Overview:
Nigeria takes on Morocco minus the services of their talisman in central midfield Wilfred Onyinye Ndidi of Besiktas in Turkey. Nigeria has been firing across all cylinder outings with back-to-back victories over Tanzania (2-1), Tunisia (3-2), Uganda (3-1), Mozambique (4-0) and lately Algeria (2-0) during the quarter finals.
Moments after Nigeria Super Eagles head coach Eric Sekou Chelle entered the fully packed press conference room at the main media center in Rabat on Tuesday morning, he sighed.
“It’s a full house”, the 48-year-old former Malian center half exclaimed.
Over 200 sports journalists from across Africa and the rest of the world, including the formidable team from Kawowo Sports Media graced this historic press conference conducted by the CAF media officer Mohammed Thabet.
“The match against Morocco will be a big game against a big team” the former Lens defender who won 5 international caps with Mali stated.
Chelle admitted being a big fan of the Nigeria Super Eagles team right from the 1998 FIFA World Cup where he would watch every match, and the adoration has since grown through leaps and bounds.
He spoke of the approach to the game, giving comparisons from the previous matches played at this championship.
“We shall approach the game and we are ready for them (Morocco). Algeria was the biggest test, Morocco will be the biggest test. We play every game like the last. We shall check every player physically at the last training before making decisions on the team to play. Algeria and Morocco both have strong points and weaknesses too. We have to work hard to win the game tomorrow (Wednesday)” he added.
Ndidi miss:
Nigeria takes on Morocco minus the services of their talisman in central midfield Wilfred Onyinye Ndidi.
The Besiktas holding midfielder who previous played at Leicester City and Genk misses the game through suspension and the coach is definitely plightful.
“Without Ndidi, I am disappointed. He brings so much to the team but we are a complete team and confident we shall do something. Have a choice to make in his absence with lots of options” the coach spoke of Ndidi’s absence.
“Emotionally, we are together. We laugh and suffer together. The best present for me is when I wake up everyday and the players are smiling. We keep our motivation and stay focused.” Chelle responded to a question from journalist Umar Mutaasa.
The press conference was also graced by star midfielder Alex Iwobi whom the coach hailed as a player with the right football I.Q.
“Alex has an I.Q. Some players want to just play football, smell, feel the football. This is Alex Iwobi” Chelle remarked of the former Arsenal midfielder.
Nigeria has been firing across all cylinder outings with back-to-back victories over Tanzania (2-1), Tunisia (3-2), Uganda (3-1), Mozambique (4-0) and lately Algeria (2-0) during the quarter finals.
Against the hosts Morocco in the semi-finals, it is definitely a stern test of character.
Tournament record winners Egypt face Senegal during the other semi-final in Tanger city ahead of Sunday’s final showdown.
Nigeria Super Eagles matches at AFCON 2025 (so far)
- Nigeria 2-1 Tanzania (Group C)
- Nigeria 3-2 Tunisia (Group C)
- Uganda 1-3 Nigeria (Group C)
- Nigeria 4-0 Mozambique (Round of 16)
- Algeria 0-2 Nigeria (Quarter-final)