During Nigeria’s training camp in Abu Dhabi, UAE, Super Eagles head coach Jose Peseiro disclosed that he has been strategizing how to approach the 2023 AFCON group stage match against the hosts, Ivory Coast.

After drawing 1-1 with Equatorial Guinea in their inaugural AFCON match, coach Jose Peseiro and his team met the Ivorian side on Thursday, January 18, in a match they had to win.

The Super Eagles were more circumspect during the match, waiting for Ivorians attacks in the middle of the pitch and playing disciplined defense the entire time.

Thankfully, the Eagles’ penalty kick in the 55th minute proved to be the game-winning goal, and it was all they needed to capture the crucial three points.

 

After the game, coach Jose Peseiro said: “I started thinking about how to approach this game when we were in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

“Cote d’Ivoire is a strong team with good players, so we need to close down the space and defend very well.

“We know we have to work hard and not allow them to play their football. The players did well to stick to our plan in the game.”

Because of the 1-0 victory, the Super Eagles will be sitting second in Group A with the same number of points (four) as first-place Equatorial Guinea heading into their last group stage match of the competition on January 22 against Guinea-Bissau.

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