'He was too slow' - NFF tears into Osimhen replacement Dessers for killing Super Eagles attack vs South Africa

The NFF media has strongly criticised Super Eagles striker Cyriel Dessers following Nigeria’s disappointing 1-1 draw against South Africa in their FIFA World Cup qualifying match at the Free State Stadium.

The match started at a high tempo with South Africa pressing hard from the wings, unsettling Nigeria’s defence, leading to two double blows for the West African giants.

Nigeria suffered the first blow when right-wing-back Ola Aina was forced off due to injury after just eight minutes, replaced by Bright Osayi-Samuel.

The second followed as the South African pressure paid off in the 25th minute when Nigeria’s captain William Ekong inadvertently turned a cross into his own net, giving Bafana the lead.

However, Nigeria fought back with determination as defender Calvin Bassey showed great spirit and resilience to pull Nigeria level just before halftime.

Bassey ran forward with the ball and laid it off to midfielder Fisayo Dele-Bashiru, whose pass allowed Bassey to head past South African goalkeeper Ronwen Williams for the equaliser.

The second half promised excitement but failed to deliver a winner. Substitutes Tolu Arokodare and Uche Christantus both had chances to snatch victory but were denied by a disciplined South African defence.

The NFF media singled out Dessers for poor performance following the match. Dessers, who replaced the injured Victor Osimhen and had previously been criticised for being substituted off after coming on as a substitute against Rwanda, was deemed too slow to make an impact.

“Dessers had an unimpressive game in Uyo, where he turned out to be a substitute that was substituted, did not have a better game,” NFF noted in their report.

He was faulted for failing to win aerial duels and offering little creativity or threat in attack throughout the game.

“He was too slow to latch onto passes, could not win aerial balls and did little in bringing alive the Nigerian attack,” the report added.

Nigeria’s next qualifier is away to Lesotho on October 10, where a flawless performance is needed to keep World Cup dreams alive.