TheCable

The Super Eagles of Nigeria were defeated 4-0 by Portugal in a friendly match on Thursday.

Nigeria looked out-of-depth as they were severally carved open by the Euro 2016 champions to condemn Jose Peseiro to a bitter return at the José Alvalade stadium in Lisbon.

Peseiro had managed Sporting CP twice before his foray into international football.

The Portuguese entered the game without the in-form Victor Osimhen, who pulled out of the game with an injury.

Portugal, who used the game as a warm-up for Qatar 2022 World Cup, was also without Cristiano Ronaldo due to a stomach bug.

However, the embattled Manchester United forward was merely missed as Portugual — propelled by the enormous attacking talents of Bruno Fernandes, Andre Silva, Joao Felix and Bernardo Silva — took the lead after just nine minutes into the game.

Diogo Dalot set upon the Nigerian defence with a blistering slalom run that took him to the byline and the Eagles defenders granted him enough time to pick out Fernandes on the edge of the box to slot the ball past Francis Uzoho.

The Portuguese team maintained their hold on the game, creating a lot of opportunities, and it came as little surprise when they got their second goal.

A Bernardo’s cross bounced off the trailing arm of Bright Osayi-Samuel, a debutant for the Eagles. The referee pointed to the penalty spot and Fernandes placed the resulting kick into the bottom corner.

Nigeria remained silent through the first half until the introduction of Samuel Chukwueze and Paul Onuachu after the break.

The Eagles, however, failed to halt the onslaught after Osayi-Samuel remedied his earlier mistake and won a penalty for Nigeria. Dennis Emmanuel could not convert the kick.

Portugal resurrected their domination after that and wrapped the game up with two goals from Gonçalo Ramos and Jaoa Mario.

The result means Peseiro has lost four of his seven games as Nigeria’s coach. The first three defeats were against Mexico, Ecuador, and Algeria.