Super Eagles: Ranking the worst performers in 0-3 Guinea-Bissau loss

The Super Eagles produced one of their poorest displays under Eric Chelle as Nigeria slumped to a 3-0 defeat against Guinea-Bissau in their second 2027 AFCON qualifier, Afrik-Foot reports.

Franculino Djú, Mama Baldé and Álvaro Djaló punished a Nigeria side that struggled to defend transitions and create enough danger despite enjoying 55% possession and registering 12 shots.

The defeat leaves Nigeria on three points from two Group L matches, three behind Guinea-Bissau, who have won both of their games.

While several players struggled, five stood out for particularly disappointing performances in Bissau.

Ranking the worst Super Eagles vs Guinea-Bissau

1. Bright Osayi-Samuel

Osayi-Samuel was arguably Nigeria’s biggest defensive problem on the night.

The right-back was repeatedly caught in poor positions and struggled to deal with Guinea-Bissau’s attacks down his flank.

His most damaging moments came for the second and third goals. For Mama Baldé’s 66th-minute strike, the Guinea-Bissau forward exploited the space behind Osayi-Samuel before finding the bottom corner.

The same problem returned in stoppage time when Álvaro Djaló attacked Osayi-Samuel’s blind side, turned him inside out and calmly finished to complete the 3-0 defeat.

Osayi-Samuel also offered little going forward, making his defensive struggles even more costly.

2. Bruno Onyemaechi

Onyemaechi’s night went wrong from the moment Franculino found him isolated.

The Guinea-Bissau forward dribbled past the Olympiacos defender before curling an excellent finish into the bottom corner for the opener.

The bigger concern was that Onyemaechi constantly left space for Franculino to attack, forcing Calvin Bassey to intervene and visibly remonstrate with his teammate at one point.

Calvin Bassey barely talks.

So seeing him shout at Bruno Onyemaechi tells you EVERYTHING you need to know about how bad Bruno was Yesterday.

He ginger am wetin no good 😊 pic.twitter.com/Y0Z1vmZiCz

— NIYORE (@NIYOREpe4h) September 30, 2026

Nigeria needed defensive discipline from the left-back, especially against a Guinea-Bissau attack that was dangerous in transition.

He also offered very little in possession, leaving the Super Eagles short of both defensive security and attacking width.

3. Stanley Nwabali

Nwabali cannot take responsibility for all three goals, but his performance was far from convincing.

For Franculino’s opener, he was beaten by a curling finish after the striker had worked his way past Onyemaechi.

He was even more questionable for the second, remaining rooted to the spot as Baldé’s effort found the bottom corner.

There was little the Chippa United goalkeeper could do about Djaló’s late goal, while he did make some saves to keep Nigeria in the contest.

Still, the Super Eagles needed more authority from their goalkeeper on a night when the defence in front of him was already struggling.

4. Wilfred Ndidi

Ndidi’s return to the starting XI should have brought control and defensive protection to Nigeria’s midfield.

Instead, the captain looked strangely disconnected from the game. Guinea-Bissau found space between Nigeria’s midfield and defence, while Ndidi struggled to impose himself either defensively or in possession.

The midfielder also failed to provide the leadership Nigeria desperately needed as the game began to slip away.

For a player wearing the captain’s armband, Nigeria needed more organisation, more urgency and greater authority from Ndidi. He was eventually replaced by Raphael Onyedika in the 76th minute.

5. Akor Adams

Adams’ performance was very disappointing, considering the expectations surrounding the striker.

The Venezia forward has now played in France, Spain and Italy, but none of that experience was evident in Bissau.

His first touch let him down, while his movement, link-up play and overall approach offered little for Nigeria’s attack.

Adams struggled to compete with Guinea-Bissau’s centre-backs and failed to turn possession into meaningful chances.

He also struggled with relatively simple passes, making it difficult for Nigeria to sustain attacks through the middle.

Chelle eventually replaced him with George Ilenikhena in the 76th minute, but the decision arguably came later than many expected given how ineffective Adams had been.

The 3-0 defeat was ultimately a collective failure, but these five players had particularly difficult nights as Nigeria surrendered control of Group L to Guinea-Bissau.