Peseiro hopeful that his wards will be less wasteful in front of goal tomorrow against Mozambique

SUPER Eagles head coach  Jose Peseiro is hoping that his wards will be less wasteful in front of goal than they were on Friday in their game against Saudi Arabia when they face Mozambique tomorrow evening.

On Friday, the Eagles drew 2-2 with Saudi Arabia when the two teams met at the Estadio Municipal de Albufeira in Faro, Portugal. In what was by and large a disastrous match, goalkeeper Francis Uzoho parried the ball onto the net for the Saudi's opening goal and in injury time, midfielder Wilfred Ndidi committed a needless foul in front of the penalty area, leading to a last minute equaliser.

Tomorrow, the Eagles face the Black Mambas of Mozambique in Portimao, Portugal and Mr Peseiro has urged his team to take their chances in the game. He felt the Eagles should have killed the game off earlier on as they created numerous chances in both halves but lacked a cutting edge in the final third.

With important 2026 World Cup qualifiers coming up against Lesotho and Zimbabwe, next month, Mr Pseiero acknowledges the team can do a lot better with converting their chances. He added that the team needs to do better tomorrow but taking its chances.

Mr Peseiro  said: “We need to improve on our finishing. I think we played very well in the first half and could have scored about three to five goals and in the second half as well. We created more chances in the second half but we need the killer instinct in this squad but I’m happy with the result.”

Meanwhile, Mozambique were denied a third straight win after Angola also scored late on to rescue a 1-1 draw at the same venue in Albufeira on Friday. Mozambique took the lead through Faisal Bangal 19 minutes from time but they were not able to hold on as Gelson Dala hit back for the Black Sable Antelopes in the 85th minute.

Mozambique will face a much sterner test from Nigeria, although the contest should provide them with valuable information about where they stand ahead of next year's African Cup of Nations. Last Thursday, the  draw for the continental showpiece took place, presenting Mozambique with a tough challenge after they landed Egypt, Ghana and Cape Verde in Group B.

Nigeria will play Mozambique without strikers Victor Osimhen and Kelechi Iheanacho, who have both left camp after the Saudi Arabia game. Osimhen picked up and injury, while Iheanacho has had to leave for family reasons.