Former Nigeria international Julius Aghahowa has urged Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle to focus on areas needing improvement following the team’s Unity Cup success over the weekend, Footynaija.com reports.
Nigeria edged past Ghana 2-1 in the semi-finals before clinching the title with a dramatic 5-4 penalty shootout win against Jamaica, after a thrilling 2-2 draw in regulation time.
Despite lifting the Unity Cup for a record third time, the Super Eagles showed worrying defensive frailties, conceding three goals across both matches.
Aghahowa, who made 32 appearances for Nigeria and famously scored the country’s only goal at the 2002 World Cup, believes the matches offered valuable insight for the coaching staff.
“I actually expect that opportunities like this would be taken quite seriously,” he told Brila.net.
“We know it’s a friendly tournament, but in international football where coaches don’t have the luxury of time to work with their players, this is a good platform.”
He added: “The Super Eagles coach should use the two games played in the Cup to assess the areas of improvement in the team and build on from there.”
The 43-year-old’s comments come ahead of Nigeria’s next international assignment — a friendly clash with Russia on June 6 at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow.