Nigeria lose to Czech Republic in final pre-World Cup friendly

The Super Eagles were unconvincing in their final World Cup warm-up game as they slumped to a 1-0 loss against the Czech Republic.

The rain-delayed international friendly was played on a slippery pitch in Austria.

Nigeria were undone by a first-half goal from Tomas Kalas, who exposed the team’s weakness in dealing with crosses.

Coach Gernot Rohr made two changes to the side that lost to England, with John Ogu and Wilfred Ndidi replacing Joel Obi and Ogenyi Onazi in the starting XI.

Although Nigeria had an opportunity to grab an early lead, they were largely on the back foot in a dull first-half littered with mistakes.

Nigeria then sat back, allowing Czech to push forward en masse.

Czech struck in the 25th minute when Kalas slotted home after goalkeeper Francis Uzoho fumbled a header.

The Eagles improved following the introduction of Tyronne Ebuehi in the second half. The Benfica new signing surged forward at every opportunity.

Despite numerous chances created by the Eagles, including Brian Idowu’s one on one miss, there was no way back for Nigeria as the international friendly ended 1-0.