Nigeria set sights on Russia after outclassing Cameroon

“At the beginning of the qualifiers, I said 11 points would be enough for us to qualify, we have nine now, two more to go,” Gernot Rohr told Pulse Sports after Super Eagles 4-0 win over Cameroon on Friday, September 1.

It’s been three games, three wins for the Super Eagles of Nigeria at the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, and with at least a win away from the World Cup, Russia is right now more real than a dream. It’s still unreal though, but there is a certain kind of calm now for Nigerians.

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The last time the Super Eagles played at the Godswil Akpabio International Stadium, Uyo, it was disastrous, falling to a shocking 2-0 loss to South Africa in a 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier.

That team though was very different from the one that lined up against Cameroon.

Captain John Obi Mikel, Victor Moses, Odion Ighalo and Leon Balogun all returning to the side after missing the game against South Africa because of injuries.

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“It was important that our leaders were present today, they made a lot of difference,” Rohr said after the game.

It was Mikel Obi who laid in a fine pass for Ighalo to open the goal scoring, lobbing a ball into the path of the striker who evaded a Cameroon defender to fire into the bottom corner.

The Super Eagles gradually grown into the game and Moses Simon had his shot from the right blocked by Cameroonian goalkeeper Fabrice Ondoa, to deny the Eagles a second goal.

Before Nigeria’s goal, however, the Cameroonians seemed to be in control in the first 20 minutes as they held on to possession.

They gave the Super Eagles some scare from set piece but goalkeeper Ikechukwu Ezenwa was impressive, commanding and dominating his area well.

Victor Moses scored off a free kick which was disallowed after the linesman adjudged Ighalo to have interfered with play from an offside position.

After assisting for the first, Mikel Obi scored in the 42nd minute getting on a cross from Moses to double Nigeria’s lead.

In the second half, the Super Eagles showed how welled worked and shaped they are.

The Cameroonians had all the ball, dominating possession threatening without getting near Super Eagles goal.

It was a moment of sheer brilliance that Moses made a run from midfield after exchanging some passes with Mikel, passed to Simon who cut back for the Chelsea player to finish with a low drive.

The Stadium was rocking now and it got louder when Kelechi Iheanacho who came on as a substitute for Ighalo got on a cross from Ogenyi Onazi to head in Nigeria’s fourth.

The African champions were disgraced and after the beating felt so wounded.

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“I just want the players to show some belief and fight for their honour," Cameroon coach Hugo Broos said while talking about the second leg in Yaounde Cameroon on Monday, September 4.

It’s just honour to fight as Broos also conceded World Cup qualification.

“For us to qualify, we have to win our other three remaining games and hope that Nigeria will lose all three, that's almost impossible,” Broos said.

Everything is possible in football, but seeing how the Super Eagles outclassed Cameroon, Nigerians can start packing for a trip to Russia 2018.