Super Eagles interim coach, Finidi George has given reasons his wards lost to the Eagles of Mali in an international friendly match held in Marrakech, Morocco.
The Super Eagles were beaten by two goals to nil, the first time Nigeria will lose to Mali in close to two decades.
Finidi in his post-match attributed the defeat to not utilising the opportunities that came on their way and costly mistakes by the team.
The Enyimba gaffer rued the missed chances in the game, but applauded the boys for their dominant performance.
Finidi George said, “It was not a bad game. Good intensity. We created a couple of chances, but we could not score. And in games like this, if you don’t score, and make mistakes, you will be punished. Lost one. We were not outplayed.
“We committed that blunder and they got their goal and that helped their confidence.
“I was happy with the way the boys played, it is quite positive.”
He added: “We controlled other aspects of the game, we were not outplayed.
“We kept the ball very well, playing two strikers helped us against an aggressive team who were forced to play wide.
“I would have loved a different result, but that was not the case, but the performance of the boys was commendable.”
Finidi led the Eagles to beat Ghana 2-1 in the first friendly also in Marrakesh at the weekend.
The Super Eagles will now shift their attention to the June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against South Africa and Benin Republic.
