Johannesburg — They might have lost the match, but Nigeria coach Lars Lagerback will probably secretly be pleased with the 1-0 defeat to Argentina at Ellis Park on Saturday.
Argentina wasted a host of chances, while the brilliance of Super Eagles goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama also helped to keep the scoreline down.
Nigeria could have left the match with a much poorer goal difference, and yet they conceded just once, a big bonus in a group that could be extremely tight.
The selection of Chinedu Obasi ahead of Obafemi Martins was a controversial one. After the match, Lagerback defended his decision but feels the striker should have done better with his chances.
"I think he was the best player to play. In the first half he could have scored two or three goals. He lived up to my expectations," Lagerback said.
He was also not pleased with the way his side conceded the goal, allowing Gabriel Heinze to head home unmarked from the corner.
"It was a mistake by us that resulted in the corner kick. Normally we are good at setpieces, but at that corner we were very passive in defence.
"But after today we are very positive going into our next game. We are not out of it yet."
Argentina coach Diego Maradona was delighted with his side and the magnificent support it enjoyed from a crowd of 56,000 in Johannesburg's Ellis Park stadium.
"I really hope that my men will make the most of the support from Argentina's fans, the people in the stadium, I hope they can make the most of that so they can excel and improve," Maradona said.
"My players will then have the flavour of winning. If our players keep winning the games they are going to feel the need, the hunger to win the
game."
Maradona also confirmed that he had instructed his players to give the ball to World Footballer of the Year, Lionel Messi.
"We've talked about this and I want Messi close to the ball. As long as he has fun close to the ball, then we will all be fine. If you take the ball away from him it would be like taking chocolate away from a kid. He produced magic on the field today."
