Super Eagles head coach Gernot Rohr has suggested the team’s loss to Madagascar could be a blessing in disguise and the major reason they are still in the race for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) title.
The Eagles were beaten 2-0 by the Barea at Alexandria Stadium in their last Group B encounter almost two weeks ago.
Nigeria will next trade tackles with the Fennecs of Algeria in the semi-finals on Sunday in Cairo, and the Franco-German noted the defeat to Madagascar deflected pressure from the Eagles.
“The loss to Madagascar was our joker,” Rohr told the media.
“We could lose it because we had already qualified for the next round.
“We wanted to allow others in the team to play as well.
“We can forget about the defeat to Madagascar now because we are through to the semi-final. Even the defeat helped us to be more humble and sometimes it is good also.”
The Eagles have beaten Cameroon and South Africa after the defeat to the Barea and they are only a win away from featuring in the final.
Ahmed Musa has appealed to Egyptian fans to continue supporting the Super Eagles at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals.
The Super Eagles secured their place in the semi-finals after defeating South Africa 2-1 in a quarter-final match in Cairo on Wednesday night.
Musa, who captained Nigeria in the absence of John Obi Mikel, reflected on the victory over the 1996 AFCON champions South Africa.
“The win is important. We knew it was not going to be easy,” Musa said.
“All we had in our mind was winning the game and we are glad to do that at the end of the day.
“We expected that we would win, but we have to keep our head calm,” he added.
“We scored the first goal but they equalised. We knew the goal would eventually come and had to be patient. Finally, it came in the 90th minute.”
“They should keep supporting us. It’s good that Egyptian fans came out to support us. We want to say thank you to them for everything.”
Nigeria will now take on Algeria in a semi-final match on Sunday.
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