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With one match
already played at the ongoing World Cup, the Super Eagles know that
Thursday’s match against Greece is one they need to win to remain on
course to realise the semi-final target handed to their coach, Lars
Lagerback, by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF).

Nigeria and Greece
are meeting for the second time at the World Cup. Their first clash
came sixteen years ago in Boston during the 1994 World Cup in the USA.
Nigeria ran away 2-0 winners courtesy of goals from Finidi George and
Daniel Amokachi.

That was almost two
decades ago. Today’s Eagles lack the talent and daring of the 1994
squad. Unlike their 1994 counterparts, who went into that year’s
tournament on a high after their triumph at the Africa Cup of Nations
in Tunisia, the present Eagles almost did not make it to the
tournament. They have Tunisia, which slipped up at the last minute, to
thank for their presence in South Africa.

That said, the
present Eagles are not lacking in firepower. Upfront, they have enough
arsenal to cause any defence sleepless nights. In Obafemi Martins and
Yakubu Aiyegbeni, they have two strikers who, under the right
conditions, can wreck a team. Indeed, the Eagles’ qualification for
this mundial was sealed courtesy of Martins’ brace against Kenya at the
Kasarani Stadium in Nairobi.

In South Africa,
the Eagles have a point to prove. Their last outing at the World Cup
was eight years ago at the Korea/Japan edition where they failed to
qualify for the second round. This time round, their aim is to better
that record; and having being handed a semi-final target by the NFF,
they know that to have a chance of achieving that target.

The present Greece
squad like Nigeria’s, lack the robustness of their 2004 squad. Again,
like the Super Eagles, their qualification came at the last minute. The
team, coached by Otto Rehhagel, nicked qualification after a
hard-fought battle in Donetsk where they beat hosts Ukraine 1-0.

Cracking a hard nut

The team under
Rehhagel’s tutelage has become noted for their stinginess at the back.
A compact defensive unit, they can frustrate even the most attacking
side like they did at Euro 2004. What this means that Super Eagles
attackers may have their work clearly cut out. That said, it must be
noted that, with the improvements witnessed under Lagerback, the Eagles
may not allow themselves to be fazed by the Greeks’ resolute defending.

But it is not only
the defence of the Greeks that the Eagles should be worried about. In
Theofanis Gekas, they have a lethal weapon. The striker, who notched up
ten goals during the teams qualifying campaigns for the World Cup, may
be the Eagles undoing if not properly monitored.

Eagles coach,
Lagerback will have to instruct his defenders to pay close attention to
the diminutive forward if his World Cup plans are not to thrown into
disarray.