Head coach Eric Chelle has praised the Super Eagles’ mental strength despite their 4-2 penalty shoot-out loss to hosts Morocco in the AFCON 2025 semi-final.

Speaking after the dramatic encounter in Rabat, Chelle described the defeat as painful but insisted his players gave everything on the pitch.

“The match was never easy. But the players showed strong mentality and fought for every ball,” Chelle said.

Nigeria and Morocco were locked in a tense battle that ended goalless after regulation time and extra time at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium.

The clash, tagged a ‘final before the final’, lived up to expectations with both teams cautious and disciplined.

Chelle explained that his side adopted an aggressive pressing approach to limit Morocco’s attacking threat.

“We pressed high because if you don’t press, you leave spaces and the situation becomes very complicated,” he stated.

The coach admitted his team fell short of its usual technical standards, noting a lack of movement and power in key moments.

“Technically, we were not at the level of our previous matches. I won’t blame fatigue, but we lacked movement and power,” Chelle said.

In the face of this challenge, the Super Eagles produced another solid defensive performance, with Calvin Bassey’s impressive performance at the back.

Goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali also excelled, making a superb one-handed save to deny Hamza Igmane in the shoot-out.

However, missed penalties by Samuel Chukwueze and Bruno Onyemaechi proved decisive, as Morocco converted four kicks to advance.

Chelle urged his players to remain focused as Nigeria now targets a podium finish.

“We worked hard throughout the tournament. This is football, and we must continue working,” he said.

Nigeria will face Egypt in Saturday’s third-place play-off in Casablanca.

Egypt had earlier lost 1-0 to Senegal, decided by Sadio Mane’s 78th-minute strike.

(NAN)