Denizlispor midfielder Eddy Onazi is on the same page as manager Gernot Rohr after revealing that the Super Eagles must be wary of their opponents in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations and 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
Nigeria won their first two matches in the AFCON qualifiers, beating Benin and Lesotho, before their next fixtures against Sierra Leone were postponed, while they will come up against Cape Verde, Central African Republic and Liberia in the World Cup qualifiers.
Onazi has advised his Super Eagles teammates not to treat their opponents with kid gloves and to buttress his point he said they suffered the consequences of underrating Cape Verde in a friendly just before the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations.
"Our coach said we should not underrate the countries in our group in the AFCON and World Cup qualifiers because there's no small or big country," Onazi said in an Instagram conversation with the Super Eagles Media Team.
"You can play a small country and they will disgrace you. I remember we played against Cape Verde before the 2013 AFCON and I was thinking it was a match we'll just go and win 3-0, 4-0.
"You can play a small country and they will disgrace you. I remember we played against Cape Verde before the 2013 AFCON and I was thinking it was a match we'll just go and win 3-0, 4-0.
"To my greatest surprise, it was a difficult match for me, everybody found it difficult in that game because they came all out.
"We drew that game, it was goalless in Portugal so these qualifiers for me, Nigeria's Super Eagles are going in the right direction.
"The coach is doing everything possible, the most important thing is to get three points in every game, that should be our standard".
"We drew that game, it was goalless in Portugal so these qualifiers for me, Nigeria's Super Eagles are going in the right direction.
"The coach is doing everything possible, the most important thing is to get three points in every game, that should be our standard".
Having qualified for six of the last seven World Cups, Nigeria are the most successful African team at the World Cup in terms of points accumulated, and the highest scoring African team in World Cup history with 23 goals from 21 games.
Igho Kingsley
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