Jose Peseiro sights still set on AFCON title as Nigeria chase spot in last 16

Posted Monday, January 22, 2024 by PA

Nigeria coach Jose Peseiro is standing by his bullish claim that he will lead the Super Eagles to their first Africa Cup of Nations title since 2013.

Peseiro’s men head into their final Group A game against already-eliminated Guinea-Bissau in Abidjan on Monday knowing just a draw will be good enough to secure their place in the knockout stages.

But after watching his side shrug off their sluggish start against Equatorial Guinea by beating hosts Ivory Coast last time out, Peseiro is demanding his side maintain their belated momentum.

Match Day 3 tomorrow Vs #GuineaBissau 🇬🇼 #soarsupereagles #letsdoitagain #afcon2023 pic.twitter.com/Z1n0h6RFRv
— 🇳🇬 Super Eagles (@NGSuperEagles) January 21, 2024

Peseiro told a press conference: “I have said I want to win AFCON even though my contract says I should get to the final.

“It would be better to protect myself and not create expectations, because if I don’t win, it is worse for me. But I put my mind and the mind of my players that we want to win.”

Peseiro is expected to pick between Leicester’s Kelechi Iheanacho and Joe Aribo of Southampton for a midfield berth with Alhassan Yusuf set to miss out again.

Jose Peseiro sights still set on AFCON title as Nigeria chase spot in last 16 — Kelechi Iheanacho could start for Nigeria against Guinea Bissau (Richard Sellers/PA)

Guinea-Bissau will go into the game at full strength despite their elimination after their second consecutive defeat against Equatorial Guinea last time out.

Head coach Baciro Cande is determined that his side bow out on a high note, admitting: “I feel sad.

“We wanted to win (against Equatorial Guinea) but did not succeed. Before their goal, we had four chances plus a penalty that was refused.

“We worked hard to be ready and football is sometimes like that. We have one game left to close the group stage, and we hope to win.”