Nigeria vs Serbia: 5 things we learnt as Super Eagles were defeated

Nigeria vs Serbia: 5 things we learnt as Super Eagles were defeated
Mar 28, 2018.

On-loan Newcastle striker, Aleksandar Mitrovic, scored twice as Serbia beat Nigeria2-0 in an international friendly played in London on Tuesday night .

Bellow are the five things we learnt from the match:

1. Uzoho is not bad at all: The Deportivo La Coruna stopper is the reason why the Super Eagles did not concede more than two. The 19-year-old was a more assured presence in London, four days after he was practically a bag of nerves against Poland. There’s still a lot of improvement to be done, but he is on the right path.

2. Why did Newcastle loan Mitrovic out? The Serbia was a thorn in the flesh of the Nigerian defenders all evening, with his movement and power. He was denied a clear goal in the first half, but came back to hit the match-winning brace after the break. One wonders why Newcastle, who are fighting to stay in the Premier League, sent him out on loan to Fulham.

3. Awaziem, capable stand-in: Chidozie Awaziem was called in at the last minute to replace Leon Balogun, who missed out through illness. The Nantes defender had an impressive outing and hardly put a foot wrong.

4. Matic the boss: With Nigeria out of all sorts, especially in midfield, the Manchester United midfielder stepped in and dictated the tempo and direction of the game. Matic cut off the Eagles’ rare attacks and set his own team in the opposite direction.

5. A team under experiment: It’s a no-brainer that some of the players that featured against Serbia will not make Rohr’s final cut for the World Cup later this year. But the friendly offered them a chance to catch the eye. Tyronne Ebuehi had a poor game standing in for Shehu Abdullahi, Joel Obi was pedestrian in midfield and Onazi Ogenyi offered nothing.