It has been mixed reactions amongst Nigerian football aficionados after the Super Eagles lost to Cote d’Ivoire in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final on Sunday.
Nigeria suffered a 2-1 defeat in the keenly contested tie at Olympique Alassane Ouattara Stadium in Abidjan.
William Troost-Ekong gave Nigeria the advantage after 38 minutes but Franck Kessie levelled terms two minutes after the hour mark. Sebastien Haller netted in the 81st minute to make it 2-1 and the host nation were eventually crowned champions.
Meanwhile, Nigerians have taken to popular microblogging website X, formerly Twitter to share their thoughts on the game.
Fineboy Tunde with the X handle @fineboytunde_ posted: “We played well, they played better, next time we should learn to bring better midfielders. Well done to the super Eagles, it was a hard one to swallow.”
Uncle Oge @GONnamoko opined: “Country weh we won manage small through football, now everything Don scatter. Ivory Coast deserves the win, what exactly are we playing?”
Olatunji Joseph (Bobajiroro) @LEOJAMESOLATUNJ reacted: “Not the final we anticipated. Kudos Super Eagles.”
“At this point, I can boldly say that Ghanaians and South Africans are happier than the people in Ivory Coast,” Gudele Bwoy @gudelebwoy tweeted.
Nazahko, with the X handle @Nazahhk also had his say: “Nigeria has always had this wrong mentality of defending the moment they’re one-up.”
While some fans have criticized the team for ‘bottling’ an opportunity to claim the title for the fourth time, others have commended Jose Peseiro’s men for a good outing in Cote d’Ivoire.