Super Eagles must remain humble, focused – Balogun

A renowned sport analyst, Tayo Balogun, on Wednesday described Nigeria’s victory over Argentina in the friendly match at Krasnodar, Russia, as a major boost for the team’s preparations for the World Cup.

Balogun told our reporter on telephone from the U.S. that the result would increase the self-belief in the team.

“This will subsequently confer respectability on them. It follows that this will help the team if it does well in other games prior to the World Cup.

But he added that the team should stay focused ahead of the June 14, 2018 kick-off of the FIFA flagship tournament.

“Is our team complete? My answer is no.

“In the goalkeeping department we need to decide on the three that would go to Russia.

“Luckily, we have about 200 days to choose our best three. Our coach will of course still have to package Mikel Obi to ensure he remains free from injury and stays fit.

“This team needs all the experienced players it can have. In our attack we need one or two tall players with stride.

“I think Osimen should be checked up. The self-belief must be sustained in the type of friendly matches we play.

“My take is that we should be selective in matches we agree to play.

“More importantly the handlers must ensure that the team stays humble, focused, motivated and committed.

Balogun urged that the spirit of the nation must be infused in the team that played the friendly match against Argentina.

“Most importantly, the team’s technical bench must be left alone to do what they can to get us as far as possible in Russia,” he said.