Gernot Rohr says there will be a reaction from the Super Eagles when they face Leone Stars of Sierra Leone, in the return leg of the Group L 2021 AFCON qualifiers in Freetown on Tuesday, Completesports.com reports.
The Eagles shockingly surrendered a four-goal lead to draw 4-4 against the Leone Stars in Benin on Friday.
A win for the Eagles would have edged them closer to qualification for the AFCON.
Despite the setback, Rohr believes the Eagles will react to make amends for the disappointment in the reverse fixture in Benin.
“Everybody is determined, everybody is vexed, nobody slept,” Rohr said in an interview published on the Super Eagles YouTube channel.
Also Read: Balogun Confident Eagles Will Beat Sierra Leone In Freetown
“So we are doing everything in training and in the meeting we will do, we will see again everything in the video, speak about the mistakes and I’m sure they will react because I know my team, I know what we can do, they showed it in the first half.
If we can maintain the energy for the second half we can do it I know it’s a good team. I think at half-time they believed it’s finished but it was not finished. It is a good lesson to everybody, to the staff, to the players and we have to react, I can promise you that we will react, if they will be lucky or not I cannot promise you but they will fight and go there to win the match.”
Rohr said he understands the angry reaction of football fans following the draw in the first-leg, stating it was an unacceptable result.
“If they say they are vexed about the match and the result they are right,” he said. “We are all vexed about it, we cannot accept such result especially when you lead 4-0 and you are 4-1 up at half-time. The first half was one of the best we have had together, so what happened that the team collapsed in the second half? We are now trying to analyse.”
He also pointed out what could have affected his players on Friday.
“For me already what is sure and that is a fact is that we had a very bad preparation, the players arrived very late. Even the day before the match in the evening we had only one quality training together.
“Physically and mentally they lost energy in the second half. The weather was hot for the players coming from Europe and then they collapsed. Then injury to our main striker and everybody said it’s bad luck.”
By James Agberebi
14 Comments
Akpguma is a good defender, play him in his natural No5, stop playing boyz out of position
Rohr, please do not give any reason for your failure. Siasia arrived with the Dream Team in Brazil less than 24 hours to the match against Japan, yet he won the match. You were lucky that your team was leading 4-1 in the first-half, you ought to have wrapped up the game in the second-half. Nigeria ought to have qualified yesterday due to the match between Benin and Lesotho which Benin won by 1 nil. In international football, you take your opportunity when it comes.
Now, just go ahead and defeat S/L and we would forgive you. Amodu did the job in Sudan, so you too can win Freetown. However, you must use players who can withstand pressure because they will throw everything at us on Tuesday. You must attack and attack and defend in numbers.
How it surprises me is that you do not want to say the pitch was not smooth enough and caused your main goal-getter a shoulder injury. Thrice I watched defense-splitting passes from Iwobi and Aribo bounced and wobbled from the intent. You can not give a pitch a pass mark when a competitive match did not test your approval.
The 1st half would have gathered 8 goals for your boys if things were done properly and even when your team began to tire out (making school boys errors) it will be so impossible for the opponent to equal an 8 goals lead.
We can see these things, the air in Nigeria now is that no wrongs by administrators of public service can be swept under the carpet again because the carpet got burnt with #EndSars.
SECONDLY:
I stand to be corrected. This NFF endorsed away all green jersey has never gotten Nigeria a win. I repeat, except the hoe jersey will be used, the away jersey will at its charm best only get Nigeria a draw. No wise person will bet against this fact.
Who wants is game let him show up here, I drop 50k: If Eagles wear the all green jersey, they would either draw or lose. If you want to bet drop your 50k too. winner takes all
What jersey did we use to beat Egypt where Paul scored an early goal?
Friendly matches do not count in the all green jersey matter. Show me one match we won with the new design all green jersey… I stand to be corrected.
Stop embarrassing urself,we beat Lesotho 4-2 away with that jersey
I am not going to lie, I also somewhat share your same idea about that darkish green jersey honestly all these fine greenish dark and whatever is just not us.we will win best jersey yet be losing games..so dumb .. Let’s wear plain white with green entails or plain flag looking green with white entails or lemon green but not that dark..you’re a correct guy for noticing our loss ratio when playing with that color..
Unfortunately politics plays a role in every thing we conduct here even all the way to sports despite FIFA incessant banning us on government interferences..they really do mean well for us but it’s an African thing after all that’s where most of our commonwealth is being stockpiled..
Instead of us to just use one stadia. We will be busy be zoning the venues to pitches that is so obvious our foreign stars can’t give 100% due to fear of injury.. I just hope these our 1980’s downwards generation can have the opportunity to be in sensitive positions soon because it’s obvious the old guard is more concerned about pleasing ppl for their stomach infrastructure at the detriment of a progressive structure in all sections of our nation..i remember that time when we carry Egypt go kaduna or was it Kano whereby sef ppl dey climb pole at their own hazard.. Oh abeg no mind me if we talk Naija matter we no go end am today..
As for the match, I believe we will win although I can’t say either slim or by a wide margin.. And if we lose or draw it’s not surprising but win is more likely..
The result of the game took the shine off iwobi wonder goal. I mean who does that how dear u score that kind of mysterious goal. I have watched that goal more than 10×
Rohr has shown that he’s not capable to lead us to a world cup due to his lack of technical prowess against teams like Sierra Leone take it or leave it we need a technical inept coach lead the team and Rohr be demoted as fitness coach. Let’s be real if we need to perform consistently.
*adept not inept
_ Can the Super Eagles prevent a repeat of the “Blight of Benin”? _
With a cross section of Nigeria fans still nursing the wounds gashed opened by the manner in which the Super Eagles allow a 4 goals lead go up in smoke against The Leone Stars on Friday, only to settle for a damaging draw, beleaguered coach Gernot Rohr now says there will be a reaction from his boys.
“I’m sure [the Super Eagles] will react [in the second leg of the encounter to put things right] because I know my team, I know what we can do, they showed it in the first half,” expressed the German tactician and you have to agree with him to a point.
Because, indeed, the Super Eagles did browbeat Sierra Leone amazingly to 4:0 lead under 35 minutes only to collapse spectacularly afterwards (more so in the last 20 minutes after Musa and Balogun had been subbed out), blowing away the lead thereby blowing away their earlier momentum.
Yes, if we are to be true to ourselves, there were positives to take away from that encounter.
However, with the negatives far outweighing the positives, the focus from most fans perspectives is to rectify the shortcomings that gave rise to such a monumental collapse in our own backyard.
Lost in all the fog of disappointment and bruised ego is that fact that Rohr has started trying out a 4-4-2 formation which provided ruthlessness offensively but frailties defensively for the Super Eagles. Having 4 players bearing down the Sierra Leone’s defence proved too much for them to handle leading to Nigeria’s 4 goals lead in 32 minutes
Being thin in the middle (with Aribo not tracking back quickly enough and Etebo being able to be bullied off the ball easily) offered Sierra Leone their initial route back into the encounter – which they gladly took.
Then you have wingers who were dispossessed off the ball (Chukwueze and Iwobi) and full-backs (Akpoguma and Sanusi) who lost their men to allow dangerous crosses to be delivered from their territories.
The team also appeared to lack true leadership on the field after the departure of Musa and Balogun.
If Rohr can address the shortcomings of his 4-4-2 formation and build on its attacking potentials (that helped the Super Eagles blitzkrieg to a 4:0 lead), then perhaps his team can avoid a repeat of Friday’s Blight of Benin.
The Sierra Leone draw was a direct fallout of Rohr’s inability to resolve some issues in the team during the two friendlies. Among other reasons, the two friendlies was organized to test new players and see if we can get new options for the team. However, after the two matches were played, a lot of issues remained unresolved. There was no replacement for Ndidi (Ajayi who auditioned for the role, didn’t excel in flying colours), most of the new players didn’t get enough game time for proper rating, those who got enough game time were not properly tested. Perhaps, a third and fourth friendly could have helped. As a consequence, the match against Sierra Leone became a sort of third friendly match for Rohr. He tested Etebo in Ndidi’s position, Akpoguma at right back and Okoye in goal.
Let me digress a bit. Five weeks back, I was on YouTube and stumbled on an old match. I have forgotten the team we were playing, I think Congo, but I’m not sure. But I remember clearly that Carl Ikeme, Balogun and Ekong were there. Then, Ekong was still new in the team and was making so many school boy errors. In sum, he was faraway from the colossus he is presently, in the team.
The argument I’m trying to make is that some of these players that didn’t do too well against Sierra Leone will come good with more matches. But we should not risk it until we have qualified. As far as central defence is concerned, I have more trust in Ekong and Balogun, than in Ajayi, Omerua, Awaziem etc
Rohr should be demoted to just being SE’s official scout
The way Amuneke was demoted from head coach to academy director in El-maqqasa right…?