AFCON Final: Jose Peseiro’s Record in Finals Ahead of Nigeria vs Ivory Coast

• Nigeria and Ivory Coast face off in the 2023 AFCON final tonight
• The Super Eagles have done superbly under Jose Peseiro
• The Portuguese manager has coached for over 30 years

The 2023 Africa Cup of Nations draws to a close today, February 11, with Nigeria locking horns with hosts Ivory Coast in the final.

The Super Eagles are eyeing their fourth AFCON title, while the Elephants are seeking their third continental crown.

Eyes will be on the coaches' tactical approach in what promises to be an intriguing battle.

Nigeria have an experienced coach in Jose Peseiro, while Ivory Coast have an inexperienced Emerse Fae, who got the job mid-tournament.

Pressure will definitely be on Peseiro to deliver the Super Eagles' first title in over a decade. They are undefeated at the 2023 AFCON and have conceded just two goals.

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They are facing an Ivory Coast side nearly eliminated at the group phase before pulling off miraculous wins in the quarter-final against Mali, and an upset in the Round of 16 against favourites Senegal.

Nigeria have not scored more than once in the competition, but their defensive solidity has played a key role. Peseiro was heavily criticised before the tournament but has received praise for leading the Super Eagles to the final.

Who is Jose Peseiro?

The 63-year-old is a Portuguese coach who's been a manager for over 30 years. His career has taken him from Portugal to Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Romania, Spain, Greece, and the UAE.

He has coached under former Manchester United coach Carlos Queiroz. He was an assistant coach at Real Madrid in the early 2000s. He's also coached Portuguese giants Porto, Braga and Sporting CP. Therefore, his experience in big matches should come in handy.

Before he was hired as Nigeria's boss, the only national teams he had coached were Venezuela and Saudi Arabia.

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The Super Eagles hired the former Panathinaikos manager on May 15, 2022, per Afrik Foot. The last coach to lead Nigeria to a final was the late Stephen Keshi in the 2013 AFCON.

Peseiro's record in finals

Brazilian coach Otto Martins Glória led Nigeria to glory in 1980, Clemens Westerhof won the 1994 AFCON with the Super Eagles, while Keshi won Nigeria's last AFCON title.

After coaching more than 10 teams, you'd expect him to have a cabinet full of trophies. However, that is not the case for Peseiro.

He has never coached more than 62 games for his previous teams. He has won three trophies in his career: the Egyptian League, the Spanish Super Cup, and the Portuguese League Cup.

Peseiro has led teams to three finals in his career. However, he's only won just one of them.

The first final his team played was the UEFA Cup in 2005. His Sporting Lisbon side faced CSKA Moscow but lost 3-1. In 2013, Peseiro won his only final. His Braga side beat Porto 1-0 to win the Taça da Liga.

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He lost two more finals in 2016 with Porto and Braga, per Transfermarkt.

What Nigeria need to beat Ivory Coast

Sports Brief earlier reported on things Peseiro's Nigeria need to do to defeat Ivory Coast in the final.

The first thing the Super Eagles need is to deal with the crowd. The Elephants are playing at home and will be cheered on by tens of thousands of fans in the stands.

The Super Eagles will also need to contain Franck Kessie, one of Ivory Coast's better performers at the tournament.