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Reviewing the formations utilised, notable alterations and striking statistics under the Super Eagles trainer.
It feels like a long time has passed since Nigeria’s last friendly defeat: a 4-0 beatdown by Portugal in November 2022.
A breathtaking World Cup was held in Qatar, Cristiano Ronaldo was released by Manchester United, domestic leagues have resumed and we are down to the final eight in Europe’s club competitions.
March’s interlude represents the first international break of 2023 and, with it, the resumption of Africa Cup of Nations qualifying, with Nigeria doing battle with Guinea-Bissau over two fixtures.
For Jose Peseiro, it has been a mixed start, with muddled performances and inconsistent results representative of the 62-year-old’s Super Eagles tenure since taking over from Augustine Eguavoen in May, 2022.
Before the three-time African champions aim to continue their 100 percent record in qualifying, a recollection of how the manager’s time has hitherto played out is timely.
Results
Despite the perfect sequence in AFCON qualifying, most of the nation’s fans have been left underwhelmed by the outcomes of the team’s games.
Including international friendly games, the Super Eagles have played six times under the ex-Venezuela boss, losing four and claiming victories against Sierra Leone and Sao Tome and Principe.
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Defeats by Mexico and Ecuador could have been overlooked, owing to the infancy of Peseiro’s tenure, but losses to Algeria and Portugal have rankled.
The latter, a 4-0 hammering at the Jose Alvalade Stadium in November, was humiliating for the Super Eagles, ergo the opprobrium that ensued afterwards.
Performances
Just like results, performances have fluctuated under Peseiro. The defeats against El Tri and Ecuador were similar but not the same, with the Super Eagles showing some improvement against the South American opponents in that 1-0 reverse just a few days after losing 2-1 to Mexico.
The nature of the displays in those opening two games under Peseiro could be overlooked, having had only a handful of training sessions with the team following the completion of the European season.
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That said, the cup was half-full rather than half-empty after the encouraging showings in defeat.
The team recovered from a slow start against Sierra Leone to win 2-1 in the opening game of Nations Cup qualifying in June, claiming their first victory in all competitions in nearly five months.
What followed was an annihilation of Sao Tome only four days later, a 10-0 success that now stands as Nigeria’s biggest-ever win, even if the quality of the opponent meant excitement needed to be bridled.
Two defeats have since followed against Algeria and Portugal — with the West Africans unable to build on a decent start in North Africa to lose after taking an early lead before that thrashing by the Selecao.
In a sense, four goals conceded seemed to flatter the 2016 European champions: they led 2-0 for what seemed an eternity after scoring twice in the opening 35 minutes, and Emmanuel Dennis missed an 81st-minute penalty preceding two late goals from Goncalo Ramos and Joao Mario in minutes 82 and 84, respectively.
No Ronaldo, no problem as Fernandes-inspired Portugal humiliate Super Eagles in Lisbon
Peseiro initially showed a reactive side, correcting flaws in the team’s approach in the losses against Mexico and Ecuador and the comeback 2-1 win over Sierra Leone by making alterations in personnel and formation, but their inability to sustain promising starts against Algeria and, to a lesser extent, Portugal needs to be acknowledged.
Formations
Broadly three formations have been utilised since Peseiro took over in mid-May last year, with the former Sporting Braga boss initially inclined to utilise a back three used for most of his time as Venezuela's head coach.
The Portuguese trainer has since settled on a 4-4-2 from the start of games after that dalliance with a 3-5-2 against Mexico, although there was a striking tweak in the 2-1 success over the Leone Stars in June.
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Oghenekaro Etebo’s introduction for Umar Sadiq at the interlude brought about a change to a 4-3-3 after the break, thus preventing the away side from outnumbering the Super Eagles in the middle after intermittently getting joy against the home side in the first half.
It appears a 4-4-2 is Peseiro’s preferred formation, but it remains to be seen if this would be sustainable, especially against opponents utilising a more sophisticated approach.
Basic statistics
Early doors clean sheets have been a rarity under Peseiro, with the only shutout coming in the 10-0 success over Sao Tome.
That said, the quality of the opponent suggests that was an anomaly for the Super Eagles, with goals conceded in the five other games offering a slightly larger sample size.
Conceding 10 goals in five games implies a soft underbelly, even though 40 percent of those goals were let in against Portugal last November.
Overabundance of strikers harms Nigeria's AFCON 2023 chances
At the other end, goalscoring has broadly not been a concern, with the West African side finding the back of the net in four of their six games under the Coruche-born manager.
That could easily have been six from six, but for some sub-par finishing from Cyriel Dessers and Terem Moffi against Ecuador and Dennis’s miss from 12 yards against the Selecao.
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