Coach Gernot Rohr has shifted focus to the forthcoming Qatar 2022 World Cup qualifiers after sealing an unbeaten campaign towards the 2021 AFCON to be held in Cameroon, even as he insisted that no new players would be included in his squad.
A satisfied Rohr described the record by Eagles during the AFCON qualifiers as a good motivation heading into the World Cup qualifiers in June.
“The World Cup qualifiers will start soon and I think we will be able to do well; we should expect a good football on a good pitch I hope and Lagos did very well but it still has to improve because of the traffic,” remarked the German.
“We cannot try new players now because it is too late as it is now a very serious World Cup qualifiers.
“The record of our result is very good and I know that we were not beaten in all our AFCON qualifiers which is very good. It is a record and we have to continue because we want to be always the best but sometimes you cannot always win your matches,” he added.
He lauded the players for their efforts in their last two matches of the AFCON qualifiers, which he said showed the stability of the team after the two draws in November against Sierra Leone.
He stated: “The last match against Lesotho was a good result to win 3-0 without conceding a goal. We wanted to become more solid after our two games in November.
“Now, we could do two clean sheets and which is very interesting for the stability and balance of the team. Scoring the goals without any set piece is also very interesting.”
He commended the home-based players that were part of the team especially Enyimba’s AnayoIwuala for his display.
“Iwuala played twice and he showed good form. The two home-based players not featured will be part of the CHAN team and we hope to add more to prepare for CHAN competition. The local players must show something in the CHAN team to make the Eagles,” the German said.