Nigeria coach Jose Peseiro allayed concerns on Saturday regarding the Super Eagles’ potential vulnerability in areas outside their attacking game as they gear up to commence their Africa Cup of Nations journey.
The three-time champions begin their campaign against Equatorial Guinea in Abidjan on Sunday, featuring a team led by Victor Osimhen, the African Footballer of the Year.
Despite a series of withdrawals, Nigeria retains an arsenal of some of Africa’s top attackers, featuring Kelechi Iheanacho, Terem Moffi, Samuel Chukwueze, Moses Simon, and Ademola Lookman.
However, the same depth of strength is not evident in other positions, raising concerns, especially in the goalkeeping department.
Nigeria has consistently turned to Francis Uzoho from Omonia Nicosia in Cyprus as their first-choice goalkeeper in recent games.
‘I believe in my players, in all of them from the goalkeeper to the striker,’ Peseiro told reporters in Abidjan.
‘Every team sometimes has more power in certain positions. It happens to all national teams.’
‘It is my job and responsibility to create a good organisation, but the main point is that I believe in them.’
Injuries have dealt a blow to Nigeria, with Victor Boniface from Bayer Leverkusen, Umar Sadiq from Real Sociedad, and Wilfred Ndidi from Leicester City all withdrawing shortly before kick-off.
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Moffi, from French Ligue 1 side Nice, will miss the match against Equatorial Guinea, as confirmed by Peseiro, while Kelechi Iheanacho and the late addition Paul Onuachu have just touched down in Ivory Coast.
‘Kelechi arrived at 4 this morning and so he is completely recovered,’ Peseiro said.
‘Boniface is injured but Moffi arrives tomorrow at 8pm. Sadiq is injured also, and Onuachu arrived at 4am this morning.’
‘The (injured) players are sad, but we have 25 players with quality.’
With Nigeria captain Ahmed Musa declaring him “the king of Africa,” Osimhen becomes the center of attention with all eyes on his performance.
Recent showings have raised concerns about the Super Eagles’ performance, with a loss to Guinea in their last warm-up game.
Their chances of reaching the 2026 World Cup finals have already been compromised after draws in qualifying against Lesotho and Zimbabwe in November.
‘The last game in World Cup qualifying was not good, but until now we have only lost one (competitive) game, at home to Guinea-Bissau, in which we created many opportunities,’ insisted Peseiro.
Nigeria will face Guinea-Bissau at the AFCON and will have the chance to avenge that reverse in qualifying in Abuja.
‘Playing for Nigeria is not easy, with the history, the stress, the pressure. The people of Nigeria want to win, like us.’
‘I am not afraid for me and my team. They need to answer on the pitch. We need to understand the criticism. We have been playing well, but the results in those matches are in the past. This is a different competition.’