Portugal 2-1 Nigeria; Player Ratings: Okoye wins MOTM, Bewene shines again

The Nigerian senior team was defeated 1-2 at the hands of Portugal, in a match intended to prepare the host for its next challenge at the World Cup in the United States.

Akor Adams scored Nigeria’s only goal of the match, canceling out Pedro Nero’s opener before Francisco Conceição scored what ended up being the winning goal for the Portuguese.

We rate the players who participated with Nigeria in the game.

Maduka Okoye – He was literally the reason the match ended 1-2 and not a high margin victory for Portugal. He made six big saves, two of them in quick succession. Without a doubt his best game with the Super Eagles shirt…..9/10

Christian Akpan – He got a start thanks to his performance in training, but it wasn’t the kind of debut you’ll want to remember. Failure in the preparation of Portugal’s first goal. Simple misplaced passes and seemed nervous the entire time… 4/10

Bruno Onyemaechi – Started as a left back and finished the game as a centre-back. Solid but not spectacular…….7/10

Semi Ajayi – He won all his duels and is a large part of the reason why Cristiano Ronaldo had a frustrating night. A very good performance from the Hull City man……..8/10

Calvin Bassey – drove the team forward with strong runs without letting their primary job of defense suffer. Unlucky to end up on the losing side because he didn’t make a wrong move……..8.5/10

Wilfred Ndidi: A trusted lieutenant of Eric Chelle. He did what was expected of him as a senior player and captain, but he never did the game his way………6/10

Fisayo Dele-Bashiru – His biggest contribution was assisting Akor Adams’ goal. A largely anonymous performance for a player of his level……. 6/10

Alex Iwobi – The centurion completed more passes than any Nigerian player on the field. I always want to be focused and he completed his top 100 with a slightly above average performance… 8/10

Tochukwu Nnadi – Little by little he warmed up to the coach’s heart and showed himself with his usual energy and courage. Tired in the second half and should have done better with the second goal conceded by Nigeria…….7/10

Moisés Simón – He ensured that Bruno Onyemaechi was not isolated with Trincao. He went down deep and it wasn’t until he was substituted in the second half that Portugal struggled to get out of their position. A disciplined performance…….. 8/10

Akor Adams – Showed his usual fighting spirit and did very well to create the opening towards the goal. Tired in the second part and little done afterwards……… 8/10.

Substitutes:

Terem Moffi – Got into action almost immediately and tired to give life to the attack. However, at key moments it failed to provide the necessary quality…….. 5/10

Abdullahi Bewene – Immediately got into the game and made sure Joao Félix was under control. Confident on the ball, brilliant in his passing and also very athletic. He is here to stay…….8/10

Zaidu Sanusi – Had a night to forget against the country where he played all his professional football. He was removed before the final whistle. He seemed very out of rhythm with misplaced passes and poor decisions… 3/10

Frank Onyeka: His introduction brought stability to Nigeria’s midfield but offered nothing going forward……5/10

Samuel Chukwueze – Had what could have been Nigeria’s way to scoring a late equaliser, but wasn’t sure what to do when he ran out of space. Wasted a perfect counterattack opportunity……… 3/10

Raphael Onyedika, Philip Otele, Paul Onuachu – Did not get involved enough to get a grade.

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