Super Eagles begin new era, battle Ghana in Morocco

The Super Eagles before one of their training sessions in Morocco ahead of today’s clash with Ghana.

For the first in almost two years, Nigeria’s senior national team, the Super Eagles, will go into a game without Portuguese gaffer, Jose Peseiro, when they confront old rivals, Ghana, in a friendly game in Morocco.

Peseiro stepped down from his job after leading the Super Eagles to a silver medal finish at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire last month.

His former assistant, Finidi George, has been given the mantle, albeit temporarily, to lead the team in two friendly games against Ghana (today in Marrakech) and Mali next week at the same venue.

George knows that the games are like his auditioning for the job permanently and has vowed to use his experience to get the boys over Ghana and Mali.

The Super Eagles have been preparing for the matches in Marrakech since Monday and according to George, the team is ready for a new beginning.

He told thenff.com that the team would approach today’s match against Ghana like a cup final, saying that some of the new boys in the team want to prove that they deserve permanent positions in the squad.

Again, for the first time since 2011, the Super Eagles will be going into a game without Captain Ahmed Musa, who may have played his last game for Nigeria.

Musa was part of the squad to Cote d’Ivoire 2023 AFCON, but he did not play in any of the games. No official announcement has been made by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) on Musa’s status, but his omission from the squad to the matches in Morocco has elicited speculations that his playing days for the Eagles are over.

The team is without the injured assistant captain, William Troost-Ekong, Taiwo Awoniyi and top striker, Victor