Super Eagles coach Peseiro provides insights after Nigeria's exciting friendly matches in Portugal

Super Eagles coach Peseiro provides insights after Nigeria's exciting friendly matches in Portugal

Imhonlamhen Eronmhonsele
  • Head coach Jose Peseiro has provided his assessment of the Super Eagles' performance after the team's friendly matches in Portugal.
  • Nigeria played out a thrilling 2-2 draw with the Asian powerhouse Saudi Arabia at the Estadio Municipal De Portimao on Friday, October 13.

Three days later, the Super Eagles defeated ten-man Mozambique 3-2 at the Estadio Municipal de Albufeira, with goals from Terem Moffi, Frank Onyeka, and Moses Simon.

It was Nigeria's first win in a friendly encounter since beating Egypt 1-0 in March 2019.

Interestingly, coach Peseiro handed full debuts to the young midfielder Fisayo Dele-Bashiru and defender Jordan Torunarigha.

While Victor Osimhen picked up an injury in the Saudi Arabian game that ruled him out of the Mozambique friendly, other strikers like Victor Boniface and Moffi stepped up to help Nigeria avoid suffering a loss in the two matches.

Peseiro would be pleased to see the Super Eagles score five goals over two games, but the former Sporting Lisbon manager would be concerned with the defence that conceded four goals.

More worrying would be the uncertainty in the goalkeeping department, with Francis Uzoho coming under severe criticism following his error-prone display against Saudi Arabia and Mozambique.

Peseiro, in his post-match verdict, admitted that the coaching crew has identified and will work on the team's weaknesses and strengths.

The Portuguese tactician wrote on Twitter: "After another period of training and matches, with the team and staff united, we have reinforced various aspects and identified mistakes to be corrected. The standard for anyone representing the Super Eagles must always be the highest.

"The players' effort was excellent, and as a consequence, we achieved the victory in a friendly game for the first time in almost five years."

Nigeria will square up against Lesotho and Zimbabwe in November in the opening rounds of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign.

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