Former Nigerian CB Godwin Okpara has lamented the poor scoring run of the Flying Eagles at the ongoing U20 AFCON tournament.
Nigeria have only scored once in two games, failing to score in the defeat to Senegal, but the team found the back of the net against Egypt.
In a chat with FL the former Paris Saint-Germain player said that the players need to be calmer on the ball, and encouraged the Players to operate as a unit.
“The lack of goals is surprising, because they were a high scoring team in build up to the tournament, but truly this problem isn’t peculiar to our Flying Eagles.
“What they need is to compose themselves and try to be free. When you get to the main tournament it seems like you are a bit stiff like you are bit stressed, so for them they need to loosing up. If the can loosing up as if they are playing their friendly games the goals will come.”
“What the coach needs to do is to talk to them more because they also seem carried away because of the tournament, and likelihood that there are scouts all around.
“They need to be cool and try to be themselves, there is tension inside them now, they are lacking intensity. When you look at a team that is so good during their friendly games; scoring goals but they get into the main tournament and they couldn’t get goals, that means there is something wrong. There is a stiffness in that team and what we need now is more talking from their coaches, they need to loosen up and forget about the scouts.”
