Eric Chelle has praised Nigeria’s performance in their penalty shootout defeat to Morocco, but admitted that they were not close to the level they had shown in previous matches, SportPremi reports.
The Super Eagles’ wait for a fourth crown will continue beyond this edition after they were defeated by Morocco in the semifinals of the ongoing African Cup of Nations tournament on Wednesday night.
Super Eagles penalty shootout deja vu
Nigeria suffered their second consecutive penalty shootout defeat after their loss to the home nation in their last four encounter.
The Super Eagles were also defeated by the Democratic Republic of Congo in the CAF playoff finals for the FIFA World Cup later this year, which ended their hopes and dumped them out of qualification.
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They headed into the clash on Wednesday night with a 100% record, but were aware of the threat posed by the Moroccans, as well as the support they would get from their own supporters.
The three-time African champions were unable to cope with the Atlas Lions’ intensity throughout the clash and could not impose their usual pattern on the game.
The forwards struggled greatly in the clash as they could only feed on scraps, while Morocco enjoyed the better chances in the clash.
The game finished goalless after 120 minutes of action, with penalties needed to decide the winner.
Hamza Igamane’s attempt was saved by Stanley Nwabali, but Samuel Chukwueze failed to give Nigeria the advantage when he missed his effort as well.
Morocco then scored their next three, with Yaccine Bounou denying Bruno Onyemaechi as the hosts nation sealed a 4-2 and condemn the Super Eagles to another penalty shootout defeat.
What Chelle said after Nigeria’s defeat to Morocco
Speaking after the clash, Eric Chelle applauded the performance of the players on what was a very difficult night for them.
“The match was never easy, but the players showed a strong mental response and fought for every ball. Losing on penalties is very painful. It’s difficult because we worked hard throughout the entire tournament, but that’s football. We must continue working”, Chelle revealed.
The 48-year-old however said that the team were not able to match their previous level of performance at the tournament in the defeat.
“We played this match with high pressing, because if you don’t press, you leave spaces and the situation becomes very complicated. From a technical point of view, we were not at the same level we showed in other matches. I don’t want to say the reason was fatigue, but the truth is that we lacked movement and power”, he concluded.
Nigeria will now face Egypt in the third-place playoff encounter on Saturday, while Morocco advance to the final to face Senegal on Sunday.
