By Jacob Ajom

The AFCON 2023 final was one of the most one-sided and boring encounters Nigeria’s Super Eagles have ever played. Jose Peseiro’s tactical rigidity and crass ineptitude were thrown bare and unfortunately, his ugly pattern of stuffing the back with many defenders and throwing one striker upfront was in exhibition before the entire world.

He lost the final to the young, vibrant Emerson Fae, who achieved something miraculous with the resurgent Elephants, as the Ivory Coast national team is called. It is an incredible achievement for a side that was on the brink of elimination in the group stage after losing 4-0 to Equatorial Guinea on January 22.

The Super Eagles, though bandied as pre-tournament favourites, were to many discerning Nigerians, not expected to get out of the group stage of the tournament. That they got to the final of the most competitive AFCON tournaments since the inception in 1957, was, in itself, gratifying. Yet, instead of coach Peseiro to ride on the crest of the momentum and seize the chance to win his first silverware as a coach, he scuttled the drive with negative tactics as the Super Eagles sat back, absorbing all that was thrown at them. However, the cookies crumbled when the pressure became persistent, intense and unbearable. The Eagles defence gave in.

Negative tactics could work in some cases but once a coach lacks flexibility like Peseiro, any clever coach can upstage him. Throughout the AFCON, Peseiro remained rigid and predictable with his defensive formations; heavy in the defence and light in the attack with very little emphasis on the midfield; the root cause of Osimhen’s struggles at AFCON. The coach’s decision to deploy Victor Osimhen as a lone striker ended up not getting the best out of the 2023 Africa Footballer of the Year.

Osimhen was a victim of the coach’s conservative tactics as the Napoli striker was made to roam about the pitch without the ball. Osimhen struggled, ran, jumped and fought with his tall frame in search of supplies. There were no supply lines. The Nigeria defence and attack had no link. He was always made to fight for long, aimless balls from the defenders. At times he fell back to retrieve stray balls from Nigeria’s half. How can one man cover the entire pitch? How can a striker of Osimhen’s stature play eight AFCON matches and end up with one goal to his name? If anything, the Portuguese tactician ended up de-marketing the Osimhen brand.

The Ivorians, on their part, were recharged, electrifying and dominant. They played the match of their lives and sure recognised that the stakes were high. The measure of nationalism in them was high and they knew how kind fate would be on them if they won. And they went for it.

There is nothing strange, that Super Eagles lost the match to the Elephants of Ivory Coast, what was strange was the manner of the loss. It was a poor advertisement of Nigeria, nay African football. It was so embarrassing that apart from the global television audience, Presidents of FIFA and the Confederation of African Football, Giovani Infantino and Patrice Mosepe, respectively, former Arsenal Manager and current FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development, Arsene Wenger, among others were in attendance. All may have been very disappointed with what Nigeria brought to the table.

Some of Peseiro’s decisions were inexplicably confusing. His decision to ostracise Leicester City striker Kelechi Iheanacho and Terem Moffi left much to be desired. He stuck with the same forwards for every match, indeed, he used some players to the point of exhaustion. This was evident in the final. The Ivory Coast coach said it all. “I noticed that the Super Eagles were tired in the second half and we went at them.” It paid off. They clipped the wings of the Eagles and poured relentlessly on the tired Nigeria defence. Many players Peseiro took to Ivory Coast returned untouched.

It is surprising that some Nigerians have already started the ‘Peseiro must stay’ campaign. It is sad that those who have been benefiting from the Portuguese continuous stay may want him to continue as Super Eagles coach, even at the detriment of Nigeria football.

Peseiro’s record with Nigeria is not inspiring. His record in his first year with the team is there for all to see. In the first nine matches Peseiro played, he won three and lost six. The coach lost all five friendly matches played by the Super Eagles.

In 2022, the Super Eagles lost2-1 to Mexico, Ecuador, beat Sierra Leone 2-1, trounced Sao Tome and Principe 10-0, lost to Algeria 2-1, to Costa Rica 2-0, 4-0 to Portugal. The most embarrassing day was on March 24, 2023, when the Peseiro-led Super Eagles suffered a shocking home defeat to Guinea-Bissau by a lone goal at the Abuja National Stadium. Guinea-Bissau, ranked 118th then on the FIFA rankings, was regarded as one of the minnows of African Football.

However, the Super Eagles redeemed themselves in the return leg in Bissau, winning 1-0, on March 27, 2023.

But his predecessor Gernot Rohr was better. The results of Super Eagles matches during Rohr’s first year as coach show a more positive scorecard. He opened his account with 1-0 win over Tanzania, beat Zambia away 201 and defeated Algeria 3-1 on November 12, 2016.

In summary, Rohr won five matches and drew two in the first seven matches played under his leadership as Super Eagles coach.

Just before the AFCON, Peseiro played two 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Lesotho in Uyo and Zimbabwe in Rwanda. Both matches ended in draws. The Super Eagles also played friendly matches against Saudi Arabia and Mozambique in Abu Dhabi. The Eagles lost to S/Arabia and beat Mozambique 3-2. The performance of the team at the AFCON raised some hope. All that was lost in the final where the Super Eagles failed, when it mattered most.

That is why Peseiro should be allowed to go.