Super Eagles interim manager, Augustine Eguavoen, has revealed how his team was able to stop Liverpool ace, Mohammed Salah during their opening Africa Cup of Nations encounter on Tuesday.
Kelechi Iheanacho’s 30th-minute strike sealed victory for Nigeria who are currently leading Group D with two points after Sudan and Guinea-Bissau goalless draw.
Egyptian captain, Salah, failed to come to the party as the seven-time African Champions struggled against the Super Eagles.
The defensive pairing of William Troost-Ekong and Keneth Omeru were solid through the game to deny the Liverpool star free flow.
Full-backs Ola Aina and Zaidu Sanusi were also instrumental for the Super Eagles who handed Egypt their first defeat in the AFCON group stages in 18 years.
During his post-match interview, Eguavoen revealed how they stopped Salah, who was recently shortlisted for the FIFA Best Player award.
He said, “Egypt is a well-respected team; we respect them, but we’ve players who should be respected too.
“We tried to cut Salah off the ball, and we tried to keep the ball.
“We gave everything during the match, and we must play every game as if it were a final. We won the first match, and we will see what we do in the next.”
Meanwhile, The Pharaoh’s head coach, Carlos Queiroz, was critical of his team’s poor performance during the defeat but remained hopeful of better outings in their next two matches.
He said, “The performance in the first half was very poor and this is the truth, we were not on the field. We started playing in the second half and there was no reason for this failure and loss against Nigeria.
“We lost this match but there are 6 points we must get against Sudan and Guinea Bissau to qualify.”
