Peseiro is right to deflect blame from Uzoho and heap it on himself and his management team. Looking at it holistically, perhaps the controversial 4-4-2 formation that he and his shadow Eguavoen practice leave the team susceptible to such tricky long range shots liable to cause goalkeeper problems – who knows?
If not, how do you explain Okoye and Uzoho falling to the same long range sword against Tunisia and Ghana respectively last year? Which was why, I suspect, Okoye stylishly excused himself from the games against Ghana to see whether another Nigerian goalkeeper can deal with such long range strikes under this opaque 4-4-2 system that is fast becoming a liability.
The only time the formation really shines is against São Tomé and Príncipe. Other times it has been hit-or-miss.
Uzoho was visibly upset and disappointed when the ball went in yesterday and I felt bad for him, perhaps it’s time for fans to give him a break.
We have goalkeeping problems and I have never really being a huge fan of either Okoye and Uzoho. But Uzoho tried yesterday. He played like a modern day goalkeeper with ball to feet. He was the quintessential keeper-sweeper. He made some fine short range saves and looked the part with his demeanour and command of his area.
That one goal from the free kick was truly unfortunate but, for me, very symptomatic of a wider problem in the team’s tactical structure and overral (lack) of discipline in defending set pieces rather than just the parochial view of goalkeeper shortcomings.
If Peseiro has to scout for another goalkeeper, so be it. But if his tactical constellation leaves that new goalkeeper hopelessly exposed, we the fans will be travelling down the same road all over again.
Akpeyi was mercilessly massacred by fans after failing to stop Mahrez freekick in the 2019 Afcon semi-final . All the fans have developed collective amnesia when it comes to remembering that Ndidi committed a stupid foul in a delicate area in the dying minutes to start with. 10 years from now, Uzoho will be remembered for that 1st goal against Saudi Arabia with nobody remembering the player who committed the yeye foul that led to the useless freekick to start with. In fact, Saudi Arabia’s second goal came about from another worthless free kick and a pathetic defensive wall that fell like a hopeless sand castle that was hit by sea water !
It would not bother me one bit if Uzoho and/or Okoye is replaced, I am not a huge fan of either of them anyway. But I would be mindful and sensitive in my critique their performances. Under the right tutelage and within a formation with defenders who are dialled into their responsibilities and other outfield players who know what they are doing, these 2 guys can be better.
Uzoho and Okoye should not be vilified, they should be encouraged to be the very best they can be!
The coach needs to sit up! Nigeria is a big footballing nation and with this comes lots of pressure. Does he think he is coaching Venezuela? If he was coach of Brazil, I doubt if he will make such utterance. When a player plays for a big institution, there is pressure, ask David raya who moved from Brentford to arsenal.He has been not been assured on many occasions. If you can not deal with the pressure then SE is not for you!
Nigeria is a proud footballing nation with 3 afcon titles , 1 Olympic gold medal and 4 u17 world cups. I would not even mention the silver and bronze afcon medals wich are numerous. If you go to awcon, we absolutely dominate female competitions.We know our football and he should act professionally. If it were the Portuguese team gk , will he make such utterance? Roll up your sleeves and find a decent goal keeper between now and afcon or kiss your job good bye. If it was a rare error now, one would have been willing to still back him but how may times will uzoho continue to show you that he is not good enough? Afcon and world xup qualifiers is on the horizon and if something urgent is not done, we might to sit out another world Cup and that will be a disaster( in amajus words).
The Saudi goalie also conceded two goals, but it was visible to the blind and audible to the deaf that he’s a thousand miles better than what we parade as goalies. If Nigeria had Mohammed Alowais we are a guaranteed winner of the upcoming AFCON. Like someone said in other threads. What are our youth team coaches doing over the last 10 years not to produce a substantial heir apparent to Enyeama??? Are they just flowing with status quo? Our youth team coaches needs to be scrutinized for the show of shame at the highest level.
You are right
Lol! A goalkeeper that hasn’t played a single club game since May? It’s not rocket science that when you’re inactive or a bench warmer you can never give what you don’t have. Except been a cheerleader from the bench.
I will rather sink and swim with Adeleye because he’s at least playing regularly for his club in Europe. How do you go from a top prospect in Spain to a Cypriot benchwarmer?? Yet you are still given a chance yet fluffed it with a horrible howler.
If Uzoho will be our first choice in Ivory Coast au re·voir to our ambition of winning another AFCON. We will never win an AFCON with these set of goalkeepers. I hope I will be wrong if maybe an Adeleye can pull an Enyeama.