Jose Peseiro speaks on why Nigeria lost against Guinea ahead of AFCON
Football![Jose Peseiro speaks on why Nigeria lost against Guinea ahead of AFCON](https://images.sportsbrief.com/images/320x180/2ea6f17a9538526e.webp?v=1)
Talent and desire have no material limitations.
Credited for paving the way for England's love affair with the region's footballers, the Nigerian Football Association sent their first 18-member squad to Britain 75 years ago.
The tour happened 11 years before Nigeria gained independence from Britain, with the head of the Nigerian FA being an Englishman, Donald H Holley.
The boat trip from Lagos to Liverpool took two weeks and the tour lasted one month between August and September 1949.
Etim Henshaw captained Nigeria and the bulk of the players came from the greater Lagos area. Horeb International notes that the players were selected to be ambassadors for the NFA.
Jose Peseiro speaks on why Nigeria lost against Guinea ahead of AFCON
FootballThe team wore an early iteration of the iconic green Super Eagles shirt, with white shorts and strapping around parts of their feet.
However, the team did not play the entire tour barefoot. On soft-ground pitches, they wore boots but preferred to play barefoot on surfaces with little to no grass covering.
Their first match was against Marine FC in Crosby, which the visitors won 5-2. They would lose their next three fixtures before picking up a draw in Walton-on-Thames.
The tourists would earn a second win when they beat Bromley FC 3-1 before finishing the tour with a 2-2 draw against South Liverpool FC, as listed by RSSSF.
The tour was among the earliest tests of Nigeria's abilities and 75 years later, they are aiming to win their fourth AFCON title.
Exciting news! We have a WhatsApp channel 🤩
➡️ Click to join our channel for all your favourite sports news.
AFCON 2023: Ahmed Musa Rates Nigeria Chances in Cote d’Ivoire
FootballSports Brief previously reported on confirmation that Nigeria's young midfielder had still not recovered from injury.
Alhassan Yusuf was injured in the opening game against Equatorial Guinea and missed the victory over Ivory Coast.
Coach, Jose Peseiro explained the midfielder did not train with the team and would miss the Guinea Bissau game.