Eguavoen Admits Anxiety Ahead of AFCON, Says He Doesn’t Sleep Well Again

Femi Solaja with agency report

With the Africa Cup of Nations expected to begin in the next two weeks, Super Eagles interim manager Augustine Eguavoen has expressed his anxiety over Nigeria’s performance at the biennial tournament.

The 56-year-old is barely three weeks into the Super Eagles job. Still, he is already feeling the heat as Nigeria is expected to do well, considering the abundance of talent for the three-time AFCON winners.

Nigeria is grouped alongside Egypt, Sudan, and Guinea-Bissau. The Pharaohs led by Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah will pose the biggest threat to the Super Eagles.

However, Sudan and Guinea-Bissau cannot be pushed over even though they are ranked 89 and 70 places below Nigeria in the last FIFA rankings.

As the permutations and expectations continue to be rolled out, Eguavoen has expressed his anxiety over Nigeria’s AFCON campaign.

“It’s tough,” Eguavoen told NFF TV. I don’t sleep well because of expectations, but I know not everybody; how do I put it now.

“There are people out there who want us to succeed, there are few people out there who are also in doubt, but we will do everything humanly possible to stick together- the team- the entire federation, officials.”

“And we will do what we can to make sure we put smiles on the faces of Nigerians.”

The 56-year-old has a tough job on his hands, as he has just a week to prepare the 28 invited players,

He will also look to shield his team from all the shenanigans going on in the NFF as the bickering for a foreign coach continues.