Peseiro: Bad social media comments can cause mental health problems for Eagles

Jose Peseiro, Super Eagles head coach, says Nigerian media and fans have the responsibility to moderate their comments on players in the country’s men’s national team. 

Peseiro spoke on Saturday in a press conference ahead of Nigeria’s group opener against Equatorial Guinea at the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Ivory Coast.

The Eagles have been under intense scrutiny over the team’s inconsistent form ahead of the AFCON in recent months.

In November 2023, The team drew Lesotho and Zimbabwe in the first two matches of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. Nigeria then lost 2-0 to Guinea in a friendly game a few days before heading for AFCON.

The results have drawn queries from Nigerians, with Peseiro and Francis Uzoho taking most of the blame.

Speaking on the situation, Peseiro said he cares little about the criticism because of “my age and experience”.

He, however, pointed out that the players are not so immune to negative comments and “sometimes it can touch their mental health”.

Nigeria Super Eagles coach, Jose Peseiro, expresses concern over the impact of negative comments on social media, emphasizing how "fake news and shxts things" on social media affect the team's younger players psychologically.#PhatillTakesAFCON#AFCON2023 pic.twitter.com/bPXitF7qIa

— Latifat Adebayo-Ohio (@Phatill) January 13, 2024

“Some of the comments on social networks even sometimes touch me, but with my age and experience, I do not care. A lot of bad news comes from the media about me, but I never answer,” Peseiro said.

“But the players care, and sometimes it can touch their mental health. They are your boys. There is a responsibility on the media because you can create problems for those boys. They are strong, yes, but not for bad things said about them by the media or social media.”

The Eagles are in Group A alongside Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea and Guinea-Bissau.

They begin their quest for the fourth continental crown against Equatorial Guinea on Sunday before facing the Ivory Coast four days later. Nigeria rounds off the group stage with the Guinea-Bissau tie on January 22.