Super Eagles captain William Troost-Ekong has admitted that the team was lucky to beat the Pharaohs of Egypt in Tuesday’s international friendly encounter at the Stephen Keshi Stadium, Asaba, reports Completesports.com.
FC Midtylland of Denmark forward Benjamin Onuachu scored the only goal of the game with just nine seconds played firing a powerful shot into the net to help the Super Eagles secure their first win against Egypt in 29 years.
It was Onuachu’s first goal in what was his first start for the three-time African champions.
The Pharaohs came close to snatching a draw late in the game but were denied by substitute goalkeeper Ikechukwu Ezenwa who made a brilliant save.
The defeat was Egypt ‘ s first under Javier Aguirre who will take consolation from the good performance of some of his fringe players.
“Egypt are a great side, we were lucky to have scored a goal in the first minute,” Troost-Ekong told reporters after the game.
The Udinese man also praised all the players who made their debuts during the game.
“The pitch was bad for us and for them but we were able to score an early goal and the new players played very well,
Both sides have secured their spots in the upcoming African Cup of Nations set to take place in Egypt along with 22 other countries.
By Adeboye Amosu
6 Comments
Two major points from Troost Ekong for wise minds to ponder on:
1. “Egypt are a great side, we were lucky to have scored a goal in the first minute,”
– We caught them napping!
This is not to downplay our victory. Yes, we played well and deserved the win, but we must not let it get into our heads. There is still much work to be done to get us ready for the AFCON
2. “The pitch was bad for us…”
– Mr. Pinnick, please talk to the Akwa Ibom state governor. I am sure he will be willing to sponsor our games at the Uyo stadium again. Thank you.
From the horses mouth and the mumus are thinking all is well, when the real deal comes there will be no hiding place.
The issue of bad pitch is something to really ponder on. I remember way back when our musical videos was nothing to write home about, also the poor quality of the Nigerian Movies but all that has become history as we now have musical videos competing with what is obtained anywhere in the world and our movies are also on point with the use of modern software where and where needed. It’s time to look in the direction of our pitches, we can achieve, let’s all start a campaign for good playing turfs in this parts of the world. Mohamed Salah opted out of the friendly for the underlined reasons..Let’s go guys!
The pitch was bad as bad can be.
As poor as the pitch was, I believe the boys played well. Can you imagine what these guys can do on a good pitch? Honestly, if we prepare well and work hard, we will definitely challenge for the Afcon trophy. But if we are complacent, even the so called minnows will use us to shine! Ask Argentina what Venezuela did to them at home last week. They sure have a story to tell!
Iwobi was perhaps the player that was most affected by the poor pitch. The guy must have felt like a fish out of water playing on that awful pitch. This is the same guy that is benching Mesut Ozil at Arsenal. Put our boys on a good pitch, and they will deliver. The only thing really good about the Asaba stadium is the panoramic view. The grass needs to be worked on to bring it up to standard. For now, Uyo looks like our best pitch. That is where our matches should be played.