Enyimba's Usman Abdallah has lauded Nigeria's 3-0 away win against Seychelles in Saturday's Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Victoria but warned that Super Eagles must immediately shift focus to the clash against Libya.
The Eagles blitz past the Pirates through goals of Ahmed Musa, Chidozie Awaziem and Odion Ighalo to record their maiden win in the 2019 Afcon qualifiers.
Abdallah noted that the away points garnered against the Pirates was a welcome relief but that the goalless draw played in the other Group E tie between South Africa and Libya meant that the Eagles must not joke with their next two games with the Mediterranean Knights next month.
He said Nigeria’s next two matches in the qualifiers are so important that failure to pick at least four out of the possible six points could spell doom regarding the Eagles participation at the 2019 Afcon in Cameroon.
“I will say that the Eagles did a good job winning the important away game against Seychelles last weekend because it was crucial that we got that win,” Abdallah told Goal.
“The win has opened up the ideal situation for us because anything other than an away win could have made our resolve to qualify for next Afcon difficult. Even with the win, we are not yet assured of our place until we are able to put Libya where they belong next month.
“Those two games against Libya next month will go a long way in determining our readiness to return to the African Cup of Nations. We cannot joke with both games and we must get at least four points if we are unable to beat them in both legs.
“Our home loss to South Africa was the cause of these permutations and as a giant of Africa, we can’t afford to miss out on three editions of the Afcon consecutively. We must do everything possible to prevent that.”
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