The Super Eagles must advance if they are to win the Africa Cup of Nations, according to Nigeria's coach Jose Peseiro (Afcon). This came following Portugal's defeat on Thursday.
The Super Eagles lost to A Selecao by a score of 4-0 in a friendly match that was played in Lisbon on Thursday night.
Although they eventually improved, the African nation was unable to stop Bruno Fernandes from scoring twice, Goncalo Ramos once, and Joao Mario once. The African nation started the game slowly.
The West Africa team's Emmanuel Dennis missed a penalty kick, and Pesseiro acknowledged that his team needs to get better if they want to win the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
“Losing 4-0 was too much. We didn’t start well in the first half, didn’t show good organization, and didn’t pressure the opponent. It’s true the opponent has too much quality, but like I said, the first half was not good, but the second half was much better,” Peseiro told NFF TV.
“I believe in the second half; we showed we can do better. We missed a penalty and conceded two more goals. We must improve because we want to win the next Afcon.”
Even after Dennis missed a 12-yard attempt for Nottingham Forest, Peseiro defended the attacker.
“We must protect our guys. Which player has not missed a penalty before? Any player can miss a penalty, so I endorse Emmanuel Dennis.”
Nigeria has now lost three consecutive games, allowing eight goals while scoring only one.
Having identified the team’s weaknesses, Pesseiro has until the next Afcon qualifiers in March to address some of their issues.
Despite going undefeated in the group stage of the 2021 Afcon, the squad were eliminated by Tunisia in the Round of 16.
In the 2023 qualifiers, Nigeria are currently dominating Group A with a perfect record after two matches.
The next planned game for the Super Eagles is on March 20, 2023, against Guinea Bissau.