Nigeria coach Finidi George says he wasn’t happy with his side’s 1-1 draw in their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo on Friday, and clapped back at journalists questioning his substitutions.
The Super Eagles were held to a 1-1 draw after Themba Zwane had given the visitors a first-half lead, which was cancelled out by Fisayo Dele-Bashiru.
Nigeria looked the more threatening in the second half but were denied multiple times by Ronwen Williams.
After the match, George insisted his players reacted well after a poor first half.
“We started sloppy in the first half, we took over the game immediately we scored in the second half,” Finidi said, as per OgaNlaMedia.
“We missed chances, overall it was not a bad second half for us. The players reacted well in the second half, but it was not the best result we wanted, we have to get our heads up and work for the next game [Benin].
“I am not happy about the point.”
George also reacted annoyed about questions why Trabzonspor striker Paul Onuachu played for 80 minutes, while Bayer 04 Leverkusen forward Victor Boniface stayed on the bench.
“We change a player when we know how to change them,” he continued.
“We know that everybody is a coach today. It’s true everybody is a coach, people can see when they are up there [in the stands].
“When you sit there you can see anything. But we are focussed on this job. He [Onuachu] stayed a little bit longer, it’s our own decision. Allow us to do our jobs.
“We wanted to introduce Boniface and [Terem] Moffi, but Semi [Ajayi] had a knock and we had to take him off and introduce Moffi and [Raphael] Onyedika.
“The fans and media would shout for different players, if they don’t perform well, the shout will be, ‘take him off’. Allow us to do our jobs.”
With just three points after three matches, Nigeria sit in fifth position, but have a chance to finally pick up their first three points of the qualifiers when they travel to Benin on Monday, June 10.