Segun Oluwaniyi

The host doing exceedingly well under suspicious circumstances is a World Cup tradition, tbh. I'd be stunned if Qatar leave 2022 with anything less than four points. Fwiw, Russia were abhorrent until exactly nine days ago, doping or not. Even if they have stuffed the players with amphetamines for the matches, the performances are impressive.

When did Hubie or Walt Frazier have the sex change? Can confirm it was allowed at Euro 2016 - however what isn't obvious, or wasn't obvious then, was that it was 0.5% shit. It's the same here. They are selling diluted Budweiser in light-up cups for 350 ruble. At the cost and quality, the only drunks are those that arrived at the stadium that way. Outside of Asia and Oceania (which is just lacking in depth of serious football nations compared to the sides that regularly qualify from AFC), I think the next 16 teams added will be fairly competitive. Everyone has talent and the lesser teams are at least tactically sound for the most part. The days of teams showing up to these events and just being embarrassed or looking clueless is over. The quality will be similar. The bigger issue is with the idiotic format of the 48 team tournament. Instead of just doubling a normal 24 team tournament (the winner would play 8 matches instead of 7), we will have nonsensical three team groups in order to placate the clubs.

AH-MED MU-SA AH-MED MU-SA AH-MED MU-SA AH-MED MU-SAAAAAAAAAAAAAA My governor is one of the wildest players around. He can look like an antelope trying to play football in one match and then come back with performances like that. A great card to have in the deck, and he has proven to be a boss on the world stage. The Croatia match is behind us, Nigeria's World Cup has now started and Argentina is in our sights. We should be fair, the first half was poor, but the swagger came back after the first goal with some sweet, sweet football being played. Hey what a surprise you were miles better with Mikel in CM and not AM The issue is that Mikel is a perfect #10 in Africa where the game is slow, played on hard, dry pitches and excessively physical. He can dictate the game in this environment. By the same token, small boys like Kelechi and Musa tend to get tossed around on the continent, so we have to adjust our game for the international stage. 3-5-2 suits this team better right now. Moses's end product is less of an issue at wingback and Mikel's lack of lungs less of an issue when he is further back. I swear before I die, Nigeria will beat Argentina at the World Cup. As of now, we four matches and four losses, but this will change on Tuesday!

So now the gist is that Rohr (our manager) was upset with previous lineups leaking out and and is having the ITK media put out fake news. Apparently, Musa and Iheanacho start now and Moses is at wingback, unless this is even later fake news. I am happy with that, if true. SE will have to take the chances they create today and avoid giving away silly set pieces at all costs. I don't think this is particularly important unless Iceland and Nigeria draw. Sure they will rest players that need it, but they are highly incentivised to win the group. Would you rather face France or Denmark/Australia? I'm not happy about all of this Argentina news of mutiny and chaos in the camp. I would much rather play them while they were internally imploding rather then play a team of angry world-class players after the implosion has already happened. They will be very dangerous, still.

If the rumoured lineup from the ITKs is correct, with Iwobi and Ndidi dropped and Iheanacho/Musa still benched in favour of Moses, Nwankwo, and goal-less wonder Ighalo, I have no confidence at all in a result. I do wonder if it is misdirection, because the same ITKs yesterday were saying 4-2-3-1 with Kelechi, Musa, and Ndidi playing, but now it is 3 at the back with entirely different players according to these same people.

There was a fight between two drunken Russians in front of me towards the end of the Russia-Egypt match. Other than that madness with the taxi running into pedestrians, there hasn't been anything of note, though.

I'm more bored of them because they did the exact same thing at 2014. There is not any novelty to it anymore, and it is not pleasant to watch at all. I appreciate it because they have so much less talent than a country like mine and compete just as well, if not better, but I was expecting poor games as soon as the groups were drawn in December.

The Iran player wasted about 20 seconds steadying himself and quickly praying before the flip throw, then aborted it and just casually tossed it to the player nearest. What a waste.

At loving the child that you created making you a simp.

Andre was really good for a time, but he has really sharply declined the past few seasons. Jordan is the better one now, but even he is just an average and wildly inconsistent forward. I don't mind if they can get him fairly cheaply to be second choice, because the guy is still superior to Joselu and probably also Gayle. The club needs to buy at least two forwards if Mitrovic is going.

For this cycle, the first choice would have been Ikeme, but he is injured with blood cancer. Enyeama managed to get himself exiled from the national team under the previous manager and then exiled from Lille as well, so he is unavailable. I don't think this keeper was a problem against Croatia, anyway. The older options (who play in Africa for the most part) are not really better at all and Uzoho is definitely the most talented despite being extremely young. I’m talking more about the style of football Baba which you could once identify Nigeria by. I do hope they progress though, unless they stink out the tournament. I’d love to see an African team win it. Fair enough. The style of African sides has changed significantly since 94 with the vast majority of serious players in Europe from a young age, but football as a whole has evolved so much in those 24 years that it is hard to really compare, imo. The bigger issue for Nigeria, in particular, is that it has not produced a world class player in this century despite having a pipeline of talent that rivals any other country in the world. We need to address why.

Germany weren't at their best, but Mexico are the best team I have seen thus far at the tournament, tbh. The other "favourites" have been disappointing. The same level of performance by Germany in the next two matches will see them easily through with six points.

I disagree because a normal European side would not be anywhere near this naive and stupid. The vast majority of the team came to Europe as fairly young teenagers, but the team fails to do things average Euro sides do easily, such as dealing with simple set pieces or maintaining possession. Regardless, 3 of the 5 African sides to qualify this time are Arab, and the Arab style is extremely European. Despite my anger, I don't think Nigeria's World Cup is done, fwiw. If you remember in 2014, their first match against Iran was one of the single most wretched matches in the entire history of this tournament (an embarrassment on the same level as last night) and we still qualified out of the group, improved each match, and ended up giving France a tough match really could have gone our way but for a few referee decisions. For the last three World Cup we have shown up looking wildly under-prepared and subsequently improved. Iceland is beatable and the same exact players ripped Argentina's defence quite well only 7 months ago. Rohr just needs to dump this "sit deep, absorb pressure, and hit long balls to Ighalo" approach. We are not Stoke. It's ok in Africa, but will not work against European teams that are more trained in that style. Just drop Ighalo, play Iheanacho who can actually score goals and play Nigerian football on the front foot, especially against Iceland who have far inferior talent, whatever their other merits.

What? This team is not spirited or likeable. They are just crap. The team is chaotic and feisty, and unlike true turboshit teams like Saudi Arabia there's actual footballing talent on the pitch. That makes it likeable to me. But the whole thing adds up to a big amount of nothing. Yeah, perhaps. I'm just really disappointed, personally. They're forcing some of the older statesmen in the team, but they shouldn't be playing. Iheanacho and Musa have to be in there from the outset. Moses and Obi Mikel shouldn't be. Not in that 4-3-3 setup anyway. Mikel is doing alright. At least he can control a ball to some degree. Moses should never see that pitch for the national team again after the nonsense he has now pulled in two consecutive World Cups.

Nigeria's national team typifies Nigeria as a country. A failed state that is barely holding together at the seams and provides nothing but embarrassment and shame for its people on a daily basis. The primary objective of 99 percent of Nigerians is to get the hell out that God-forsaken country as fast as possible, and I cannot say that I am any different. We have brilliant academics, medics, etc. succeeding all throughout the world, but the country itself fails in all of these areas. No different than how we have hundreds of players making themselves rich from football in Europe and over the world but the country itself fails repeatedly. Countries like Iran have nothing in terms of player talent, but makes themselves competitive just through graft and organisation. It is not that difficult, ffs. I guess I am the fool for coming out here to watch them. The performance was typical. Corners against Naija are like penalties against any other team and it has been this way for years. Every World Cup they concede multiple times from set pieces. Croatia didn't even have to bother creating any real chances for themselves for the Eagles to spread their legs. The attack was of course stilted, hesitant play in first gear despite being being one of the quicker teams in the tournament. I'll never understand it. Rubbish.

hehehehehehe So are you dead yet? Big talk considering Y'all gonna get beat later. Saving it for the Nigeria game. I think you need to leave the forum for today, Mike. Your husband, Trinidad, has been calling for you

According to the reporters in the camp, the starting XI for Nigeria will be something like this: Uzoho Shehu Omeruo Troost-Ekong Idowu Mikel Ndidi Iwobi Etebo Moses Ighalo Balogun has a late fitness test and if he is available he will replace Omerruo. Mikel is pushed back to his Chelsea position rather than the #10 he plays for us in Africa. I don't believe he has the lungs to play that position in the way Rohr will prefer against a side like Croatia. This tells me that there will be a straight forward counter-attacking approach. Ndidi breaking up, and Mikel spraying the ball forward to quick attackers in Etebo, Moses, and Iwobi playing behind a target man in Ighalo. I would expect Iheanacho, Musa, and Onazi to be the primary substitutes depending on the situation in the match. Of course, these are Nigerian journalists, so this may be 100% lies.

Not going to Kaliningrad, too much of a trek. Volgograd for Iceland is possible. St. Petersburg for Argentina is a definite. Wow. Always wanted to go to Russia, but didn't feel like I'd be welcome based on stories from people I know who've gone. Are you white? Unless you a different colour, I don't see why you would feel unwelcome. I get a good number of odd or interested stares here as a quite large Black person, but nothing I would worry about. Fwiw, I'm quite experienced in Russia. I have been here many times for business and taken my wife and child here a few times. In terms of friendliness and openness, it is not America or UK and this is just something you have to understand. The country is pretty insular (especially in the smaller cities), but most people are decent, as it the case everywhere. I've never had any real problems. It is not the sort of place I would recommend taking a vacation or something like this, but you can make money and enjoy yourself here. Anyway, the charm offensive is clearly on for the World Cup. Random people in the street are yelling "Welcome to Russia" every five minutes, asking for photos, wanting to discuss Ahmed Musa or John Obi Mikel with me in broken English, or asking questions about Nigeria/America There is no way the powers that be would let this go badly.

I thought he was fairly poor, tbh, by his ridiculous standard. It does not help that 90 percent of his teammates seems to be staring at him waiting for something to happen the majority of the match. What happened with the obvious penalty for Argentina that did not even get checked by VAR? I do not understand this thing at all? Does the referee ask for it or is it called for by the VAR referees? It seems bizarre.

Pogba has been rubbish in this match, and it is not anything to do with the formation or where he is playing.

Was that deflected?

Not going to Kaliningrad, too much of a trek. Volgograd for Iceland is possible. St. Petersburg for Argentina is a definite.

Umtiti, man.

Well, I am happy the girl is alive because she is fairly pretty. Anyway, France have been total rubbish. Man for man this is the best team in the tournament, imo. Deschamps needs to change something.

Signing Kenedy, Townsend (I am aware that signing two established Premier League players with Ashley as owner is likely a fever dream), and any forward that can resemble a competent Premier League player would improve this side immeasurably. From what Rafa has managed to build thus far, NUFC isn't far from being well-above the relegation-level fodder and solidly top-half side imo. The path is right there, but it requires Ashley to spend 15+ million pounds to chase the decent players every other team in the league may want, so this could be out of the question, tbf. At the moment, there are not really any dynamic attacking players at the club. There are grafters, players with good attacking qualities, and dribblers, but no one who is explosive or a real match-winner.