Nigeria

1 vs 2

Uruguay

Played
June 20, 2013 11:00 PM WAT
Itaipava Arena Fonte Nova — Salvador, Bahia
Referee:‬ B. Kuipers‎
Attendance:‬ 26769‎

 

37′ John Obi Mikel

Diego Lugano 19′

 

Diego Forlán 51′

 

 

Player Ratings: Nigeria 1-2 Uruguay

Goal brings you the individual winners and losers from the Confederations Cup Group B clash in Salvador

By Kris Voakes in the Arena Fonte Nova, Salvador

68

Comments

Nigeria

2.43

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  Vincent Enyeama

  Fired a goal kick straight at Suarez to put his team on the back foot in the opening moments, but was blameless for the two goals which put Uruguay in the ascendancy.
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  Godfrey Oboabona

  Tough and strong at the back, but his mobility was sometimes lacking up against Uruguay’s quick-thinking forwards. Also kept Cavani onside for a chance that should have seen the South American champs go 3-1 up.
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  Uwa Elderson Echiejile

  Made good territory down the left flank and also showed decent strength to hold off Pereira as he attacked at the other end. Could have had a greater say in the second half, but remained wary of Suarez’s threat down the right.
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  E. Ambrose

  Did superbly to chase down a lost cause of a ball which won Nigeria a throw-in, but within minutes was being tortured by Suarez at the other end. Failed to press close enough at times as the wide men made hay.
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  Kenneth Omeruo

  Enjoyed quite a tussle at times with Cavani, and showed no ill effects from the knock just before half-time which saw him complete the game with his head strapped. Found it difficult to unite the Nigeria defence as a unit as they looked to deal with Suarez and Forlan, but did well to deny Cavani in injury time.
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  John Ogochukwu Ogu

  Almost got on the end of a cross-field pass early in the second half but his desperate slide came just too late. Sometimes lost out due to the inability to think quickly in tight situations and was replaced on 65 minutes by Mba.
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  John Obi Mikel

  Played a wonderful angled pass for Oduamadi which may have led to a goal on another night, then fired home superbly after foxing Lugano with great skill to shift the ball onto his left foot. Continued in his attempts to dictate the game thereafter, but found it difficult to penetrate Uruguay’s organised midfield.
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  Fegor Ogude

  Showed his naïve side with an early foul on Suarez which put Nigeria in a good position to attack, but also regenerated possession well when breaking up Uruguay attacks and rarely lost the ball.
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  Nnamdi Oduamadi

  Could have done better when teed up by Mikel early on, and failed to deliver the same level of threat he managed against Tahiti before being replaced before half-time by Babatunde after suffering a knock.
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  Ahmed Musa

  Hit a strong effort towards goal from a first-half free-kick which had Muslera scrambling to block, but his overall impact was nowhere near as key as in the clash with Tahiti and he was often wasteful in possession.
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  B. Ideye

  Disappointed the majority of the crowd with a poor shot from a free-kick 20 yards from goal, then saw an acrobatic over-head effort fail to trouble Muslera. Turned superbly in the box only to be foiled by Maxi Pereira as he looked for a leveller. Replaced by Akpala with 17 minutes to go.

Substitutions

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  Michael Babatunde

  Entered proceedings just before the break following Oduamadi’s injury, but failed to have a huge influence on the game.
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  Sunday Mba

  Brought on in place of Ogu for the last 25 minutes without changing too much in terms of Nigeria's destiny.
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  Joseph Akpala

  Replaced Ideye for the closing stages but couldn't find a vital equaliser.

Uruguay

3.09

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  F. Muslera

  Had Uruguayan hearts in their mouths when he fumbled Musa’s fierce free-kick, then failed to deal with a low cross upon which Nigeria almost capitalised. Had to tip over as he darted across goal after a looping effort in first-half injury time.
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  Diego Lugano

  Sent a flailing arm in Musa’s direction in an aerial challenge to give Nigeria a great sight of goal, but then opened the scoring himself with a scuffed effort from a low cross following a corner that wasn’t cleared. Failed to read Mikel’s body movement as Nigeria equalised.
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  Diego Godín

  Provided his usual forceful presence at the back to quell any threat Nigeria threatened to be in the air, and was well protected by Arevalo Rios through the centre.
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  Maxi Pereira

  Stole in to prevent Ideye from getting a shot in as he waited for the ball to bounce, then managed to get a toe in to stop the Dynamo Kiev striker turning towards goal.
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  Martín Cáceres

  Dealt capably with the direct running of Musa down the Nigerian right for most of the night, but his advances forward were kept to a minimum thanks to the Africans’ dominance at times.
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  Cristian Rodríguez

  Struck an early effort which forced Enyeama to tip over, but was often too slow to make up his mind on the ball, costing Uruguayan good possession and territory. Replaced late on by Alvaro Pereira.
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  Egidio Arevalo Rios

  Showed his usual character in the centre to stop Nigeria in their tracks a number of times, and his clever brain helped to get Uruguay out of one or two tight spots as their opponents pressed for an equaliser.
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  Alvaro Gonzalez

  Just missed the target with a fierce shot shortly before the break, but his all-round display was lacking in authority at times at Nigeria enjoyed long spells on the ball in midfield.
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  Luis Suárez

  Caused havoc when he ran at Ambrose down the Uruguayan left flank, almost creating a goal for Forlan, but then his radar was all off as he wasted possession with an attempted long pass. Started the break which led to Forlan’s blockbusting strike, and worked hard both with and without the ball. Subbed by Coates as Uruguay protected their lead late on.
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  Diego Forlán Top of the Match

  Had the crowd on his back from the first whistle, but it was never going to stop him playing a key role and his low delivery found Lugano free to turn in the opener. Went one better after the interval with a fabulous first-time strike into the top corner from Cavani’s touch.
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  Edinson Cavani Flop of the Match

  Regularly failed to beat the offside trap early on, but made up for it with a great first-time ball for Forlan to put Uruguay back in front. When he did get in behind, he fired high and wide from a great position in the right channel, then fluffed his lines again as he headed well off target when unmarked with only Enyeama to beat.

Substitutions

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  Sebastián Coates

  A late sub, introduced to protect Uruguay’s narrow lead, he was immediately booked for a foul as Nigeria broke forward.
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  Alvaro Pereira

  Brought on very late in the day for Rodriguez.