Sao Tome good test for fringe Super Eagles

This evening, the magnificent Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State will come alive as the Super Eagles of Nigeria tread tackles with underdogs, Sao Tome and Principe, in a dead rubber contest. It is the last Group A match of the 2024 AFCON qualifiers.

Today’s qualification series final-day encounter is called a dead rubber because it is not going to determine the fate of either teams in their bid to reach the next AFCON in Cote d’Ivoire. While the Super Eagles have already qualified for the Championship, their opponents are out of contention for a ticket to Ivory Coast.

The Super Eagles are on top of the group with 12 points while their closest rivals Guinea Bissau have 10 points so the three-time African champions need just a point to qualify as group leaders on superior goal difference in case their rivals also win at home against the Lone Stars to end with 13 points.

Therefore, the Super Eagles will be going into the encounter in a more relaxed mood because they don’t really have much to worry about. However, there is still so much to play for because it will be a shame if their less endowed opponents would cause an upset against them at home. As much as the Eagles are no longer super, there is still a yawning gap between them and the Sao Tome boys who appeared in Uyo, looking unserious like a club in the Nigeria Premier Football League. No wonder, they were hammered 10-0 in the first leg clash in Agadir where Victor Osimhen alone pumped four goals into their net. Nigerians are therefore expecting another routing of the visitors.

Interestingly, after so much dilly-dallying, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) last week sorted out the issue of Jose Peseiro by extending his contract till the end of the 2024 AFCON. Before the decision was taken, speculations were rife that either Austin Eguavoen or Finidi George would lead the Super Eagles against Sao Tome. However, the NFF said the new Minister of Sports, John Enoh, had magnanimously stepped in to settle the issue of Peseiro’s Contract. Therefore, the Portuguese will be the one in the dugout in Uyo as the Super Eagles battle the Falcons and True Parrots.

Soon after he secured his job, Peseiro released the list of 23 players for today’s AFCON qualifier. The list was dominated by the usual suspects as even those players that most Nigerians have become tired of also made the list. Although the ever-present captain Ahmed Musa was conspicuously missing, some of his colleagues in the ‘squad of tired legs’ featured prominently and may be preferred ahead of younger and more enterprising players that have been invited.

However, even as there was no significant change in the list of invited players, Peseiro called for the first time Belgium-based centre-back Jordan Torunarigha and forwards Victor Boniface and Gift Orban. He also recalled Portugal-based left back Bruno Onyemaechi and defensive midfielder Raphael Onyedika. So, there may be debut appearances for some of the new boys, especially on-fire Boniface and Gift Orban who is presently the interest of some of the big clubs in Europe.

Since the Super Eagles are home and dry as far as the 2024 AFCON is qualified, Nigerians want Peseiro to give more playing time to some of the new boys and the other fringe players for them to justify their invitation to the Super Eagles. In fact, some people questioned the decision to invite the likes of Victor Osimhen, Wilfred Ndidi, William Troost Ekong, Alex Iwobi, kelechi Iheanacho, Joe Aribo, Samuel Chukwueze, Lookman Ademola and Taiwo Awoniyi for such an ‘inconsequential’ match but there is also the need to keep the players busy in the international break.

So, one is not against the invitation of the established players in the team but they shouldn’t take over the match. It will be irrational for Peseiro to allow Osimhen to play the entire duration of the match while Orban and Boniface watch on from the bench. And for quite some time now, we’ve been having problems with our central defence so it will be wrong for a tired leg like Troost-Ekong or the sluggish Ajayi to be allowed to play till the end while Jordan Torunarigha is not given a chance to prove himself.

Apart from the new boys, some of the fringe boys like Bruno Onyemaechi, Raphael Onyedika, Frank Onyeka and Tyronne Ebuehi should be tested with enough playing time. If they fail to impress against the lowly rated Sao Tome, they should be shown the exit door. Since no player owns shares in the Super Eagles, there is no need to continue to invite players who would only warm the bench. Anyone player invited must possess the ability to play satisfactorily.

To round up this piece, I must not fail to make a special case for Olorunleke Ojo, the only NPFL goalkeeper, in fact, the only NPFL player presently with the team in Uyo. I think this is the second time the former Flying Eagles goalkeeper is in the camp of the Super Eagles. There is no better match for him to make his senior national team debut than the one against Sao Tome. Nigerians will like to see what the Enyimba keeper can do if given a chance to be in-between the sticks.

After all, some of us have seen enough of Uzoho who has refused to improve. Despite his World Cup experience, the ‘young’ goalkeeper is always jittery in the post. Does he have anything that we haven’t seen? I remember Vincent Enyeama kept for the Super Eagles at the 2002 World Cup while he was in the NPFL with Enyimba. Sao Tome is not too much for Ojo to face.

On this note, I reiterate that even as we all want the Super Eagles to annihilate Sao Tome for record purpose, it can be achieved with minimal force. The new boys and the fringe players should be allowed to prosecute this dead rubber. Moreover, there is no better time than now to inject fresh legs into the Super Eagles. Some of the tired legs who use ‘football age’ should be allowed to go and concentrate on their club football.