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The Super Eagles must avoid mistakes in their must win World Cup qualifier against South Africa
Nigeria's Super Eagles face their South African counterparts in a must-win 2026 World Cup qualifier at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo in Finidi George's first official match as permanent manager.
After a mixed bag in Finidi's two matches as temporary coach, the former Ajax and Real Betis man can not afford any mistakes against South Africa. Of all the things that could possibly go wrong for the Super Eagles, the Nigerian team will do well to avoid these four banana peels when they host South Africa on Friday.
Conceding an early goal
Despite facing 149th-ranked Lesotho and 122nd-ranked Mozambique in their opening two World Cup qualifiers, the Super Eagles still find themselves third in CAF World Cup qualifying Group C after securing only two points from their opening two matches.
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One of the main reasons for this disappointing return has been Nigeria’s lacklustre start to matches which saw them trail against both Lesotho and Mozambique before they rallied to secure draws against the minnows.
Against South Africa, the Super Eagles must avoid a recurrence of old troubles, as conceding first against the higher-quality Bafana Bafana will almost certainly result in a defeat for Nigeria, putting their chances of playing in the 2026 World Cup in jeopardy.
Relying on penalties
During the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, Nigeria scored two penalties, the second most of any country in the tournament.
In sticky situations against Ivory Coast in the Group Stage and Friday’s opponents, South Africa in the Semifinals, Nigeria depended on the calmness of veteran defender William Troost-Ekong to score decisive spot-kicks.
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With Troost-Ekong out of the current squad, as he recovers from an injury, the Super Eagles can not count on the luxury of having the 2023 AFCON Player of the Tournament bail them out from 12 yards against South Africa.
In addition, South Africa’s Ronwen Williams is a renowned penalty specialist and would have learned from facing the Super Eagles in a shootout during the AFCON 2023 semifinal.
Having a scanty midfield
With as many as six central midfielders available for selection, coach Finidi George will have his pick of stars to battle South Africa’s famously combative midfield when the teams face in Uyo.
During the last meeting between South Africa and Nigeria, at the 2023 AFCON in Ivory Coast, the Super Eagles’ midfield duo of Alex Iwobi and Frank Onyeka were overrun in midfield by their counterparts, resulting in a mammoth 60% possession for the Bafana Bafana.
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Nigeria escaped that encounter after winning 4-2 on penalties, but with three points crucial for their bid to secure a place at the 2026 World Cup, the Super Eagles must be on the front foot when they host South Africa.
To avoid a repeat of the midfield failings from the 2023 AFCON semifinal, the Super Eagles will need at leat one more body in midfield, particularly an athletically gifted option like Alhassan Yusuf to combat the physicality of the South Africans in the middle of the park.
Playing Lookman too wide
Super Eagles forward Ademola Lookman has shown his quality with the Nigerian national team and his club side Atalanta, especially since the turn of the year.
Lookman was one of the Super Eagles’ best players at the 2023 AFCON in Ivory Coast with three goals and one assist in seven matches and dragged Atalanta to an unprecedented European crown with a superb hat-trick in the final of the Europa League against Bayer Leverkusen.
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One thing has remained constant in Lookman’s best performances for both club and country, and that is the freedom to operate more centrally, rather than as an out-and-out winger.
To get the best out of the Atalanta man, Lookman must be deployed as close to the starting centre-forward as possible to feed off his strike partner. Lookman is excellent when it comes to playing as a supporting striker and could be a game-changer for Nigeria against South Africa, but only if he gets to play with the freedom necessary to be a real threat to the Bafana Bafana defense.
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