Egypt head coach, Carlos Queiroz has hit out at his players, including Mohamed Salah, following his side’s 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, AFCON, 1-0 defeat to Nigeria yesterday evening.
Queiroz said that the Pharaohs’ performance against Nigeria was very poor, adding that his players were not on the pitch during the first half of the encounter.
Nigeria defeated Egypt 1-0 in their Group D opening 2021 AFCON tie, thanks to Kelechi Iheanacho’s first-half goal at the Roumdé Adjia Stadium, Garoua.
“The performance in the first half was very poor, and that’s the truth, we weren’t on the pitch,” Queiroz told reporters.
“We only started playing in the second half. There’s no clear reason behind this failure and defeat against Nigeria.
“We lost this match, but there are still six points up for grabs against Sudan and Guinea-Bissau in order to qualify from the group.”
Egypt will face Guinea-Bissau in their next game on Saturday, while Nigeria will tackle Sudan.