Nations Cup: Osimhen, Ekong Hail Super Eagles Teammates For Beating Ivory Coast
African football king, Victor Osimhen has showered praises on his Super Eagles teammates following their impressive performance in the 1-0 win over Ivory Coast on Thursday.
The team rallied to down the hosts with an improved performance after the poor 1-1 draw with Equatorial Guinea on Sunday.
Advertisement
The Napoli forward revealed that the team made a big statement by beating the host country in their backyard.
Osimhen said: “It feels good. Not an easy game of course. We knew the Ivorians would come strong against us.
“We came with a game plan and we executed it. I am happy about this win. It’s a big win for us and we keep on building on this momentum.”
The Super Eagles needed a second half penalty from William Troost-Ekong to secure the maximum points and boost their qualification chances.
Advertisement
Osimhen endured another frustrating night in front of goal, missing clear cut chances.
He said, “This game against Ivory Coast was a big statement game for us. We needed to win and make a statement in a competition like the AFCON.
“It was important to start well. We waited for them in the midfield, waiting for them to make mistakes, but I am really happy about this win, and we will keep on going from here.”
Osimhen is confident that the team will continue the momentum against Guinea-Bissau in their last group game on Monday.
Osimhen concluded, “We know them. We played them in qualifying, and we know how dangerous they can be. We can never take any game lightly.”
Advertisement
Osimhen was named man of the match in the encounter.
Similarly, Super Eagles stand-in captain and the match winner, William Troost Ekong, also reserved special praises for his teammates for the hard-fought win.
Troost Ekong said, “We wanted to win the first game but we couldn’t. This was an important game for us to show what we are capable of and I’m really proud of the boys, and we deserved to win.
“We know we were playing against a quality team, especially at their home here. But we had to do more, we had to fight more. I think we have so much quality, but we have to earn the right to win, and this is a performance we can all be proud of.”
The Super Eagles produced arguably their best performance under Jose Peseiro, Nigerians will be hoping to see more of it from the team in the competition.
Peseiro opted for a 3-4-3 formation, which caught the Ivorians by surprise and nullified their threats. The formation also gave the team the needed solidity in defence.
