England v Nigeria: Don’t nurse injury fears, ex-World Cup stars tell Eagles

Former Super Eagles midfielders Garba Lawal and Justice Christopher have advised the team not to nurse injury worries as they face the Three Lions of England in a pre-Russia 2018 World Cup friendly at Wembley on Saturday.

Nigeria are preparing for the Mundial and will clash with England as they round off preparations for the tournament, which begins on June 14. The team play a last friendly with the Czech Republic in Austria on Wednesday before jetting out to Russia.

England and Nigeria have met three times with two of the meetings ending in draws while the English team defeated Nigeria once.

Today’s match is the fourth meeting between the two sides, with England winning once while two ended in draws in their three previous encounters.

With days to the tournament, Eagles coach Gernot Rohr has had to battle with player fitness as injury knocked winger Moses Simon out of the tournament while Leicester City midfielder Wilfred Ndidi has been training separately since copping an injury at his club before the end of the season.

Most of the players were cautious in the friendly against DR Congo in Port Harcourt on Monday but Lawal and Christopher, who represented Nigeria at the Korea/Japan 2002 World Cup, told our correspondent during the week that the players should not be scared of injuries as they needed to be fit for the World Cup.

Lawal said the players needed the England match to prove to Rohr that they deserved to be in the team to the World Cup.

“The match against England is not one which the players should be worried about getting injured. The pitch is one of the best in the world while the opposition is also a fantastic one. Rather than worry about getting injured, the Eagles should focus on giving their best and convince the coach that they are worth a place in the World Cup team,” he said.

“Injuries are part of the game – although no one prays to get them. The players are experienced enough to know when and when not to go for the ball. They should be careful about their tackles because that could also earn them injuries.”

Christopher said, “The players should not worry themselves about getting injured because I believe that they would not cop injuries. The quality of pitch and opponents affect the chances of players getting injured and they are playing at Wembley, where the pitch is different from that of Nigeria.

“They should play the match with the whole of their hearts and rule out the worry of injuries because the match is important and will determine the probable result we will get against Croatia in our first match at the World Cup.”

Both players believe the battle for supremacy in Saturday’s match lies in the midfield.

Lawal said, “England have always boast of good midfielders while Nigeria have always had sharp attackers. The Eagles should focus their strength on playing as a unit and never allow themselves to be caught napping in the midfield. If they lose the battle in the midfield, they may lose the match.

“England also have fast strikers who can catch our defenders unawares. Our strikers will have chances at goal and they should make sure that they convert as much as they can because the English defenders are also strong. Most of their players play in the Premier League and have a good understanding.”

Christopher warned the team to be wary of Tottenham striker Harry Kane. He said the duo Leon Balogun and William Troost-Ekong will have a hard time containing the crafty striker.

“Kane is fast and is also skilful. He can dribble and can also shoot from anywhere – that has been the hallmark of English strikers overtime. The Eagles defenders should make sure that they give no room to him operate because he would be very dangerous,” he said.

“Also, right and left backs should look out for the wingers. When England is pegged at the centre, they resort to the use of the wings and our full backs will have to be at their best to contain the threat posed by such fast English wingers as Raheem Sterling. I believe the performance of the team in the match will give the coach an insight into what his team can do in their first match at the World Cup.”