The President, Sports
Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN), Honour Sirawoo has called for patience
and understanding from Nigerians following Super Eagles’ loss to Bafana Bafana
of South Africa in the opening match of qualification for the African Cup of
Nations at the weekend in Uyo.
The Super Eagles lost the
fixture by two goals; making it the first time South Africa will beat Nigeria
in a competitive match.
Sirawoo, who spoke via
telephone interview shortly after the match stated that Nigeria’s first home
loss under Gernot Rohr goes to show that the team is not where it should be and
will continue to witness constant reshuffling before getting a desired Super
Eagles.
While admitting that the
team played below par, he called on Nigerians not to vilify the Nigeria
Football Federation (NFF), Rohr and the players but should rather be patient as
all hope is not lost in Nigeria’s quest to qualify for the Nations Cup after
missing the last two editions.
“Like all Nigerians, I felt
disappointed with the outcome of the match, especially as South Africa had
never defeated Nigeria before now and to now do such in our home makes it even more painful.
“However, I believe there
is still everything to play for with five matches yet to be played. The loss
serves as a wake up call that we are not where we should be; it gives us the
opportunity to identify our weak areas and bounce back in the next match.
“The NFF must know that
Nigerians are not kind when it comes to losses and would not hesitate to call
for sweeping changes when they are angry. Our football administrators must
quickly address this embarrassing defeat and ensure all hands are on deck in
subsequent matches,” he stressed.
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