2010 World Cup Qualifier - Super Eagles in crucial away win
Malabo - The Super Eagles of Nigeria yesterday in Malabo, improved their chances of qualifying from Group Four for the 2010 African Cup of Nations, after winning 1-0 against Equatorial Guinea, to stay firmly rooted on top of the table after three matches.
The coach Shuaibu Amodu-trained Eagles have skipper Joseph Yobo to thank for the lone goal, which came in the fifth minute, capping up another memorable appearance for the Everton central defender, who was responsible for scoring the only goal in the 1-0 defeat of Sierra Leone a week back.
But the Nigerians did not have it all their way as they had to contend with the dogfight of their hosts, who backed with their noisy fans, tried to rock the play of their superior opponents, who now look certain to gain a direct qualification for the 2010 Nations Cup, to be held in Angola.
In all fairness, the Eagles might not have had a good game but credit should be accorded to them for getting the three points at stake from such a tricky encounter.
While Nigerians are counting their stars for a jolly good ride so far in the qualifying series, their major rivals, the Bafana Bafana of South Africa are sure to be sweating pants down now as they will have to play catch up after their 1-0 loss to Sierra Leone, a day earlier.
South Africa is now in danger of not qualifying for the Nations Cup. For them to qualify, the coach Tele Santana-guided Bafana Bafana will have to go all out for wins in their remaining three games as they have three points from three outings— not good returns for the 2010 World Cup hosts.
This weekend they host Sierra Leone. It is a match they must win at all costs to qualify for African Cup of Nations, which will serve as good preparation for the World Cup about four months later. South Africa played well but failed where it mattered most— in scoring goals, a problem that existed even during Carlos Parreira’s era. For the Leone Stars, beaten a week back by the Nigerians, this was their first victory in three matches and also their only goal since the start of the qualifiers.
There will be a two-month break on the qualifiers, before Bafana Bafana host Nigeria in September. The final match of the qualifiers is in October, with an away tie to Equatorial Guinea.
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