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How every Nigerian player fared as the Super Eagles beat Guinea-Bissau
The Super Eagles of Nigeria beat Guinea-Bissau by a goal to nil in their fourth game of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying series.
The win serves as revenge for Nigeria after surprisingly losing 1-0 at home to the Djurtus just three days ago in Abuja, a result that was followed by widespread criticism.
The Super Eagles have now responded with a win to return to the summit of Group A with some players showing more desire than others. Here is how they all performed.
Super Eagles player ratings v Guinea-Bissau
GK - FRANCIS UZOHO — 4/10
Much like the first game in Abuja, Guinea-Bissau failed to test Francis Uzoho enough in the Super Eagles goal as the Djurtus only managed eight shot attempts with just two on target.
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However, unlike the reverse fixture, Uzoho managed to end the game without conceding but not without jittery moments like the 61st minute when he gifted Guinea-Bissau a great chance with a bad pass but the home side failed to take full advantage.
RB - BRIGHT OSAYI-SAMUEL — 7/10
Turkey-based right fullback Bright Osayi-Samuel was one of the few bright sparks in an otherwise gloomy afternoon for Nigeria.
The Fenerbahce defender was lively, especially in the first half when he made the decisive contribution of winning a penalty through strong running in the 29th minute.
Beyond contributing to the only goal of the game, Osayi-Samuel also completed 82.8% of his passes including four out of six attempted long balls.
CB - KENNETH OMERUO — 4/10
Kenneth Omeruo was one of five changes to the squad, replacing Calvin Bassey from the first game but the veteran defender did little better than his predecessor.
Omeruo was particularly suspect in the 41st minute when he stepped out of his central defensive position to cover for left back Zaidu but he was blown by with consumate ease by the Guinea-Bissau right-back to create a good chance.
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CB - SEMI AJAYI — 6/10
Semi Ajayi came in as a replacement for the injured Kevin Akpoguma and did a decent job with a clearance, two interceptions and three tackles in 90 minutes of football.
The West Brom man also completed 43 passes with an 87.8% accuracy in a solid performance even though he was largely untested.
LB - ZAIDU SANUSI — 5/10
Zaidu Sanusi looked a shadow of the player who has made the left-back position his own at FC Porto with two poor performances for Nigeria against Guinea-Bissau.
The 25-year-old was constantly out of position in defensive situations and struggled to impact the game in attack as well with one overlapping run and low cross in the second half as his only real input going forward.
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CM - FRANK ONYEKA — 5/10
They call him Frank "the tank" Onyeka for his strength but the name is particularly fitting as the Nigerian midfielder has the mobility and flexibility of a military tank.
The Brentford man lacked the dexterity to receive the ball nor the technique to pass it meaningfully but he was full of running so at least we know his heart was in the right place.
All in all, seven of 11 ground duels won and five tackles make up for what was a 'meh' performance all around.
CM - ALEX IWOBI — 6/10
No player on either team touched the ball more times than Alex Iwobi (74) which is somewhat normal for a player who carries the creative burden of the Super Eagles.
And even though Okocha's nephew had an average game by his own lofty standards, in the context of this quite honestly poor game, he was alright.
Iwobi played three key passes including one that led to an Osimhen shot off the bar and completed six out of 10 attempted long balls.
LW - MOSES SIMON — 6/10
Moses Simon scored the only goal of the game via a 30th minute penalty but that decisive moment did not earn him the clear distinction of being the best player on the field.
Although Simon had a pretty quiet first half despite scoring, he was more lively in the second with three key passes including the best chance of the game which he set up for Joe Aribo who could only force a save.
Overall it was not a vintage performance from a man who has certainly had better games for the Super Eagles but it was still slightly above average.
RW - SAMUEL CHUKWUEZE — 3/10
It is a marvel that Samuel Chukwueze lasted 89 minutes on the field despite being arguably the worst Nigerian player in the game which takes some doing.
Thanks to the Villarreal winger, the right side of the Nigerian team became the place where all attacks went to die, thanks to Chukwueze's indecisiveness.
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WHAT'S BUZZIN Reactions as Nigerians call out Chukwueze and Osimhen despite 0-1 win vs Guinea-Bissau in AFCON 2023 qualifier
Super Eagles of Nigeria managed to get their revenge against Guinea-Bissau, but Nigerians were far from pleased with a number of stars.
The 23-year-old managed to make the worst possible decision at almost every point he was presented with a dilemma much to the frustration of Osimhen and Terem Moffi who was particularly starved.
CF - TEREM MOFFI — 3/10
Speaking of Terem Moffi, the striker could have done a million other things that would have been more productive than his 61 minutes of football (if you can even call it that) against Guinea-Bissau.
And it was due to no fault of his as the Nigerian was starving (like many of his compatriots) but of chances as his team did little to nothing to create any real opportunities for him.
Moffi's only real moment was in the 20th minute when Simon found him with a smart throw-in which put him in a dangerous position but the Nice man could neither find the net from an acute angle or a teammate with a cut-back, instead horribly miscued his effort.
CF - VICTOR OSIMHEN — 4/10
One thing Victor Osimhen can never be faulted for is effort which is why he gets a generous rating of four, for his endless running and forever being a passing outlet.
However, he did not have a great game beyond that, frustratingly offside three times all in the first half and failing to score from seven shots, only two of which were even on target.
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Osimhen's appreciation for his Napoli teammates must have grown significantly in the last four days of playing with Chukwueze and Simon as his primary creators from wide areas.
But on a good day, he still would have converted at least one of the numerous half chances presented to him but it just was not one of those days for Osimhen.
SUB - JOE ARIBO — 4/10
The midfielder came off the bench in the 61st minute to replace Terem Moffi and had a glorious
chance to score which was created by Moses Simon in the 70th minute but he was denied by Guinea-Bissau goalkeeper Jonas Mendes.
SUB - WILFRED NDIDI — NIL
89th minute substitute replacing Samuel Chukwueze.
SUB - AHMED MUSA — NIL
94th minute
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