Match Preview

posted on Jun 22, 2018

Nigeria Versus Iceland

The Super Eagles will come up against the Boys of Iceland in a World Cup Group D fixture at the Volgograd Arena.

The Super Eagles has put themselves in a position where they are only condemned to win against a very compact team- The Icelanders.

Iceland pulled off one of the shocks of the opening round fixtures by denying a Lionel Messi led Argentine team from getting all three points. This showing has indicated that they are not here as debutants who just want to enjoy the thrills of Russia but to achieve their official goal of qualifying for the Round of 16.

The Super Eagles go into this fixture in the worst run of form and with great pressure from their fans back home. A defeat would consign them to an early exit from the tournament.

The Iceland team will most likely continue their tactics of conserving pressure and getting their opponents on the counter- attacks. This proved to work well for them against Argentina. Nigeria will need to sharpen their attack and be less predictable when going forward as well as perfect their strategies of defending set- pieces. News from the camp expects us to see changes to the tactics played against Croats and expect to see Moses and Etebo in- charge of set pieces.

WHAT THE MANAGERS SAY

Nigeria coach, Gernot Rohr:

“We have watched the game against Croatia again to see our mistakes so that we can correct them. It will be a tough game. We have to be at our best and be more professional with our defending especially from set-pieces.

“We have to be fully focused and not lose concentration all through the game. I believe with hard work we can get a good result. In truth, there is no need to add to the pressure we have now. More pressure on the team will not necessarily translate to better results.”

Iceland coach, Heimir Hallgrímsson:

“We are not of the opinion that we are at all better than Nigeria. We know our strengths, and need to make the best of them.

“We have some players who are outstanding against Argentina that can help us in the kind of style we play. One of them is Aron Gunnarssson. He played well against Argentina despite the fact that he is just returning to action after an injury lay-off.

“Against Nigeria, he will definitely be fitter to play after playing for 90 minutes against Argentina.”

Page's Verdict: Expect the Super Eagles to take the game to their opponent and with a first half win, the team would also need to be mindful of set- pieces as the Iceland team has tall players. In all when the pressure is high, the Eagles performs better.

Page Prediction: Nigeria Win