World Cup heartbreak on the horizon - 5 things we learnt from Super Eagles' drab draw with Cape Verde

The Super Eagles of Nigeria put in a workmanlike performance against Cape Verde to secure their spot in the African play-offs for the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup. A one-all draw was enough to put the West Africans through as Victor Osimhen took his tally to five goals in the World Cup qualifying series.

Familiar problems in Gernot Rohr's defence and more questions than answers plague the Super Eagles as they hurtle towards the March 2022 playoffs.

These are five things we learnt from the Nigeria versus Cape Verde match.

They got the job done, but just barely. Nigerian fans will be grateful that they are still in with a shout for their seventh appearance at the World Cup finals. However, it is perhaps more than the players' performance deserved.

The Super Eagles needed a point against Cape Verde to go through and a point they got, no more no less. Despite winning four, losing one and drawing one of their six qualifiers, do not be deceived by the points tally. 

Anyone who watched the qualifiers would know that the Super Eagles were not convincing. At every point, they only gave the barest minimum to get through. 

The reward for winning Group C is a place in the third-round play-offs for the Super Eagles. There, Rohr's boys will face off with another group winner for the ultimate shot at glory. But on the evidence of the second-round qualifiers, Nigerian fans will do well to keep their enthusiasm in check.

Against any of Mali, Egypt, Ghana, Congo DR or Ivory Coast/Cameroon, the Super Eagles cannot confidently be trusted to scale through the double-legged play-offs.

Rohr's side might look stronger on paper than Mali or Ghana but the former qualified with just two points dropped and a +11 goal difference while the latter matched Nigeria's points tally despite having South Africa in their group. 

Egypt (14) won more points than Nigeria (13) and Ivory Coast (13) or Cameroon (12) is poised to achieve the same feat irrespective of the result from their outstanding match. The Super Eagles would need to dig deeper if they are to fly to Qatar next year.

It was bemusing that Liberia did not explore an apparent weakness of the Super Eagles - set-piece defending. But the Cape Verdeans did not make the same mistake.

The Central Africans first goal came from their first set-piece - a corner kick. In a familiar manner, the Eagles made a hash of the delivery, failing to clear their lines. With the African Cup of Nations just two months away, many teams will be eyeing a surefire way to score against the Eagles.

Coach Rohr's intention going into the match was clear - score as many goals as possible. Thus, he doubled up in the striking department, starting both Ighalo and Osimhen from the off.

The two strikers played in tandem for much of the first half, each one taking turns on the wings to fashion out chances for the other in the box. The result was a marked improvement in the team's attacking efforts with only Cape Verde's goalkeeper's heroics stopping Nigeria from a couple more goals in the first half.

Whilst it cannot be a go-to approach for the Franco-German tactician, it is fruitful to know that both strikers can play in the same team. More so, since it is not likely this would be the last we'll see of the Al Shabab striker in the Eagles' shirt.

Saturday's fixture against Liberia was nightmarish for the Paderborn defender. But he went a long way to redeem himself with an impressive performance against Cape Verde.

Operating in the left wing-back position, Collins was able to contribute to both the attacking and defensive phases equally. He got crosses into the box regularly and snuffed out attacks on his side of the pitch. 

It behoved him to justify Rohr's faith by sticking with him after a horror show against Liberia and he went some way to atoning for his below-par performance in Tangier.