Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle believes Nigeria’s emerging generation has shown it can compete at senior international level after a youthful side fought back to secure a 3-3 draw with Russia on Tuesday, Trybal News reports.
Chelle was forced to make significant changes to his squad because of the absence and withdrawal of several key players, creating an opportunity for a number of U23 players to make their senior debuts.
Nine youngsters were handed their first appearances, while 10 of the 16 players who featured are eligible for Nigeria’s 2028 Olympic Games campaign.
The group includes Brentford defender Benjamin Fredrick, Benfica’s Peter Edokpolor, Fulham’s Chibby Nwoko, Tromso defender Vince Osuji and Famalicão forward Umar Abubakar.
Chelle believes the experience will prove valuable as Nigeria prepares for both the Africa Cup of Nations and the Olympic Games.
We’re trying to prepare for the African Cup of Nations and the Olympic Games,” Chelle said.
We had trouble getting all the players ready for the team. Today, we had players from the U-23 team, and they proved they’re ready for the senior team.”
The youngsters played a significant role in Nigeria’s dramatic recovery after Russia established a 3-1 advantage.
Edokpolor, 19, came off the bench to score Nigeria’s second goal in the 78th minute, before another teenager, Abdullahi Umar, provided the assist for Akor Adams to level the game in stoppage time.
The comeback came after Russia had enjoyed the stronger spells either side of half-time, exposing some of Nigeria’s defensive difficulties.
This is a draw. We have a moment at the beginning of the first half. They had big moments at the end of the first half,” Chelle said.
This is why they scored two goals. In the beginning of the second half it was the same.”
Rather than allowing Russia’s dominance to decide the outcome, Chelle changed his attacking approach and Nigeria became increasingly dangerous in transition.
We found a solution because tactically we changed something about our strikers. At the end of the second half, they didn’t find a solution and that’s why we scored two goals in transition,” he explained.
The response pleased Chelle, who felt his players showed the character required to turn a difficult situation around.
The second half of my team was very good. I applauded my players. And like I said to my guy on my left side, the hero of the game is the football,” he concluded.
The draw gives Chelle a positive response after Nigeria’s disappointing 3-0 defeat to Guinea-Bissau, while the performances of the younger players have given the coach additional options to consider as he builds towards the AFCON and the 2028 Olympic Games.
