The Super Eagles have found their wings at the right time going into the much-anticipated Africa Cup of Nations final against Burkina Faso tonight, but the Stallions’ road from the qualifiers to the final tonight should warn Nigeria that they may just be grounded.
In the qualifiers, facing an apparent defeat, Burkina Faso needed a goal against Central Africa Republic (CAR) to book their ticket to South Africa and they got it in the referee’s optional time edging CAR 3-3 on aggregate.
Drawn against in Group C with two-times Afcon champions, Nigeria, defending champions, Zambia and Ethiopia, many tipped Nigeria and Zambia to progress to the quarterfinals. However, two draws against those two favourites and a 4-0 win over Ethiopia saw them top the group to book their first quarterfinals place on foreign soil.
It was the same story when, against the prophecies, they sent Togo packing in the quarterfinals. But perhaps it was their story against Ghana that should convince Nigeria that The Stallions are here to stamp their authority. In the semifinals they had a soft penalty awarded against them, a legitimate goal being disallowed, a player sent off when a penalty should have been given, among a host of other controversial decisions by the referee, but no amount of adversity was going to dampen their spirits as they eventually booked their final berth after the spot kicks.
Determination and fighting spirit has seen Burkina Faso win matches, but is it enough to win the tournament against an equally determined Super Eagles who, on paper, have better quality players?
Both teams have an unfinished business since their 1-all draw in the group stages.
But despite Burkina Faso’s inspiring story, Nigeria still seem to have the upper hand and more favourable to lift their third Afcon cup.
Since the two team’s group stage encounter, The Super Eagles have gained huge amounts of confidence and impetus. After beating on-form tournament favourites, Ivory Coast, analysts predicted there’d be no stopping The Super Eagles and they, to a great extent, vindicated those analysts when they trashed Mali 4-1.
Technically, Nigeria seem to have better players who combine their physical strength with skills and a lot of movement very well. The combination of John Obi Mikel, Sunday Mba and Emmanuel Emenike seemed to be hard to deal with, especially against Ivory Coast and Mali. Djakaridja and Bakary Kone, Pierre Koulibaly and Mady Panandetiguiri will have their work cut out keeping that Nigerian combination under watch. But The Stallions have only conceded two goals so far in the tournament, which shows how strong they are defensively.
Much to the distress of The Super Eagles fans, on-form Victor Moses and Emmanuel Emenike missed training sessions owing to injuries they picked up against Mali. The team’s medical team is likely to make improvisations to get these two influential players available, but whether they will have the same impact with those knocks remains to be seen.
Burkina Faso, though they may not match Nigeria pound for pound in terms of quality, they can certainly take comfort in the level of organisation and cohesion in their team. Their Belgian-born coach Paul Put has managed to instil discipline, organisation and fighting spirit – all strong points of the Belgian national team – into the team that was never fancied to reach this stage.
“It is very important to give players confidence and a belief in what they are doing. It is also vital to remember the ordinary man in the street in Burkina Faso. Many are very poor and do not have much to look forward to apart from football. When their country is playing well, it makes their troubles more bearable,” Put said during the week, painting a good picture of the drive behind this team.
Striker Alain Traore is back from injury and with Aristide Bance in good form, The Stallions will not be found wanting upfront.
Determination and fighting spirit has seen Burkina Faso win matches, but is it enough to win the tournament against an equally determined Super Eagles who, on paper, have better quality players?
NB: The winner of this match will represent Africa at the FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil, in June.
– By Sipho Kekana
