Former Super Eagles goalkeeper’s trainer, Ike Shorunmu, has urged football-loving Nigerians not to crucify national team number one goaltender, Daniel Akpeyi, after conceding two goals against South Africa recently in the Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Uyo, Akwa Ibom.
According to the former Eagles Assistant coach, the ex-Under-20 goalkeeper should be exonorated from blame of losing at home for the first time to South Africa.
Instead, he said the entire team contributed to the loss against Bafana Bafana, as the players were not well coordinated.
Nigerians had criticised Akpeyi after the loss because the player plies his trade in South Africa. Some pundits are of the view that he was careless and not determined to defend his fatherland against his employers.
But Shorunmu has sprung to Akpeyi’s defence, saying that the blame should go to the Eagles’ attackers who could not hold the ball and take the battle to South Africa’s.
“I do not like to apportion blame to any player but our attackers failed to do their job. Our midfielders and defenders went to sleep.
If we play as a team, South Africa can never beat us here in Nigeria,” Shorunmu stressed. The former Stationery Stores goalkeeper also advised the coach, Gernot Rohr to put up his thinking cap and look for a way of building a strong team.
He said Eagles had similar problem when he was in the national team with the late Stephen Keshi and they later found their bearing after proper examinations.
“This present team need to really work hard and put themselves together.
This is the time to find a lasting solution to their problems. They need to go back to the drawing board and think about the way forward. We need to beat Cameroon in our next match in the World Cup qualifier. I am positive about it but they need to brace up and put things in right perspectives,” he said.
Moses Simon, Etebo Oghenekaro and Ndidi Wilfred were easily the best Eagles on the pitch on a day the team failed to fly.
Rohr said his boys played well in the first half but were overpowered by the experience of the South Africans in the second half.
He said Nigeria had difficulties in finishing the match because “we made so many efforts in the first half while some of our players were tired in the second half.”
Former Super Eagles star, Etim Esin also believes that Rohr’s players were not physically fit for the match, stressing that the team need a good trainer on that level.
“To beat Cameroon, our players need to train hard and build their confidence. Halfmeasured players will fail against Indomitable Lions,” Esin told The Point.
