Benfica midfielder, Joao Mario, has described Portugal’s 4-0 win over the Super Eagles of Nigeria in Thursday’s international friendly in Lisbon as a great preparation for their 2022 World Cup campaign.
Mario was among the goals as he netted Portugal’s fourth to seal a comfortable win against the Eagles.
Manchester United star Bruno Fernandes bagged a brace while Goncalo Ramos scored on his debut.
The Eagles had the chance to reduce the deficit when they were awarded a penalty, following a foul on debutant Bright Osayi-Samuel.
But Emmanuel Dennis saw his effort palmed against the post and out to safety by Portugal’s goalkeeper Rui Patricio.
And Mario took to his personal Twitter handle to celebrate his side’s victory as they prepare for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
“Great preparation game and ready for the World Cup,” he Tweeted.
Portugal will take on Black Stars of Ghana in their first game in Group H at the 2022 FIFA World Cup on November 24.
They will also face two-time World Cup winners Uruguay and South Korea.
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COMMENTS
Portugal should not be carried away by their thumping of our Indomie Eagles. Yes, Portugal is a good team, compact with players and coaches that has been together for a good while. That said, I don’t see them as a very serious World Cup contender. So we did not get trashed by an impending World Cup winner as some people on this forum are making them out to be.
We can try to twist things all we want but the truth of the matter is, we don’t have the horses. I have said this quite a few times in the past and some people interpreted it that I was putting down our players down but that couldn’t have been further from the truth which is, our players are just not that good.
When it is all said and done, our path to redemption and success may yet lead back to Nigerian coaches. Why can’t get some of them who are have some good coaching ability, send them on intense refresher course overseas, bring them back, have them sign some kind of code of conduct regarding taking money under the table and other unsavory conducts but then, make sure they are paid well and paid on time.
And also get our over-praised, over-hyped, over-indulged players to respect their local coaches. Afterall, many of them kick-started their careers under Nigerian coaches.
Not to rehash the matter, but looking back on our World Cup qualification failure, it has very little to do with the coach or coaches, in my considered opinion. I have followed Nigeria/Ghana footballing rivalry long enough to know that.
Most crucial matches between the two countries almost always comes down to who have the greater intensity. You match the other team’s intensity and surpass it you will most likely win the game. I can take you back to some critical matches under coach Adegboye Onigbinde with the intense passion and on-field leadership of the late Mr. Stephen Keshi where Nigeria eliminated Ghana at senior international matches both at neutral venues and right in front of their home fans in Ghana. At the end of the day, it is mostly about who wants it more.
So, get off Mr. Eguavoen’s back!
The greatest embarrassment was the draw in Abuja. The players played as if there was nothing at stake. Let you said, Ghana wanted it more.
Hopefully, they have learnt that it is more of their national team careers that are at stake than the coaches when they toy with the joy of 200m people by choosing not to play with intent in major competitions.
The earlier they know that the rest of Africa is not at standstill for them to continue to roll over, the better.
Falcons are seeing that gradually.
While I agree with most of the points you raised, I disagree with the one that our players aren’t just good enough.
We watch these guys week in, week out in their various clubs. We know how they perform, save a few of them who have passed their prime and should leave the national team for good. But when you have an NFF that doesn’t know what it wants. People that believe bringing any white man in, even if he’s a carpenter in his country, will help the national team, then you’ll always produce a very average team.
Peseiro’s CV shows how mediocre he’s been as a coach. He failed in almost all the places he’s gone to, both at the club and national team levels. What exactly then gave the NFF that confidence that he will do well with the Super Eagles?
5 friendly matches, 5 losses! I’ve never seen our national team embark on such appalling losing streak.
If we are going to get a foreign coach, we should get the one with the right predegree and mentality to build a sound team. Sometimes, when the coach is average, his team looks exactly the same. That’s what happened in the case of Eguaveon and Peseiro’d teams. I’m not a fan of Genot Rohr,but truth be told: his sack was hasty and foolish. They should have made proper preparation for his replacement, not with Eguaveon, another serial loser, but a seasoned and experienced gaffer with a rich CV and right mentality. It’s so stupid to take away Rohr and bring Eguaveon. Is Eguaveon better than Rohr? Is he more experienced than Rohr? No! Does he have a better international exposure handling national teams than Rohr? No! Does he have that competitive club experience to handle the teams? No! Rohr has coached in Europe and Africa. Handled national teams and top European clubs. He also played te game to highest level, knowimg the right mentality to approach a game both as a player and a manager. So, why hand over a team going to AFCON and seeking a WC ticket to Eguavoen at the expense of Genkt Rohr? It’s one of the dumbest decisions the NFF has taken in many years. It actually cost us the world cup ticket.
It was obvious that the assignment was bigger than Cerezo. Reason he failed woefully. We all thank him for making us watch the World Cup at home. We sincerely appreciate his good gesture to Ghana, not only for “dashing” them the world cup ticket, but for giving them the bragging right at least until we meet and beat them again.
Peseiro is another great blunder. Seems to me like the NFF gave him that job, not because he has done anything reasonable with any team, but for the fact he has handled many high profile teams, even if he didn’t achieve anything with them.
Our major challenge @Tony, isn’t the quality of players. We have a lot of very good players spread across Europe. You can’t even compare the market value of the Nigerian team with that of some of the teams going to Qatar, not even Ghana that beat us to the ticket. But when the coaching, the tactics and mentality is wrong, there is practically nothing the team will produce. A bricklayer may have the best materials to build. But if he doesn’t know how to combine them, he will have a defective structure and those materials will appear so bad, even though they are not. That’s exactly what’s happening to the Super Eagles at the moment.
Give this team to a coach like Tuchel or Bielsa,you will be shocked at what you’re going to see. And give the Portuguese team that beat us silly to Eguaveon or even Peseiro. You’d see a terrible team with all the Fernandes, Mendes and Ronaldo f this world suddenly looking so poor and average.
@PapaFem, your point is well-taken.
I still insist, though that our players are just not that good. But that is a debate for another day, I guess.
Your other points are legitimate. In as much as I have defended Mr. Eguaevoen I would not have hired him. Not a chance. I have never seen him as a competent coach. I was dismayed when I read about his hiring.
The self-serving Mr. Pinnick should take the blame for that hiring. It portrayed his level of incompetence. Competent football federations have Plan B and Plan C in their back-pockets.
I have no personal animosity against Mr. Rohr. But I feel like he was starting to take us off the cliff. I remind those who have relentlessly argued that he would have qualified us for the about-to-start World Cup, that we were a Wilfred Ndidi last-ditch blocked shot, away from elimination at home against the mighty Cape-Verde.
The respect he is being accorded is mostly based on skin-pigmentation. He couldn’t carry the late Mr. Stephen Keshi’s coaching kit.
As for those calling for his re-engagement, I say, dream on.
As if that would happen.
We are just down because of the sack of rhor.There is nothing those local coaches will achieve. Also after sacking rhor, we went for the cheapest coach at the expense of far better coaches who were Interviewed
Have heard amaju pinik bombshell about genert rohr sexcapade with little girls maybe that’s why we didn’t qualify for world cup hahahaha
If we can’t get top caliber foreign coaches, its better we use the best of the best here in Nigeria, or Even in Africa, the previous mali coach is a good example, I know he had problems with mali, but if you watched Mali’s first set of games in afcon, you could see huge potential, with our set of players, he would be better