Former Nigeria goalkeeper Ike Shorunmu in an exclusive interview with Footy-Africa has praised the Super Eagles after they reached the Africa Cup of Nations semi-finals with a victory over holders Algeria.
Nigeria, three-time African champions, produced a dominant display to eliminate the 2019 winners in the quarter-final in Marrakech on Saturday. Algeria had not conceded a goal in the tournament before the tie, but their resistance was finally broken in the second half. Galatasaray striker Victor Osimhen opened the scoring with a glancing header before turning provider moments later.
Speaking to Footy-Africa after the match, Shorunmu praised the team’s overall performance.
“The players fought for everything from the beginning to the end,” he told Footy-Africa.
“Reaching the AFCON semi-final is a good achievement, especially against a very strong team like Algeria. I think they probably want to win the tournament to compensate the fans for not qualifying for the FIFA World Cup.”
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Nigeria will now face hosts Morocco in the semi-finals, with a place in the final at stake and pressure mounting on both sides.
The Super Eagles last won the tournament in 2013 and reached the final at the previous edition. However, despite boasting one of Africa’s strongest squads, they failed to qualify for the World Cup. Morocco, meanwhile, are chasing their first AFCON title in more than 50 years and are hoping to end the drought on home soil.
Shorunmu believes Nigeria’s performance against Algeria gives them confidence heading into the clash.
“Every game is different, and based on how they played against Algeria, I have no doubt about their chances against Morocco,” he added.
“Morocco is a great side, no doubt, and they will have the crowd behind them. However, I think they will be under more pressure than Nigeria, because they have not won in a very long time and the expectations on the current generation of players are huge and that could be their undoing. All the Super Eagles need to do is stay calm and play their game.”
Nigeria will be without captain Wilfred Ndidi for the semi-final, but Shorunmu believes the squad has enough depth to cope with his absence.
“What I’ve seen from this team is that they have a very strong bond, and that could be key. Yes, the captain is very important, and the yellow card was an unfortunate incident,” he said.
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“He was fighting for the team and unfortunately got booked. Obviously, they are going to miss him, but they have enough quality to cover for his absence.”
Shorunmu, a former Nigeria and Besiktas goalkeeper, helped the Super Eagles win silver at the 2000 Africa Cup of Nations and bronze at the 2002 tournament in Mali.
