By Emmanuel Ebimoh
The National Stadium in Singapore was the venue for the much anticipated International friendly game between The Samba Boys of Brazil and Super Eagles of Nigeria. With a few shared memories between the two teams, fans were eager to watch 90 minutes of scintillating football from two continental powerhouses.
The Super Eagles took the lead against the run of play in the 35th minute when Glasgow Rangers striker Joe Aribo reacted first to a loose ball in the box to lash Nigeria into the lead. But the lead only lasted for the first half.
It took only two minutes after the break before Brazil found the equalizer. A quick corner-kick found Marquinhos whose strong header hit the cross-bar, before Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro stabbed home a rebound from close range. It was the just the start to the second half that Brazil needed.
Although the Samba Boys were relentless in piling pressure into the Nigerian box, the defense of the Super Eagles stood like a rock to divert every attempt away.
However, two worrying moments in the game were when Brazil’s Starboy, Neymar leaped off the pitch early in the first half, and Nigeria’s first choice goalkeeper, Francis Uzoho sustained a horrific knee injury in the second half.
In the end it was a deserved draw for both teams as both coaches would hope to consolidate on the positives from the game.
