Super Eagles Coach, Peseiro Speaks After Meeting Tinubu At Aso Villa

The head coach for the Super Eagles of Nigeria, Jose Peseiro, has expressed his delight after being hosted by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Naija News reported earlier that Tinubu hosted the Nigerian national football team at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, following their successful campaign at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cote d’Ivoire.

Recall that the Super Eagles fall short of the AFCON title following a 2-1 defeat to the tournament hosts, Ivory Coast.

However, the Super Eagles returned home with the silver medal, and President Tinubu decided to host them at the State House Council Chambers shortly after they arrived from Abidjan earlier today.

During the event, Tinubu bestowed upon each player the national honour of Member of the Orders of Niger, MON, as well as plots of land.

Addressing journalists shortly after the event, Peseiro expressed his delight at being invited and honoured by a president for the first time.

Peseiro, who said that his team performed excellently well at the AFCON tournament, said it was an honour for the President to have invited him to his house.

He said, “First of all, I would like to say thank you to the President. I am 60 years old, this is the first time a president invited me to his house. It is an honour and a pride to me for the President of the Republic of Nigeria to invite me here. Thank you very much.

“About the final, I think we did a fantastic job. Our team showed very good spirit and played well. My boys did 100 per cent, same for my staff and the NFF.

“Of course I would have liked to bring the cup to the Nigerian people, I’m sad about that. But I’m happy because I think we did a fantastic job. In the final I think we felt that atmosphere.”

In a separate remark, Stanley Nwabali, the goalkeeper for the Super Eagles, said it had been his dream to meet the President.

“It’s so nice, it’s been my dream to meet the President and today, it’s so nice, I won’t even talk about my reaction because merely looking at my face, you’ll see that I’m so happy, even my teammates are so happy,” he said.

When asked if he was going back to Chipper United, Nwabali said: “Definitely, I must go back to my club, but talking about the threat, this is football, you can’t threaten someone because they also won against other teams too.”