Nigeria’s head coach Eric Chelle has admitted that his team fell short in their opening Group D clash against Senegal at the African Nations Championship in Zanzibar.
Chelle acknowledged that the defending champions were the better side throughout the match, which ended 1-0 in favour of Senegal.
“Senegal deserved the win. We only came alive for about twenty minutes in the second half. In the first half, I couldn’t even recognize my team. Senegal brought more energy, more desire, and more intensity,” he said after the match.
Nigeria struggled to make an impact in the final third, and despite creating a few chances, the lack of precision in front of goal proved costly.
“We made two basic mistakes and they punished us. Maybe we weren’t fully focused. Maybe we were afraid. We didn’t play like a team that wanted to win until it was too late,” Chelle added.
The decisive goal came in the 75th minute when substitute Moctar Koïté sprinted down the right wing and delivered a perfect cross into the box. Christian Gomis was there to meet it and calmly slotted the ball into the net.
Chelle emphasised the need for his players to be more aggressive and mentally ready moving forward.
“We must change our attitude. You cannot win at this level if you do not fight for every ball. We have two more games to fix this, but the mindset must change quickly,” he said.
Senegal now sits at the top of Group D, while Nigeria will look to recover in their next outing.
Should we send you latest update about your favourite sports and team?
Enter you email in the box below and hit the subscribe button to join our teaming 876+ sports community.
