Football
Exclusive: Ambrose Defends Nwabali After Blunder in Nigeria draw
Stanley Nwabali's error in Nigeria's 1-1 draw with Benin sparked debate, but Ambrose defends the goalkeeper, emphasizing early AFCON qualification as the key takeaway.
NFF Media
The Super Eagles squeezed through to the 2025 Morocco AFCON tournament after posting a 1-1 draw with Benin at the Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny in Abidjan on Thursday, but it was not without some pensive moments for Nigeria.
What supposedly looked like an easy encounter for Austin Eguavoen's side turned gristle-like in the 19th minute when the opposition profited from a corner to take the lead and abruptly move within a point of Nigeria on the CAF qualification group standings.
THE CATCH WAS POOR BUT ANYBODY CAN CONCEDE IT
Stanley Nwabali made a hoax of what had looked like a routine save in the first half when he allowed Mohamed Tijani's header to squirm past his grasp, and in.
The goal quickly sparked a debate amongst the locals but Ambrose who feels it could have happened to anybody has called for a positive attitude on the matter and absolved the Chippa United's gloves man of blame.
"For me, that is football", Ambrose told SportsBoom.com. "That can happen, you know. Anybody can concede that goal. It's just a wake up call that the game nowadays is getting tougher, and he needs to be very ready for anything at any time in a game."
"It could have been an easy catch but that doesn't make him look bad and we can't just start complaining now. Maybe he misjudged the strength of that header but these things can happen."
"When you're brimming with so much confidence as a goalkeeper, at some point you can feel relaxed. But while you're feeling relaxed, you need to know your work as the last line of defence for your team."
The game is done; he just needs to move on and cover up in the next game. He has being doing well, so that's why I say we do not have to complain so much about this one.
Stanley Nwabali
EAGLES DIDN'T LOOK THEIR BEST
Nigeria only mustered two shots on target throughout the clash in Abidjan as the plucky Squirrels kept them at bay with their own fate at stake.
However, they will have no answer to Victor Osimhen's header ten minutes from time when the Galatasaray marksman connected with a cross from Moses Simon to beat Marcel Dandjinou and tie up the game.
"I will say we scaled through this one just because of our name, the Super Eagles, you know, our stars Osimhen, Lookman, Simon, we didn't really show up our best."
"Majority of the players were not having a good game, but I say Benin and their manager [Gernot Rohr] really did their assignment to perfection."
Maybe beating Nigeria again was a big task for them, but ensuring they stay within qualification by picking up another point was good for them
Stanley Nwabali
QUALIFICATION IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING
Benin still have a chance to get in the hat when the draws for the tournament proper are made if they can avoid defeat against Libya on Matchday 6, and Ambrose believes the Super Eagles early qualification is the most important thing to be happy about despite the scare The Squirrels gave.
"When I saw the Benin lineup and knowing what was at stake for them, I knew we were in for a tough game. I was watching with a friend, and I told him, 'Bro, this game wouldn't be as easy as we think, we can't be playing on the defensive and we want to win."
"Anyways, we have qualified and that is the most important thing. We can now concentrate on other things."
Nigeria return to action on Monday 18th when they play their final AFCON qualification game with Rwanda in Uyo, a game which have almost nothing or very little riding on it.
Since he broke loose from the shackles of long hours huddled up in a hot classroom learning Mandarin Chinese and Pinyin at the famous Confucius Institute, UNIZIK, Emmanuel Chinaza has embraced sports and football in particular, and it helped that he grew up in the football-crazy city of Anambra.