'Don’t Underrate Ethiopia' - Siasia Warns Eaglesects the Walya Antelopes of Ethiopia to put in their best when they meet the super eagles in the World Cup qualifier play off in Addis Ababa next month.

Former Super Eagles coach, Samson Siasia, expects the Walya Antelopes of Ethiopia to put in their best when they meet the super eagles in the World Cup qualifier play off in Addis Ababa next month.

Siasia coached the Super Eagles in 2011 when they played Ethiopia, that almost crushed Nigeria in Addis Ababa before Joseph Yobo netted a late goal that saved a point for the eagles in the encounter.
Nigeria, seeded by the Confederation of African Football in the playoff draw, were ranked 36th by FIFA, while Ethiopia are 93rd in the world rankings. But Siasia said the rankings would make little difference in the coming encounters.
“Any team that have qualified for this stage are a threat. We’ve played against Ethiopia before, when I was Super Eagles coach, and we had a difficult time against them in Addis Ababa,” the former Nigeria forward said.
“We shouldn’t underrate them this time around; we have to prepare well before meeting them next month. There are no more easy teams in African football. If our players think Ethiopia are easy and they don’t do their job right, we might be surprised in the game.
“It depends on how you play the away games; the home games mostly are like walkovers, but you have to take both matches very seriously.”
But another ex-international, Yisa Shofoluwe, insisted Nigeria must win the first leg fixture in Addis Ababa to ensure an easier return leg in Nigeria.
The former defender had no doubt that the Nigeria squad is full of quality players that can get the job done irrespective of where they play.
He said, “Playing in Addis Ababa will be tough, but it will be wise to fight for a win over there in order to have an easier game in Nigeria.
“If we play for a draw in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopians can spring surprises when we host them and the story will change. We should understand that they won’t respect us as African champions because they also want to be at the World Cup.
“Ethiopian football has been on the rise recently so we shouldn’t just rely on our home advantage before booking the ticket to the World Cup. I believe we can beat them on their home soil.”
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