After thrashing Benin Republic 3-0 in Saturday’s 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying match, Super Eagles interim coach Augustine Eguavoen has expressed strong confidence in the team.
The New Daily Prime reported that goals from Galatasaray’s Victor Osimhen and Atalanta’s Ademola Lookman secured the victory for Eguavoen at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo.
Vanguard reported that Eguavoen, in his post-match interview, praised the team’s quality, stating they are capable of beating any opponent.
Additionally, Eguavoen credited the victory to the tactical formation adopted by the technical staff, emphasizing that various formations could be employed to ensure the team’s success.
“We have quality players to beat any team, but we respect our opponents. Any coach can come in and do the same job with the Super Eagles. It is a mindset; we have the potential and how you perceive your opponent, given the information about them, and then go out and do the job.
“We can decide to use any system. It is something we discussed and I slept over it. I know with the caliber of players we have, we can choose any formation. Football is about winning, losing, and drawing; I don’t believe we have a poor result,” he said.
Additionally, he emphasized that the team’s destination and objectives were agreed upon, assuring that these goals would be achieved.
He also praised the defense’s performance, describing it as superb. According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Eguavoen was appointed interim coach after the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and coach Bruno Labbadia’s agreement fell through.
The NFF explained that Labbadia’s appointment failed due to the stringent regulations imposed by German tax authorities.
The Super Eagles are set to play Libya and Rwanda in their next Group D matches. Only the top two teams from each group will advance to the AFCON finals, scheduled for December 2025.
The Super Eagles have qualified for every tournament since missing out in 2015 and 2017. In 2013, Nigeria won its third Africa Cup of Nations championship with a 1–0 victory over Burkina Faso in the final held in South Africa.
