Nigeria coach Shuaibu Amodu has spoken about his travails at the ongoing African Nations Cup and how he almost quit after progressing ahead of Zambia. Amodu spoke to Nigerian newspaper The Punch Eagles and the Pharaohs' defeat At the beginning of this competition, we started brilliantly against Egypt and scored early in the game. We were carried away by our ability to control the game easily. We would have killed off the game if we had scored more goals when the Egyptians respected us. But we allowed them to come back into the game and let victory slip from our hands. It was our heaviest defeat in 13 matches and we were left with the task of raising the players‘ morale from the defeat and prepare them for the other matches. Thank God we won the other matches to reach the quarterfinals. The Zambian test After reaching the quarterfinals, there were conflicting reports on who our next opponents would be. We thought it was going to be Cameroun and the players were happy because they thought they were going to avenge past defeats. The mood in the camp however changed when Zambia was eventually announced by CAF as our opponents. My players relaxed and it was obvious in their character. I sensed danger and called them to a meeting to remind them that Zambia could knock us out of the competition. I told them that the team was one of the best in the tournament and that they played beautiful football. Perhaps they thought I was only raising a fear that did not exist, but on the day of the match, we laboured to curtail the Zambians. They made it difficult for us with their brand of football. I forewarned the Eagles but they did not listen and that was why we could not kill off the game early. Derby against Ghana The semifinal match against Ghana will look like the quarterfinal match against Zambia. Black Stars and the Chipolopolo have young players who can move the ball well. They can run very well too. Unlike Nigeria, the pressure is not on them. When the coach left Ghana, he told the people that he would like to experiment with the young boys since the big stars are out of the team due to injury. That action alone was enough for the Ghanaians to assume that the team might not go far. They are now in the semifinals so what else do they have to prove? They will come out to play their game, knowing well that they have already done well and have nothing to lose. Yobo is back from England and could be ready to play if he is fit enough. Onyekachi Apam is out due to his red card but the bench is rich enough to produce a replacement. When we left Nigeria, it was difficult for us to explain how we chose the players in the camp for the Nations Cup. We took our time to preview the tournament and that is why we have these players in camp. Obinna Nwaneri is good in Apam‘s position if Yobo is not going to be fit and Yusuf Ayila did well when he filled the position after Apam‘s red card. We also have Seyi Olofinjana who is tall and strong and can play in any position. On Ayegbeni So many people have questioned the inclusion of Yakubu Ayegbeni in the team that played against Mozambique and Zambia. Some said he did little to support the team. Yakubu is a goal scorer but he is just coming out of a major injury setback that wrecked his performance last season. People accused me that he is my player and that is why I always include him in the team. There is nothing wrong in a coach having a favourite player and I think Yakubu deserves to be forgiven for what he is going through now. The plan to stop me This is a matter I would have kept to myself but if I fail against Ghana, Nigerians may not be able to know why. The plans by the Presidential Task Force to hire a foreign coach for the Super Eagles came to me as a rumour because I only read them in newspapers. Reports said some of them tagged the players as bad investments, too old, unfit, unpatriotic and that the team should be disbanded. But much as the reports were doing the rounds, no one refuted the stories. The Director-General on the National Sports Commission Patrick Ekeji was quoted to have said that the Nations Cup would decide my fate. The disappointing aspect is that I was at a meeting where they told me point blank that Nigeria needed a foreign coach and that we should look for one to hire. I was shocked because this was coming in the middle of a big competition. I should have been the one to ask for an assistant and if I needed one, why not a Nigerian. Stephen Keshi is doing well in Mali, Austin Eguavoen has been with the national team before as coach and Samson Siasia is a good coach, why not choose one of them to beef up the coaching crew. Is there anything wrong with a black coach? After delivering on the mandate of a semifinal appearance, I would have walked out on the team and told them to look for a foreign coach to finish the job. Is there a coach that will continue working after hearing that no matter what he does that he will be replaced? Colin Udoh