Can Eagles assuage Nigerians’ bruised ego today? - As Nigeria faces S/Africa in Nations Cup qualifier

Dimeji Ojo, Abuja - 01.06.2008

Nigeria’s Yakubu Aiyegbeni contests for ball
possession with an Austrian player in last
Tuesday’s friendly match. The match
ended 1 - 1. PHOTO: AFP AFTER their lacklustre performance at the Ghana 2008 Nations Cup, where they crashed out at the quarter-final stage, the Super Eagles will today return to competitive action in a 2010 World Cup/Nations Cup qualifier aiming at assuaging the bruised ego of Nigeria and football-loving Nigerians.

The Eagles are billed to slug it out against Bafana Bafana of South Africa at the National Stadium in Abuja. The South Africans are hosts of the next World Cup, but are taking part in the qualifying series as it also served as qualifier for the Nations Cup holding in Angola. South Africa has qualified automatically as host of the 2010 World Cup.

Today's match is the first competitive match for returnee head coach, Amodu Shaibu, though the Edo State-born gaffer led the Eagles to a 1-1 outing last Tuesday in Graz, Austria in an international friendly match.

Some of the Eagles who spoke with Tribunesports in Abuja on Saturday assured that they would not disappoint Nigerians this time, adding that they would take every match seriously in the qualifying series as they were not ready to miss out of both the World Cup and the Nations Cup in 2010.

"We've really learnt our lessons missing the last World Cup. This time around, we are ready to do anything to ensure that we hoist the flag of Nigeria in Angola and South Africa," Eagles captain, Nwankwo Kanu said.

"Nobody was happy with what happened in Ghana and we have told Nigerians this. This is really a new era in the national team. We now have new coaches who are competent and the players are equally eager to return the national team to where it rightly belong," he added.