The Super Eagles’ interim coach, Finidi George, attributed the team’s loss to the Eagles of Mali to the absence of some of his strikers during the warm-up game on Tuesday night.
Under the guidance of Finidi George, the Super Eagles secured a victory against Ghana in their initial international friendly match following the African Nations Cup. However, they couldn’t replicate the same level of performance as they suffered a 0-2 defeat to Mali on Tuesday night in Marrakech, Morocco.
In an interview with NFF TV, Finidi, whose triumph over Ghana strengthened his prospects of becoming the permanent Eagles Coach, attributed their loss to Mali to a shortage of attacking options, which compelled them to adopt a wide-playing approach.
“I think just few mistakes cost us the match. It was not a bad game, good intensity we had some good chances but didn’t score.
“And in a game like this if you fail to make use of your chances and made mistakes you will be punished for it.
“This is a team that keeps the ball very well but if we had our injured strikers available, we would have changed the one on the pitch immediately. Losing two strikers forced us to play wide and as aggressive team, we did all we can. And you know football is all about victory.
“Lost one and won one and we are not outplayed in the two matches gives me joy as a coach of the Super Eagles. I would have loved a different result in this game but that’s not the case but if we look at the performance of the players, it’s commendable.” He concluded.