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Chapter 350: Round 4 of AFCON 22 Qualifiers I

The previous match had ended in their win, but their performance in the match, especially defensively, still left a bit to be desired and the manager wanted that out of the way before they went into the next game, after all, they couldn’t always make a comeback in every game.

The players also understood their faults in that match and listened to the manager’s instructions as he explained how he wanted the players to play when they were not in possession of the ball.

After a major refurbishment of their defensive playing style, Gernot Rohri had the players take to the field to practice the new defensive tactics.

The two days leading up to the matchday were spent in this manner and on the evening of the second day, the players boarded a plane to Sierra Leone and arrived at Sierra Leone late into the night.

The players headed to the prepared hotel to rest for the upcoming match.

**17th November 2020**

The Nigerian players arrived at the Stevens Stiaka stadium, ready to build off their last victory in the AFCON qualifiers.

As they did their pre-match training, they often locked with their opponents who they had triumphed over just a few days prior, and the Sierra Leone team had no kind looks for their opponents.

After fumbling their lead in the last game and losing to the Supa Eagles, the Sierra Leone team planned to make sure that it did not happen again, but whether the Nigerian team would just take such an intention lying down remained to be seen.

The pre-match training was soon over and the players headed down the tunnels to their respective locker rooms for the pre-match tactical meeting.

In the Nigerian team’s locker room, the head manager began calling out the names of the players in the line-up.

“Our formation for the match will be the same 4-2-3-1 variant we have been practicing in training these last few days and in the starting line up will be…”

“Madika Okoyi will be our goalkeeper, Semie Ajayi and Balogun Leone will be the two center backs assisting the goalkeeper to keep the ball out of our penalty box,”

“Zaidiu Sanusi and Ebuaehi Tyrone are our right back and left back respectively,”

“In center defensive midfield are Etebor and Shehu Abdulahi, while in the center attacking midfield will be Jason,”

“Our captain, Ahmad Musa will be on the right flank functioning as a wide-midfielder and a winger, while Aleix Iwobi will be on the left doing the same and upfront will be Victor Osimen,” the manager listed out the players in the line-up.

Once the line-up had been confirmed, the players began preparing for the match while the manager once again delved into the tactical set-up for the match, re-explaining the game’s tactics to the players and giving them specific instructions to counter their opponents.

While this was going on in the Nigerian team’s locker room, the Sierra Leone team was also getting ready to face off against their opponents.

“I just received word about the line-up of our opponents and it is similar to what we predicted and prepared for,” the Sierra Leone head manager began talking to his players who listened attentively.

“I won’t spend too much time explaining your roles on the pitch as we already went over this… but as you can see, that Jason boy that made light of you people as soon as he stepped on the field in the last match and caused us to lose the game… is playing,”

“Don’t think of him as harmless… he is not,”

“I have analyzed his performances for his club since his debut early this year and it is clear that if you give him a small amount of space, he is able to punish us for it and I will not have that in this game,”

“So whenever he is near you, block him, stay on him, make sure he is never open to receive a pass, and if he somehow gets the ball, begin to press immediately,”

“If all that fails and he gets near our goal… take him down before he enters the box…”

“… In fact, don’t just take him down… kill him,” the Sierra Leone manager said with a slit throat gesture.

The Sierra Leone players laughed lightly at the manager’s words as it was obviously a joke that the manager used to express the gravity of the situation.

“… No seriously…”

“… Kill him,” the manager repeated in a more serious voice when he saw the players laughing at his words, thinking he was joking.

*GULP*

As the Sierra Leone manager repeated his words, the room immediately went silent as they realized how serious the manager was.

While he wasn’t asking them to go as far as actually killing him, he wanted something pretty similar.

***

*Fweeeeeeee*

The referee blew the whistle and the AFCON 22 qualifier match between Sierra Leone and Nigeria began.

{The whistle has been blown and the match kicks off}

{We are in the second stage of the AFCON qualifiers from now on and it will be the two teams’ second time meeting each other in the AFCON 22 qualifiers}

{That was a few days ago and it was a hard-fought match in which Nigeria dramatically came back to win the game after going two goals behind in a nine-goal thriller}

{From what we’ve seen in the last game, it’s clear what to expect and we know that this match can by no means have a boring outcome}

{For now, however, let’s see as it goes} The commentator gave opening remarks as the game kicked off.

#12th minute…

Since the match began, both teams had been vying for the lead in the game.

They quickly began testing each other dramatically, and the viewers kept their eyes on the screen waiting for who would buckle first.

Aleix Iwobi received a pass from Shehu Abdulahi, and he quickly began running down the left flank, but before he could go far, he came up against a stubborn defender who did not want to get out of the way even with all the tricky leg movements he was making.

Without any way to get through the defender, he opted to look for the nearest teammate.

Glancing at Jason who was being tightly marked by, he decided to try passing to someone with less likelihood of losing possession to the opponents, but in that split moment when he glanced away as if to look for another teammate, the players marking Jason let their guards down and were unable to react to the no look pass Iwobi sent Jason’s way.

Jason didn’t hesitate to burst out of the encirclement and receive the pass at the left edge of the Sierra Leone box.

On receiving the ball, Jason made a run into the penalty box from the left flank and quickly found space to send a cross in.

With a swing, he sent the ball flying low across the goal in the direction of Osimen, but Osimen struggled to reach the ball due to his marker not letting him off and the ball flew past him, but before the Nigeria team could rue the missed chance, the team captain appeared and coolly slotted the ball past the Sierra Leone goalkeeper before the ball went across the full length of the post.

{GOAL!!!}

{Nigeria score first!}

{Brilliant play from Iwobi and Jason to escape their opponents and send the ball across the goal and their team captain gave them a reward for their efforts}

{Just like in the previous match, they take the lead first!}

{As for where we will go from here? I do not know!} The commentator did not hesitate to unleash his fervor into the microphone while the Nigerian players unleashed their excitement on the pitch and the Nigerian fans did theirs in their homes and viewing centers.

#39th minute…

The Nigeria team had increased their pressure on their opponents after taking the lead.

They remembered what had happened in the previous game and did not want such a situation to repeat itself, hence they doubled down defensively when they were not in possession and unleashed their pent up fury on their opponents as soon as they got the ball.

The Sierra Leone team was also not idle and had been attacking the Nigerian team with confidence as they knew from their four goals in the last match that it wasn’t impossible to score against their opponent, but so far, they had come up a stubborn wall.

Sierra Leone had tried to start an attack and they had been carefully setting up their attack, sending ball from player to player, when Osimen who had been chasing tirelessly after the Sierra Leone players like a zombie snatched the ball from a Sierra Leone player and immediately launched a counter attack with a splitting through pass down the left flank.

Aleix Iwobi quickly gave chase of the ball while the other Nigerian players immediately began running at the Sierra Leone players in full force.

Jason was among the runners making his way at the Sierra Leone penalty box and he kept his eyes on Iwobi who had managed to catch up to the ball and was now bearing down the left flank and was almost at the left side of Sierra Leone’s 18-yard box.

Jason immediately threw up a hand to call for the ball and Aleix Iwobi received the signal and immediately lifted his leg to send the ball over, but at that moment, a Sierra Leone player appeared in Jason’s view, charging at him with intent to kill.