Finidi George: Nigeria Coach Defends System Despite Disappointing Draw Against South Africa

• Super Eagles coach, Finidi George, has reacted to his side's 1-1 draw with South Africa in the World Cup qualifiers
• Nigeria were held at home extending their winless run in the qualifiers after three matches in Group C on Friday
• The Super Eagles will next travel to Cotonou to play Benin as the World Cup qualifiers continue on the continent

Nigeria coach, Finidi George, has jumped to the defence of his players and his system following the disappointing draw against South Africa in the World Cup qualifiers.

Fisayo Dele-Bashiru's second-half strike salvaged an important point for the Super Eagles after Bafana Bafana took an early lead in the first half through Themba Zwane.

The draw leaves Nigeria without a win in three matches in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, leaving fans of the Super Eagles worried about their chances.

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The gaffer, who was making his first competitive appearance since he was appointed permanent coach, insists the team was good in the second half and created many chances.

"Did you watch the second half?" he responded when asked about the quality of his team. "When you talk about quality, we created chances, everybody wants his team to win but you have to play good football. You cannot just kick and run and when you score a goal you say you have won," he said as spotted on social media.

"We want to see attractive football, which we saw in the second half. Unfortunately, we could not get the goals. The quality, yes. If you create chances against a South African side of this kind of quality that they have, we cannot just talk about our quality.

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"Like I said earlier, unfortunately, it is not the result that we wanted but we have to move on."

Nigeria will next make a short trip to Cotonou to face Benin on Tuesday, June 11, as the qualifiers continue on the continent, as reported by the BBC.

Finidi George discloses career regret

Earlier, Sports Brief reported that Super Eagles coach, Finidi George expressed disappointment at not joining Spanish giants, Real Madrid, during his playing days.

The former Nigerian international was close to joining Los Blancos from Ajax in the mid-90s but the move collapsed at the eleventh hour.

George ended up joining Real Betis, where he became a club legend, making over a century of appearances in four years in Spain.