‘Eagles still need game-changer’

Idris Adesina

Former internationals Joe Erico  and  Yisa Shofoluwe  say the  Super Eagles need a game-changer  to reclaim their dominant place on the continent.

The Eagles have been  struggling  since they won the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations.

Shofoluwe said the  Eagles  failed to create enough scoring chances against Egypt in their  Gabon 2017 Africa Cup  of Nations qualifying reverse fixture in Alexandria on March 29, hence  Nigeria lost 1-0.

“It was a painful thing to see that the darling team of Nigerians won’t be at the Nations Cup again for the second consecutive edition,”  the former Eagles defender  told our correspondent.

“Before we won it in 2013, we didn’t qualify for  the 2012 edition. We again  failed to qualify  for the last edition of the tournament in 2015. The problem with the team is quite much but the major one is that the coach has  yet to find a playmaker for the team.”

The former Abiola Babes star added, “The team have had three coaches in the last two year but they have not been able to get that player who can effectively distribute the ball and also create good scoring chances. That was what hurt them against Egypt in Alexandria. In Kaduna, the chances came because the Egyptians were cautious and defensive but when they came out to play in their own backyard, it showed that we had no playmaker in the team.”

Former Eagles assistant coach Erico  said, “Until we have a quality creative midfielder,  we will be struggling to beat teams in Africa. The Eagles have changed their tactics from playing through the wings to midfield play, which is as exciting as could be.

“For now, I am happy with the young players  we have in the team. But most of them are attack-minded. Any coach hired now should look at the team and get a playmaker for them or adopt a pattern that will suit the kind of players we have currently.”