Kenya handed another 3-0 beating in Nigeria

Nigeria will not get the bonuses promised them by President Musa Y’ardua if they beat Kenya by more than three goals but the Super Eagles will certainly take the 3-0 win and the three points they desperately needed in their match against Kenya on Sunday.

It is surprising that Harambee Stars lost the match at all, let alone by such a big margin despite going a goal down to a second minute goal by Uche Okechuku.

They were on top for most of the match throwing four clear scoring chances.

After Dennis Oliech, Patrick threw away clear chances, substitute Victor Obinna scored twice to bury the Kenyans in yet another 3-0 pile of goals in the West African country.

In Group B leader, Tunisia, maintained its perfect start to the second round of the qualifiers by beating Mozambique 2-0 and take their points to six. This win seemed to put more pressure on the Nigerian side, but Kenyans welcomed the result.

Harambee Stars striker, Allan Wanga pointed out that, by Mozambique losing their tie, it left them within reach as the race to World Cup and African Cup of Nations heats up.

“If Mozambique had won, the point difference would have been quite large, now that they lost, we are still in a better position to finish ahead of them in the group,” said the Petro Atletico striker.

Tunisia, who defeated Kenya 2-1 in Nairobi in its first match, got their only goal through a Yahia penalty in the 21st minute of the game and sealed the win with a Darragi 90th minute goal.

Currently, only Tunisia, Burkina Faso and Gabon have maintained their 100% starts to the final round of 2010 World Cup and Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.

On the global arena, Japan was the first team to qualify for the World Cup with two games to spare and will be appearing in its fourth straight World Cup, after a ninth-minute goal by Shinji Okazaki.

Meanwhile, Nigeria coach Shuiabu Amodu has lamented the harsh criticism which trailed his team’s 0-0 draw against Mozambique last March.

Amodu and his team came under some stinging criticism from fans and media, and the coach said such virulent attacks could have broken the team.

“The criticism went over the top,” Amodu said. “We had a bad game in Mozambique and we accept that and the team were determined to do better. We also accept the fact that a team will get criticised when they don’t perform well, but to attack the players that way was unfair.

He never spared the media too. “The press didn’t have to go so far or so hard on the team. The whole negativity could have derailed the team and broken us if weren’t strong as a unit.”

And while some top Nigerian players are lamenting over the selection of the team, Dele Adeleye has dismissed calls asking for him and other new players to replace the more established players in the Super Eagles.

Adeleye formed one half of a solid defensive partnership with Sam Sodje that shut out a feared French attack featuring Frank Ribery, Nicolas Anelka and Karim Benzema, but he said that it was too early to be calling for changes being clamoured for “There are no old players in the team.

“We just have players who have been there before others came. But you can’t say that those players should go because they have been playing for this country and doing very well for the Super Eagles and they deserve to be treated with respect. “I am still waiting for my time and I will be patient.”

Meanwhile, Costa Rica remained firmly on course for the 2010 World Cup with a 3-2 win in Trinidad & Tobago, ruining a big day for home striker Dwight Yorke, who was playing in a stadium named after him.

The win capped a great four days for Costa Rica and kept them top of the six-team group as the final stage of the CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers reached the halfway mark.

However, defeat left the hosts with only an outside chance of a second successive finals appearance.

Additional reporting by Reuters