Ex defender of the Super Eagles ,Ifeanyi Udeze, has criticized head coach Jose Peseiro for his decision to include Samuel Chukwueze in the starting lineup for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final against Ivory Coast on Sunday.
It should be noted that Peseiro chose to initiate Samuel Chukwueze instead of Moses Simon in the starting eleven for the final match against Ivory Coast on Sunday night.
However, Ivory Coast secured victory over the Super Eagles with two second-half goals from Franck Kessie and Sebastien Haller. Despite William Troost-Ekong scoring a goal for Nigeria in the first half, Jose Peseiro’s team ultimately suffered a 2-1 defeat.
“Starting Samuel Chukwueze against Côte d’Ivoire was a mistake,” Udeze said on Brila FM.
“You don’t change a winning team, the Ivory Coast coach made use of the same formation from the semi-final, so I don’t know why Peseiro decided to change his.”
”Let’s appreciate the [Super] Eagles because they did their best after all one team must win and one team must lose,“ he added.
