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By Abiodun Adewale.
The Super Eagles are training at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena in Lagos as they intensify preparations ahead of their match-day five encounter of the 2023 AFCON qualifier against Seirra Leone on Sunday in Monrovia, Liberia, The PUNCH reports.
The team had its first training session in Lagos on Monday and will have more till Friday before departing for Liberia; the adopted home ground of Seirra Leone for the encounter.
19 of the invited 23 players took part in the session on Monday.
Napoli striker Victor Osimhen and Fernabache defender Bright Osayi-Samuel were both missing in action and are expected to join the team in training from Tuesday (today).
Both players are the last to arrive the five-day camp as other foreign pros were joined by the four home-based stars in the first session.
Home-based duo Ebube Duru and Divine Nwachukwu were also left out of the ball workings on Monday, in order to allow them to recover from the actions of the NPFL Super 6 which ended on Sunday, where both of them featured in all games for Rivers United and Bendel Insurance respectively.
However, the two home-based goalies in the squad, Olorunleke Ojo and Victor Sochima who were both in goal in Sunday night during the last game of the NPFL Super 6 joined Isreali based Adebayo Adeleye in the drills.
In the session which lasted over an hour, the players were put through their accuracy by Peseiro and his foreign assistants just as goalkeeper trainer Abiodun Baruwa worked with the goalies.
After the session, head coach Jose Peseiro spoke with journalists about their quest to qualify for the tournament which holds in Ivory Coast next year.
“We have players across different leagues in the world as well as the country and individual goals are important for everyone of them,” Peseiro said.
“But at the same time, we also try to make them realize the need to bring in the goals into the collective effort for the team as well. So, we will play Seirra Leone as a team and we will beat them as a team. Of course it won’t be easy, especially when the players are coming at the end of the season with different situations in their mind.”
Nigeria currently lead the AFCON qualifier group with nine points and a win against the Leone Stars will guarantee a place in Ivory Coast 2023 just as Seirra Leone also need a win to boost their chances of qualifying.