Former Nigeria goalkeeper, Joe Erico, has tipped the Super Eagles B to win the 2016 Championship of African Nations and advised them to be very physical in their approach to each match at the tournament.
The CHAN, which is for players plying their trades in their local leagues, will hold from January 16 to February 7 in Rwanda. The Eagles will play their opening match in Group C on January 18 against Niger Republic.
The Nigerian players are now in camp in Pretoria, South Africa, where they will play two friendly matches in preparation for the tournament and Erico, who spoke with our correspondent on Monday, said the team needed to the games to build their physical approach ahead of the tournament.
He said, “The 23 players, who have been selected for the task of getting the trophy for Nigeria, all deserve to be there. They are among the best players the Nigerian league has to offer.
“It is one thing to make a team and it is another thing to do well at the competition itself. Those players going to Rwanda need to put in everything they have got to ensure that Nigeria win the tournament.
“The coaches have the task of selecting a starting team from the players they have selected for the tournament but they will need to ensure that they build the team physically and mentally to enable them to bring back home the trophy.
“The African game is a physical one and our players need to know that they should be physically fit and not allow themselves to be bullied off the ball in matches.
“The players have been inactive since the league in Nigeria ended last year and they have been in camp for only three weeks or so.
“The friendly matches will avail the coaches the opportunity to test how physically and mentally prepared the players are before going into the competition. The players can also use the matches to stake their claim in the team’s starting line-up.”
Chima Akas will captain the Eagles in Rwanda in the absence of Gbolahan Salami, who was the team’s captain during the qualifiers for the tournament. Salami opted out to pursue a career in Europe.
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