3 things new boss Jose Peseiro wants from his 'resilent' Super Eagles after Mexico defeat

New Super Eagles coach Jose Peseiro has given an insight into some of the changes we may see from the team going forward after his first match in charge ended in defeat.

Mexico proved to be a hard nut for the Super Eagles to crack once again after El Tri extended their unbeaten run against Nigeria to seven matches after a 2-1 at the AT & T Stadium in Dallas.

Super Eagles were under intense pressure from the North Americans, who dominated the opening half of the game and deservedly took a 1-0 lead at the break.

Nigeria could have been as many as 3-0 down in that first half but for good goalkeeping from Francis Uzoho and Mexico's profligacy.

EXCLUSIVE: Cyriel Dessers gushes over Burna Boy, Wizkid, shades Davido

Dear Mr Peseiro, this is your to-do list for Nigeria to lift AFCON 2023

Peseiro's 3-5-2 formation suits Nigeria best despite failure against Mexico

The second half saw a much-improved display from Peseiro's Super Eagles, who were rewarded when Cyriel Dessers headed in the equaliser with his first international goal for Nigeria.

Unfortunately, Mexico got a second goal and went on to seal the win no thanks to an own goal from Nigeria's captain, William Troost-Ekong.

However, coach Peseiro, 62, saw enough especially from the second half to praise his boys for their character and resilience before talking about some of the areas the team must improve on, which gave insights into what Nigerians can look forward to in future. 

Super Eagles' new coach Jose Peseiro praises NPFL players in his first match

"Although we didn't win last night, I am very proud of the boys," Peseiro said via a post on his official Twitter account.

"The team showed character and resilience. A special mention to the 4 NPFL players who had the chance to debut with the national team. Welcome," he added.

Mexico controlled the opening half of the match, with 64% of possession, and eight attempts on goal. Nigeria was forced to chase shadows and struggled to touch the ball for long spells, making zero attempts on goal while Uzoho made three saves from those attempts.

Peseiro didn't find this funny at all and will be working to fix that in the subsequent games as we saw in the better second-half display.

"I saw so much quality in the team but we need to use our quality to control the ball more because if you don’t control the ball, your opponent will come for them, and I like to control the game, more upfront," as per iWitnesslive.

President of the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, Amaju Pinnick, did mention that Peseiro was a recommendation from fellow Portuguese and renowned coach, Jose Mourinho, who is known for his style of play which has been termed "Park de bus".

However, it seems Peseiro isn't a fan of that football and didn't enjoy seeing his Super Eagles side forced to defend so deep in their half as Mexico had fun in the opening 45 minutes. The team improved in the second after, reducing Mexico's dominance by 10% while making five attempts on goal, with one on target - the goal.

"I didn’t like to defend deep as we did in the first half, I like to attack more but it’s ok."

It seems the days of having players walking on the pitch are over as Peseiro explained that he wants to see his Super Eagles team not only defend from the top but learn to pressure teams relentlessly. 

"We just had two training (sessions) and we are just starting. (But) I like to pressure teams, I pressure.

"Two training (sessions) are not much but we will love to have more of this to improve our team."

Nigeria faces Ecuador next on Thursday in the second friendly match slated for the tour of the US and we will be keeping a close tab on some of these insights from the gaffer.