Augustine Eguavoen: Nigeria coach wants his team to play ‘Guardiola’s style of football’

From Ogundele Olanrewaju

Nigeria’s coach Augustine Eguavoen has said he is a huge admirer of Pep Guardiola and wants his team to play the Spanish manager’s expansive style of football.

Eguavoen is aiming to lead Nigeria to the 2022 FIFA World Cup, with the Super Eagles set to take on Ghana in the playoffs.

The task has been made more difficult by the fact that Nigeria hasn’t beaten Ghana in over 16 years, with their last victory against the Black Stars coming in 2006.

“I love Pep Guardiola’s style of football,” the Super Eagles boss told TV3 in an exclusive interview.

“It’s a little bit risky, it keeps you on the edge but I love his style of football. But it’s a mixture. You have to mix it up. It depends on the reaction of our opponents.”

The two West African rivals will come face-to-face for the right to earn a ticket to the World Cup in Qatar later this year.

The first leg is scheduled for Friday, March 25, 2022, at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi, while the second leg will take place on Tuesday, March 29, 2022.

Eguavoen said he has massive respect for Ghana but was quick to add that he is looking forward to a positive result against the Black Stars.

“Ghana is a team I personally have always respected. Forget about the performance during the Nations Cup. Nigeria-Ghana any day, in any category, is always a big one. We are rivals, we respect them, we adore them.

“I’m very sure they respect and adore us as well. We are brothers and sisters. It’s going to be a big clash. It’s going to be very tough but in a friendly way… We are going to remain focused and play our game and try as much as possible to come out with a positive result,” he added.