Flamingos Coach Talks Defensive Issues and Plans for Second Leg

Flamingos head coach Akeem Busari is worried about Nigeria's defense after the team won 3-2 against Benin Republic in Ikenne. Even though they secured the win, they let in two goals.

In an interview with PREMIUM TIMES, Busari discussed the game, the defensive errors that allowed Benin to score, and his choice to keep defender Ene Esther Stephen on the pitch despite her mistakes. He also shared how they plan to adjust for the next match.

"Thank you very much. Before a game like this, we looked at the other team and prepared for different situations," he said. "We told the players how to react if they attacked with one or two players. But football has human errors, and mistakes can happen.

"The first goal happened because we were a bit late to cover. These things happen in football. Instead of panicking, we reminded ourselves to reorganize and stay in the game. We kept our focus until the final whistle."

A big topic from the match was Ene Esther Stephen, whose mistake led to one of the goals. Busari explained that he chose not to take her off because young players need a chance to recover from mistakes rather than being punished right away.

"Every player reacts differently after a mistake," he said. "For her, the error hit her mentally. Some players bounce back quickly, while others need more time. If you keep taking off players for one mistake, when will you build a solid team? It’s all about coaching and believing in your players. Football is about mistakes, but we need to minimize them. Even towards the end, she was still thinking about that mistake with the score at 2-2. It’s normal, especially for young players. Thankfully, we helped her recover."

Busari expressed that he was more frustrated with Nigeria's missed chances than the defensive errors. He believes the Flamingos could have won easily if they had taken their chances.

"We wasted a lot of scoring chances, and that's not our style," he said. "We usually convert our opportunities. We'll go back, review everything, and see if it was our position, execution, or anxiety. I think conceding the early goal affected the players mentally. If we had scored first, the match would have been easier. We also rushed our play because of youthful excitement. Instead of completing 10 or 15 passes, we only managed five or six. But we'll work on these issues before the second leg."

Busari also pointed out Benin's key player, Romega Ndunu, who caused problems for the Nigerian defense. When asked if stopping her would be a focus for the next match, he acknowledged her skill.

"For a player like her, it’s like bringing a Falcon to play at U-17 level," he said. "She has played for their senior national team, so there is a clear difference in quality. But no single player can win a game alone. Now, we need to study her closely. Is her strength on the right or left? What does she do when she doesn’t have the ball? How patient is she? We’ll analyze these details before the second leg, and we’ll prepare properly."

Busari complimented winger Queen for her great performance, including scoring Nigeria’s first goal, but he stressed that individual performances do not matter as much as qualifying.

"What we want now is qualification," he said. "Qualification comes from hard work and dedication. We’ll keep encouraging the players because, honestly, if we had scored even half of our chances, the game could have ended 7-2. Those are chances we usually score. Football can be unpredictable, and some days things just don’t work out. Our job is to identify what to improve before the second leg."

When asked if playing stronger teams before the tournament would have better prepared the Flamingos, Busari defended their preparation. "We prepared in stages," he explained. "We played teams like Dream Star and Unification because they were available and close by. After each game, we submit reports, review our performance, and plan the next steps. Right now, we are focused on qualifying. Once we get past this round, we will prepare for the next phase."

The coach also spoke about his players' mindset after falling behind early. "I think we managed part of that during the game," he said. "When they scored, I told our players not to panic. We needed to respond confidently because this was our task. The players showed strong character to fight back. Our coaching staff will also help manage their emotions after the match. We’ll discuss everything, but we won’t overload them because of their age. Football has moments like this, and we need to guide them properly."

Busari explained why he told Kindness to stop celebrating after scoring Nigeria’s third goal and get the game going quickly. He wanted a fourth goal to give the Flamingos a better cushion for the next leg.

"In football, goals are power," he said. "A fourth goal would have put us in a much stronger position before the second leg. At 3-2, we were still under pressure. If we had gone two or three goals ahead, we could have managed the second leg differently. But with only a one-goal lead, there’s always pressure. We’ll go back, analyze everything, and I’m sure we’ll find the right solutions."

Flamingos captain Harmony Chidi also acknowledged the team did not play at their usual level in front of goal after missing many clear chances. When asked about her performance, Chidi stayed positive: "First of all, I want to thank God for everything. I believe it’s just a game, and we will work on that."