interim coach Salisu Yusuf led the Super
Eagles to their second win in as many games as they defeated Luxembourg
3-1 on Tuesday at the Stade Josy Barthel in a friendly match.
Three goals from Brown Ideye, Kelechi
Iheanacho and Odion Ighalo took the shine off the lone strike from Thill
Vincent for the Luxembourgers.
The match was the second in five days
for the Eagles after they defeated Mali 1-0 in France before heading to
Luxembourg on Sunday. Nigeria are preparing for the 2016 World Cup
qualifiers after failing to qualify for the 2018 Africa Cup of Nations.
Yusuf made six changes to the team which
started against Mali bringing on goalkeeper Daniel Akpeyi in place of
Carl Ikeme. Leon Balogun gave way for Kenneth Omeruo while Elderson
Echiejile was preferred at left-back. Brown Ideye and Umar Aminu also
started while Kelechi Iheanacho, who scored the winner against Mali,
also started ahead of Ighalo.
Nigeria got the first chance of the game
in the second minute but Ideye’s shot went wide. The Eagles dominated
play and deservedly went ahead of the Luxembourgers through Ideye in the
36th minute. Aminu went past two defenders before he set up stand-in
captain, Ogenyi Onazi, whose shot from outside the penalty area was
parried by the hosts keeper but a lurking Ideye tucked in the rebound
for his first goal for the national team in three years.
The Eagles continued their dominance of
the game and kept their opponents at bay with good positional play.
Aminu, Iheanacho and Arsenal forward, Alex Iwobi, all had chances in the
first half but could not increase the tally for Nigeria.
Luxembourg came out attacking in the
second half but still hardly troubled the Eagles defence. In the 55th
minute, Yusuf brought on Babatunde Michael for Iwobi and Simon Moses for
Aminu while Wilfred Ndidi came on for Abdullahi Shehu and Raheem Lawal
for Onazi in the 64th minute.
The substitutions paid off as
Iheanacho extended the Eagles’ lead in the 69th minute. Luxembourg
striker Thill reduced the tally in the 90th minute after Omeruo slipped
but substitute Ighalo restored the two-goal lead when he grabbed the
Eagles third in added time.
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