Why Nigeria Lost AFCON 2023 Final to Ivory Coast, Atiku's Aide Daniel Bwala Explains

Why Nigeria Lost AFCON 2023 Final to Ivory Coast, Atiku's Aide Daniel Bwala Explains

  • Barrister Daniel Bwala has said if he were the coach, he would have stuck to his plans of free flow and attack style
  • Bwala said Nigeria trying to defend and see out the AFCON 2023 final match against the host country was not the wisest decision
  • According to the PDP chieftain, "the coach’s tactics to defend and see out the match isn’t what we are known for"

Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering sports and football.

Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire - Daniel Bwala, an ally of Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has blamed the Super Eagles of Nigeria's defeat in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2023 final on Coach Jose Peseiro's defensive tactics.

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Hosts Ivory Coast beat favourites Nigeria 2-1 in the final of the AFCON 2023 at the Alassane Ouattara Stadium in Abidjan on Sunday, February 11.

Nigeria vs Ivorcy Coast/afcon final
Nigeria lost the AFCON 2023 final on Sunday, February 11. Photo credit: Anadolu
Source: Getty Images

Sébastien Haller scored the winning goal for the hosts in the 81st minute with an instinctive finish after excellent work from Simon Adingra on the wing.

Reacting to Nigeria's loss, Bwala said Coach Peseiro should have been more attacking-minded.

He wrote on his known X page:

"Super Eagles, you did well throughout the tournament. If I were the coach i would have stuck to my plans of free flow and attack style which has worked for me throughout the tournament than try to defend and see out the match knowing the home crowd would ginger the Ivorians to sustain the attack pressure.

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"The coach’s tactics to defend and see out the match isn’t what we are known for and wasn’t what we used throughout the tournament. If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it."

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Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
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Ridwan Adeola (Current Affairs Editor) Ridwan Adeola Yusuf is a content creator with more than nine years of experience, He is also a Current Affairs Editor at Legit.ng. He holds a Higher National Diploma in Mass Communication from the Polytechnic Ibadan, Oyo State (2014). Ridwan previously worked at Africa Check, contributing to fact-checking research works within the organisation. He is an active member of the Academic Excellence Initiative (AEI). In March 2024, Ridwan completed the full Google News Initiative Lab workshop and his effort was recognised with a Certificate of Completion. Email: ridwan.adeola@corp.legit.ng.