Super Eagles defender, Bright Osayi-Samuel, has admitted the inability of the team to convert their chances, admitting that it is an area they must improve upon ahead of Saturday’s Round of 16 clash with Cameroon at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
The upcoming encounter between the two African football giants is set to headline the knockout phase of the ongoing AFCON in Cote d’Ivoire after they both finished second in their respective groups.
Nigeria ended up being second in Group A behind Equatorial Guinea while The Indomitable Lions narrowly sealed qualification with four points in Group C.
Osayi-Samuel started his first game for Nigeria at the competition in the 1-0 win over Guinea Bissau after he reportedly recovered from food poisoning.
Speaking with NFF TV on Wednesday, the Fenerbahce defender said he was delighted to have started his first AFCON game.
The right-back hailed the team for keeping a clean sheet but lamented their wastefulness in front of goal despite creating several scoring chances.
“For me, it was my first start in an AFCON game, so it’s a great feeling for me. I think we played well in general, we had a clean sheet which was positive and I think collectively, we had many chances.
“We know that we will get chances in every game with the team we have, I think it is about converting the chances now.
“Overall, the game was good, it is a learning curve now, to see what we can do better against Cameroon”, he said.
On what Nigerians should expect against the West African neighbours, Osayi-Samuel said the Eagles have players with vast experience to help scale the hurdle.
“Of course now, it is a knockout, so there are no three points now. It is either you win and you are through or you lose and you are out, so that comes with pressure,” he said.
“Like I said, in our group, we have players with vast experiences, we have players that can thrive in this situation. If you look around the group, everyone is confident, we are looking forward to the game.
“Cameroon is a very strong team, they have got good players but if we focus on ourselves, what we can do and how we can outdo them, I think we have a very good chance of winning the game.”
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