Izuchukwu OkosiSuper Eagles head coach José Peseiro insists that the team’s quarterfinals clash against Angola on Friday will not be mincemeat for the three time African champions and has warned them to be beware of the opposition.
The Nigerian side defeated perennial AFCON rivals Cameroon 2-0 in the round of 16 to set up the clash at the Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelPeseiro was speaking to the media as the Eagles intensify preparations for their next game.
“I am telling them that we are only in the last-8, that we still have some way to go, and that the farther we go, the tougher the opposition becomes. We have played four matches and won three, so we must keep level heads as we go forward,” the Portuguese admonished.
“Our philosophy is that there are no small teams here at the Africa Cup. Every team qualified to be here, and every team in the knockout phase qualified from a group phase.
“Any team in the last-8 is good enough for the trophy. We believe we are good enough for the trophy, but we must continue working and putting out our best on match days,” Peseiro noted.
Angola stopped Nigeria from qualifying for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany after securing a 1-1 draw at the Sani Abacha Stadium, Kano.
Similarly, on-field captain William Troost Ekong is not unmindful of the unpredictability of the Angolans and warns his teammates that it could be their most difficult game to navigate.
“We can no longer expect any easy games. In truth, there have not been easy games here. We have played Equatorial Guinea, Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea Bissau and Cameroon, and none has turned out to be a picnic. From the quarter-finals, it will be a lot tougher because all the teams will believe they are good enough for the trophy.
“We are discussing among ourselves what we have to do. There is no resting on our oars. We saw Guinea eliminate Equatorial Guinea that emerged the best team of the group phase. Football is like that. We must be alert for the entire period and do our best to convert the chances that we create.”
The quarterfinals game between the Super Eagles and the Palancras Negras of Angola will kick off at 6 pm Nigerian time on Friday evening.
Izuchukwu Okosi is a Nigerian sports and entertainment journalist with two decades of experience in the media industry having begun his media journey in 2002 as an intern at Mundial Sports International (MSI) and Africa Independent Television (AIT), owners of Daar Communications Plc.
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