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By BABATUNDE OGUNRINDE
Oladimeji Lawal, former international and Super Eagles winger, and football stakeholder Harrison Jalla have criticised Nigeria’s lack of creativity against Guinea-Bissau.
The duo expressed their disappointment in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Lagos.
Lawal said the Super Eagles failed to create enough scoring opportunities during Tuesday’s 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Bissau.
“I really felt disappointed with this result. I expected the team to take the game straight to their hosts, but we allowed them to dominate,” he said.
He said Nigeria created very few chances to threaten the Guinea-Bissau goalkeeper, describing the result as disappointing.
In spite of the defeat, Lawal expressed optimism that the Super Eagles could recover and eventually qualify for the tournament.
“There are still many matches to play in the group. So, I am still optimistic that the Super Eagles will top the group,” he said.
Goals from Franculino Dju, Mama Baldé and Álvaro Djaló secured Guinea-Bissau’s victory at the 24 September Stadium in Bissau.
The result left Nigeria three points behind Guinea-Bissau after two matches in the qualifying campaign.
Lawal was a member of Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets squad that won silver at the 1987 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Canada.
He also played for Real Madrid B, Julius Berger, Shooting Stars, KV Kortrijk and Hellenic during his career.
Similarly, Jalla urged Nigerians to remain patient with the Super Eagles as efforts continue to reform the country’s football system.
Jalla said the poor performances of the Super Eagles and other national teams were deeply rooted and would require time to correct.
He called for football infrastructure development across local government areas, states and the six geopolitical zones.
“We need to rebuild our football to restore our traditional playing pattern and philosophy,” Jalla said.
He also advocated a new-look Super Eagles capable of accommodating quality home-based players.
Jalla said the deterioration in the country’s football system had become too deep before reforms were initiated.
“It is still possible to qualify for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations, but Nigerians should remain hopeful about the reforms,” he said.
He urged Nigerians to lower their expectations of immediate results, stressing that correcting the rot in the system would not be automatic. (NAN)
