The Super Eagles were unlucky not to get at least a point from their friendly against Ecuador on Friday, according to William Troost-Ekong.
The dramatic match ended in a 1-0 victory for La Tri, with Villarreal winger Pervis Estupian scoring the game-winning goal in the third minute.
The former African champions put in a strong performance, but were let down by questionable officiating and goal-scoring profligacy.
"Given that we were playing under a new coach, I thought the boys put up a good performance." "
We've had like five, six training sessions since we got here," Captain Troost-Ekong stated after the game during his post-game press conference.
"It was a step forward from our performance against Mexico, especially in the first half, and against a formidable Ecuadorian opponent." We didn't deserve to lose in the end, in my opinion.
"One of our goals in these games is to enhance our performance and learn what the coach expects of us."
"Of course, the most important thing right now is the two matches we have in Africa (AFCON 2023 qualifiers). Things will improve next week when we play Sierra Leone."
"With that early goal, Ecuador gained momentum. For them, it felt like a home game. It was a bustling mood. It was fantastic to see so many Ecuador supporters in the stadium. "Present were also Nigerian fans there," Troost-Ekong stated.
"They got off to a great start in the game. Then we gained command and continued to play brilliantly in the second half.
"Ecuador also created some good chances, which was due to our impatience in trying to gain the equaliser." We put forth a good showing and deserved a better outcome than the final score.
"At halftime, we've tried and pushed hard to improve on our first-half performance. We tried to press a little harder in the first 15 minutes of the game.
"By playing one-on-one, we took more risks." They didn't have much of the ball in the second half, as you can see. They didn't feel at ease on the court.
"Perhaps we started the game by showing too much respect for them." We are aware that they are an excellent team. In the second half, we played much better.