Why Peseiro made Super Eagles play defensively at AFCON — Iwobi

Super Eagles of Nigeria midfielder Alex Iwobi has revealed the circumstance that prompted the team’s ex-manager Jose Peseiro to switch to a defensive setup at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

Peseiro led Nigeria to the AFCON 2023 final where they lost to hosts Côte d’Ivoire 2-1, having defeated them earlier in their group stage meeting.

Super Eagles’ defensive approach at the AFCON 2023 came into play in their second group stage against Côte d’Ivoire, after the three-time African champions were forced to a 1-1 draw by Equatorial Guinea in their opening match.

Iwobi in his chat with Fulham FC said the draw felt like a “lucky escape” to the team, and it consequently forced Peseiro into switching to the pragmatic style that saw them progress to the final.

“We thought it was a lucky escape. [After that] the manager’s gone a bit defensive, put five at the back, and the next game against the host nation who just won,” the Fulham star said.

“Confidence is high thinking yeah this formation sticks, it’ll work. Then we win our next game, go through to the next round and everyone’s on high thinking ok there’s a chance we can do something here.

“We got to the final, thought we could beat the host nation again, but it just wasn’t meant to be.”

Iwobi was one of the players forced to play out of position at the AFCON 2023. The 27-year-old struggled as a defensive midfielder as the Super Eagles took on Africa’s finest.

The ex-Arsenal midfielder has registered five goals and one assist in 23 Premier League matches for Fulham this season.