Emmanuel Okala, former Green Eagles Goalkeeper, on Monday bemoaned the defeat of the Super Eagles by their Algeria counterparts in Cairo, Egypt on Sunday evening.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the tension soaked semi-finals match in the ongoing 2019 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) match ended 1-2 in favour of the Desert Foxes of Algeria.
In the game, a VAR review favoured the Super Eagles to draw level; however, the Super Eagles went ahead to lose 1-2 to Algeria, following a Riyad Mahrez free kick in the final seconds of the game.
Okala, a member of the 1980 AFCON Cup winning squad, told NAN on Monday in Enugu that “it was so sad that we lost the game.
“I have nothing else to say since the Coach Gernot Rohr has said that Super Eagles lost to a better side.’’
Arthur Ebunam, ex-Rangers International midfielder, also said that the lost was painful and unexpected given the goal that came seconds to the end of the game.
Ebunam, who also played for Mighty Jets of Jos and El-Kanemi Warriors of Maiduguri, noted that it was clear from careful observation that the team needed a better goalkeeper.
According to him, the handlers of the Super Eagles need to shop for creative midfielders that have the capacity to turn a game around.
“It is just unfortunate that we lost the match to the Algerians. It is painful but that is football,’’ he added.
